Unalaska High School junior Cache Henning came within one point of winning the Alaska state wrestling title for the 130-pound weight class last weekend.
Henning faced Mt. Edgecumbe wrestler Elden Andrew in the championship match at the Alaska Airlines Center in Anchorage. Despite the narrow loss, Unalaska Head Coach Rainier Marquez said Henning’s second-place finish is a major accomplishment.
“We were so close and we didn't get the result we wanted,” Marquez said. “But state runner up, especially in this state, is a really big deal [and] should be celebrated.”
Marquez said Henning put up a good fight, but that Andrew was a tough opponent and had a lot of supporters in the crowd.
“The gym was filled with [Mt. Edgecumbe] alumni, a lot of their students, ready for their team's big moment,” he said. “Just having the whole Alaska Airlines Center rooting against us was really tough.”
Unalaska brought four wrestlers to the state tournament. While Henning was the only athlete to place, junior Kaidon Parker won two of his four matches in the 171-pound weight class, which Marquez described as one of the toughest divisions this year.
Marquez said the team wrestled hard and he’s proud of them for stepping up, especially in such a high-stakes competition.
“The state tournament used to just be at various little schools in the Kenai Peninsula or in Anchorage,” he said. “That's something I never got to experience growing up, but for these kids to perform like that under the bright lights in a college arena kind of just shows how tough they are, shows how confident they are in their abilities.”
All of Unalaska’s wrestlers who competed at this month’s regional tournament will return next year.
