And then there was one.
After a grueling season of rough and tumble on the mat, senior Mori Hays has earned the right to compete for a title at this weekend’s state wrestling championship in Anchorage.
In a typically subdued fashion, Hays reacted to his state qualifying fourth-place finish at last weekend’s Southeast Region V wrestling tournament by saying, “I’m really happy that I finally made it to state in my senior year. I feel…fulfilled.”
Even though Hays did not mention it – but his coach did – a sweet piece of redemption for Hays was that to qualify for state, he had to win an overtime match against the same wrestler, Gavin Hammock of Sitka, who defeated him in Haines during their spotlight match at the locally hosted event.
As Hays makes the quick turnaround from regionals to state, his new challenge is staying focused on school, too.
“Trying to finish up finals and get everything wrapped up before semester ends…it’s a bit of a hassle, but…I have to do it so I will.”
Coach Andrew Cardella was elated for Hays’ success. “I’m not surprised he made it. We expected him to make it. But, man, it still feels good. I’m so happy for him.”
As Hays preps for state, this week’s practices will shift entirely to his needs and preparing him for the tough competition ahead.
“The 138-pound division has some of the most talented wrestlers statewide,” said Cardella, “so we expect to see some real challenges, but we’ll prepare him as best we can with some super-hard conditioning and by taking a look at some of the holes we noticed at regionals.”
Kamakana Kanahele, the only returning Haines wrestler to make state last year, fell in the semi-finals. This leaves him as the first alternate to wrestle in the state competition if one of four qualifiers ahead of him is unable to compete at the event.