Great finish
Scratch any wrestler, and you’ll find an iron man underneath. Scratch North Central senior Jamie Tamura, and you’ll find THE iron man.
Tamura finished second at 125 pounds last weekend in the state 3A Mat Classic at the TacomaDome, but it may be just as big an accomplishment that in four years as a varsity wrestler at NC, he never missed a single workout or match.
“Before school, after school, four years straight,” said NC coach Mike Ranieri. “No excuses, didn’t miss a training session, not a wind sprint. Other than being a state champion, that’s our most prestigious award.”
Tamura didn’t miss the state title by much, losing 10-7 to Sunnyside’s Steve Sanchez as the two faced each other for the third straight week – in the subregional, regional and state tournaments. Sanchez, a defending state champion, won each time.
“You know, overall I came home satisfied,” Tamura said recently. “Coach always says our goal should be to peak at the end of the season and wrestle to our potential, and I did that. Still, it’s hard to get that far and miss by just one spot.”
The defeat could hardly tarnish a terrific senior season, though, after Tamura’s previous two years had ended in injuries, as a sophomore in a practice before districts and last season in the first round of his first match at regionals.
“It really was an amazing year for me,” he said, “especially considering how heartbreaking it was when I got hurt the last two seasons.
“The seniors have always talked about how they never realized how quickly high school goes by, so I knew that this was my last chance to prove something to myself and everybody else, that I belonged at state.”
There was never a doubt in Ranieri’s mind.
“Jamie deserved to be there,” he said. “This year capped everything off for him. It would be hard to find a finer young man or someone who works as hard. He’s been loyal to the program, someone the younger kids look up to. They can tell who’s pushing themselves in the practice room and in conditioning drills.”
Tamura’s a four-year letterman for the Indians, and says he hopes that he’s provided a real-life example for other wrestlers.
“I always tried to be an example of what Coach preached, doing the extra things in and out of season, that if you do, you’ll get better as a wrestler and as a human being..”
Tamura has also played football and soccer all four years at NC, but was drawn to wrestling at an early age. He realized by middle school that he could be something special as a wrestler. His father, Rod, finished sixth at state when he was a student at Rogers, and coached at Shadle Park High School and Glover Middle School.
About that iron man thing?
“It amazes me to even think about it,” he said.
“That’s 50-some practices each year, sometimes two workouts a day. Everyone has days when they want some time off, but it taught me that I could overcome anything. That’s the real value of it.”