For an event as grand as the The Mat Classic last weekend at the Tacoma Dome, the Auburn Trojans had a showing that rivaled one of the school’s best.

The Auburn Trojans had five wrestlers make day two — four of them in the semifinals. Jace Longmire, Bryce Rowland and Taras Onika were all in the final four on the boys side. Alice Rush and Mary Rush both advanced for the Trojans on the girls side, and Mary made it to the semifinals.

“It’s been really exciting. This is a group that has worked their whole lives for this. To see that come to fruition and come right before their eyes has been awesome,” said Head Coach Alex Lopez.

“For me it wasn’t really a shocker (girls wrestling success). We knew they were going to do good things because we see it every day,” Lopez said.

Mary Rush for the last two years has been the only Auburn wrestler to make it to day two of the tournament. To have four other teammates make it also shows the work that has been put in by her teammates.

“It’s been a little lonely, not having a team to warm up with. But this year, we all turned in our finalist papers together and warmed up. It was really fun,” Rush said.

Saturday was about Jace Longmire, Bryce Rowland and Mary Rush. The three Trojans were going to war for a state championship when it was all said and done. Rush was the first to wrestle, and she faced a returning state champion from Yelm, Madisyn Erickson.

“I was super excited. I just love wrestling. To wrestle someone at that level was really fun to do,” Rush said.

The result didn’t go Rush’s way, losing by a 10-5 decision. But a hard fought match was an appropriate way for her high school wrestling career to come to an end. She has been a force to be reckoned with in the NPSL, but now that baton goes to her sister Alice, a freshman who placed seventh.

“Wrestling is a big part of our family. Getting to coach her and help her and see her improve has been really fun,” Rush said.

Jace Longmire had one of the more menacing looks inside the Tacoma Dome. Longmire wrestled with a black eye he suffered previous to the state tournament. But if it served as an intimidation tactic, it worked.

“He’s shown a lot of perseverance. But he has also shown he’s on another level than these guys. The kid works his butt off every day,” Lopez said.

Longmire won his first two matches Friday via decision and technical fall. Saturday, he won 8-5 to make the championship match before facing Emanuel Carter from Silas, who had a season record of 49-6.

The two grapplers went into the third period tied 2-2, but Longmire’s fight and resolve were too much for Carter. In his senior year, after winning just a single match in his two prior state appearances, he was a state champion. His teammate Bryce Rowland was preparing for his title match, was watching mat-side and couldn’t be happier.

“He’s my partner, he’s my brother and my family,” Rowland said.

Rowland didn’t win a match in the state tournament in his freshman year. But he arrived with a vengeance this time around. Seeing his teammate win in the match before was just more fuel to a raging fire.

“Jace set me off right with a big win… I saw him up top in the bleachers and he told me it’s about my mentality. So I knew if my mentality was good, I could win the match,” Rowland said.

Rowland and his opponent, Dayton Fitzgibbon out of Arlington, were scoreless with just 30 seconds remaining. Rowland and Fitzgibbon went to overtime to find a winner. Rowland found a way to get a takedown and won a state championship in his first ever appearance at the Mat Classic.

“Last year I won a lot of OT matches, so I’m used to the pressure,” Rowland said.

When the bright lights come on in the big matches, Rowland shows up time and time again. His coach has seen it.

“He has really stepped up in the big matches… He’s separating himself in the big matches. Like Jace, they both work their tails off together,” Lopez said.

It’s a dream come true for Rowland.

“It was amazing. I’ve dreamed about this. Literally dreamed about this moment since I was little,” he said.

Auburn wrestling has gone through a lot this season, including a head coaching change. Former Head Coach Emmanuel Martinez was suspended in the middle of the 2023-24 campaign, and Alex Lopez took over — and now has two champions.

“The kids have been really great about it. These last three weeks have just been about being a family and pulling for each other. They made that happen, they came together. No matter what, that is going to hold us down… I am so extremely proud of them for that,” Lopez said.

Auburn Riverside also had a state champion on the mat, arguably more impressive than her rivals. Selena Mares-Castro had never wrestled before this year, and in her first year is a state champion and had to defeat a former state champion to get there.

“Yesterday when I walked in, I was like dang, this is big. Then I realized it’s just another tournament… When I did the walk of champions, it was something like I’ve never felt before,” she said.

She started wrestling because of her little brother. Her background in ju-jitsu may have helped her out a little.

“My little brother asked me to do wrestling with him. I didn’t really want to at first, but then I kept doing it and I saw how the community was. It got me more invested,” Mares-Castro said.

Jarett Bishop, the girls wrestling coach, knew she had the potential to be a special wrestler.

“She came in and you could see the raw skill. We just had to find a few moves to fit her background. She’s so freaking tough and so strong. That was evident from the very beginning,” Bishop said.

Mares-Castro was one of two Raven girls to make the state tournament day two. Gillian O’Neal was the other who placed sixth.

“These girls worked their butt off. Gillian is one of the toughest athletes I have ever worked with. For her this was a ginormous moment to get here, and miss as much of the season as she missed, still place. It is special,” Bishop said.

The entire tournament was an eye-opening experience for Mares-Castro, yet she was never phased. She won her first two matches via pin and then reached the finals, winning 6-3. But that winning pedigree wasn’t on her mind until this season.

“I didn’t really believe in myself until this school year season. We had our first tournament and I kept winning match after match after match,” she said.

Her opponent in the finals was a state champion last year, but Mares-Castro wanted to tune that out. Just another match at another tournament: “She’s just another person that just happened to win last year, I am going to be new person that is going to win this year,” she said.

In her final match, she was tied at 2-2 going into overtime. Overtime at the state finals is about as daunting a circumstance a first-year wrestler can be in. But Mares-Castro stayed calm and won with a takedown. Bishop had so much admiration for the year Selena put together: “I can’t even put to words. It was sheer joy and pride in Selena and the way she has embodied our program. Full credit to her,” Bishop said.

For the athletes that didn’t make the championship here are the placers in the Auburn School District: For Auburn, Taras Onika (6th, 150), Alice Rush (7th, 110); Auburn Mountainview had Sandy Gayed (6th, 110), Yousif Hesham (8th, 285), Natalie Marceyes-Weeks (8th, 120); Auburn Riverside had Gillian O’Neal (6th, 125), Payton Eklund (7th, 126), Chance Hanson (8th, 113).

Bryce Rowland points to the crowd after his impressive overtime win. Ben Ray / The Reporter

Jace Longmire with a salute after winning the 138 pound title. Ben Ray / The Reporter

Mary Rush sizes up her opponent in the state title match. Ben Ray / The Reporter

Jace Longmire wrestling his semi-final match with an intense black eye. Ben Ray / The Reporter

Natalie Marceyes-Weeks wins a big match on day one of the mat classic. Ben Ray / The Reporter