The Eastside Catholic Crusaders wrestling program prides itself on excellence in the classroom and in the wrestling circle.

The diligence and hard work exhibited by the Crusaders’ grapplers paid off in full this past February. Eastside Catholic, who had four grapplers compete at the Class 3A Mat Classic state wrestling tournament, attained the Class 3A academic state wrestling championship.

The entire Crusaders wrestling roster was honored during a ceremony on the second day of the state tournament on Feb. 21 at the Tacoma Dome. The Crusaders combined team grade-point average was 3.57. The cumulative GPA takes into account every wrestler in the program — not just the athletes who advanced to the state tourney.

Eastside Catholic wrestling head coach Dennis Reddinger was ecstatic after being notified of his team’s achievement on Feb. 17.

“We found out on the Tuesday before the state tournament. We wanted to make sure we got all of the various team members to the Tacoma Dome to celebrate it,” Reddinger said.

The Crusaders squad gladly made the 48-mile trek to the Tacoma Dome for the festivities.

“It has been a team goal every year since I have been here. We talked about it a lot at the beginning of the year. We’ve been trying to reach it for a long time. I’m very proud of this team,” he said. “It’s very exciting for our program.”

Shaun Scott: 425-453-5045; sscott@bellevuereporter.com