Month: December 2020

Categories
#matmenTEN

They’re Almost Ready…

I’m not a fan of rankings. Have said it, will say it for the duration.
Look, at best they’re a snapshot in time of the ranker’s opinion — particularly if the last time regular-season rankings were done by said ranker, there was a different US president. At worst, they cause resentments toward the ranker
(I send out a hopeful reminder here about Rule 1A of the site; we don’t trash programs, no matter how gently we think our trashing might be, and we don’t trash the admin).
But, like the preseason picks we make and the post-season tournament previews we write, there’s a reason we folks who do — or think we might — want to make a living at writing about this stuff, and that’s eyes on our work. And nothing draws eyes to our work like a set of rankings.
While we hope they would not, they inevitably motivate. Either they put a target on the back of the kid carrying the #1 seed, as it were, or even the #10, in the eyes of the kids who might have just missed, or they put a chip on the shoulder on all the 2 seeds, the just-misseds and those that have a rival team whose kid at your weight is maybe four spots up but might be….beatable?
We do TEN. TEN’s a good number. You gotta WORK to make this TEN. It’s not the only all-class ranking, probably not the best one, but it was, in its original version several years ago on this little dadblog, the first in some while (and I can claim that over my guy down south, although — Letterkenny voice — to be fair, he brought it back before I did), if not ever, anywhere in Florida.
As I write this draft, the lists are done, but in final-touches mode. And it’s brutal for me. We’re not doing honorable mentions, which is a first for us. Just TEN.
Some of you may wonder, will we do a girls’ poll? Might do a girls’ TEN that’s a pound-for-pound ranking, for this year. I need to decompress some to get to that point.
Either way, it still is just a snapshot in time. Remember that. Snapshot in time.
The real work for all of you is still to be done. Four teams in the coverage area haven’t even wrestled another team yet, at this writing.
But just so you know, I see all of you. I listed a lot of you. My lists are going around 20-30 deep or so. If you REALLY must know where you sit if you didn’t make the list, send me a private message (email the site email address or via Facebook Messenger) and ask NICELY, and I’ll give you a rough idea of how close you are, who the two or three people are above you and below you, etc.
The disclaimers. Always, the disclaimers. I couldn’t run the site without them.
You can’t be missing results with me and get your kids ranked. No bueno. There are three teams (Caveat: that I KNOW OF) that are missing results.
And, you can’t be missing a schedule in my hands. This is how it works. You sit in front of a computer. You call up your schedule that you’ve already sent out to the team and the parents. You attach it to an email. Since you’re a head coach, you have my work email address. Find it. Attach the schedule. Clicky click send button. Go back to your life. Seven programs haven’t done that yet, and tomorrow’s JANUARY, for 2021’s sake.
If you’re a parent in one of these seven programs, take a picture of your son or daughter’s schedule, and do the voodoo your phone does to email a picture to nefloridamatmen@gmail.com. It’s January, it’s a pandemic, and I’m not proud anymore; wrestlers, you could HANDWRITE me what you got and send it by carrier-pigeon if you must (but most of you are more techie than I am). But somebody with your program has to care enough to put a schedule in my hands.
Those ineligible teams can know who they are when the list comes out (clues can be found on the master schedule page already). It’ll be noted at the bottom of the page.
Next. I don’t rank you where you will wrestle the post-season. I rank you where you are now. That’s the lowest weight at which you’ve competed this year. Some of you haven’t made your drops yet. And that’s OK. Remember, snapshot in time. Always in motion is the future. Want an example? Gabe Jacobs did just fine wrestling 182 for a very sizable chunk of the year. Might have won state at 182 for Pace last year. We don’t know with certainty about that, but what we did learn for sure was that he tore through the 2A bracket — at 195.
Last. I try to make last year be last year. You beat a kid last year, doesn’t mean he isn’t doing better this year. I realize a lot of you (I see you, Duval public kids) have very few matches right now. I’ve made state experience a plus factor for many of you. I’ve even, and I NEVER have done this before, once or twice made off-season results a plus factor (but they had better have been Super32 or Michigan Grappler or something on that level).
Will we do another one of these before end of year? I don’t know that yet. Always in motion. But we will do one at end of year, before #TheSeason work starts. It’ll be a snapshot in time for the end of the season.
And, no doubt, will touch off debate for 2021-22 — which, I am certain, we are ALL looking forward to in some way after the craziness of this season.
Some of you will be mad about these. OK, a LOT of you have a lot to be mad about with me, if not for this, than certainly for some other thing I did or didn’t do.
But, just think. Thirty-four kids — THIRTY-FOUR! — that are unbeaten going into 2021, that made my initial set of notes didn’t make the list. I hope they all, and you all, prove me wrong. I really do. (But it’s OK if 14 of you, or more, prove me right).
Be kind to ol’Matmen after these come out. This — the rankings, the record-keeping, the stories, the travel, the time away from family, the 14 hours or more per day just sitting in front of a computer and typing every single damn day 300+ days a year, all of it — is a lot harder than I make it look. Believe that.
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Categories
HOLIDAY WRESTLING

