By Jeremy McDonald

jeremymcdonald73@gmail.com

SALEM, Ore.–  It’s always fun to host an event of the size of a eight-team tournament, it feels even better when you succeed at it.

Throughout the day Saturday, the McKay Scots Wrestling teams was battling through the bracket against teams like Tualatin, Beaverton, Centennial en route to having five athletes represent the program in the Championship bracket of the Annual Herrin Tournament.

Andy Rubio, who was in attendance and helping and supporting his former teammates, enjoyed taking part of the tournament in years part.

“It feels kind of nerve racking,” Rubio describes the feeling of wrestling in the tournament.  “Because if you lose, you have to see everyone’s face on Monday, so that’s why you get more hyped up because it’s your home crowd and you get more energy.

“You can feed off the energy and it’s good, it’s a good thing to feed off the energy and I love the home crowds.  This tournament’s a tough tournament, you got schools from out of the District, wrestling guys we don’t regularly see during the season and it’s really intense.”

2016 Scots Graduate Adam Dryden was too in attendance, helping coaching this current crop of McKay wrestlers and is impressed with how they are looking to this point thanks to the coaching staff at the school.

“I’m seeing a lot of, the fruits of the coach’s labor,” describes Dryden. “I can tell that these kids, they’re wrestling hard, they’re doing the basics; and they’re doing them well.  So I’m definitely seeing the fruits of Troy and Tyler (Thomas) and (Andrew) Hillman.  They’re doing a good job coaching the younger wrestlers and it’s good to see that.”

And you saw the basics as Shane Tennis, Cyrus Mora, David Rubio, Matt Jarding and Salvador ‘Chava’ Camargo  found themselves in the semi-final rounds of the championship bracket.

Tennis advances, Mora and Camargo  get pins, Jarding dominated in a 10-2 victory to advance.  But David Rubio had to battle in his to advance to the final round with his match with Stayton’s Levi Summers.

It was 5’7-ish sophomore Rubio versus the 6’3-ish senior Summers as Rubio found himself down two versus the lanky Summers rally for 4-2 lead as he held the physical senior back for the 4-3 victory.

Rubio associates his success with the practice he has to help him with the match.

“I have my coach Tyler Thomas, he’s a pretty lanky person and then strength-wise, I drill with Jarding,” starts Rubio.  “And it gives me a lot of confidence because I’m drilling with a lengthy person and a strong person and it’s a confidence booster that I won this match because I’m in the finals now and last year I just placed fourth.”

Jarding was happy that his team was doing this well in this tournament as every team he has ever been on at McKay has never had this much success at the tournament.

“Last year, well in general, since my freshman year, I’ve never had a team at a tournament or our team to have five people in the finals unlike this years,” said the senior. “That just shows the massive improvements, it’s really satisfying to see that everyone’s hard work is paying off.”

Head Coach Troy Thomas was pleased with how his team had stepped up from last week’s tournament at Cascade High School to this week’s tournament with the challenges he gave to his team this week.

“They have a market improvement,” said Thomas. “I think they got the message last week that they needed to step it up and put forth the better effort.  This week was kind of tricky with the cancellation due to school, but I think they rebounded well for Friday’s practice and it showed here today.”

Though all but Jarding finish second, the boys like Mora, are already planning on using this momentum and this fire of being so close to victory adds to it.

“I felt like I was ready, when there’s upper hand experience, it just drives me a little more to want to keep on working harder.  I just know when I get to practice Monday, I’m going to work 10 times harder, harder, harder because at the end of the day, that’s the only way we’re going to win.

“But in that match right there, out of all of the experience, one with the great wins, and he happen to be greater you know.  So he took that ‘W’ and I’m going home with second place.”

The Scots will be back to work Monday as they prepare for the three-team dual with West Salem and North Salem Wednesday at home and then hosting West Albany Thursday at home.

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Photos By Jeremy McDonald