Photos by Ray Hamill/HumboldtSports.com – Mason Evanow in action at the recent H-DNL championships.
By Ray Hamill — Fortuna seniors Mason Evanow and Chloe Cox made school history last weekend by becoming the school’s first-ever two-time qualifiers for the state wrestling championships.
Now they’re hoping to build on that as they get set to begin competition in Bakersfield on Thursday.
Evanow, who will compete at 128 pounds, will carry plenty of momentum into the prestigious state meet after also becoming the first-ever Husky to win a North Coast Section championship at James Logan High School on Saturday.
And, according to head coach Steven Stockdale, the standout senior is one of the most clutch competitors he’s ever coached.
“What he does in the last minute (of a match) when he’s down is different to everybody I’ve coached,” Stockdale said. “He almost goes feral. He gets aggressive, almost like he knows how to turn on the adrenaline and go full tilt.
“He’s gritty, he’s tough, he’s ornery, he’s not afraid of people.”
Sometimes, Evanow also knows how the fight’s going to transpire.
After winning his first four matches at last week’s section tournament, Stockdale asked him how he was feeling ahead of the big showdown.
“He walked in and I asked him how’s it going to go,” the coach recalled, before adding with a chuckle, “and he’s like, ‘I’m going to beat him,’ and he smiled and he said ‘I’m a winner.’”
Evanow was true to his word and defeated De La Salle’s Gio Cuevas on an 8-6 decision in the final.
“It was a solid performance throughout the tournament,” the coach added. “Every single match was a dominant performance.”
Chloe Cox in action at the recent H-DNL championships.
It was also a nice response from a wrestler who had lost in the final the previous year — when he became the first-ever Husky to reach an NCS final — and a wrestler that appeared determined to go one better this time around.
And Stockdale believes he is in a good position to make some noise at the state tournament, which is one of the biggest high school tournaments in the nation.
“I think he’s in a good place in the bracket, and for him to go down and do the best he can is all I can ask,” the coach said.
Cox, meanwhile, also made some school history at this year’s H-DNL championships, when she became the first Fortuna grappler, boy or girl, to win a fourth league title.
She followed that with an impressive showing at the girls section tournament, which was held at Albany, where she won her first three matches and finished the day 4-2 on her way to clinching fourth place.
According to Fortuna girls coach Mat Nyberg, Cox embraces the competition and takes a proactive approach to her matches, a strategy the coaches encourage.
Mason Evanow
“She’s tenacious, aggressive and just relentless on offense instead of defending,” he said. “Typically, she’s the one running the match.”
The coaches also believe that the experience of competing at the state tournament last year will help this time around.
“I think that experience might take the edge off a little bit,” Nyberg added. “She seems relaxed and I’d like to see her go out and do the best she can and just wrestle hard.”
Cox, who is also a standout soccer player and track and field athlete, has earned the respect of her teammates and coaches for the manner in which she approaches practice and matches.
“She’s a great team member,” Stockdale said. “She’s supportive, she’s encouraging, she’s a hard worker and she’s a straight A student. There’s not enough good things I could say about her. Any coach on the planet would love to have her on their team.”
Three other H-DNL wrestlers — Del Norte’s Curtis Bartley, Colton Schaad and Channey Schaad — also have qualified for this week’s state championships.
