TACOMA — Ricky Simon prefers to lay low. The Union senior can’t hide now, even in the tumult of the Tacoma Dome during Mat Classic.
He’s wrestling so well these days, that his name is pronounced correctly on occasion.
Simon — pronounced Si-mone — is two wins from living up to his No. 1 ranking and securing a state title at 140 pounds in Class 3A after a pair of convincing wins on Friday.
“Being the favorite doesn’t change anything. I’m just here to win,” Simon said.
Wrestlers from Clark County did their share of winning on the first day of the state tournament, which concludes today with semifinals in the morning and finals in the afternoon. Seven Clark County wrestlers advanced to the 3A semifinals, and four reached the Class 4A final four.
Simon is a leader for a Union team that brought nine to the state tournament and will have three in the semifinals. Camas also has three 3A semifinalists, and Prairie one.
In the Class 4A meet, Friday was good for Heritage, which advanced three to the semifinals. Evergreen sophomore Michael Nguyen used an overtime victory to reach the 103-pound semifinals.
For Heritage senior Cody Wood, reaching the semifinals of the 4A tournament was the continuation of a long climb. This is his fourth trip to Mat Classic, but the first time the 125-pounder has been a semifinalist.
“It’s such a big relief,” he said after building an early lead to win his quarterfinal match. “That went exactly as I planned it.”
Heritage 119-pounder Austin Frazier didn’t feel the same after rallying to win his quarterfinal match. Timberwolves coach Donnie McPherson wanted a more assertive effort, though Frazier nearly pinned his way to victory after grabbing control in the third round.
“He doesn’t like it when I pull back,” Frazier said. “I need to stay aggressive all the time and use my stamina to my advantage.”
Heritage’s Kyle Walker, ranked second at 140 pounds, made it through day one with a pin followed by a 5-1 win.
In the Class 3A meet, Camas and Union will both triple their semifinal fun.
For the Papermakers, Miguel Salamanca (140), Scott Le (145) and Caleb Malychewski (171) reached the semifinals.
Salamanca, who is will face Simon in the semifinals, survived an overtime match in the first round then won with a pin in the quarterfinals.
Le posted a quick pin to open the tournament, then won a high-scoring quarterfinal match.
Malychewski won a pair of decisions, including a 7-6 win against Danny Lopez of Everett in the quarterfinals.
Joining Simon in the semifinals from Union are Clint Coulter at 189 pounds and Max Proudfit at 285.
Coulter won a tough 5-2 quarterfinal decision over Dylan Lemery from Shadle Park.
Two first-round pins carried Proudfit into the 285-pound semifinals.
Prairie senior Kyle Wylie was among the semifinalists soaking in the experience. The 135-pounder posted a pair of convincing wins for his first trip to the final four. This is his second Mat Classic in four years of high school wrestling.
“Two years ago I wouldn’t have expected to be here,” Wylie said. “Now it’s what I work for.”
He had the flu a couple of weeks ago, unsure he would regain his strength in time to make a run for a state title.
“This feels great,” Wylie said. “Four years of hard work is paying off.”
Among those who experienced disappointment on Friday was Hudson’s Bay sophomore Emilio Alcantar, who wrestled with a shoulder harness to protect a strain. A year removed from placing second at 119 pounds, he lost his first two matches.
For Union and Simon, it was a good day.
Though he still has some work to do, Simon had convinced at least one observer. After he defeated Lakes’ Will Ramirez in the quarterfinals, a coach from Lakes who predicted Simon will leave Tacoma with another name: state champion.
