State wrestling: Hutchison joins family list, Homer falls short of Division II team title

With the last name Hutchison, winning a state wrestling championship is almost a given.

However, two straight years of finishing third at the season-ending state meet had left SoHi junior Gideon Hutchison without a trophy to sit next to those of his siblings.

Not anymore.

Saturday night at the cavernous Alaska Airlines Center in Anchorage, Hutchison got to add his name to the family history with a state wrestling championship. Hutchison prevailed in the Division I 120-pound final, a 6-0 decision over Alexander Logsdon of Wasilla, scoring his first state title but the 12th for his superlative family.

“It feels really rewarding right now,” Hutchison said moments after the victory. “I’m glowing right now.”

Gideon joined siblings Zeb (two state titles), Eli (four), Michaela (one) and Seth (four) as Hutchisons that have won state crowns.

“It’s great to finally stand among them,” he said.

Lathrop sprung the upset in winning the Division I team championship, amassing 320 points over the favored Colony Knights, which finished a scant two points behind in second. Soldotna finished sixth with 82.5 points, while Kenai Central was 15th with 28 points.

In the Division II race, the Homer Mariners came up short of a second state team crown in three years, falling to the Bethel Warriors for a second straight year. Bethel claimed 207 points over Homer’s 196.

Also in Division II, Voznesenka finished 10th in the team standings with 62.5 points, Seward was 28th with 18 points and Nikiski took 30th with 15 points.

Bethel led Homer by 13 points heading into Saturday night’s finals, but the Mariners had seven finalists to Bethel’s four, setting up what was sure to be a tight battle.

However, Homer needed pins, which award six points, to catch Bethel, and the Mariners came up short in that category. Ultimately, the Mariners crowned four state champions; junior Seth Inama at 120 pounds, junior Luciano Fasulo at 132 pounds, sophomore Mose Hayes at 138 and senior Levi King at 195. Homer also crowned two girls champions in Alex Moseley (120 pounds) and McKenzie Cook (145).

Longtime assistant and first-year Homer head coach Bubba Wells said he and former head coach Chris Perk had no regrets.

“We had seven guys in the finals, and got four champions out of that,” Wells said. “We have some good guys coming back next year, so we always have that.”

Homer and Bethel have finished 1-2 in the team standings for three straight years, with Bethel prevailing the last two. The two Division II juggernauts split this regular season, with Bethel beating Homer at the Lime Solar/ACS tournament in September and Homer toppling Bethel at the Lancer Smith Invitational in October.

Homer also got state placers in Chris Cudaback, who finished fourth at 170 pounds after being pinned by Kotzebue’s Ethan Roetman.

Hutchison’s championship in the Division I tournament highlighted the day for peninsula athletes, but it wasn’t the only success.

SoHi senior Bechler Metcalf came agonizingly close to winning the 152-pound title, losing a 4-3 decision to Andrue Shepersky of Wasilla. Metcalf took a 2-1 lead in the second round with a takedown, but Shepersky came back to grab a 4-2 advantage, then held on as Metcalf tried to score an escape point in the dying seconds. Metcalf ends his senior season 36-5.

Also for SoHi, senior Logan Craig took fourth at 106 pounds, losing in a 12-9 decision to Colony’s Rett Gallagher.

With “Hutch” emblazoned on the back of his singlet, Hutchison took control of the 120-pound final with the typical calculated focus of a Hutchison, scoring takedowns when he could and managing to avoid giving up escape points to Logsdon. Hutchison capped his junior year with a 39-3 record.

As the youngest of nine siblings, next year will be the last that a Hutchison can stand atop the podium at a state meet, and the magnitude of that wasn’t lost on Gideon. The 16-year-old junior wasn’t around when Zeb won two state titles in the ‘90s, but he does remember when sister Michaela made history in 2006 when she became the first girl in the country to win a state wrestling title competing against boys.

“I remember us all really happy and we celebrated at an all-you-can-eat sushi bar,” he said. “(Michaela) was stuffing them down.”

The lone placer for Kenai Central came in the 195-pound division, where senior Byron Dunham prevailed in a tight 8-7 contest over South’s Riley Sweet in the third-place match. Dunham lost in Friday’s semifinals with a 7-5 decision to Simon Ganchenko of Colony, the same opponent that Dunham pinned in last week’s Region III title match.

Kardinals head coach Stan Steffensen said Dunham looked a little too conservative in his semifinal.

