Though Yelm High School’s boys wrestling team lost its first dual of the season 41-31, Wednesday, Dec. 18, to Spanaway Lake High School, head coach Tim Beaudin said the Tornados are looking to learn and grow from the loss as the season continues to unfold.
Beaudin added that while the primary goal is always to win as a team, the Tornados took away many positives from the South Puget Sound League dual, including older wrestlers like senior Lake Harris, and juniors Jonah Smith, Wesley Thompson and AJ Erickson picking up strong victories.
“My message to the team after Spanaway Lake was one, that loss was on me, and two, I need the team to commit a little bit more. We need to work a little bit harder,” Beaudin told the Nisqually Valley News. “We have a lot of things to work on, but I saw a lot of great things from our leaders and state placers. Jonah [Smith], Lake [Harris], AJ [Erickson] and Wesley [Thompson] did exactly what they were supposed to do. We just need the young guys to understand the strategy behind a match.”
Beaudin added that it’s OK for his athletes to take losses, but he wants them to understand they cannot allow their opponent to win via pinfall, allowing the opposition to add six points to its team score. Beaudin said that the older athletes have it figured out and that he’s hoping to see the underclassmen learn and grow from watching their counterparts.
“We’re definitely going to grow,” Beaudin said. “We’ll probably be full strength in two weeks, getting everybody where they need to be. We have the ability and the talent. We just need the commitment, the effort and improvements to our tough-mindedness. We have to fight through a little bit more than what we’re used to.”
With experienced leaders on the team like Harris, Smith, Erickson and Thompson, Beaudin expects to see his younger athletes learn from their teammates and study their work habits and pre-match preparation skills. Beaudin said having a strong core of leaders within the program elevates the team because it allows for his younger athletes to learn by example.
“We’ve been pretty fortunate as a team to place at state and have medalists come back. It kind of gives them something to go off of with how they train and approach the matches. I’d like to see our young guys start focusing on them a little bit more,” Beaudin said. “We’re still on course to be a pretty strong force at the state level. We just have to get our guys down to weight so we’re competitive at the duals. I love our work ethic. I love what our upperclassmen and state placers bring to the team.”
The head coach was thrilled to see strong support from community members who packed the stands on Wednesday, Dec. 11 for the SPSL dual against Spanaway Lake.
“We want to pack the place every single time these kids wrestle. It’s kind of a celebration of their life’s work because some of these kids have been wrestling since kindergarten,” Beaudin said. “To be out there on the mat, feel that energy and see all of the familiar faces in our community that are supporting the team is amazing.”
The weekend prior to the SPSL loss to Spanaway Lake, the Tornados competed in the Bob Jones Invitational on Saturday, Dec. 7, and placed second out of a field of teams that included Auburn, Auburn Mountainview, Bonney Lake, Kent-Meridian, Kentridge and Mount Rainier high schools. Beaudin noted that the varsity lineup was down two or three athletes, but the team managed to battle with Kent Meridian for the top spot.
“It only had seven teams in there, but everybody brought their JVs. I think AJ ran through that and took first, so did Jonah. Everybody else ran into somebody that competed with them or beat them. We want to take losses early so it motivates them in practice,” Beaudin said. “I have to try to balance our guys’ schedule because we’re wrestling on every Saturday and sometimes twice a week. If they can grind it out and get to a certain level by the end of the season, their confidence and ability to flow is going to be amazing.”
The Tornados will return home at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 15, for a dual against SPSL-opponent Bonney Lake. Until then, the Tornados will compete in three tournaments and two SPSL duals, all on the road.
