To former Clay and Newberry wrestler Cy Wainwright, recently installed as head coach at Newberry after earning coach-of-the-year honors at Coker College. Much I didn’t know about him. Go here and learn some things that I didn’t know!
Paxon
You can see everything I have on the Golden Eagles in 2015-16 here –> PAXON
Win/loss record: Unknown in dual meets — at best 4-6, at worst 2-8, depending on the outcomes of the scheduled duals on February 3 with Lee and Wolfson. Please review the attached document for a review of the Golden Eagles’ performance in IBT events.
Season in a nutshell: Not enough season within the season. Paxon had just its season-opening dual against Stanton, on December 1. First day duals could be held, and that was it for the Golden Eagles in December. There wouldn’t be another scheduled dual until January 12, so most of Paxon’s kids went into Gateway with just two matches under their belts, while their opponents had at least 20 in most cases and some were already at 30. At its fullest, the Golden Eagles could count on around eight kids in the lineup, and of those, just three return for 2016-17. This made things difficult for Paxon, which had to contend also with jumping up a class to 2A this year. IBT results were somewhat as expected, although Paxon did finish ahead of four other teams at 5 Star, mainly on the power of two kids’ performances. Keys for 2016-17? Getting more kids out and getting more mat time for the kids that do go out.
2015-16 MVP: I do wonder what more matches might have done for graduated senior Garen Mauney this year. Because of his lack of numbers at Gateway, he had to face off with the eventual 152 Gateway champ in the quarters instead of a more-expected semi or possibly final. Mauney also reached the finals at 5 Star, winning his pool competition that included a pair of pretty solid kids. By the time he got to the post-season, the lack of matches, I feel, took its toll, but Mauney did qualify out as Paxon’s highest District 4 finisher (third at 152) and did get three matches in at regions.
2016-17 captain: Most of the kids that competed at 2A-District 4 for the Golden Eagles were seniors, and that’s of significant concern for the Paxon program going forward. One bright light, though, might be the starting of an emergence from Jamaari Mitchell, who was in the lineup on Day 1 against Stanton and each of the Eagles’ events going forward. Mitchell had trouble finding his footing competitively, as most inexperienced upper-weight wrestlers might, but was 5-3 after a 1-6 start. His two losses at districts came against a pair of seniors that both had at least three years’ experience as starters. If Mitchell stays out, he could play a large role in the development of the program over the next couple of seasons.
Heaton’s Hero: Freshman Jack Donghit worked out with the Bishop Kenny program in the offseason prior to joining the Eagles’ lineup as its only freshman starter this past year. He picked up a fall in his first match of the season, in Paxon’s first dual of the season, but after that it was a tough road. Donghit bumped up a weight starting at Gateway, but it didn’t result in any more success, as both the results I had and the results reported to FHSAA both had Donghit with just the one win. If he’d been in the lineup for Parker Duals, he might have had an opportunity or two to add to that win total, but he did stay out the whole season, going six minutes in his final match of the year. I like that willingness to stay with the program, and for that, Jack Donghit is the Paxon representative for the Heaton’s Hero nomination.
Projected returning starters for 2016-17 (with year in school as they’ll be next year): Donghit (sophomore, wrestled 120/126 this past year, 1 match from regions); Mitchell (senior, wrestled 182 this past year, 1 match from regions). Also: Alonzo Davis (junior, wrestled 160 this past year, did not compete in post-season).
That makes six #NextLevel signees for 2016-17, and that’s just in the Northeast area, with at least one more coming. The kids are doing all of the real work involved, but if what we’re doing here is making any difference, it’s showing kids that they can continue wrestling collegiately. And college programs are taking notice of this area’s athleticism.
FSDB
You can see everything I have on the Dragons in 2015-16 here –> FSDB
Win/loss record: 5-21 in dual meets. Please review the attached document for a review of the Dragons’ performance in IBT events.
Season in a nutshell: This was a very tough season for the Dragons, with a couple of graduation and migration-to-other-sports losses for FSDB’s top kids from a year ago. Of the kids that came out, only a couple had last year’s experience to fall back on — for the others, it was a very uphill battle, as the Dragons often fielded lineups with as many as five middle-schoolers. There was some progression over the course of the season, but not much in the way of success — five dual wins and two regular-season IBTs near or at the bottom of the tournaments’ fields. Then, at districts, just two FSDB wrestlers suited up, with the result being that the Dragons did not have a presence at regions the following weekend. There are 11 kids with starter experience potentially returning for 2016-17, with no graduation losses; the key will be to keep them all out.