“He didn’t get out and get him,” Steffensen said. “He told me he felt like he could wrestle another match at that speed.”

Dunham wrapped up his senior campaign at 35-3.

In the Division II tournament, Fasulo capped another remarkable campaign with a lopsided 19-9 decision over Jess Noden of Dillingham.

The win not only gave Fasulo a second straight state crown, but it capped a second undefeated season at 47-0 and extended his streak of matches without a loss to 97 in a row.

“I really wanted it last year, and this year was no different,” Fasulo said.

The Homer junior nearly lost it all late in the match when Noden managed to turn him on his back and nearly pin him. The moment came about a minute after Fasulo got poked in the eye, leaving him with one good look at Noden, but said while he got scared for a second with victory so close, he felt confident he could wiggle out of it.

“I made a mistake I shouldn’t have,” Fasulo said.

Later in the night, King prevailed in the 195-pound final with a 13-3 decision over Barrow’s Sione Tuifua, and while it was his second state title, King said it was the first one that really counted.

“Two years ago I won by forfeit,” King said. “This one is so much better, it didn’t feel real last time.”

King dominated his match, taking a 5-0 lead after one round with two takedowns, then pushing the lead to 11-1 after two rounds.

The Homer senior said the victory was made even sweeter since Tuifua is a Barrow wrestler, and it was Barrow that defeated Homer in the Division III state football championship 20-14 just two months prior. Homer lost that game thanks to a last-second goal-line stand by the Whalers.

“This is all that matters now,” King said.

In girls competition, Moseley saw a four-year run of state appearances finally end with a state title. Primarily a cross-country runner when she was a freshman, Moseley said she took to wrestling as a method of cross-training.

“I don’t know, I guess I started to like (wrestling),” she said. “I got into it because it was technical and there’s a lot of self-achievement.”

Moseley prevailed 3-1 over North Pole’s Raeann Jackson.

In the girls 145-pound final, Cook, a junior, stayed perfect by winning her third straight state title with a 5-0 decision over Madison Ellis of South. Cook said Saturday’s crown was the most challenging.

“I wasn’t being pushed as hard on the mat this year against girls,” Cook said. “It made this one tough, physically and mentally.”

Voznesenka nearly had another state champion a year after Max Kusnetsov claimed the schools’ second-ever state title, but Kusnetsov ran into a roadblock in Thomas Dyment of Bethel in the 113-pound final. Dyment, a senior, had never lost a state match, and entered the weekend undefeated this year.

Dyment pinned Kusnetsov 51 seconds into the final to win his fourth state championship.

“I was telling him first that nobody thought he could do it, just like last year,” said Voznesenka head coach Justin Zank. “He kind of thrives on that.”

Voznesenka got points from three other state placers. Anthony Kalugin and Nikit Anufriev both nabbed fifth place in their respective classes, with Kalugin winning by forfeit at 170 pounds and Anufriev pinning Kotzebue’s Jack Hyatt at 195 pounds. Dia Martishev also placed sixth for Voznesenka after losing a 6-2 decision to Houston’s Damien Jessup in the 138-pound class.

Seward’s only state placer came at 98 pounds, thanks to a 9-5 decision by Clay Petersen over Napaskiak’s Stephen Maxie in the third-place match.

2017 ASAA Division I State Wrestling Championships

Team Scores — 1. Lathrop, 320 points; 2. Colony, 318; 3. South, 264; 4. Wasilla, 160.5; 5. Palmer, 159; 6. Soldotna, 82.5; 7. Ketchikan, 80; 8. North Pole, 79; 9. Dimond, 55; 10. Eagle River, 53; 11. Kodiak, 50; 12. Thunder Mountain, 44; 13. West, 42.5; 14. Service, 35; 15. Kenai Central, 28; 16. East, 24; 17. Chugiak, 20; 18. Bartlett, 16; 19. West Valley, 14.5.

