ARLINGTON — Eagle wrestling head coach Rick Iversen and his varsity squad hosted Marysville-Pilchuck, led by Rick’s son, head coach Craig Iversen, for a special match on Jan. 4 to open both teams’ Wesco North seasons.

The match started strongly in the Tomahawks’ favor but would turn sharply toward an Arlington comeback that fell just three points shy. The match included a 6-5 M-P pin advantage that made all the difference in the Tomahawks’ 39-36 win.

The result marked the second time that Craig has emerged the winner in the Iversen series. Craig first bested his father as Burlington-Edison’s coach in 1995 when Rick was the Tomahawks’ head coach.

“I’m exhausted,” Rick Iversen said. “But it was a good night. Marysville came to compete and they caught us, but if my team loses, my son wins.”

Tomahawk senior 285-pounder Skylar Hatch opened the night with a pin of Eagle senior Dylan Worley after 1:06.

Eagle freshman 106-pounder Clayton Hunter retaliated with a pin of sophomore Austin Sunseth after 1:20.

M-P junior Jacob Greene put his 112 pounds to work and pinned Arlington sophomore Wes Conley after 58 seconds in the third round.

Tomahawk 120-pound freshman Ryan Daurie pinned Eagle sophomore Skyler Wren in 1:08.

Junior Israel Lopez of M-P pinned 126-pound Eagle junior Jared Brock-Anderson after 44 seconds in the third round.

M-P freshman 132-pounder Killian Page won a 9-6 decision against sophomore Bryce Thomas to remain undefeated on the season.

Arlington trailed 27-6 after Page’s win, but the Eagles came roaring back.

“Our guys rose to the occasion and wanted to win it for Coach,” Arlington assistant coach Barry Knott said. “They approached the dual as a team and applauded their teammates, win or lose, coming off the mat. You don’t get a lot of matches like this one.”

Eagle 138-pound sophomore Scotty Bardell beat M-P junior Nate Wright in a 10-4 decision.

Arlington junior Jesse Driscoll pinned 145-pound Tomahawk junior Anthony Moffitt in 2:44 to pull the Eagles to within two pins at 27-15.

M-P 152-pounder Drew Hatch pinned Arlington senior Erik Davis after 1:00 to push the Tomahawk lead to 33-15 with five matches remaining.

Eagle senior Brandon Chase earned an 11-5 decision over 160-pound Tomahawk junior Jordan Woodin.

Arlington 170-pounder Chris Nelson pinned M-P junior Jake Merrick 58 seconds into the second round.

The Tomahawks lead shrank to 33-24 after Nelson’s display, but M-P 182-pound senior Chris Herbert ended Arlington’s comeback by pinning Eagle freshman Cody Weldon after 28 seconds for a 39-24 lead.

Eagle sophomore Jake Ferro pinned Tomahawk senior 195-pound senior Neil Hamilton after 41 seconds in the second round and 220-pound Arlington senior Blake McPherson pinned M-P junior Iggy Gabov after 26 seconds  in the final match of the night, but the margin was greater than one match could overcome. M-P took the pin and held on for a 39-36 win.

“We didn’t need a win to feel great, but we probably needed that match to have a winning season,” said Rick Iversen after falling to 4-4 overall.