Submitted by the Orcas Island Wrestling Club.

Five young wrestlers from the Orcas Island Wrestling Club traveled to Stanwood High School to compete in the Western Washington Kids Wrestling League Novice Championships. Nine or 10 young athletes had been working hard to get ready for this tournament but some kind of flu bug swept through and reduced the number to the five who were healthy enough to go. As a team, they won 12 out of 21 matches and placed fifth out of 25 teams for win percentage.

Elliot Wooding placed 4th in the 8U 49-pound class. He had a bye for his first match, won his second match with an 8-6 decision, lost his third match to a 9-6 decision, won his fourth match with a 12-5 decision, won his fifth match with a pin and won his sixth match with an 8-7 decision. He lost his seventh match by a 15-2 major decision, securing fourth place in his bracket.

Caden King took second place in the 8U 56-pound class. He won his first match with a pin, won his second match with a 3-0 decision and won his third match with a pin. He lost both his fourth and fifth matches by getting pinned.

David Nunez took second place in the 8U 85-pound class. He lost his first match by a 13-2 major decision, won his second match with a pin and won his third match with a pin.

Greyson Howard took third place in the 12U 70-pound class. He won his first match with a pin, won his second match with a pin, lost his third match by getting pinned and lost his fourth match by getting pinned.

Aria Griffin took fourth place in the 12U 70-pound class. She lost her first match by an 11-3 major decision, had a bye for her second match, won her third match with a 10-2 major decision and lost her fourth match by an 11-1 major decision.

It was a good day for wrestling, and the OIWC team represented themselves well. The athletes supported each other and showed great sportsmanship throughout the day. With only two tournaments left on the schedule, the team needs to get healthy and back to practice so they can be ready for the fierce competition found toward the end of the season.