#Knockout: Hoskinson, Vugman Earn Medals

Medalists in the 170-lb weight class at the Knockout Classic in Kissimmee Tuesday, including Clay senior Cale Hoskinson (second from right) (Photo submitted via Clay team FB page).
KISSIMMEE — At a tournament like Osceola’s Knockout Christmas Classic, where getting to the second day is an accomplishment, two north Florida wrestlers were able to get on the podium.
Clay senior Cale Hoskinson (170) and Bartram Trail sophomore Ethan Vugman (106) both earned Knockout medals on Tuesday, as Hoskinson was fifth and Vugman sixth in their respective weight classes.
Hoskinson’s fifth led the Blue Devils to the top northern finish, as Clay was 31st with 36 points, one point ahead of Florida High. Tampa Jesuit was the top Florida team in the 52-team tournament, taking fourth with 152.5 points, one back of Woodland (Cartersville). Tuttle (OK) won the team title with 215.5 points, 18 ahead of Tennessee’s Baylor School.
Hoskinson reached the quarters at 170, where he fell to runnerup Dylan Kohn of The Master’s Academy, 7-1, on Monday. In the consis, Hoskinson was 3-1, with two pins before falling, 8-2, in the consi semis to third-place Cody Rice of Charlotte. Hoskinson then went double-overtime with 2020 3A state champ Joshua Swan of South Dade, finding the critical point for a 2-1 decision in the fifth place match.
Medalists from the 106-lb weight class at the Knockout Christmas Classic, including Bartram Trail sophomore Ethan Vugman (far right) (Photo submitted by Bartram Trail team page via Twitter).
Vugman fell to eventual champ Anderson Heap of Osceola, 7-0, in the round of 16 on Monday, with one consi-side tech fall to get to Tuesday. In the second day, Vugman won three times to assure himself of a medal before a 7-0 consi-semi loss to fourth-place Colby McBride of Woodward Academy (GA). He then fell in sudden victory, 7-3, to Somerset Academy’s Christian Fretwell in the fifth-place match.
Three Florida High wrestlers — Tyler Reeve (126), Micah Perdue (195) and Amarrie Harris (220) — each were one match from medaling.
Complete brackets from the two-day tournament can be found HERE.
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Categories
HOLIDAY WRESTLING

#So.Belle: 3 Local Champs Crowned

KISSIMMEE — Three north Florida champions were crowned at the inaugural Southern Belle tournament, staged at Silver Spurs Arena on Monday.
The tournament was designed by the Knockout Christmas Classic tournament managers at Osceola to become the eventual girls’ component to the Knockout, something that has been missing in prior seasons.
Clay’s Madisyn Blackburn (131), Ponte Vedra’s Josie Sagasser (137) and Orange Park’s Andrea Smith (235) each won titles in the one-day tournament. No team scores were compiled.
Blackburn pinned her way into the finals, with falls over Wiregrass Ranch’s Mady Harris (1:35), Lady Pirates’ Da’Maria Raymond (3:47) and Freedom’s Rachel Ferreter (1:39) along the way. In the title match, Blackburn took down Woodmont (SC)’s Aniyah Kelly, 8-6, for the championship.
Sagasser had two pins for her title at 137. After a bye into the semis, Sagasser falled Gladiator’s Briana Membreno in 2:32 in that round, then followed that up with a fall in two minutes over East Lee County’s Karla Roman in the championship match.
At 235, Smith had two falls over the only opponent put in front of her, with pins in 1:09 and 3:23 over Osceola’s Katelyn Chin for her first-place medal.
The trio of local champs was joined by Nease’s Brielle Bibla (101) in the finals. Bibla won two bonus-point matches to reach the final, where she fell to Canes WC’s Clare Booe by a 12-3 major. Bibla was joined on the Southern Belle podium by her younger sister, eighth-grader Kendall Bibla (Applied Pressure), who was 2-2 in taking fourth at 126.
Jazzmine Moore (Oakleaf HS/Riot Wrestling) was third at 189, going 2-2 in the roundrobin-formatted weight class, while Ponte Vedra had three fourths from Cynthia Kowitski (2-2 at 111), Olivia Richie (4-2 at 131) and Mira Schmidt (2-2 at 160).
Complete brackets from the Southern Belle can be found HERE.
Competitive Edge Middle School: Seven north Florida middle-schoolers placed in the one-day tournament, also staged at Silver Spurs on Monday.
Team Clay had three placers in Cameron Haines (2nd, 75), Dylan Beck (2nd, 145) and Cooper Beck (4th, 112), while Bold City Wrestling Academy had a pair of runners-up in Liam Davis (100) and Landon Bates (112). Seminole County WC picked up a third with Logan Price (75), while Creeks’ Mario Del Vecchio (90) placed fourth.
Deep South Duals: ECE, a team primarily comprised of Panhandle-area middle schoolers, was 1-3 in the first day of pool play at the Deep South Winter Duals at the Birmingham (AL) Crossplex.
ECE defeated Scorpions Club, 66-36, after earlier losses to Alabama Elite (77-9), Blackman WC (51-50) and Union County WC (72-24).
Full dual results can be found here: ECE RESULTS — K-8 DUALS DAY 1
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Categories
#NextLevel

