February 12, 2025
ISSUE 7
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Wrestlers shine at District 3 tournament Eatonville qualifies 10 for state By Skip Smith Contributing Writer
The Eatonville High School boys and girls wrestling teams put on a strong showing at the District 3 tournament this past Saturday at Foss High School, with 10 wrestlers punching their tickets to the Mat Classic XXXVI state championships at the Tacoma Dome on February 21-22. “The team wrestled awesome, and all the girls wrestled fantastic! Lowest place was 4th for the young but talented women! I am so proud of everyone and the fan support was amazing!” said head coach Mario Ragazzo, praising his athletes for their hard work and determination. The boys team finished third overall, with seven wrestlers qualifying for state and another still in contention. Jameson Beckord (215 lbs.) led the way, capturing a district title. Beckord’s journey to the top was anything but easy, battling through a season-long shoulder injury that forced him to medically forfeit multiple tournaments and miss valuable practice time. “While battling a shoulder injury all year I was unable to compete as
COURTESY MEL BAUBLITS
The Eatonville Cruiser wrestlers that qualified for the State tournament posed for a photo following their District 3 tournament. Back row (left to right): Bryan Boers, Makenzie Ball, Mark Devera, Jameson Beckord, Trey StaRosa, Ethan Rogers, Aaron Tozier. Front row (left to right) Nala Baublits and Khloee Young. Not pictured: Jarin Ragazzo and Olivia Young. I had hoped most of the year. I had to medical forfeit a few tournaments due to my injury,” Beckord shared. “With many doctors’ visits for PT, massage, and hyperbaric sessions, I missed many practices.
When I found out I was the #5 seed going into leagues, I knew I had to go prove them wrong! I went out and wrestled like I know I can and put the injury in the rearview mirror.”
After a second-place finish at sub-regionals last season as a freshman, Beckord was determined to make it to the Tacoma Dome this year. Despite not wrestling in any league duals, he
put in the extra effort by studying film and watching his weight-class opponents compete to develop a strategy.
WRESTLING, A4
Lady Cruisers clinch 2A SPSL league title By Skip Smith Contributing Writer
COURTESY HEATHER QUIRIE
Eatonville’s Tia Schanbeck fights for a rebound in a game against Fife earlier in the season. In the two teams’ second match up, Schanbeck would pull down 10 rebounds and score 12 points to record a double-double in the Cruisers league-title clinching victory over Fife.
The Eatonville Lady Cruisers secured their first 2A SPSL League championship since 2010 with a hardfought 51-43 victory over the second-place Fife Trojans on Tuesday, Feb. 4, at McCrossin Court. Eatonville then capped off its regular season with a dominant 71-38 win over Clover Park on Friday, Feb. 7, finishing with a perfect 14-0 league record. The league title was a culmination of months of hard work, and head coach Deanna Andersen praised her team’s dedication. “We all wrote goals at the beginning of the season and winning league was one of those,” Andersen said. “To
see the girls work so hard and achieve that first goal fills me with pride.” Coming off a 55-39 win in their first meeting, Eatonville knew Fife would be ready for the rematch. The Cruisers opened strong, despite nine first-quarter turnovers, using a 14-6 rebounding advantage to take a 10-2 lead. Hailey Hall led the early charge with six points. The Trojans stormed back in the second quarter, opening with a 7-3 run and tying the game at 17 with 24 seconds remaining. Hall split a pair of free throws to regain the lead for Eatonville, and a Fife buzzer-beater was waived off due to a travel, keeping the Cruisers ahead
18-17 at halftime. Hall and Andersen led Eatonville at the break with seven points apiece. Fife came out aggressively in the third quarter, scoring four straight points to take the lead at the 6:27 mark after a Cruiser turnover. However, Eatonville responded immediately with back-toback baskets to reclaim the lead. The teams exchanged baskets throughout the period before Eatonville entered the bonus and capitalized at the free-throw line, closing the quarter on a 7-0 run to take a 32-27 lead. The Lady Cruisers turned up the pressure in the fourth, opening with a
BASKETBALL, A4