Medomak Valley senior Cole Bales pins Trevor Wilkinson of Mt. Ararat to earn the 100th win of his high school wrestling career on senior night, Thursday, Jan. 8 in Waldoboro. (Mic LeBel photo)
Medomak Valley senior wrestlers Cole Bales and Nathan Staples each logged their 100th career victory during a quad meet held on Thursday, Jan. 8 in Waldoboro.
While the two wrestlers have the 100-win milestone in common, they are almost as different as it gets as far as the weight classes in which they compete. Staples typically wrestles in the 113-pound weight class while Bales competes in the 285-pound division.
Bales reached the milestone during his second match of the evening when he pinned Trevor Wilkinson, of Mt. Ararat/Brunswick, in 1:19. He almost pulled off the feat in his opening match of the meet against Nokomis, but he was pinned by Wesley Bragan after leading for most of the match.
“I always knew that if I kept working hard I would get to 100, and it’s just pretty special to get it at home tonight on senior night,” Bales said. “I would have liked to have gotten there in that first match against Nokomis, but it’s almost better that I got there after a little adversity that fired me up even more.”
Bales, who started wrestling while he was an eighth grader at Medomak Middle School, currently has a career record of 106-65. He plans to attend a four-year school for business after graduation from Medomak Valley.
“Cole is a joker, and is always having fun,” said assistant coach Jason Pease. “Over the years he has placed in the top four at the Wells tournament, the Gardiner tournament, Westlake, and a couple other tournaments.”
Medomak Valley senior wrestler Nathan Staples pins Zach Clark, of Camden Hills, for the 100th win of his high school career on senior night, Thursday, Jan. 8 in Waldoboro. (Mic LeBel photo)
Staples won his 100th match by pinning Zach Clark, of Camden Hills Regional High School, in 1:15 during his third match of the evening. He secured wins 98 and 99 earlier against Nokomis and Mt. Ararat/Brunswick opponents.
Staples, who has a career record of 102-61, earned a third place finish at the 2024 regional tournament during his sophomore year. He has also placed in the top four at several other tournaments over the years, Pease said.
“Nathan began wrestling in the Medomak peewee program around the age of six,” said Pease. “Nathan is very reliable and is always encouraging his teammates.”
In the fall, Staples plans to attend Coastal Washington County Institute of Technology in Columbia.
Bales and Staples were recognized before the meet with fellow senior wrestlers Mylz Morton, Grady Pease, Shamus Pease Jason Pickett, and Mariah Young. Brothers Grady Pease and Shamus Pease achieved the 100-win milestone last year.
“I’m super happy for them both, they’re great teammates and they’ve earned it,” said Shamus Pease. “It’s pretty awesome to have four wrestlers on the same team with over 100 wins.”
In addition to Bales, Staples, and the Pease brothers, Medomak’s 100-win club consists of Glenn Brown (1987), Randy Simmons (1995), Steven Genthner (2010), Cyril Miller (2014), Steven Thompson (2017), Elias Miller (2019), Eric Benner (2021), Gavin Readinger (2021), Tyler Cox (2021), Amos Hinkley (2019), Marshall Addy (2024), and Nathan Gess (2024).