2015-16 MVP: Although Christian Miranda-Reyes did not compete in the district tournament, he did have one of the stronger regular seasons that the Dragons were going to see this year, finishing fourth at Raines 5 Star, going 2-2 at Optimist and putting together some nice wins at 106 and facing a lot of teams’ toughest kids at 113 along the way. Miranda-Reyes’ experience will be invaluable for FSDB, which had a lot of young, inexperienced kids at or around his weight. As those kids grow and — hopefully — stay in the sport, his value for them on the mats will only increase.
2016-17 captain: Just one wrestler for the Dragons made it all the way through the season — from Optimist to districts — as a part of the starting lineup this year, plus that wrestler is a senior. So for me, I would look at Tyre Singleton as a possible captain for next year. Singleton did struggle a lot early in the season, with no contested wins until the final round of competition at Army Duals in early January, but after a 3-13 start, I had Singleton at 5-6 to close out the year, but what impressed me more than the wins & losses was the fact that he was one of the two kids that suited up for districts. As a senior, that already confers a bit of leadership status right there. What FSDB will need more of is the stick-to-itiveness of a kid who was in the lineup every time the Dragons hit the mat. This year, that was Singleton.
Heaton’s Hero: Sean Candelaria was one of the new Dragon starters this season, making an appearance in the lineup for FSDB from Day 1 through the final week of the regular season. It was a tough year for Candelaria, as all of his contested matches wound up in losses by fall until the final week of the season, when he was able to go a full six minutes, while all five of his victories came via the forfeit route. Even making the six minutes — given the season he’d had — was a significant step forward, and he showed a great deal of grit to continue to keep moving forward despite the lack of successes. For that, Sean Candelaria is the Heaton’s Hero representative — on a team that is full of them, as I’ve written many times before — for FSDB.
Projected returning starters for 2016-17 (with year in school as they’ll be next year): Singleton (senior, wrestled 132/138 this past year, 1 match from regions); Anthony Hoyt (junior, wrestled 195/220 this past year, 1 match from regions). Also: Christian Miranda-Reyes (junior, wrestled 106/113 this past year, did not compete in post-season); Ty Snow (8th, wrestled 106/113 this past year, did not compete in post-season); Reynaldo Suero-Perez (freshman, wrestled 106/113 this past year, did not compete in post-season); Johan Valentin-Sarmiento (junior, wrestled 113/120 this past year, did not compete in post-season); Tayshaun Smith (freshman, wrestled 126 this past year, did not compete in post-season); Taylor Lufkin (junior, wrestled 145/152 this past year, did not compete in post-season); Candelaria (senior, wrestled 145/152 this past year, did not compete in post-season); Manuel Vargas-Jimenez (freshman, wrestled 220/285 this past year, did not compete in post-season).
Pace
You can see everything I have on the Patriots in 2015-16 here –> PACE
Win/loss record: Unknown in dual meets, due to missing results. Pace was 7-1 at Beast of the Beach, losing only to eventual champ Arnold there, but it was there where the Patriots’ first missing result was found, and there were several more situations where there were missing duals. Please review the attached document for a review of the Patriots’ performance in IBT events.
Season in a nutshell: On the whole — from what we were able to determine — there are a lot of teams that would have liked to have had Pace’s season, as the Patriots had at least 20 dual victories and, I would suspect, more than 25, plus some solid IBT showings (top half at Capital City, a second at Gulf Breeze). Pace had a solid second at District 1 and a top-10 in a brutally-competitive Region 1 tournament, with three state qualifiers. Pace might be the team to beat in District 1 next year, with 12 returning starters, including nine region qualifiers and one returning state qualifier.
2015-16 MVP: With a region title under his belt and advancing to Saturday at the 2A state tournament, plus his place as one of two returning senior starters, Anthony Krevatas was one of the two cornerstones behind the Patriots’ success in 2015-16. Krevatas was in the most competitive weight class at Border Wars, and followed that tournament up with 12 wins in his next 13 matches — including eight in a row — before incomplete result submissions made it difficult to follow his season. But as reported to FHSAA, Krevatas wouldn’t lose again in the regular season, dropping a decision to Niceville MVP Jack Johnson in the District 1 final in a back-and-forth rivalry that Krevatas was able to get back twice, in the Region 1 final and in the consi second round at states.
2016-17 captain: Of Pace’s three state qualifiers in March, only Sullivan Gerlits will return for the 2016-17 season. In December of 2015, though, whether Gerlits would make it to states was looking like a very open question, with five straight losses after a season-opening win. Going into 2016, Gerlits was still under .500, but put several things together in January. Whatever Gerlits did, it worked, as it resulted in a District 1 runnerup effort and fourth-place showing at Region 1, where Gerlits made the semis and then lost to the eventual state finalist, Lincoln MVP Jaycie Rudd. Gerlits only got two matches at states, but the experienced gained should be very influential on a Patriot team loaded with go-getters wanting more in 2016-17.
