Casey Mather named ‘Outstanding Wrestler’

Casey Mather (top) won her 112-pound weight class at the Lady Wolfpack Wrestling Invitational Saturday and earned the distinction of being voted outstanding wrestler for the lightweight division of the tournament. PHOTO BY JOHN GALBREATH | STANWOOD/CAMANO NEWS Lady Spartan grappler Casey Mather, a state qualifier last season as a freshman, decisioned this season’s number one-ranked girl in the 112-pound classification by a resounding 9-2 score in the finals of Jackson High’s Wolfpack Invitational over the weekend.

That victory earned her the honor of being named outstanding wrestler of the tournament for the lightweight (103- to 135- pound weight class) division.

Mather pinned her way to the finals after earning a first-round bye. In her quarter-final bout, she pinned Lake Stevens’ Bridgitte Belcher at the 5:12 mark of the third period. Her semi-final match ended even more quickly as she put Megan Kajca’s (Emerald Ridge) shoulders to the mat in 3 minutes, 33 seconds.

Bianca Arizpe of Federal Way, up-to-now the best 4A 112-pounder in the state, was overwhelmed by Mather in their match-up as she lost points right and left throughout the match.

Another sophomore, Laura Charboneau, prepared for the upcoming girl’s district tournament with three straight victories before losing a close 6-3 decision to the outstanding wrestler for the heavier weight division (140 pounds and up), Jamila Calcleasure of Highline. Laura pinned her first two opponents – Emily Santiago (Burlington-Edison) and Olivia Guinn (White River) – in just 1:42 and 35 seconds, respectively.

In her semi-final match, Charboneau scored an 11-7 decision over Enumclaw’s Jade Patterson.

“Casey and Laura wrestled well over the weekend,” said head coach Ray Mather. “Kelsey Blom, Amanda Johnson and Whitney Weinert all went 0-2 in the tournament but they wrestled the best they have this year, so their hard work and (the resultant) improvement is showing.”