Championship matches

98 — Adam Concepcion, South, dec. Jeremy Bockert, Lathrop, 10-4; 106 — Aedyn Concepcion, South, MD Jared Hopkins, Colony, 9-0; 113 — Marcus Riedlinger, Colony, dec. Jacob Spencer, Lathrop, 6-4; 120 — Gideon Hutchison, Soldotna, dec. Alexander Logsdon, Wasilla, 6-0; 126 — Rush Fannon, Colony, inj. Jacob Shack, South, 2:26; 132 — Kobe Ames, Lathrop, MD Brayden Linne, Ketchikan, 14-3; 138 — Isaiah Elvsaas, Wasilla, inj. Micah Ee, South, 0:00; 145 — Westley Bockert, Lathrop, dec. Spencer Martin, South, 11-10; 152 — Andrue Shepersky, Wasilla, dec. Bechler Metcalf, Soldotna, 4-3; 160 — Joshua Nummer, Kodiak, dec. Zachary Tolver, Lathrop, 7-6; 170 — Eric Christy, Colony, dec. Levi Farris, Palmer, 6-5; 182 — Caleb Hopkins, Colony, MD Auston Vreeland, Dimond, 9-0; 195 — Bradley Antesberger, North Pole, TF Simon Ganchenko, Colony, 4:55; 220 — Carl Tupou, Thunder Mountain, dec. Jason Edwards, Lathrop, 10-6; 285 — Poe Vaafuti, West, pin John Faletagoai, Dimond, 4:24.

3rd-place matches

98 — TJ Clapp, Colony, dec. Garrett Blydenburgh, Palmer, 8-4; 106 — Rett Gallagher, Colony, dec. Logan Craig, Soldotna, 12-9; 113 — Aidan Ehmann, Colony, pin Patrick Rauwolf, Ketchikan, 3:42; 120 — Vincent Cramer, Colony, dec. Niko Mayo, South, 10-8; 126 — Micah Mathis, Wasilla, dec. Theo Cha, South, 11-5; 132 — Sam Sisco, Colony, Dec. Riley Harris, South, 9-5; 138 — Jordan Opp, Lathrop, TB Caedon Ott, Lathrop, 6-5; 145 — Trace Severson, Colony, dec. Grant Burningham, Eagle River, 6-0; 152 — Hunter Bleakney, Palmer, dec. Wyatt Story, Lathrop, 5-2; 160 — Jason Watkins, Palmer, dec. Jacob Anderson, South, 8-3; 170 — Tyler Farless, Service, pin Daniel Niebles, Chugiak, 3:34; 182 — Jeff Glynn, Palmer, dec. Chad Edwards, Lathrop, 7-3; 195 — Byron Dunham, Kenai, dec. Riley Sweet, South, 8-7; 220 — Christian Kurka, Palmer, dec. Maximus Stokes, Wasilla, 5-3; 285 — Lucas Santana, Palmer, pin Henry Saafi, South, :59.

5th-place matches

98 — Jack Fuller, Wasilla, dec. Andrew Killian-Dalrymple, Lathrop, 4-2; 106 — Roberto Lechuga Porras, Lathrop, forf. Collin Blank, Eagle River; 113 — Wesley Fraker, Wasilla, forf. Jahrease Mays, Thunder Mountain; 120 — Darinn Peterson, North Pole, forf. Austin Kraft, Eagle River; 126 — Jordan Sanchez, Lathrop, dec. Kayden Payne, Colony, 12-6; 132 — Matthew Sanchez, Lathrop, forf. Christion Alexander, Wasilla; 138 — Shaun Walton, Kodiak, pin Isaac Coon, West Valley, 4:16; 145 — Brandon Deyarmon, South, dec. Sage Martin, Lathrop, 9-2; 152 — Rylan Randolph-Oxholm, Dimond, dec. Nathan Kisgen, Lathrop, 3-2; 160 — Zion Rogers, Palmer, pin Cody Gamble, Colony, 2:09; 170 — Josiah Opp, Lathrop, dec. Zach Kosa, Lathrop, 8-2; 182 — Mark Fisher, North Pole, MD Coa Gamble, Colony, 12-1; 195 — Tyrese Finley, Lathrop, pin Cameron Harris, Ketchikan, 3:56; 220 — Tyler Cross, South, forf. Kaden Caldarera, Service; 285 — Makiah Stafford, Eagle River, TB John Fitzpatrick, East, 4-3.