#NextLevel: Dec 18-19 Results

CHARLESTON, SC — It’s said often that wrestlers can compete across all levels of collegiate competition.

Last week, Southeastern proved that again — with local support — in a 22-14 dual win at The Citadel on December 18.

Jaquan English

While late matches down the stretch secured the dual, Southeastern needed points early as well, with Jaquan English (Raines/Fleming Island ’18), ranked 18th nationally in NAIA by InterMat, gaining a key decision at 141. English took down the Bulldogs’ Ethan Willis, 4-2, in that weight class.

The Fire pick back up on Mid-South Conference duals action when they return to the mats in Lebanon TN, facing host Cumberland as well as King in a Friday-night tri-meet.

Concordia Duals: On December 19, Doane (NE) was 3-1 on the day with team wins over Arizona Christian (31-15), Williams Baptist (38-10) and Texas Wesleyan (28-17), with a one-point loss to Montana State-Northern (22-21).

Luke Davis

Freshman Luke Davis (Clay ’20) started in three of those duals, with decision losses to Montana State’s Kaleb Frank (10-3) and #20 Robert Fairchild (9-7) of Williams Baptist. Davis also lost by fall (2:25) to Arizona Christian’s #9 Elias Gonzales. Doane is now off until January 9, when it competes at Hastings (NE)’s Cusatis Open.

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Categories
MIDWEEK DUALS

#Panther: Bartram Wins Season Debut

Bartram Trail wrestlers and coaches with the Panther Duals championship trophy won on Tuesday. The Bears also began their season (Photo submitted by Chad Parker via FB).

ORANGE PARK — For Bartram Trail, the best Christmas gift was just getting on the wrestling mat and not facing the same practice partner that the Bears have been facing for weeks.

Tuesday afternoon at Ridgeview, Bartram Trail took down four opponents to win the Panther Duals; after a 42-39 win over Fletcher in round 2, the Bears ran through Ridgeview (48-30), Baker Cty (52-30) and Bishop Snyder (60-12) in taking the five-team duals championship.

The Bears had 12 wrestlers on the day come out and win 12 matches per scoresheets reported by the tournament host. Those scoresheets indicated that six of the 12 Bartram wrestlers won three times, and two were 4-0 “max-pointers” per Bartram coaches, scoring 6 team dual points in every dual the team contested on the day.

Runnerup Baker Cty (8-14) took wins in round 1 over Ridgeview (54-30) and in round 3 over Bishop Snyder (54-12), plus had a team forfeit. Every wrestler in the Wildcat lineup had at least two wins, with eight of those 11 taking three. From 182 through 285, Baker had nothing but max-pointers.

The host Panthers (12-8) bounced back from the round 1 loss with a 60-12 victory over Bishop Snyder in round 2, plus had a team forfeit. Nine wrestlers won at least twice for Ridgeview, with six of those nine taking three or more wins and and four sporting max-point days at 4-0.

Bishop Snyder (0-14) was 0-4 on the day, with a round 1-loss to Fletcher (66-0) as well as those noted above. The Cardinals brought just six wrestlers, five which competed through the day, with two that won at least two matches and one that won three.

Outstanding wrestlers at the Panther Duals Tuesday at Ridgeview, from left: Daeshawn Larry, Baker Cty (upper); Matthew Rodriquez, Ridgeview (lower); Ian Finnorn, Ridgeview (middle) (Photo submitted by Bart Rodriquez via FB).

Outstanding wrestlers for the day were Ridgeview’s Matthew Rodriquez (lowers) and Ian Finnorn (middles), along with Baker Cty’s Daeshawn Larry (uppers).

Fletcher (4-2) had six double winners on the day, with three of those six winning both matches by pin.

Scoresheets from the day can be found HERE.

