EPHRATA — More than 50 wrestlers are turning out for the EHS program this season, but the roster features a number of underclassmen, so gaining experience quickly will be a key to the Tigers' mat fortunes in 2025-26.

The group includes seven varsity returnees led by seniors veterans Payton Woods (215 pounds) and Carter Garcia (165), both returning state tournament qualifiers. Also returning are senior Kylan Lus (138), juniors Mike Ramirez (132), Nate Sandoval (126) and Adrian Negrete (157), and sophomore Noah Hatten (120).

Top freshmen looking to make an impact are Louden Leenhouts (106), Noah Castillo (157), Colt Staples (165) and Jose Rodriguez (165).

Last season, the Tigers finished 3-5 in Central Washington Athletic Conference dual meets, placing sixth in the nine-team league. Woods and Garcia each qualified for the Class 2A Mat Classic state tournament, but sustained first-round losses and and did not advance.

In his third year leading the EHS program, head coach Joe Knox said there will be an emphasis on developing the younger wrestlers without sacrificing engagement with his veterans.

"Overall, we are going to be really young," said Knox. "We will focus on trying to bring the young guys along as quickly as possible while still giving the vets what they need to be successful."

Knox brings more than two decades of coaching experience to the gym, including 12 seasons as an assistant at Chief Moses (now Columbia) Middle School in Moses Lake and a dozen more as an EHS assistant in the late 1990s and early 2000s. George Nygard, Blade Gray and volunteer Brian Olivera round out the Tiger coaching staff.

In the CWAC, Knox expects Toppenish and Othello to again lead a traditionally competitive conference.

"But all (the) teams have good kids," he said. "It's just a really tough league."

However, there's a fundamental formula to address the upcoming challenges, said Know.

"Hard work solves everything," he said. "Focus on working hard every day and taking care of the little things and then the big things will take care of themselves."

And Knox believes the Tiger program is something the Ephrata community can rally behind.

"We embrace time-tested values, hard work, discipline, accountability, consistency, persistence," he said. "The kids that stick with this program will have a foundation that will help them to lead successful lives wherever they go, whatever they do."

A full season schedule can be found here.