Wasilla wrestler wins national tourney title

Before departing for Reno, Nevada to compete in the Reno Tournament of Champions, Jed Wade said his focus of the first half of the high school wrestling season is to prepare for the difficult Reno tourney.

Wade's preparation paid off handsomely.

Last week the Wasilla senior won an individual title in the 189-pound class. Wade went 6-0 in the tourney en route to winning his bracket and improving on his third-place performance from last year.

"Going into it my goal was to win the whole thing," Wade said. "When I showed up and I had the first seed, it boosted my confidence. I just tried to take it one match at a time."

Wade worked quickly through his first several matches. In his opener the top-seeded Wade pinned Andrew Moon of Nevada Union High School in California in just 22 seconds.

"The first match I got a little excited," Wade said. "I just kind of wanted to get it over with. In tournaments like this you don't even know who you are going to wrestle. It could be a tough guy right off. I wanted to get it over with as quick as I could."

Wade said he was able to snap Moon down on his back very early in the match.

"I got him on his back and pinned him," Wade said. "I tried to wrestle there like I try to wrestle at state. Pin them as fast as you can. Not messing around."

Wade registered three pins and one technical fall in his first four matches. After sticking Moon in the first round, Wade pinned both Matt Gutschaw of Poway, Calif. and Jake Kileen of Reno in the second period. Wade hammered of John Feld Vacaville, Calif. 15-0 to get in the semifinals.

The 189-pound class was a prime example of how difficult the 2003 Reno Tournament was. The fourth-seeded wrestler, who Wade should have met in the semifinals, was knocked out in the first round. That grappler was defeated by Cody Clark or Crater, Ore. Wade's foe in the semis.

Clark, an unseeded wrestler in the bracket, gave Wade a tough match, losing by just two points to the three-time Alaska state champion.

"It really doesn't make a difference," Wade said of the seedings. "Everyone is pretty tough, they are all pretty close. The difference in the first seed is yourself. It gives you the confidence. Why should you lose if you are the number one seed?"

The finals brought Wade's toughest competition. Holding just a 6-5 lead with 30 seconds left in regulation, Wade snapped Kelsey Emptling down, spun around an earned a takedown. The two-point move gave Wade a cushion and the eventual 8-5 victory.

Emptling won the 215-pound championship of the class 5A Oklahoma state finals last season.

Wade took a 5-1 lead in the final match. After recording an escape, Emptling notched a takedown and was awarded two penalty points to tie the match at 5-5. An escape in the third period gave Wade a 6-5 lead.

"He tried a throw, it was pretty sweet," Wade said. "I had seen it, but not wrestled a guy who did it. He shot in on a double and got pretty deep. I was able to get out of it."

Wade said at that point Emptling was gaining momentum and he needed a quick score.

"I snapped, spun around, got the takedown and felt a lot better," Wade said.

Wade became the first Alaskan since Palmer's Gabe McMahan to win a title at the prestigious Reno Tournament.

McMahan won the 160-pound title in 1995. Each year Alaskan grapplers finish among the top wrestlers in the event. The Reno tourney is known as one of the top three prep wrestling tournaments in the nation. Success in the event also translates to recognition in the national rankings. Wade is currently ranked second by Wrestling USA and third by Intermat. With a Reno title, Wade could be the top wrestler in the nation at 189 in the next polls.

The next rankings are expected to come out in early 2004.

Also competing for Wasilla in the tournament was Jake Wade, Jeremiee Meisler and Gunner Brannon.

Meisler defeated his opening round opponent 6-0 before falling to eventual champion Jason Groller.

Groller squeezed by Meisler, defeating the Wasilla heavyweight 9-7 in overtime. Meisler fought back from a 4-0 deficit and tied the match at 7-7. In overtime each wrestler shot in and hit heads, Meisler was knocked to his back and Groller got the easy pin.

Wade believes that despite going 1-2 in the tourney, Meisler might be one of the best heavyweights in the country.

"Not to make excuses, but he has been sick and that match took a lot out of him," Wade said.

Meisler has rolled through Alaska competition, going 14-0 with 12 pins.

Jake Wade won a pair of matches at 171 for the Warriors. He pinned his first round opponent in 1 minute and 1 second.

Brannon won a match in the consolation bracket.

Hollan Gravely and Kyle Neuman of Colony also competed in the event.

Gravely won his first match at 112, while Neuman lost his first at 160. Results of only the winners bracket were available on the Reno Tournament of Champions Web site.