Huskies look for success on the mat with fresh leadership

Nov. 26—OTHELLO — The Othello Huskies head into the season with hopes to repeat the success from previous seasons with new leadership in the head coaching positions. Girls Head Coach Sammy Rocha took over last season and boys Head Coach Reuben Lopez will be stepping into the head coaching position for the first time this season.

"I already had really strong leaders last year, and everything went as planned," said Rocha. "Lots of youth, but that youth has a lot of experience and coming into this year I still have that same core from last year."

Both Lopez and Rocha have had years of experience with the team and worked extensively with the athletes last season to build the team they have today. At the end of last year, the Huskies girls team would finish second in state. The boys finished third.

"With how tough 2A is, we ended up having a good year at the end," said Lopez.

The Huskies girls will see a total of 11 state competitors returning with six of those being state placers. Some standout returners include the state champion Alejandria Espindola along with Grayce Mendez, Angie Monday, Serenity Ayala, Victoria Deleon and Briseda Galvez.

On the boys side, the Huskies will be returning a strong group of state-experienced wrestlers. such as seniors Daniel Gonzalez, Mason Russell, Camilo Mendez III, Miguel Zuniga and Zayvier Olazcon. Other key returners include Xavier Mendez, Xavier Guzman and Jose Gallardo Ruis, Jr.

One of the Huskies' main goals this season is to get 15 wrestlers each for boys and girls into the tournament.

"We get (28) into districts so our goal is always 15 or more (for state) and then just placing as high as we can," said Lopez.

The challenge for the Huskies this season will be to overcome the two top teams in Orting and Toppenish, he said. This season, the team hopes to surpass them, especially at state.

Rocha said the girls team looks like it will have a strong depth chart this season with multiple weight classes stacked with state veterans.

"I have three state veterans at 130 pounds, and one of them is a state placer," he said. "They're going to be battling out to see who's going to be the varsity at 130."

The Huskies also have a lot of their returners who were unable to participate in state last year due to injury or illness but would have likely qualified at districts, said Rocha. These girls along with the state veterans are fired up and ready to test their mettle as the season approaches.

Getting going at early season practices has been easy this year due to the experience Othello is bringing back to the mat this year, said Lopez. This allows the team to push new skill levels rather than focusing on basics.

Along with the senior and junior returners, the Huskies will see a large group of freshman and sophomores that Rocha said he is excited to see build themselves into the next top wrestlers. A good number of these younger players could give the challenge the team's veterans this year as well.

"I want them to truly believe that they're part of a state championship team and when it's their turn to take over the program then that's exactly what they were brought up to do," he said. "That's kind of the challenge, but that's the most exciting part for me too is just that development of that winning culture."

The first meet for the Huskies will be on the road in Ellensburg on Dec. 4, with the girls wrestling at 6 p.m. and the boys wrestling at 7 p.m.