TACOMA — It did not end the way Arlington junior Ruben Crew wanted it to, but to be No. 2 in state is still a milestone, Arlington head coach Rick Iversen said.

“Making the finals is an inspiration for our whole team,” Iversen said. “It raises the bar for everybody, so it’s a really healthy thing for our program.”

It was a bumpy road for Crew to make it to the state finals. Crew transferred from Lake Stevens High School last year and was not eligible all year to wrestle on the varsity team.

“He didn’t have a season until three weeks ago,” Iversen said.

He was third in districts, but won regionals and then made it to finals.

“It’s an unbelievable show,” Iversen said. “Young kids are going to look at this and say, “‘this is possible.'”

Crew had the arduous task of taking on North Central’s Izaec Quintanilla in the 160-pound finals Feb. 21 at the Tacoma Dome.

Crew lost to Quintanilla 12-1.

“It was just how strong he was,” Crew said. “He was good.”

Crew plans on making it to state again next season and lift weights to get stronger.

“Coaches helped me a lot,” he said. “What helps in wrestling is how you’re coached. They put me against a lot of strong people and that helped.”

“I think we’ll come to win it next year,” Iversen said. “But it doesn’t mean we will win it, but it will be our goal.”

The Arlington boys wrestling team placed sixth overall at the 3A state tournament with a score of 76 points.