Heaton’s Hero: With one exception in 2015-16, every Patriot starter was well above the .500 line, but the one that wasn’t filled a key hole in the Pace starting lineup. Brady Deloach didn’t start for the Patriots until January, and therefore I don’t have a lot of definition in his season. There were quite a few quick losses, but Deloach was a consistent presence in the lineup once he joined it, and he’ll only get better, with as much returning experience in the lineup as there projects to be. Brady Deloach is the Pace representative for the Heaton’s Hero nomination.
Projected returning starters for 2016-17 (with year in school as they’ll be next year): Austin O’Gara (senior, wrestled 106 this past year, District 1 4th place); Joseph Verda (junior, wrestled 113 this past year, District 1 3rd place); Kevin Green (senior, wrestled 120 this past year, District 1 4th place); Leland Knoch (senior, wrestled 126 this past year, District 1 3rd place); Owen Moore (junior, wrestled 132 this past year, District 1 3rd place); David Montano (senior, wrestled 145/152 this past year, 0-2 at districts); Sullivan Gerlits (senior, wrestled 152/160 this past year, District 1 runnerup. Region 1 4th place); Justin Gehrke (senior, wrestled 160/170 this past year, District 1 4th place); Brian Miller (senior, wrestled 170/182 this past year, District 1 4th place); Nick Singletary (senior, wrestled 195 this past year, 0-2 at districts); Brady Deloach (junior, wrestled 220 this past year, 1 match from regions); Murphy Bennett (senior, wrestled 285 this past year, District 1 3rd place). Also: Jonah Vitale (sophomore, wrestled 106 this past year, did not compete in post-season); Tyler Tran (sophomore, wrestled 120 this past year, did not compete in post-season); Cameron Bennett (junior, wrestled 132 this past year, did not compete in post-season); John Gunther (sophomore, wrestled 170 this past year, did not compete in post-season).
From what we’re able to tell, it looks like the Jacksonville Elite Wrestling Academy Misfits team has gone 0-3 in a tough round of pool competition in the first day of the Virginia National Duals event.
The event runs over three days at the Virginia Beach Convention Center, where folkstyle nationals were held in April.
According to what I’m able to see (which isn’t much, I wonder if full match-by-match results are viewable on FloPro, one of the many things I really don’t like about Flo Wrestling), Silverback WC beat the Misfits, 34-27, in their first pool match.
The second match saw Contender Elite Legacy win over the Misfits, 41-12, with the third pool match going in favor of School of Hard Knocks, 45-17.
Bracketed competition should begin on Sunday.
Rickards
You can see everything I have on the Raiders in 2015-16 here –> RICKARDS
Win/loss record: 0-1 in dual meets. Please review the attached document for a review of the Raiders’ performance in IBT events.
Season in a nutshell: From the results I have, the season was definitely a short one, with the first (and as it turned out, only) dual set for January 12, with no wrestling scheduled prior to that date. The Raiders also had a numbers issue, with no wrestlers smaller than 152 in the lineup. That makes overall competitiveness a difficult issue. It’s difficult to know with certainty who will be coming back, as four wrestlers saw varsity action during the year, but just one weighed in for districts. We were missing one set of results from Godby, which may partially explain the discrepancies in records I had and what was reported to FHSAA, but I wonder if there wasn’t another event that didn’t make it on to the Trackwrestling schedule.
2015-16 MVP/2016-17 captain: Jaden Merritt, by season’s end, was a one-person team for the Raiders this past year. Merritt had the most individual success during the regular season, finishing second at the Seminole Wrestling Classic, with a couple of solid wins along the way. Merritt did hit some struggles at the very competitive Wakulla Challenge. Still, though, Merritt was able, at 182, to qualify out of District 2 and then avenged one of his district losses, against NFC’s MVP, with a win at regions. It’s difficult for a one-man show to get far in the post-season — the need to see different kids and different situation is critical — but Merritt got to Saturday at Region 1, winning three matches on the back side. Assuming the program remains intact and assuming Merritt stays with the sport, going to state next year is a very real possibility, given that three of the four 182 qualifiers were seniors this past year. Let’s hope those assumptions become facts in 2016-17.
Projected returning starters for 2016-17 (with year in school as they’ll be next year): Merritt (senior, wrestled 182 this past year, District 2 4th place, 1 match from 1A states).
