Newberg wrestling senior class achieves perfection: 91 dual meets, 91 victories. ‘We put in the work, and we have fun, too.’
By Dan Brood | Photos by Taylor Balkom
It’s said that nobody’s perfect.
Well, the seniors on the Newberg High School wrestling team might have a case to the contrary.
At least when it comes to dual meets, those Tiger seniors have been absolutely perfect.
The Newberg seniors wrapped up their perfect four years of dual-meet success in dominating style, as the Tigers powered their way to an 81-0 win over Glencoe in a Pacific Conference dual-meet finale held in front of an enthusiastic Senior Night crowd Thursday at Newberg High School.
With that win, the Newberg seniors were part of program that went 91-0 in varsity dual meets the past four seasons.
“It is quite amazing,” Newberg senior Charlie Evans said after the match. “It’s just really cool.”
“It just shows how much work we’ve put in,” Newberg senior Ayden Garver said. “We’re in here at 6 a.m., lifting weights, running. Then we come in after school and wrestle. We put in the work, and we have fun, too.”
“They’re unbelievable,” Newberg coach Neil Russo said of his seniors. “They have made their mark, absolutely. They are 91-0 in dual meets. It’s pretty darn impressive. It takes some luck, there’s no question about that, but they have earned everything.”
With the victory over Glencoe, Newberg finished the Pacific Conference season with a perfect 6-0 record in conference dual meets. And it wasn’t just any 6-0 — Newberg outscored its six conference opponents 428-36. The Tigers’ closest match in conference competition was a 60-21 victory over Sherwood.
All of that success, and all of that dominance, didn’t just happen overnight — not even close. It’s been the result of many, many years of hard work — and of bonding.
“This group, we’ve grown up together,” Evans said. “It’s really cool to win out with this group. From when we were 4 years old until now, our senior year, the last one, it’s something amazing.”
“We’ve created a family, really,” Garver said. “We have eight or nine kids who are seniors in our starting lineup, and that’s pretty incredible. We’ve all come up together as one. It’s just the bond. We kind of make fun of each other when we lose, and I think that helps us be better.”
“The biggest factor is how much they care about each other. Many of them have all kinds of individual accolades that they are very proud of, and should be, but I think that they all put the program and the team first,” Russo said. “Wrestling is an individual sport, but they are absolutely a family. They fight like a family, but they do love each other, and it is a special, special group.”
That special group of Newberg seniors helped put together an absolutely incredible standard in dual meet competition by going 91-0.
“I think it says a lot about us,” Evans said of the 91-0 mark. “And it’s happened because we’re a team. We’re always backing each other.”
While this season’s Newberg team, led by that special group of seniors, has been dominant in dual-meet competition, there have been close calls in the past. The closest was when the current seniors were freshmen when, competing at the NW Duals, they edged Chiawana, Wash., 34-33 on criteria, after the dual ended with the teams tied 33-33.
Current Newberg seniors Price Pothier, Sophia Redwine, Nicky Olmstead, Evans and Garver, then freshmen, all picked up wins in that match, helping the Tigers get the oh-so-close victory.
“We had a match we won on criteria our freshman year. Looking back, we didn’t know that would be our closest match that we ever had,” Garver said.
That season, Newberg finished in second place at the Class 6A state tournament, falling just seven points behind state champion Roseburg.
The next year, when the current seniors were sophomores, Newberg won the Class 6A state championship with 310.5 points. Roseburg was second at 262.5.
Last year, there was no official state tournament, as it was canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. In what turned out to be a de facto Class 6A state tournament, held at Newberg High School, the Tigers took first place with a score of 490.5. Sprague was second at 261.5.
Counting last year’s title, Newberg has won 13 state team championships. Of course, that means that many standout senior classes have stepped on the mats for the Tigers.
Where does this Newberg senior class, with its state success and 91-0 dual-meet record, rank among all-time Tiger senior classes?
“I don’t want to say it, but I think we may be at the top,” Evans said with a smile.
“I think we’re up near the top,” Garver said. “It’s kind of up in the air, but I think that if we brought them back a few years, we might be able to give them a good, old beat-down.”
“It’s funny. I have assistants and alumni that are around all the time. And, of course, everyone wants to make a case for their class,” Russo said. “But I think you would have a hard time upstaging this group. They’re unbeaten. They’ve got the individual stuff to go with it, but they’ve got the team stuff that is incomparable.”
