PORTLAND -- Sweet Home’s Jesse Landtroop doesn’t see anything standing in the way of him winning another high school wrestling state title.
All the Huskies’ 126-pound junior has to do is win two more matches and he’ll have his third individual state crown.
Landtroop, seeded first at 126, breezed through Thursday’s opening rounds of the OSAA/OnPoint Community Credit Union 4A boys wrestling championships at Portland’s Veterans Memorial Coliseum.
First, he pinned Estacada freshman Ryder Svela at 59 seconds in the first round.
That put Landtroop into the quarterfinals where he went the distance against Hidden Valley junior Ashton Angeledes, using five takedowns in a 17-6 major decision.
Next up, a bout against No. 5-seed Charlie Morton of Marshfield in Friday’s semifinals.
The other semifinal features No. 2-seed Deegan Nelson of La Grande against No. 3-seed Acen Clark of Henley.
The winners of those two matches will meet in Friday’s 7:30 p.m. finals.
“I’m the best. Nobody can beat me,” Landtroop said of his mindset heading into Thursday’s action. “I’ve got to be confident. I’m the best in this tournament.”
He certainly knows his way around Portland’s historic Glass Palace, where his career record currently stands at 10-0 with four pins, one technical fall, two major decisions, two decisions, and one forfeit win.
“Jesse just wrestles and he’s hard-nosed,” Sweet Home coach Steve Thorpe said. “I got to coach his dad (Jeff), and his dad was part of my first two state championship teams in ’98 and ’99. He coaches with us, but to have Jesse, he’s one of those kids I’ve got to coach since he was 4 years old.
“He doesn’t want to just be the best 4A wrestler in the state. He wants to be one of the best in the state.”
Of the 20 wrestlers Sweet Home qualified into this year’s state tourney, nine advanced into the semifinals including returning state champions Riley Vaughan at 120, Tytus Hardee at 132, and Dillan Davis at 144.
Sweet Home’s Cody Sieminski at 106, Keegan Jefferson at 113, Kyle Zajic at 165, Luke Rosa at 175, and Elijah Cruz at 215 also earn spots in the semis, helping propel the Huskies to top of the first-day team race with 161 points, followed by Pendleton (129.5), La Grande (115.5), Cascade (74.5) and Molalla (68.5).
The Huskies are closing in on a 10th OSAA team title and their fifth since the OSAA expanded to six classifications 20 years ago, but there’s still work to be done.
“I think we’re doing what we’re supposed to do right now,” said Thorpe, whose team finished second behind Crook County at last year’s tournament. “We’re winning matches we should win, and we’re winning a couple that we shouldn’t. Everybody’s points in this tournament count.
“I think we had an okay first day. I wish we could have won a couple more in the quarterfinals, but this tournament … I’ve done this for 35 years and it’s never the same. The group is a bunch of ‘wrestle-heads’ — kids who came in with some purpose and wanting to accomplish some things.
“Now, the guys heading to day two are looking to win their first match tomorrow. That puts them in the finals. And we know there’s still a lot of points to be had out on the board.”
Landtroop likes the Huskies’ chances — almost as much as his own.
“I’m confident in our team,” he said. “I think we’re going to run away with it if everyone does his job. Everyone just has to wrestle good and smart.”
Thorpe sounded cautiously optimistic.
“We’re doing the things we need to do right now and I’m pretty proud of them, but we’re not done,” Thorpe said. “La Grande and Pendleton are right there. Two great teams. Two well-coached teams. You take that and … I’ll tell you what, that’s pretty good.”
Pendleton qualified 18 into the tournament and advanced six to the semifinals: Aiden Cox at 120, Cole Roy at 150, Kainen Zimmerman at 165, Vance Nelson at 175, Aidan Perkins at 190, and heavyweight Kaleb Lillie.
The Buckaroos also have three in the consolation semifinals: Wesley Browning at 106, Hank Roy at 113, and Tugg McQuinn at 165.
Of La Grande’s 16 state qualifiers, seven are in the semis: Darren Gulzow at 106, Deegan Nelson at 126, Bragen Anderson at 132, Colton Livingston at 138, returning two-time state champion Tommy Belding at 157, Noah Collins at 165, and Dex Dunlap at 215.
“I’m confident that I can get this taken care of again this year,” said Belding, who will face Molalla’s Jake Kenton in Friday’s semifinals. “And I’m confident in a lot of my teammates that they can do the same.
“I’m more just excited for the opportunity to go out there and give it one more run for all the fans at home and everybody that’s come to watch me.”
3A
Banks emerged as the team to beat after the third-ranked Braves advanced eight wrestlers into semifinals during Thursday’s opening round of the OSAA/OnPoint Community Credit Union Class 3A boys wrestling championships at Memorial Coliseum.
Henry Begstrong was the first to reach the semifinals in the 106-pound weight class, followed by Treyton Henning at 120, Tobijah Mauck at 138, Owen Turner at 144, James Turner and Christian Medina at 150, Wyatt Jackson at 175, and heavyweight Cade Wilson.
Hunter Gilbert also advanced to Friday’s consolation semifinals as the Braves took the first-day lead in the team race with 109 points, followed by Harrisburg (92), Nyssa (87), Burns (82.5) and Willamina (44).
