Buzzard lifts Eagles to 3A state wrestling title
Harrisburg senior takes down Siuslaw senior Jacob Mann to become four-time champion
By Jim Beseda, OSAAtoday
PORTLAND — Harrisburg senior Brody Buzzard closed the book on a remarkable high school wrestling career on Friday night.
And, oh, what an ending.
Buzzard became Oregon’s newest four-time individual state champion and helped lead the Eagles to the 3A boys team title during Friday’s finals of the OSAA/OnPoint Community Credit Union state championships at Portland’s Veterans Memorial Coliseum.
“Probably one of the most emotional endings ever,” Buzzard said. “I just look back at all the hard work and I was ready for that final match. It’s been one heckuva long journey. I can’t believe it. What an achievement.
“It’s just a reflection of how much hard work I’ve put into this.”
Buzzard, a senior at Marist Catholic High School in Eugene who wrestles for Harrisburg, is the second Eagles wrestler to win four state titles. Dax Bennett was the first, winning titles in four different weight classes (132, 152, 170, and 180) from 2016 to 2019.
Buzzard’s titles also came in four different weight classes — 145 as a freshman, 165 as a sophomore, 175 as a junior, and 215 as a senior. He also said it wasn’t long after winning that first title as a freshman that he got the idea in his head that four in a row was possible.
“Freshman year was one of the hardest years and I earned that title,” Buzzard said. “I felt like nobody else had put the work in that I did and I just feel like I deserved it.
“This year was a little bit different, just because I had a big target on my back. A lot of people were coming for me and I felt like people were setting goals and had my name on their chalkboard like, ‘I’m going to come after him.’
“But it all comes down to the extra work you put in, how much hard work you put in, how much effort … and that really paid off.”
Buzzard pinned each of his first three opponents in the first round at this year’s tournament. He then won by a 10-4 decision over Siuslaw senior Jacob Mann in Friday’s 215 final.
The final wasn’t all that exciting. Buzzard got the initial takedown for an early 3-0 lead. Then he got another takedown in the second round that pushed his lead to 6-2. And, finally, he scored an escape and another takedown in the third period that put the match out of reach.
“I knew (Mann) was going to be coming out hard, coming out swinging,” Buzzard said. “But I was loose, I was ready. I came and defended, re-attacked, got on my offense, scored more points than him, and that’s all that matters — got the fourth title.”
Buzzard is looking forward to playing football next fall at Western Oregon University in Monmouth. And while he didn’t rule out a possible return to the wrestling mat at some point, Friday’s final might have been his farewell to the sport.
“To finish it out like that, it’s unbelievable,” Harrisburg coach Desmond Bennett said. “That kid, he’s just your prototypical student-athlete — polite, 4.0 student, treats everybody right, and works harder than anybody I’ve ever coached. So, he deserves this moment. I couldn’t be more proud of him.
“He’s our quiet leader. I point to him and I say, ‘Just be like Brody.’ It kind of embarrasses him, but I say, ‘Be like him. Follow his lead. Follow his example.’ He’s just been a dream to coach.”
As for the team race, Buzzard played a significant role in the Harrisburg win, but he also had a lot of help.
Banks had the first-day lead in the team race with 109 points, but the Braves faded out of contention when only two of their eight wrestlers in the semifinals advanced to the finals.
Meanwhile, Harrisburg and Nyssa put five wrestlers each into the finals, turning the team race into a two-way battle that saw Harrisburg holding a 188-187 lead with only one match left for each team — top-seeded Luke Baker at 157 for Nyssa and Buzzard at 215 for Harrisburg.
In the 157 final, Glide’s Elijah Hatfield spoiled Nyssa’s team title hopes when he won by an 8-3 decision over Baker and completed his own perfect 34-0 season.
Buzzard’s win in the 215 final pushed Harrisburg’s final team total to 192 points, while Nyssa (187), Banks (164), and Burns (150) went home with the other trophies.
Harrisburg scored another individual title with Andrei Donyri at 126, while the three other Eagles in the finals — Brandon Henderson at 106, Johnson Henderson at 132, and Trayson Truesdell at 138 — each finished second.
The Eagles also scored crucial third-place points from Braxton Henager at 126, Levi Conley at 138, and Jackson Peterman at 144, helping secure their second team title in three seasons.
“It was such a team win,” said Bennett, whose team finished as the runner-up to Burns at last year’s tournament. “You win by a few points, it has to be a team win. It was such a great win for these kids to have.
“We’ve had an up and down season. We’ve dealt with a lot of stuff that people don’t know about and I think we’re closer because of it. I think these kids, I think they really believe in themselves, they believe in each other, and they believe in the coaches, and the parents, and the biggest rooting section you’ll see this weekend by any school. I guarantee it.”
Bennett said the one major keys in the team win was Donyri’s come-from-behind, 7-6 win over Thomas Winn of Burns in Friday’s semifinals.
“Andrei has a flair for the dramatic,” Bennett said. “He got that win with a takedown at the buzzer and that really got the momentum going.”
He also singled out extraordinary performances by Conley and Henager, who each lost their opening match of the tournament and then went undefeated in four consecutive consolation matches to finish third.
“The heart that they have to have to battle like that,” Bennett said. “Those are the ones that are key.”
Nyssa finished with three individual champions — Jose Jimenez at 106, Diesel Johnson at 113, and Adan De La Fuente at 120 — and matched their highest team finish since 2019 when they were second to La Pine.