West Linn ‘riding the wave’ with second-place finish at Reser’s Tournament of Champions

“I felt like we had some performances that we can build on.”

By René Ferrán | Photos by Leon Neuschwander  

Last year, West Linn ended an eight-year trophy drought at the OSAA 6A state wrestling tournament, finishing in a tie for third place in Doug Samarron’s final season as coach. 

At the time, Samarron said his team was on “an upward trend … we’re riding the wave.”

That wave appears to be cresting this winter, with the Lions posting their best finish at the Reser’s Tournament of Champions on Saturday, finishing second to two-time defending champion Newberg with five medalists helping them score 155 points.

“I felt like we had some performances that we can build on,” said first-year coach Kevin Keeney, who spent the past two seasons as an assistant for Samarron. 

Besides his three finalists — 182-pound champion Justin Rademacher and runners-up Charles Spinning at 145 and Earl Ingle at 220 — the Lions also got points from junior Colby Cook (third at 113) and senior Logan Owens (fourth at 152).

In particular, Owens drew praise from Keeney. 

“He has been a team player for us,” Keeney said. “He’s gone up and wrestled. He’s cut weight last-second for us. So, for him to come here and take fourth place this year at a tournament like this was very special. I think he’s on the upswing as we head into district and state.”

Another wrestler Keeney singled out is sophomore Oscar Doces at 132, who did not place but won twice in the consolation bracket, including a 2-1 ultimate tiebreaker victory against two-time state champion Zachary Keinonen of Newberg.

“Oscar has really struggled winning close matches, and he won a couple here, so that’s a positive thing to see,” Keeney said. 

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