Bartram Trail will also be first back on the mats, with a delegation heading to Osceola next week for the Knockout Christmas Classic on Monday and Tuesday. Fletcher is slated for the Bobcat Roundrobin at Buchholz on January 2, while Ridgeview and Bishop Snyder will next be at the 1A-District 4 duals tournament on the 7th and Baker Cty will be at Yulee’s Joe Bees Memorial Battle of the Border on the 9th.

ACES OF THE DAY
Bartram Trail: Senior Trevor Tagarelli (126) was 4-0 on the day, with pins in round 2 over Fletcher, over Ridgeview in round 3 and over Baker Cty in round 4,
Baker Cty: Senior Larry (285) was one of the four Wildcat bigs to max-point, with pins against Bishop Snyder and Bartram Trail on the afternoon, plus two forfeits.
Ridgeview: Senior Rodriquez (132) pinned through all of his contested matches in building his max-point day, with falls over Baker Cty, Bishop Snyder and Bartram Trail.
Bishop Snyder: Senior Aaron Villanueva (152) was 3-1 on the day; after a round-1 loss to Fletcher, Villanueva took pins against Ridgeview, Baker Cty and Bartram Trail.

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Categories
WEEKEND TOURNAMENTS

#YuleeDuals: Fleming Dominates The Scene

Fleming Island wrestlers take a championship picture Saturday afternoon after running the table over the course of the weekend at the Yulee Duals (Photo by Shannon Heaton).

YULEE, FL — Fleming Island was supposed to have hosted the St Johns River Conference, an event it has dominated for the past several years, this past weekend.

Instead, the Golden Eagles found themselves dominating the two-day Yulee Duals, with an average margin of victory of 53.7 points per dual over the course of six duals, and walking away with that tournament’s title instead of another SJRC team trophy.

“We wrestled a lot of young kids. Watching them grow during the weekend and getting better. It was good; not all of our starters were in the lineup,” Fleming Island coach PJ Cobbert said. “Any wrestling’s better than no wrestling at all. We can still get in better shape, but I liked the way we wrestled. Last week (at Danny Byron) was really the first time we got in much wrestling.”

The Golden Eagles lost just nine individual matches over the weekend, and 13 of the 17 wrestlers that Fleming Island (6-0 in duals for the season had at least three wins. Nine of those 13 were undefeated, with five finishing with 6-0 weekends.

Episcopal (12-2) rolled through Pool C with three victories on Friday, defeating Camden B (57-24), West Nassau (60-24) and Heritage (42-36). After winning a pair of “extra” duals (42-39 over Florida High and 54-27 over Baker Cty), the Eagles then split duals in the championship pool, defeating Yulee in the battle for second, 45-31.

Episcopal is all smiles — we think — after the Eagles were 6-1 and placed second at the Yulee Duals on Saturday (Photo by Shannon Heaton).

The host Hornets opened their dual season this past weekend, going 4-2 and placing third overall after a 4-0 Friday, winning Pool A with dual wins over Florida High (53-29), Glynn Academy (45-36), Bishop Kenny (54-28) and Bishop Snyder (66-6).

Suwannee (9-3) had a 5-1 tournament, taking second in Pool B, with its only loss on the weekend to the Golden Eagles. The Bulldogs defeated University Christian (54-6), Baker Cty (45-36) and Bolles (60-4) in pool play, and won twice on Saturday in the second-place pool (fourth overall), defeating Camden B, 44-33, and Bishop Kenny, 46-21.

Bishop Kenny (12-7) was 3-1 in Pool A, taking wins over Bishop Snyder (58-12), Glynn Academy (63-18) and Florida High (45-25). The Crusaders encountered three tough Saturday opponents, with losses to Heritage (46-30) and Camden B (46-32) as well as that noted above.

Florida High (3-5) had a 3-4 tournament, taking third in Pool A with a 2-2 record, with wins over Bishop Snyder (54-6) and Glynn Academy (54-21). The Seminoles split a pair of Saturday duals in the third-place pool, falling to Heritage (57-18) and defeating Baker Cty (48-36).

Baker Cty (5-13) for the season was 2-2 in Pool B, taking third in that pool with wins over University Christian (60-15) and Bolles (66-12). The Wildcats also lost to Heritage, 46-36, in the third-place Saturday pool as well as the losses noted above.

Bolles (4-8 in duals for the year) was 1-3 in Pool B, with a pool victory, 18-16, over University Christian, with a Saturday loss to Glynn Academy (48-10). The Bulldogs did pick up one dual victory at the end of the tournament, turning back Bishop Snyder, 30-12.

University Christian opened its dual season over the weekend, going 1-4 with a 15-12 win over Bishop Snyder on Saturday. The Christians also competed as extra wrestlers competing with Heritage against Bishop Kenny and with Bishop Snyder against Glynn Academy on Saturday.

