Mountaineers proud of growth in Iron Sharpens Iron tournament

Rainier one of two 2B schools competing at Spanaway Lake

Posted

Despite finishing 18th out of 19 schools at the Iron Sharpens Iron tournament Saturday, Jan. 18, the Rainier High School girls wrestling team sharpened its skills by battling wrestlers from much bigger schools at Spanaway Lake High School.

Rainier was just one of two 2B schools in the tournament, joining North Beach. Six Mountaineer girls headed north for the tournament, with junior Layla Hill representing Rainier as its lone placer with a sixth-place finish in the 125-pound division. Sophomore Chloe Willis flashed her potential during her first tournament in the 190-pound division, picking up two wins via fall, the latter in just 17 seconds in the consolation bracket.

Faithe Jarvis, April Anguiano, Ayana Elmstead and Dakota Gardner each showed growth in coach Kelli Garner’s eyes, as well.

“I really liked that the girls were listening and really taking in directions,” she said. “I think we fared amazingly well. A lot of them are very new so they’re very green. Just to get them that mat experience was huge. It really gives them an opportunity to see what the competition is like out there.”

Hill appeared poised for a dominant day on the mat as she quickly disposed of Yelm’s Annabell Reed in 35 seconds via fall to advance to the quarterfinals, where she was defeated in the second period by eventual 125-pound champion Orting’s Madison Watts. Hill gave the first-placer one of her tougher matches during the day.

“I think I put in some more effort, and I was trying some new things hoping to do better,” Hill said. “I’ve put in more work in practice. Last year, I was just doing it, but this year I’m taking it a bit more seriously.”



Willis has pushed herself to drop to the 190-pound division after starting the year in the 235-pound realm, where she often faced teammate Ryleigh Cruse in competitions. The sophomore was proud of her debut in her new weight class.

“I think it went a lot better. They’re a lot easier to wrestle, but a lot of them have more muscle so it’s harder to pull some of the moves that I’ve already pulled,” Willis said. 

Garner said her wrestlers embrace the opportunity to improve by being thrown into the fire of wrestling 4A and 3A athletes. Even if they don’t come out on top, the coaching staff is seeing a hunger and drive to learn from their defeats and build off their wins.

“This was a great opportunity because this was a higher level. They’re really motivated to continue on and be like, ‘How do I get better?’ It’s incredibly valuable to give them that opportunity,” Garner said. “Obviously we won’t see these schools at state, but it definitely helps us.”

Rainier’s next competition is on Thursday, Jan. 23 with a home league mixer scheduled for 5:30 p.m. The boys and girls will both hit the mat, and the Mountaineers will honor their seniors in their final home meet.