By Jeremy McDonald
jeremymcdonald73@gmail.com
SALEM, Ore.– Connor Sioda sat on the bench Tuesday night, coaching up the players on his squad during Sprague’s Orange and Black Intrasquad Wrestling scrimmage at Sprague High School.
The seniors like Sioda were assigned to coach the Novice and Junior Varsity athletes. And Sioda was acting like a seasoned veteran as coach with his final prep season just right around the corner.
“It was great. I was really appreciative of them to acknowledge my leadership, so this is a big opportunity for me and I really wanted to prove myself,” said Sioda.
As a junior, Sioda came within a point of qualifying for the 6A State Wrestling Tournament at 138. Sioda printed out that bracket, and referred to it in preparation for this season. He went to work on his shooting, to get those takedowns to improve on that faucet going into this year.
“I really worked on getting takedowns because I was a little scared to shoot. So I made sure I was fighting and that I was confident in my own abilities. I worked on staying confident, staying in good position and keeping my eyes up,” Sioda said.
Sioda will start the season at 150 pounds and will be aiming for 144 come State Tournament time. Returning with Sioda are State Placers in Carson Hunsaker, Kenya Johnson, Jackson Camillo and State Qualifiers in Sullivan Pucket and Seamus Glade to name a few Olympians returning this Winter.
On the girls side, they return Elle McAllister. The now-senior became the first-ever Sprague Girls Wrestler to Qualify for the State Meet last year, qualifying for the State Meet at 145 pounds.
“It gave me a lot of confidence,” McAllister starts. I think it’s going to help grow our program…I’m going to be as involved as I possibly can and help the younger girls and helping grow Sprague so when I graduate, this program can keep going and keep making it.”
From the inception of the Olys Girls Wrestling program four years ago, the program has grown from three athlete’s to 23 this season. McAllister is joined by Evelyn Wirfs, a Cascade-transfer who finished 4A/3A/2A/1A State Runner-Up at 170 pounds last year as a sophomore, and Bailey Sealy and Payton Grogan. Sealy and Grogan were part of the original three Sprague Girls wrestlers who helped start the Olympian Girls Wrestling program as freshmen.
The Sprague Girls Wrestlers head to Oregon City for the Tyrone S Wood Memorial Tournament on Saturday while the Sprague Boys Wrestling team will be at the Perry Burlison Invite at Cascade High School on Saturday.
Photos By Jeremy McDonald