Bishop Snyder (0-10) was winless in the tournament, with additional losses to Glynn Academy (60-6) on Friday and 31-30 (criteria) on Saturday. West Nassau (3-9) was 0-3 in Friday’s wrestling, with losses to Heritage (65-12) and Camden B (70-12) as well as that noted above.

Complete results from the event can be found HERE.

THE NOTES
Standings: 1. Fleming Island. 2. Episcopal. 3. Yulee. 4. Suwannee. 5. Camden B GA. 6. Bishop Kenny. 7. Heritage. 8. Florida High. 9. Baker Cty. 10. Glynn Academy GA. 11. Bolles. 12. University Christian. 13. Bishop Snyder. 14. West Nassau.

ACES OF THE DAY
Fleming Island: Junior Hunter Williams (195) was the only Golden Eagles’ max-pointer (scoring 6 team dual points in every dual the team wrestled) on a team with many unbeaten wrestlers on the weekend, going 6-0 with three pins and three forfeits. Williams won by pin Friday against Baker County, with a pair of Saturday falls against Yulee and Episcopal.
Episcopal: Senior Noah Meyer (138) was the only Eagle to amass six wins on the weekend, with four pins. Meyer had Friday falls over Camden B and Heritage, with Saturday pins over Florida High and a weight up at 145 against Baker Cty, plus two forfeits as well.
Yulee: Senior Collin Sewell (170) was one of five Hornets to compile a 5-1 record, with his only loss against Fleming Island. Sewell had Friday pins over Florida High and Bishop Kenny, with a third fall over Episcopal on Saturday.
Suwannee: Junior Tyson Musgrove (138) bonus-pointed through the weekend, with four pins and a major to go with a Friday forfeit win. Musgrove had pins over Fleming Island, Baker Cty and Bolles wrestlers, then came back on Saturday with a major against Camden B and a fall against Bishop Kenny.
Bishop Kenny: Freshman Jacob Harless (106) emerged from the weekend with the Crusaders’ best overall tournament record, going 6-1 with Friday pins over Glynn Academy and Yulee, plus a Saturday decision over Camden.
Florida High: Senior Micah Perdue (195) was 7-0, one of three Seminoles with that record, collecting four pins and a decision. Perdue won by fall over Yulee on Friday, with pins on Saturday against Episcopal, Heritage and Baker Cty.
Baker Cty: Senior Daeshawn Larry (285) had the top overall record for the Wildcats, with a 6-1 weekend. Larry had three pins and three forfeits, with a Friday fall over Suwannee and Saturday pins over Episcopal and Heritage.
Bolles: Junior Denny Vohs (138) had the Bulldogs’ top record on the weekend, going 4-2 with two pins. One of those was in pool play against Baker County, and the other on Saturday against Glynn Academy in fourth-place pool competition.
University Christian: Sophomore Egan Gustilo (120) was one of two 7-0 wrestlers for the Christians, with five pins and a decision. Gustilo had falls over Baker Cty and Fleming Island in pool play, plus pins over Bishop Snyder, Bishop Kenny* and Glynn Academy* on Saturday.
Bishop Snyder: Senior Christian Villanueva (120/126) was 5-2 for the weekend, with pins in pool play over Bishop Kenny, Glynn Academy and Yulee. Villanueva bumped up to 126 in fourth-place pool competition, with wins by pin in both matches.
West Nassau: Four of the Warriors’ seven wrestlers were 2-1, with sophomore Jakob Turnage (160) taking falls against both Florida opponents.

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DISTRICT DUALS

#2ADist2Duals: Lincoln Wins 4th Straight

Lincoln wrestlers and coaches remain unbeaten in 2020-21, as the Trojans won their fourth consecutive 2A-District 2 dual team tournament at home on Saturday (Photo submitted by Mike Crowder via FB).

TALLAHASSEE — Prior to Saturday, no 2A-District 2 team had ever beaten Lincoln in the FHSAA district duals tournament.

After Saturday, no team yet has. The Trojans won five duals on their home mats to defend their title for the third straight season and took their fourth such win overall. Lincoln (5-0 in duals for the season) defeated Leon (78-3), Gainesville (78-5), Columbia (48-36), Mosley (54-28) and Chiles (45-32), for an average margin of victory of 41 points per dual.

Lincoln advances to the 2A-Region 1 quarterfinals on January 14 and will face the District 1 runnerup in that round. Quarterfinal winners will meet in a semifinal dual on the same night for the right to compete at state duals on the 22nd and 23rd; the Trojans have appeared for at the least the first day in the prior three seasons.

Lincoln had five unbeaten wrestlers, four of which were 5-0. Three of those four wrestlers were “max-pointers,” scoring 6 team dual points in every dual the team wrestled in the tournament. In all, nine Trojan wrestlers won at least three matches on the day.

