TACOMA — Six wrestlers representing six different Twin Harbors schools went unbeaten on the opening day of Mat Classic XXX on Friday at the Tacoma Dome.

Aberdeen’s Tatum Heikkila, Montesano’s Ty Ekerson, Elma’s Justin Sample, North Beach’s Garrett Armbruster, Raymond’s Jack Jordan and South Bend’s Preston Lawhead advanced to the semifinals in their respective classifications. The semifinals and finals will be wrestled today.

Montesano freshman Ekerson gained the 113-pound Class 1A semis by decisioning Medical Lake’s Weston Thomas, 12-6, and Nooksack Valley’s Devon Gantt, 5-4.

He led Gantt 5-0 early in the third round before the Nooksack Valley wrestler closed the gap with an escape and takedown. Ekerson, however, was able to ride Gantt for most of the remaining time, giving up an escape with eight seconds left. He wrestles Lakeside-Nine Mile Falls’ Jeff Friedman in the semifinals.

Elma senior Sample had an easier time advancing to the 1A 138-pound semis. Following a 5-0 decision win over Royal’s Benjamin Bustos, he pinned Deer Park’s Jake Miller in 3:58.

Sample threw Miller to the mat late in the second round, then flipped and pinned him. He’ll take on Freeman’s Nolan Doloughan in the semifinals.

North Beach sophomore Armbruster drew a first-round bye before dominating Colfax’s Kolby Slate, 18-4, in the Class B 126-pound quarterfinals. He’ll take on Tonasket’s Chris Rivera in the semifinals.

The unheralded Lawhead was perhaps the most surprising of the area’s semifinalists. The South Bend junior decisioned Winlock’s Cody Deguise, 5-1, in the opening round and Davenport’s Justin Chapman, 18-6, in the 132-pound Class B quarterfinals.

Lawhead opposes Lake Roosevelt’s Kaleb Horn in the semis. Horn pinned Raymond’s Tristan Hamlin in the quarterfinals.

Following a first-round bye, Raymond’s Jordan pinned Tonasket’s Carsen Walton in 2:23 of their 152-pound Class B quarterfinal. Jordan takes on Reardan’s Thomas Perryman in the semifinals.

Aberdeen freshman Heikkila was the lone Harbor female wrestler to advance to the semis.

She pinned both her opponents — Mount Baker’s Shelby Sears in 4:41 and Othello’s Victoria Mendoza in 5:19. Heikkila opposes He Lotu Tuifua of Kent-Meridian in the girls 190-pound semifinals.

Tony Williams, Montesano’s three-time state placewinner, pinned Medical Lake’s Jose Figueredo in the first round of the 1A 145-pound division. But Meridian’s Jake Cheney, up 5-4 after one round, avoided a Williams takedown attempt, pushed him to the mat and pinned him early in the second stanza. Williams later bowed out of the tournament with an injury default.

Aberdeen’s Tyler Souphommanichanh fell victim to a tough draw in the 2A 126-pound division. After pinning Evergreen of Seattle’s Esdras Martinez in his opening match, Souphommanichanh ran afoul of Wapato’s Sergy Salas (a former state champion at a lower weight), 5-2, in the quarterfinals.

North Beach’s Natasha Fruh kept her streak of postseason pins alive in the opening round, but lost an 8-0 decision to Fife’s Veronique Abaglo in the quarterfinals.

Fruh, Aberdeen’s Faith Cardenas (girls 100 pounds), Montesano’s Andy Fry (1A 106), Aaron Lano (1A 113), Carson Klinger (1A 152) and Kai Olson (1A 170) and Hoquiam’s Lutra Felten are among the Harborites still alive for a state medal in the losers bracket. Loser-out matches were still in progress in the 2A and Class B classifications and were not reported at press time.

Fry and Felten will wrestle each other in an elimination match this morning.

Elma’s Justin Sample lifts Royal’s Benjamin Bustos off the mat in his 5-0 victory in the first round of the Mat Classic on Friday. (Brendan Carl Photography)