The North Thurston High School girl’s and boy’s wrestling team competed against the joint team from Timberline Thursday, January 26, 2024, in Lacey for a WIAA 3A South Sound Conference wrestling match. The boy’s match ended with North Thurston pulling ahead for a 42-32 win and Timberline won the girl’s match 18-12.
Both teams are preparing for Districts with the hope of individual wrestlers qualifying for the State Tournament “Mat Classic XX3” on February 16, 2024, at the Tacoma Dome.
North Thurston head coach Calvin Belton was proud of his team and the work they have put in on the year. “We are a young team and they are learning every day and coming back hungry and are ready to grind,” stated Beltron. “We are excited as we head to Districts and I have a few older wrestlers that have been in the program and we are looking to get into the postseason with them and hopefully have some success.”
Beyond wrestling, coach Beltron’s program has worked hard at teaching lessons that can be applied to his athletes outside the mat. “Wrestling is like life,” he stated. “The troubles we have in the wrestling room are similar to some of the obstacles we have in life so we are trying to teach our athletes to learn how to conquer some of those challenges now.”
Darryl Hall, Timberline’s head coach, thought both his teams wrestled well and is looking forward to several of his wrestlers succeeding at Districts and hopefully State. “We are a young team and we have 17 freshmen but we are excited for the rest of this year and the future,” Hall remarked. “The team is growing and working hard and excited to have match time. We just preach to never give up and to put 100% into each match.”
North Thurston celebrated its seniors for “Senior Night” before the varsity teams began.
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