This is uncharted territory for the Braves, whose best team finish was second in 2003.
“This has been a super-disciplined team all year,” Banks coach Dan Herb said. “We know what the job is and right now, we’re doing our job.
“That’s kind of what the plan is — get through day one, punch guys into the semis, just winning matches and competing the best they can.”
Banks put on a strong showing at the Special District 1 champions when they sent 15 wrestlers into the finals and came out with seven district champs.
So, did putting eight into the semifinals at state come as a surprise or was it expected?
“We really didn’t have a number,” Herb said. “Eight is great, but we’ve got to keep winning matches. It’s going to be a dogfight to the end. We’ve just got to keep scrappin’.
“It’s fun and it’s stressful. We’ve been a trophy team the last three years, but we just didn’t quite have the horses to win it. We do our homework. We knew the last few years we could trophy, but winning it would be a long shot.
“This year, it’s just different. Different kids. These guys are ready, they know it’s achievable and they bought in.”
Bergstrom, one of three seniors on the Banks’ state roster, helped set the tone in his opening match as he pinned Lakeview’s Bryson Havely in the first round. He then rallied from a 6-2 deficit for a 9-6 win over Riverside’s Angel Madrigal in the quarterfinals.
“The team’s prepared,” Herb said. “We always have a good football team. They play late every year and then it takes us a while to get in shape. They know the plan. The message all year has been ‘Stick to the plan.’ We don’t care about losses in December and January. This is when it counts.
“They bought into that and we’re wrestling pretty well, but we’ve got to keep it going. It’s far from over. We have a saying — and to tell the truth, I stole it from Steve Thorpe at Sweet Home — but we say, ‘Success isn’t an accident. It’s on purpose.’ That’s what we believe.”
Harrisburg advanced six into the semifinals — Brandon Henderson at 106, Andrei Donayri at 126, John Henderson at 132, Trayson Truesdell at 138, Jackson Peterman at 144, and returning three-time state champion Brody Buzzard at 215 — but the Eagles’ title hopes took a significant hit when Braxton Henager, the No. 1 seed at 126, dropped a 4-0 decision to Sutherlin’s Dane Strunk to open the tournament.
To Henager’s credit, he bounced back with two wins and advanced to Friday’s consolation semifinals with a chance to finish third for the second year in a row.
“I don’t think we won any matches that we were underdogs in,” Harrisburg coach Desmond Bennett said. “But we lost one that we were favored in, so … you don’t want that to happen.
What will it take to run down Banks?
“We’re going to have to put our ’06-pounder in the finals, our ’32-pounder, our ’38-pounder, our ’44-pounder, Brody at 215, and we might have to pull off an upset at 126,” Bennett said. “And then the guys on the back side (Levin Conley at 138 and Henager at 126) just have to keep winning, which we can. Their effort is there. I think it’s still within reach.”
Nyssa has eight in the semifinals, including two wrestlers who reached the podium a year ago — Jose Jimenez at 106 and Luke Baker at 157.
Burns has five in the semifinals, including returning state champion Cannon Kemper at 165, and four others in the consolation semifinals.
2A/1A
The defending champion Culver Bulldogs did almost everything in their power to run away from the rest of the Class 2A/1A field Thursday at Memorial Coliseum.
Of the 15 Culver wrestlers who qualified for the state finals, 10 advanced to Friday’s semifinals as the Bulldogs took the first-day lead in the team race with 71.5 points. Oakridge was second with 36 points, followed by Lowell (34.5), Irrigon (26.5), and Illinois Valley (23).
“I’d say they got off the bus ready to wrestle,” Culver coach J.D. Alley said. “We had a lot of things going in our favor in terms of numbers and seeds and returning placers, but we’ve still got to show up and weigh in and prepare for a match and win on Friday.”
Braden Nielsen, the No. 2 seed at 120, did what he set out to do Thursday, pinning each of his first two opponents to advance to Friday’s semifinals against Nestucca’s Brady Hurliman.
“A pretty good day,” said Nielsen, who placed second at 113 in last year’s tournament. “I’d say I’m in a pretty good spot, being in the bottom half of the bracket. Being the second seed wasn’t what I was expecting or wanting, but that’s not really my choice. Maybe it worked out for the better.
“Oh, yeah, I’m ready for what’s next. I’m very excited. I could go right now if I wanted to. Tomorrow, I may have to step off the gas pedal instead of going hard for the first minute against these next couple of kids I’m going wrestle, but I feel I have a good shot.”
Joining Nielsen in the semis for Culver are Rhett Arsenault and Hayden Hatcher at 106, Ezra Sanabria at 132, Bridger Fosmark at 138, Noah Corey at 150, Tyler Rahi at 165, Max Dickson at 175, Leland Minson at 190, and Coby Holmes at 215.
“We found a few ways to win some interesting matches,” Alley said. “We won one at 138 where Fosmark was down 7-0, then battled back to an 8-8 tie, and won with a pin.
