It was a simple statement, but it meant the world to first-year Auburn wrestling coach Dennis Herren.

“Assistant Coach (Tony) Vacca said to me that we will not be able to fit all our state qualifiers in one car,” Herren said. “And I smiled at that.”

With eight wrestlers – seven boys and one girl – moving on the Mat Classic XXIV championships Friday and Saturday at the Tacoma Dome, it looks like a bus ride is in order for the Trojans.

Auburn finished third in the team competition with 122.5 points at last Saturday’s 4A Region III meet at Thomas Jefferson High School.

The Trojans got regional championship performances from 106-pound senior Brian Alonzo and 152-pound senior Tilden Sansom.

For Alonzo, a team captain who finished fifth in the state at 103 pounds last year, the district title was vindication for his rocky start to the season.

“I was just trying to get down to my weight. I wasn’t too good at the beginning of the year,” Alonzo admitted.

Coming into the season, Alonzo tipped the scales at 120 pounds, 14 over his normal weight. Alonzo said it was his poor performance, a two-and-out showing, at the Tri-State Tournament in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho that inspired him to turn it around.

“After a talk with coach, I just started building my self back up,” Alonzo said. “He told me that I’d have to wrestle harder, that I needed to stop acting like I deserved it. So I fixed a bunch of stuff, like my stance and just being into it more mentally.”

Now, on the eve of the state meet, Alonzo says he’s ready to compete for a 106-pound title.

“I want to win it,” he said.

Alonzo’s teammate, Sansom, who was seventh in the state at 145 last year, also returns to the Dome. And like Alonzo, Sansom says he has weathered a rough stretch after the meet in northern Idaho. He went on to lose a pair of matches at the all-league meet.

“I lost two matches I shouldn’t have,” he said. “I don’t know if I was just thinking, ‘I was the man and had it made,’ but I was just feeling too good.”

Sansom went back to the basics and regained his focus.

“I’m feeling pretty good about where I’m at right now,” he said.

In addition to Sansom and Alonzo, the Trojans advanced three regional runner-ups in junior Josh Tate (152 pounds), junior Seth Mizoguchi (160) and junior James West (182).

Also earning state berths were senior Stephen Heinze (fourth at 170 pounds) and sophomore Tyson Gaillac (fourth at 126).

In girls action, defending state champion Katrynia Todd swept the 137-pound bracket at the Region II meet at Emerald Ridge High School to return to the Mat Classic. Todd notched two pins and scored a 10-1 major decision over Beamer’s Vanessa Dixon in the title match.

Pleased with the team’s performance at district, Herren is eager to see how his wrestlers respond at Tacoma.

“I know they’re good kids,” he said. “I’m glad to see them work toward their potential and show that. What’s really surprising is that they didn’t just move on, they made the finals and, in some cases, won the championship.

“Mizoguchi is a league champion. James West is a two-time finalist. Even though they’re all doing surprisingly well, I still have higher expectations because I want them to fulfill their potential,” Herren said. “We just have to come to wrestle.”

Mat Classic XXIV begins at 10 a.m. Friday and continues at 10 a.m. Saturday.

ALSO: Auburn Riverside senior Nate Mead earned as spot at Mat Classic with a fourth-place finish at 145 pounds. Sophomore Larkin Williams also will compete at state, courtesy of his fourth-place finish at 285 pounds.

Under the magic Dome

With thousands of spectators watching hundreds of wrestlers compete simultaneously on 24 mats at the cavernous Tacoma Dome, the Mat Classic can be a little intimidating.

Especially for those stepping into the spotlight for the first time.

To help prepare his team for the state showcase, Auburn coach Dennis Herren told a story about his high school wrestling days.

At the 1994 Mat Classic, Herren’s Auburn High teammate, 141-pound Ben Celver, was preparing to face a mighty opponent in Dusty Roberts, of Spokane’s University High. The Seattle Times described him as an “Untouchable” in its state preview edition, one of the favorites to win it all.

“(The Times) asked Ben, ‘How do you feel about having an Untouchable in your weight class?'” Herren recalled. “And Ben said, ‘I think I’ll touch his shoulders to the mat.'”

Turns out, Celver never had to face Roberts.

“Another kid who nobody paid attention to beat Dusty Roberts,” Herren said. “And that kid’s name was John Aiken.”

Aiken, who competed for Olympic High of Bremerton, eventually would lose to Celver in the title match. Aiken later would coach at Auburn.

“In the Dome, anything is possible. Untouchables can fall,” said Herren, who survived all challengers in his weight class to take the 178-pound title in ’94.

Behind Herren and Celver, the Trojans secured their first state championship in school history. Celver was a two-time state champion.

Herren told his team not to fall victim to all the buildup at state.

“We just talked about how the Dome is a magic place,” Herren said. “In there, all the rankings and all the hype go away. And it’s just about you as a wrestler opening up, rather than wrestling not to lose and being afraid. It’s about opening up, doing your moves and being open to beat just about anybody.

“Because it happens. Year after year, we see that.”