For the second straight year, Chiles will compete at the region level after finishing second on Saturday. The Timberwolves (4-1 for the season) took dual victories over Gainesville (81-0), Mosley (42-35), Leon (75-0) and Columbia (40-38) to set up the winner-takes-the-title dual with their crosstown rivals.

Chiles wrestlers and coaches celebrate advancement to the 2A-Region 1 duals tournament for the second consecutive year after finishing second at the 2A-District 2 tournament at Lincoln Saturday (Photo submitted by James Marschka).

Chiles had 10 wrestlers with at least three wins on Saturday; of those, four were unbeaten and three were 5-0, with one max-pointer.

Columbia (7-4 for the season) was third with a 3-2 tournament record. The Tigers defeated Mosley and Leon by identical 54-24 scores, wrapping up the day with a 48-12 win over Gainesville. Eight Columbia wrestlers won at least three duals, with five going unbeaten, four of those at 5-0, with two max-pointers.

Mosley (2-3) had wins in round 3 over Gainesville (66-6) and round 5 over Leon (66-18). The Dolphins had seven wrestlers with at least three wins, with one unbeaten.

Leon (1-4) had its lone victory of the day with a 36-18 round-5 win over Gainesville (0-15). The Lions had one wrestler go 4-1 on the day.

Complete results from the event can be found HERE.

THE NOTES
Standings: 1. Lincoln 5-0. 2. Chiles 4-1. 3. Columbia 3-2. 4. Mosley 2-3. 5. Leon 1-4. 6. Gainesville 0-5 (Lincoln & Chiles advance to 2A-Region 1 quarterfinals, January 14, Lincoln will host).

ACES OF THE DAY
Lincoln: Sophomore Zaire Fernanders-Jackson (132) was one of the Trojans’ max-pointers, with falls in the final two rounds over Mosley and Chiles. His pin in the Chiles dual clinched the victory in Lincoln’s favor. Fernanders-Jackson had forfeits in the first three rounds over Leon, Gainesville and Columbia.
Chiles: Senior Olufemi Egberongbe (138/145) wasn’t the Timberwolves’ max-pointer, but he had key bonus points in Chiles’ wins over Mosley and Columbia, plus a rd-3 decision win over a state qualifier and fellow ace in Zirgibel. Egberongbe had pins against Gainesville, Mosley and Lincoln, with a major in round 4 over Columbia.
Columbia: Junior Thomas Greene (152) was one of the Tigers’ four unbeatens and one of the max-pointers. Greene was the only wrestler in the event to pin all five of his opponents on the day, falling Mosley, Leon, Lincoln, Chiles and Gainesville in succession.
Mosley: Junior Nick Hejke (145) was one of four Dolphins with four wins and the team’s only unbeaten, with pins in round 1 over Columbia, in round 3 over Gainesville, in round 4 over Lincoln and in round 5 over Leon.
Leon: Junior Nolan Zirgibel (138/145) was the Lions’ only wrestler with four wins on the afternoon, with pins over Columbia (round 2), Mosley (round 4) and Gainesville (round 5), with a round-1 tech fall for Leon’s only points in the loss to Lincoln.
Gainesville: Sophomore Aiden Kittelson (195) was one of two wrestlers for the Hurricanes that had two victories on the day. Kittelson had pins over wrestlers from Mosley and Leon in rounds 3 and 4.

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WEEKEND TOURNAMENTS

#Simpson: Eight Champs Lift Pace

Pace wrestlers and coaches celebrate a title win Saturday at South Walton’s Scott Simpson Invitational IBT event (Photo submitted by Aaron Mitchell via FB).

SANTA ROSA BEACH — 2A teams ruled the roost at Saturday’s Scott Simpson Invitational, the inaugural version of that IBT, at South Walton.

It could have been that the 1A teams in the field all scrapped in three duals the night before, as part of the 1A-District 1 duals tournament also at South Walton, that made things easier, but Pace — the strongest team in the Panhandle — would have been favored to win the title either way.

And the Patriots flexed their muscle on Saturday, winning eight weight-class titles, including six in a row between 145 and 195. Pace had only three weights where it did not finish in the top four.

Niceville, behind a pair of titles, outdistanced its 2A rival Choctaw, 156-104.5, for second place. The Indians had two finalists.

Rutherford, which was T-4th in district duals Friday night, was the top 1A-District 1 team, thanks to four finalists and one of those as a champion. The Rams edged Arnold, 97-95, for fourth. Arnold also had four finalists and one champ.

Region 1 duals qualifiers Rocky Bayou Christian and South Walton tied for sixth; both the Knights and Seahawks had one champion. Wewahitchka, with one finalist, was eighth and Bay rounded out the field in ninth.