Middleburg
You can see everything I have on the Broncos in 2015-16 here –> MIDDLEBURG
Win/loss record: 16-9 in dual meets. Please review the attached document for a review of the Broncos’ performance in IBT events.
Season in a nutshell: Middleburg went into every dual meet in 2015-16 short-handed by three weights (138/145/285) and between injuries, late arrivals and late developing kids, didn’t always happen to have that 11 in hand all at the same time. Still, the Broncos won 16 dual meets during the course of the year. There was one IBT where Middleburg struggled, due mainly to testing conflicts, but otherwise the Broncos were a consistent presence in the top third at Wakulla, Flagler Rotary and Clay Rotary. But few outside the Bronco room would have predicted both district and region titles — the latter coming in a mad scramble amoung six teams that were separated by just a dozen points. As a team, Middleburg could not hold that momentum going into states, as previous region champions in 2A-Region 1 had also experienced — what that demonstrates is how even the competition truly is in that region. The Broncos are going to need lots of numbers, between being short-handed already plus a bevy of seniors moving on, but the returners that are back are very solid.
2015-16 MVP: It took a kid with a heckuva resume to defeat Jonathan Shoen this past year. All four that did it were state placers and two wound up winning states in either 1A or 2A. In the meantime, Shoen used his signature cradle to put together an exceptional season at 170 pounds for the Broncos, winning the first 16 matches of his season. Shoen did sustain two losses at the Wakulla Challenge, in what had to be one of the deepest weight classes in a very solid field, but after that event’s conclusion, Shoen didn’t lose again until the state finals on Saturday, with titles at Flagler Rotary, Clay Rotary, districts and regions — the last one where he avenged an earlier loss. Shoen led a very solid senior class at Middleburg that was multi-faceted in its talent, and as one of the state’s 84 finalists, he was certainly among the state’s elite as well.
2016-17 captain: I think I could go in one of four directions here, but I’m going to go with the best combination of resume and experience, and that leads me to tab Kurt Jackson for the position. Jackson’s one of those kids who is so close to figuring out how good he might be, and his opponents won’t be happy when that happens. Jackson missed out on North Florida Duals, but once he did join the lineup, he won 13 of his first 14 matches and ripped off another 10-match win streak during the second half of St Johns River Conference and the first part of the Wakulla CHallenge. As it turned out, Jackson was a runnerup — in a near-50/50 matchup — at districts and came back to take fourth at regions after an early loss. It can sometimes take some time for upper-weight underclassmen just to overcome strength disadvantages. Jackson seemed to have that covered this year, against most kids, and now just has to put all the pieces together, which often happens with experience.
Heaton’s Hero: Caleb King was a natural 126 and in at least his ideal world, he might have spent the entirety of the season there, but there was a pretty solid, college-bound senior already at that weight, and so — in order to help out the team — King spent most of the year at 132. Early on in the season, he had some success there, getting over the .500 mark just before St Johns River Conference in Matanzas. But the stretch run put its toll on King, who was 5-15 — according to what I have and reported in the attachment above — in the second half of the year. As it turned out, King did not wrestle in the post-season, but for starting and finishing the regular season in the lineup and moving up when the Broncos needed him — and they needed everybody they could get — Caleb King is the Heaton’s Hero for Middleburg.
Projected returning starters for 2016-17 (with year in school as they’ll be next year): Briar Jackson (sophomore, wrestled 113 this past year, District 3 champ, Region 1 3rd place); Austin Benton (junior, wrestled 120 this past year, District 3 3rd place); Storm Mercado (sophomore, wrestled 132 this past year, District 3 4th place); Cody Eastwood (senior, wrestled 152 this past year, District 3 runnerup); Robbie Riesenbeck (junior, wrestled 160 this past year, 1 match from regions); Bryan Heflin (junior, wrestled 182 this past year, District 3 runnerup, 1 match from 2A states); K. Jackson (junior, wrestled 195 this past year, District 3 runnerup, Region 1 4th place). Also: King (junior, wrestled 126/132 this past year, did not compete in post-season).
As before with the folkstyle previously posted, place finishes were posted for each contested weight class, as scores and/or fall times were not available.
Junior Division
113: 1. Scotty Tacinelli. 2. Logan Simmons. 3. Killian Prentice.
120: 1. Daniel Porter. 2. Carmen Thomas.
170: 1. Max Beavor. 2. Jason Mitchell.
182: 1. Rafael Wilkerson. 2. Karlos Wilson. 3. David Thompson.
Cadet
152: 1. Ethan Gustilo. 2. Christopher Davies. 3. Hunter Malson.
Novice
65: 1. Kale Hannant.
90: 1. Kale Richinia. 2. Carter Lemieux.
North Florida Matmen 