Falcon Trevor Romero bucked the odds at regionals in Blaine Saturday and will represent South Whidbey in the 189-pound weight class at the wrestling Mat Classic in Tacoma.

Romero won three of his four matches to place third in the region in his class.

For the year, he had 24 victories and six losses.

20 of the wins were by pin.

Falcon grapplers Jordan Broyles (171 pounds) and David Monell (215) had an outside shot but didn’t make it past the sixth-place round. Van Morgen (135), Evan Thompson (125) and Kevin Kinloch (285) also didn’t make the cut.

“The Northwest Conference teams like Squalicum, Burlington-Edison and Bellingham are some of the toughest in the state,” Falcon coach Jim Thompson said. “They are traditional powers and Trevor was fortunate in his match-ups.”

To make it on time, the Falcons woke at 3:30 a.m. and were on the road a half hour later. Romero squelched his butterflies by sleeping most of the way north. His first match against Jack Nevitt started at 9 a.m.

“He’s a sophomore from Burlington and he’s really strong; he said he could bench press

340 pounds and I believe it,” Romero said.

Romero pinned him in the second round.

His hardest match came next, against Lynden’s Neils Brisbane.

“He’s very good, been to state twice, is faster and has excellent technique. I lost on points 12-0,” Romero said.

Romero pinned James Poyner from Granite Falls halfway through the third round. Finally, he eked out a 7-5 decision over Chad Studebaker from Burlington-Edison.

The single loss remains a mystery to Thompson.

“Trevor threw a real clunker; he looked awful,” Thompson said. “But he bounced back and won the final match to qualify.”

“I should place in the top 10,” Romero said confidently. “I feel good and coach Thompson and (Paul) Newman are prepping me for what to expect. I’m very excited, happy to be going and represent South Whidbey High School and my Falcon teammates.”

The action starts at 9 a.m Friday, Feb. 20 and runs through the following day.