Complete brackets from the event can be found HERE.

THE NOTES
Team scores: 1. Pace 242. 2. Niceville 156. 3. Choctaw 104.5. 4. Rutherford 97. 5. Arnold 95. 6. (tie) Rocky Bayou Christian & South Walton 87. 8. Wewahitchka 41. 9. Bay 32.5.
Championship matches —
106: Valerie Soloria (Arnold) p. Jay Brown (Wewahitchka), 4:34.
113: Max Brewster (South Walton) p. Lucas Biddle (Arnold), 2:43.
120: Ethan Pinto (Niceville) p. Tyler Gump (Niceville), 1:56.
126: Haze Esary (Pace) DQ over Colin Dutton (Rutherford).
132: Luke Latham (Rocky Bayou) md. Steven Banfield (Choctaw), 10-1.
138: Chris DeGrella (Niceville) p. Ryan Kurfirst (South Walton), 1:32.
145: Atticus Waters (Pace) p. Devonte Knox (Choctaw), 3:08.
152: David Luckey (Pace) d. Ty Hawkins (Niceville), 14-8.
160: Joseph Cortez (Pace) p. Martin Black (Niceville), 1:21.
170: Brody Andrews (Pace) p. Isaac Waters (Pace), 3:23.
182: Nick Adams (Pace) p. Chad Allgood (Rutherford), 3:11.
195: Wyatt Dillon (Pace) p. Tyler Lewis (Arnold), 3:37.
220: Xavier Stillgess (Rutherford) p. Tanner Lewis (Arnold), 1:09.
285: Kegan O’Shell (Pace) p. Robert Heller (Rutherford), 1:22.

ACES OF THE DAY
Pace: It can be tough to pick one ace on a day with eight Patriot champs, but senior Nick Adams (182) was one that emerged. Adams was 4-0 to win Pool B, with three first-period falls (Rocky Bayou, Bay and South Walton), plus a 10-6 decision over third-place Niceville. Adams then pinned his Rutherford opponent in the second period of the final match for the Patriots’ sixth title of the day.
Niceville: Senior Chris DeGrella (138), a first-year starter for the Eagles, dominated the 138 bracket with five bonus-point wins. DeGrella was 4-0 in Pool A, with pins over Bay and South Walton, a 15-0 second-period tech over Wewahitchka, and a 19-9 major over Pace. DeGrella then falled his South Walton championship opponent in the first period for his title.
Choctaw: Senior Devonte Knox (145) was one of the Indians’ two finalists in the tournament. Knox was 3-0 in pool play, taking Pool C with pins over Arnold, Rocky Bayou and Niceville to get into the championship match. Knox lost to a former state qualifier in the first of two 1st-3rd pool matches, but rallied for a pin over the Pool B champ from Niceville to claim second.
Rutherford: Senior Xavier Stillgess (220) rolled up four pins on the day, all in the first period. Stillgess needed just 3:22 of mat time in winning his bracket, with falls over South Walton, Pace, Arnold and Choctaw in taking the title.
Arnold: Freshman Valorie Soloria (106) was the Pool B champ with three falls in 2:03 over two wrestlers from Wewa and a third from Pace. Soloria then pinned a third Gator wrestler in the final, with a fall in the third period.
Rocky Bayou: Junior Luke Latham (132) was the Knights’ lone champion on the day. Latham took down a 2020 South Walton state qualifier in Pool B, with pins over Rutherford and Pace afterward. In the title match, Latham won by major decision over Choctaw to secure his bracket.
South Walton: Junior Max Brewster (113) was the Seahawks’ lone champ, pinning his way through the weight class. Brewster was 3-0 with three first-period pins (Wewa, Pace and Rutherford) to take Pool B, then wrestled into the second period for his only time on the day to win the championship by fall over Arnold.
Wewahitchka: 8th grader Jay Brown (106) was 3-0 to win Pool A, with pins over a teammate and over Rutherford, plus an 8-0 major over South Walton, but then lost by fall in the finals. Brown was the Gators’ lone finalist on the day.
Bay: Junior Trenton Wood (145) dropped a one-point decision in his opening pool match, which sent him into the 4th-6th place pool, but then pinned his way through after that, with falls over Wewahitchka, and Arnold, plus a 13-8 win over South Walton to place fourth, one of two Tornadoes to earn that place finish.

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WEEKEND TOURNAMENTS

#StJohn: Forest Claims 3rd

VILLAGES — Forest took home two weight-class titles and placed third as a team, just 2.5 points behind host Villages, in the nine-team St John Memorial Holiday IBT on Saturday.

The Wildcats scored 131 points as a group, five ahead of Vero Beach in third. Villages were second with 133.5 points.

In addition to the two weight-class wins, Forest had three runnerup finishes, as well as two fourths.

