Close to 123 wrestlers flocked to Campbell River Saturday to compete in the Campbell River Invitational. Alberni District Secondary sent 26 competitors, many of which had outstanding individual performances as they enter into the peak of the wrestling season.
In the team standings, ADSS Junior Girls (Grades 6-8) took 5th place while the Junior Boys finished second overall. The Armada Senior Girls team (Grades 9-12) captured second place and the Senior Boys were dominant securing top spot over Timberline from Campbell River.
The Junior Girls were led by the gold medal performance of grade 7 Paige Maher (69kg). Grade 8 Anna Frost (46kg) lost to only one opponent to win the silver medal. Third place finisher was grade 6 Malika McDonald (33kg) and rounding out the placing for the young girls squad was Miranda Barker (72kg), scoring team points with her 5th place finish.
Landyn Clayton (62-67kg), Seth Price (45-48 kg), Owen Spencer (52-56kg) and Ethan Tramer (57kg) led the way for the Junior Boys, claiming gold in their respective weight classes. Scott Coulthart (74-78kg) had a strong tournament finishing with a silver medal. Duncan McLeod added team points with his fourth place finish in a tough 35kg weight class.
The Armada Senior Girls were led by grade 9’s Kylea Anderson and Kyla McAuley, finishing first and second respectively in the 90-102kg weight class. Grade 11, Morgan Dagenais captured bronze in a very competitive 57kg weight class while Mackenzie Boudreau rounded out the placings, taking 4th in the 60-64kg weight class.
ADSS Senior Boys had gold medal performances from Trevor Barker (45kg), Isaac McDonald (57kg), Aaron Badovinac (70kg), Lane Harris (90kg), and Trenton Vanderkooi (115kg). Daniel Spencer (70kg) and Jayce Clayton (78kg) both battled for their silver medals as did Jayden Iversen (66kg) for his bronze medal. Adding valuable team points were Darien Van Ingen (51kg) and Jarod Gagnon (84kg) with 4th place, as well as Prateesh Giri (66kg) and Ravi Manhas (44kg) withfifth place finishes.
“I am pleased with the large turnout of Alberni wrestlers at this tournament,” commented Coach Russell Bodnar. “Our wrestlers are ramping up their intensity both at practice and in competition in preparation for the upcoming Age Class tournament and the Alberni Invitational Tournament. For many of our wrestlers, the Alberni Invite is the pinnacle of their season and the athletes want to perform well for the home crowd.”
The busy weeks ahead include 4 practices per week, tournaments in Richmond and Abbotsford followed by the Annual Alberni Armada Invitational tournament at ADSS February 5-6. The season will continue with the Island Championships on Saltspring Island February 12-13 and the BC High School Championships in Abbotsford February 25-27. The season wraps up for some of the top wrestlers at the National Championships April 15-17 in Calgary, Alberta.