“This tournament, people are finding a way to end their season, people are having brilliant moments, and people have injuries. I told our kids, whatever problems and injuries you might have, that can wait until Sunday. Just get on the damn bus, exude confidence, and go do what we’ve been doing all year.
“We’ve just got to keep doing what we can do. We’re not going to blow people out of the water in every one of those weight classes, but we can be competitive.”
Culver has a chance to win their 15th team championship — or No. 16 for those, including Alley, who like to count the Oregon Wrestling Association title that the Bulldogs won at Sweet Home High School during the Covid-interrupted 2021 season.
“That was one of our hardest years ever, you know,” Alley said. “We had to wrestle in June, wrestle with masks, wrestle outside … all those things. The teams that won that year, they deserved two stars, not an asterisk.”
With that said, Alley draws a good deal of satisfaction from the success Culver has had since 2002, placing first 14 times and second six times.
“It’s 100 percent the thing that I’m most proud of — that we’re here every year,” Alley said. “We had a wild, strange, don’t-know-what-happened year in 2024 when we finished 12th out of the trophies. But since 2001, we’ve had a trophy every year and only two of them weren’t blue or silver.
“We’ve put a 25-year run together that says we’re going to be in the hunt every year.”
4A/3A/2A/1A Girls
The same question that has been asked after the opening round of OSAA Class 4A/3A/2A/1A girls wrestling state championships at Memorial Coliseum came up again Thursday: Can anyone catch the La Grande Tigers?
The two-time defending champion Tigers advanced six wrestlers into Friday’s semifinals — Carleigh Radke at 105, Rhiley Lees at 110, Avery Robinson at 120, Sydnee Azure at 125, Emmeline Livingston at 130, and Madison Armstrong at 190 — and opened an 83-50 lead over Harrisburg in the team race.
Oakridge held down third place with 49 points, with Sweet Home (45) and Banks (43) rounding out the top five.
“I’m proud of the girls and the effort that they’ve put in so far, but it’s neat that we come into this thing and there’s nothing to take for granted,” La Grande coach Rusty Gulzow said. “There are no gimmes. At the end of the day, it’s all going to come down to the finals.
“I’m happy to be a part of it and enjoying how the sport has grown, watching these other teams is great, as well. I think we just need to keep doing what we’re doing and we’ll see how it works out in the end.”
Lees, a senior making her state tournament debut, helped set the tone for La Grande when she rallied from a 7-0 deficit to edge Lakeview’s Emma Halbleib 14-13 in her first match.
She then used a second-round pin to down North Marion’s Bethany Dunn in the quarterfinals, advancing to Friday’s semifinals against Oakridge’s Ellie Walters.
“This is like life-changing,” Lees said. “I’m going from not even placing at districts my first three years of high school to going to the state semifinals … it’s insane.
“It’s unbelievable. If you would have told last year me that I would be in this year’s semifinals at state, I think my head would be like blown off. I about had a heart attack when I first walked in. I told my mom, ‘This place is huge.’ But, I don’t know, it’s no bigger than any other wrestling tournament. I mean, I think we’ve been to bigger, but it’s still like … mind-blowing.
“I am so ready for Friday. I have been dreaming of this for my entire high school career.”
Gulzow has been impressed with what he has seen from Lees throughout the season. He said Thursday was icing on the cake.
“A lot of times when you see somebody that’s had that many cracks at it and not made it, you’d be quick to assume that they’re not going to do it,’ Gulzow said. “Rhiley made up her mind last year that she wasn’t only going to the state tournament, but she was going to be a state placer.
“A lot of people said, ‘Well, that’s pretty lofty,’ and she accomplished that today. It’s absolutely fantastic. Never been to the state tournament and she’ll be on that podium tomorrow night.”
Harrisburg had four wrestlers in the semifinals, including two former state champions — Paxton Steele at 110 and Thurston transfer Izabella Castleberry at 170 — but the Eagles have little room for error if they hope to make a serious run at the team title.
“We need some help and we probably need four champions and a third,” Harrisburg coach Desmond Bennett said. “La Grande’s got 10 gals here and they’re wrestling good, especially that first round. I think they put up 30 points. I think every girl that had a match for them got a fall. They came out of the gates firing. Good for them.”
Oakridge also poses a threat. The Eagles have five in the semifinals — Walters at 110, three-time state champion Vanessa Keller at 115, Emmalee Brissett at 120, Victoria Keller at 125, and Kali Williams at 135 — and are in almost the same position that they were in a year ago when they finished second to La Grande in the team race.
“This is where we planned to be, so no real surprises for us,” Oakridge coach Dan Nibblett said. “There were a couple of moments where you have a slight falter, but we didn’t have any mistakes. You can have a wobble, but you can’t have a mistake at the state finals.
“Tomorrow, we’ll see what pressure does, because pressure breaks things. And we want to be the ones breaking things.”
As a team, Oakridge wrestled a total of seven matches Thursday and went a combined 7-0 with six first-round pins and one second-round pin.
If the Eagles continue to maximize their scoring potential, can La Grande hold them off again?
“All five have to ability to reach the finals,” Nibblett said. “How they respond to the pressure and how their opponents respond to the pressure will determine that. But I feel good. I feel really good about this fantastic five.”
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