Incomparable and, on Senior Night, emotional.
“We all grew up watching Newberg wrestling,” Evans said. “We were really looking forward to this senior year. We took it one year at a time, from freshman year, and then we kept going. We were looking forward to this senior year, for sure. This Senior Night is pretty cool. It was a good way to end up. We still have district here next week, but it is something amazing to say, ‘Goodbye,’ with all of us. It’s amazing.”
“It was pretty awesome,” Garver said. “I remember freshman year, watching the seniors and being like, ‘Wow, I’m going to be there someday.’ And here I am. It flew by. You have to hold on to everything.”
“It’s a double-edged sword,” Russo said of what Senior Night meant to him. “I’m trying to figure out how we’re going to replace those guys in the lineup. We’ve got some guys who are ready to step up there. But to see these kids, and to watch them go through all the growth they’ve had, is amazing. When I got them, none of them could drive, none of them could take care of themselves. And to watch them progress through those stages, and the wrestling stages, is just so satisfying to believe that, just a little bit, I’ve had some impact on them. But more so, they’ve had an impact on me. They’ve changed me as a coach. They’ve made things so fun for me.”
The whole Newberg team, not just the seniors, seemed to have fun in the Senior Night win. Not only did Glencoe, which finished 3-3 in conference dual meets, not win a match, the Crimson Tide didn’t even get a single takedown. In fact, Glencoe scored just three points, coming on two escapes by freshman Logan Nelson at 132 pounds and one escape by senior Kaiden Brown at 195.
Fittingly, a senior, Dylan James, got Newberg off to a fast start, as he won by fall at 106 pounds in 45 seconds. Newberg sophomore Josh Brucken picked up a forfeit win at 113 pounds.
At 120, Tigers sophomore Isaac Hampton picked up a 15-0 technical fall win. Hampton had a takedown, two 2-point nearfalls and three 3-point nearfalls, all coming in the first round, to get his victory, which gave Newberg a 17-0 lead.
At 126, Newberg senior Ethan Ritchie won by pin in 1:11. Tigers sophomore Zach Keinonen won by fall, in 4:42, at 132. Newberg picked up another pin at 138, where Olmstead won in 1:01.
Garver, in his final dual meet contest, pinned Glencoe sophomore Austin Nelson in 1:23 at 145 pounds. Garver scored on a takedown 14 seconds into the bout before working to get the pin.
“This was my last dual here — that made it special,” Garver said.
Evans picked up a forfeit victory at 152. At 160, Pothier won by fall in 1:28.
Tigers senior Gavin Korkeakoski won by pin in 0:58 at 170. At 182, Newberg senior Kyle Kelley won by fall in 0:19, which was the quickest victory of the night.
Tigers junior Hudson Davis triumphed by fall in 1:23 at 195. At 220, Newberg senior Jonathan Moody picked up an 11-0 major-decision victory. Tigers senior Hayden Hampton closed the night by winning the 285 bout by fall in 1:11.
With the dual-meet part of the season over, the Newberg seniors, and the rest of the Tigers squad, is now looking ahead to the Pacific Conference district tournament, which will be held Feb.18-19 at Newberg High School, and the Class 6A state tournament, which will be held Feb. 26-27 at Sandy High School.
“We’re gunning for it. We have to go for that scoring record that we beat last year. That’s the goal — that’s the goal I set,” said Evans, who is a two-time Class 6A state champion. “The best way to go out would be to be our very best. There are expectations that everyone has for us. I’d say meeting the expectations we have for ourselves would be the best way. That may be beating the scoring record, having 14 state finalists, who knows? Who knows?”
“We’ve set our sights on district and state,” said Garver, who is a three-time state champion. “That’s all that’s left. We’re going to go hammer it.”
But no matter what happens the next few weeks, the Newberg seniors have definitely left a mark, and set a new standard.
“It’s going to be a tough send-off, but it’s been worth it. It’s been a pleasure,” Russo said of the senior class, which also includes Coleman Croft, Tristan Gallardo and Cole Sedgmore. “They find the joy in everything. They’ve never been an all-work-and-no-play group — they never will be. They do the work, but they find the fun in that. They compete, and they find the fun in that.
“They are a refreshing group, for sure. And they’re a well-rounded group. They’re great students, and most of them are multi-sport athletes. They do other things, and they do those things very well.”