2017 ASAA Division II State Wrestling Championships

Team scores — 1. Bethel, 207 points; 2. Homer, 196; 3. Barrow, 101; 4. Dillingham, 98; 5. Glennallen, 94.5; 6. Grace Christian, 90; 7. Kotzebue, 81; 8. Unalaska, 71; 9. Mt. Edgecumbe, 67.5; 10. Voznesenka, 62.5; 11. Wrangell, 58.5; 12. Sitka, 58; 13. Anchorage Christian, 51.5; 13. Monroe Catholic, 51.5; 15. Craig, 50; 15. Eielson, 50; 17. Houston 48; 18. Klawock, 47; 19. Nome, 46; 20. Redington, 43.5; 21. Aniak, 36; 22. Hutchison, 28; 23. Holy Rosary, 26; 23. New Stuyahok, 26; 23. Petersburg, 26; 26. Delta, 23; 27. Napaskiak, 22; 28. Seward, 18; 29. SuValley, 17; 30. Nikiski, 15; 31. Noatak, 6; 32. Metlakatla, 5; 33. Glacier View, 4; 33. Haines, 4; 33. Quinhagak, 4; 36. Koyuk, 3; 36. Newhalen, 3; 36. Nunapitchuk, 3; 36. Sand Point, 3; 36. Shaktoolik, 3; 36. Shungnak, 3.

Championship matches

98 — Caleb O’Hara, ACS, MD James Paris, Redington, 12-1; 106 — Deven Perez, Eielson, dec. Jarius Allain, Bethel, 6-4; 113 — Thomas Dyment, Bethel, pin Maxim Kusnetsov, Voznesenka, :51; 120 — Seth Inama, Homer, dec. Blunka Blunka Jr., New Stuyahok, 8-3; 126 — Riley Rust, Monroe Catholic, dec. Wayne Newman, Homer, 3-2; 132 — Luciano Fasulo, Homer, MD Jesse Noden, Dillingham, 19-9; 138 — Mose Hayes, Homer, dec. Kye Pearce, Hutchison, 4-2; 145 — Hayden Lieb, Bethel, pin Jonas Heppe, Klawock, 5:19; 152 — Mian Alexie-Leonard, Bethel, dec. James Heppe, Klawock, 5-3; 160 — Michael Lucas, Holy Rosary, dec. Kyler Sumauang, Sitka, 7-1; 170 — Caden Gerlach, Glennallen, pin Justin Ward, Aniak, 2:52; 182 — Evan Bockman, Grace, dec. Tristen Cook, Homer, 9-2; 195 — Levi King, Homer, MD Sione Tuifua, Barrow, 13-3; 220 — Tanner Clark, Monroe, dec. Kyle Wells, Homer, 1-0; 285 — Haley Osborne, Mt. Edgecumbe, dec. Dylan Jackson, Houston, 2-0.

3rd-place matches

98 — Clay Petersen, Seward, dec. Stephen Maxie, Napaskiak, 9-5; 106 — Jonathan Barratt, Wrangell, dec. Jude Merriner, Grace, 12-5; 113 — Michael Hatch, Kotzebue, MD Matthew Bohlman, ACS, 11-2; 120 — Seth Smith, Bethel, dec. Justin Dye, Dillingham, 2-1; 126 — Jason Montes, Delta, pin Mathew Hunter, Bethel, 1:56; 132 — Dustin Ruckman, Unalaska, dec. Elden Cross, Nome, 7-1; 138 — Leon Evon, Mt. Edgecumbe, pin Dillon Chaney, Dillingham, 2:38; 145 — Ben Cross, Nome, pin Aengus Bancroft, Glennallen, 2:46; 152 — Sid Fleming, Sitka, MD Hunter Wiederspohn, Wrangell, 13-4; 160 — Gabe Martin, Grace, MD Bryan Castle, Craig, 12-3; 170 — Ethan Roetman, Kotzebue, pin Chris Cudaback, Homer, 4:43; 182 — Aiden Jolley, SuValley, pin Sven Williams, Bethel, 1:43; 195 — Kayden Bird, Craig, pin Seth Henning, Unalaska, 4:20; 220 — Arthur Freitas, Mt. Edgecumbe, dec. Benjamin Heather, Barrow, 7-4; 285 — Oneahi Talaiasi, Barrow, pin Vakameilalo Tuifua, Barrow, 3:56.

