Oscar Doces of West Linn denies Newberg's Zachary Keinonen of 4th state title: Oregon wrestling 138/125 big-school roundup

“I really care about Zach, so of course, it’s really emotional, but this is everything I worked for. I visualized this every single day.”

The last time Oscar Doces of West Linn and Zachary Keinonen of Newberg met, the stakes were significant enough. 

But the rematch of last month’s epic Reser’s Tournament of Champions final came on the state’s brightest stage — at the OSAA wrestling state championships Saturday night at Portland’s Veterans Memorial Coliseum, with the Class 6A 138-pound title on the line. 

Doces, the Lions junior, hoped to win a second consecutive title — but to do so, he’d have to deny Keinonen a spot in the history books as the fourth wrestler in a Tigers singlet to win four state championships.

And like their taut title match at Reser’s, the margins were fine in Saturday’s final. The only points scored during regulation came on escapes at the start of the second and third periods, but how they happened portended what would occur once the duo reached the ultimate tiebreaker.

Keinonen needed 37 seconds to score his point; Doces escaped within the first 10 seconds of the third round.

So, when Keinonen went first in his 30-second period, Doces managed to keep him from getting free. 

And when Doces had his chance, he was out within five seconds, then played defense the rest of the way to pull out the 2-1 victory.

“I work every day. I wake up at 5 a.m. every day to do this (stuff)!” Doces screamed immediately after his win.

A few minutes later, after receiving his gold medal, he was more circumspect about denying his friend a fourth title.

“We know each other so well, and he’s so hard to score on,” Doces said. “I really care about Zach, so of course, it’s really emotional, but this is everything I worked for. I visualized this every single day, and it’s what I love. I love this. It’s just amazing.”

As for Keinonen, after a couple of days to reflect on what could have been, he was gracious in defeat. 

“It was a hard loss,” he said by text Tuesday morning. “But I’m not going to let it consume me. I’ll just keep on keeping on.”

5A: Crater junior Joey Hutchins won a 7-4 decision over Bend junior Eric Larwin to help the Comets climb past Canby in the team standings and secure the fourth-place trophy. 

6A/5A Girls: Sophomore 125-pounder Zorina Johnson made history for Wells, becoming the first Guardians wrestler to win a girls title and the school’s first state champion since 2012 with a 9-3 decision against Renae Cook, a Forest Grove sophomore who finished runner-up for the second consecutive year. 

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Meet the champions: Class 6A | Class 5A | Class 4A | Class 3A | Class 2A/1A | Class 6A/5A Girls | Class 4A/3A/2A/1A Girls

Vote for best wrestler: Class 6A | Class 5A | Class 4A | Class 3A | Class 2A/1A | Class 6A/5A Girls | Class 4A/3A/2A/1A Girls

Previewing the state meets: Class 6A | Class 5A | Class 4A | Class 3A | Class 2A/1A | Class 6A/5A Girls | Class 4A/3A/2A/1A Girls

Recapping the district meets: Class 6A | Class 5A | Class 4A | Class 3A | Class 2A/1A | Class 6A/5A Girls | Class 4A/3A/2A/1A Girls

COMPLETE COVERAGE OF 2024 OSAA WRESTLING CHAMPIONSHIPS

Photos by Taylor Balkom