5th-place matches

98 — Sylvin Carter, Eielson, pin Ivan Blunka, New Stuyahok, 3:35; 106 — Darius Tilden, Dillingham, SV Luke Hofacker, ACS, 4-2; 113 — Anthony Librado, Barrow, pin Jimmy Nicolai, Dillingham, 2:04; 120 — Moses Korth, Glennallen, pin Jonathan Kirby, Redington, 2:21; 126 — Teagen Schwartz, Petersburg, pin Colton Dow, Grace, :14; 132 — Sean Dorsey, Glennallen, inj. Matthew de la Cruz, Kotzebue, 0:00; 138 — Damien Jessup, Houston, dec. Dia Martishev, Voznesenka, 6-2; 145 — Ian Jenson, Wrangell, pin Graham Staley, Eielson, 2:18; 152 — Michael Kuentzel, Grace, pin Calvin Miller, Barrow, 4:53; 160 — Mathew

Ferguson, Bethel, pin Kael Gerlach, Glennallen, 1:32; 170 — Anthony Kalugin, Voznesenka, forf. Omar Powers, Delta; 182 — Talon Shaishnikoff, Unalaska, dec. Sam Jenkins, Dillingham, 10-6; 195 — Nikit Anufriev, Voznesenka, pin Jack Hyatt, Kotzebue, 2:17; 220 — Andrew Wilson, Aniak, pin Elijah Lindley, Bethel, :46; 285 — Ryan Smith, Bethel, dec. Mathew Faoasau, Unalaska, 6-1.

2017 ASAA Girls State Wrestling Championships

Team scores — 1. Mt. Edgecumbe, 193 points; 2. North Pole, 78; 3. South, 68; 4. Homer, 57; 5. West, 52; 6. Bethel, 41; 7. Eielson 34.5; 8. Nome, 33; 8. Soldotna, 33; 10. East, 29; 10. Kotzebue, 29; 12. Shaktoolik, 28; 13. Wasilla, 26; 14. Houston, 25.5; 15. Dillingham, 22; 16. Palmer, 21; 17. Petersburg, 20; 18. Scammon Bay, 19; 19. Barrow, 18; 20. Colony, 18.

Championship matches

106 — Kailey Fowlkes, North Pole, pin Jolie Lucas, Eielson, 5:28; 113 — Elizabeth Schumaker, North Pole, pin Kristina Gerasimyuk, Wasilla, 5:46; 120 — Alex Moseley, Homer, dec. Raeann Jackson, North Pole, 3-1; 132 — Shelby Ottum, South, dec. Brystel Charlie, Mt. Edgecumbe, 4-2; 145 — McKenzie Cook, Homer, dec. Madison Ellis, South, 5-0; 160 — Sydnee Kimber, Mt. Edgecumbe, pin Eve Negovanna, Barrow, 1:19; 182 — Agatha Andrews, Mt. Edgecumbe, pin Tina Conwell, Kotzebue, :24; 220 — Rachel Moore, Shaktoolik, pin Jayleen Sekona, South, 1:42.

3rd-place matches

106 — Cate Gomez, Dillingham, pin Celeste Katcheak, Stebbins, 2:51; 113 — Starr Erikson, Nome, pin Jolyn Toyomura, Petersburg, 4:29; 120 — Laura Ekada, Mt. Edgecumbe, dec. Tatiana Green, East, 7-2; 132 — Teeana Nicholia, Palmer, MD Adrienne Toyukak, Service, 17-7; 145 — Amanda Wylie, Soldotna, pin Kelly O’Brien, Bethel, 4:36; 160 — Alaina Pete, Mt. Edgecumbe, pin Maleah Vint, West, 2:26; 182 — Thereisa Vaafuti, West, pin Mikayla Kameroff, Mt. Edgecumbe, 1:46; 220 — Cerena Ipalook-Reich, Mt. Edgecumbe, pin Ashlan Tisega, West, 2:09.

5th-place matches

106 — Dellarae Charlie, Bethel, pin Megan German, Houston, 2:29; 113 — Breeze Anderson, Bartlett, pin Zoe Covington, Colony, 3:47; 120 — Jessie Merrick, Houston, pin Katlynn Powell, East, :57; 132 — Andrea Prince, Mt. Edgecumbe, pin Madison Worth, Soldotna, 2:35; 145 — Sierra Tucker, Nome, dec. Nailah Bealer, Eielson, 7-3; 160 — Haley Ulroan, Mt. Edgecumbe, forf. Justina Wilson, Scammon Bay; 182 — Kyleigha Wilson, Noatak, pin Calista Wright, Delta, :28; 220 — Jalyn Paine, Newhalen, dec. Cheyenne Lane, Mt. Edgecumbe, 6-4.