Belleview won the title, with 171 points, but, due to missing results, a further recap of the Diamondbacks’ championship effort is not possible at this writing. Multiple emails have been sent to get those missing results.

Review the brackets HERE for further information on Belleview’s, and all other participants’ day.

Belleview will be first back on the mats on January 2, going to Buchholz’s Bobcat Roundrobin. Forest is one of our 10 teams without a schedule in hand; so we’re not sure what the Wildcats’ next date will be.

THE NOTES
Championship matches —
106: Ortiz (Vero Beach) p. Balderstone (Central), 1:02.
113: Zack Young (Belleview) p. Stansfield (South Lake), 3:48.
120: Jakob Zawosky (Forest) p. Gage Alberty (Belleview), :58.
126: Michael Ventre (Belleview) p. Collin Maynard (Forest), :53.
132: D. Mendez (Lecanto) p. Wesley Marren (Forest), 3:06.
138: Andrew Davis (Belleview) md. Wilke (Villages), 11-3.
145: Rima (Villages) p. Brown (Leesburg), 2:27.
152: Patton (Vero Beach) p. Tyler Miller (Forest), 1:32.
160: Coon (Villages) p. Giovannone (Vero Beach), 4:30.
170: Eric McLaughlin (Belleview) p. John Bruce (Crystal River), 1:09.
182: Jauma (Villages) md. Ramallo (Lecanto), 9-0.
195: Campbell (Vero Beach) p. Riley Sorenson (Belleview), 5:32.
220: Heise (Villages) p. Andrew Dunn (Belleview), 1:37.
285: Cane Fernandez (Forest) p. Harmon (Central), 5:45.

ACE OF THE DAY
Forest: Junior Jakob Zawosky (120) was one of the Wildcats’ two champions on the day, with five falls to dominate the bracket. After going into the second period in round 1 of a roundrobin-formatted weight class for his first pin, Zawosky had four consecutive first-period falls in succession to win the title, needing 58 seconds in round 4 to fall the eventual runnerup from Belleview.

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WEEKEND TOURNAMENTS

#Strap: Wakulla Takes Title Belt

Wakulla wrestlers and coaches celebrate after taking the Union Cty Scrap for the Strap title belt (modeled by senior Raymond Hatchman in photo). The War Eagles were 4-0 in duals on the day (Photo by Heather Harrell).
LAKE BUTLER — Wakulla has traditionally gone to Beast of the Beach on the third weekend of December.
This year, with that event on hiatus due to uncertain times, the War Eagles headed east and lost just seven contested matches over the course of four duals Saturday in Union Cty’s Scrap for the Strap.
Wakulla (5-0 in duals for the season) took down Union Cty’s varsity group (72-12), the Tigers’ second group (82-0), followed by Palatka (66-18) and Ridgeview (66-9) in winning the inaugural tournament title.
The host Tigers (3-2) were second on the day, bouncing back from the round 1 loss with wins over Ridgeview (47-36), Union Cty B (72-0) and Palatka (54-18).
The closest dual of the day came midway through the tournament, when Ridgeview edged Palatka, 36-32, in round 3. That plus a 60-21 win over the host second group gave the Clay County Panthers (10-6) third with a 2-2 day.
Palatka (1-4 in duals for the season) took fourth at 1-3, with a 54-12 win over Union Cty B in round 2.
Outstanding wrestlers in the tournament were Ridgeview seniors Matthew Rodriquez (lowers) and Derrick Mosley (uppers), with Palatka senior Delton Nealy taking the OW among middle-weight wrestlers.
Duals from the tournament can be found HERE.
Ridgeview is first back on the mats with the Panthers’ 5-way duals event on Tuesday; all other teams in the event return to competition in January. Palatka hosts the 1A-District 5 duals tournament on the 5th, while Wakulla and Union Cty both host district duals events on the 7th (War Eagles 1A-District 2, Tigers 1A-District 4).
ACES OF THE DAY
Wakulla: Senior Jackson Osteen (182) was one of the War Eagles’ seven max-pointers, with his lone forfeit against Union Cty B in rd 3; Osteen had falls over Union Cty A, Palatka and Ridgeview in succession.
Ridgeview: Rodriquez (132) was the Panthers’ only max-pointer, with a forfeit in Round 1 and pins in succession over Union Cty A, Palatka and Wakulla to close out the day.
Palatka: Nealy (152) was 4-0 on the afternoon, with pins over Union Cty B, Wakulla and Union Cty A in rounds 2, 4 and 5, plus a 16-1 tech fall over Ridgeview in round 3.
Union Cty B: Freshman Rodney Barnett (126) didn’t have his team’s best record, but he did record the Tiger second group’s only fall of the day in Round 1, with a pin in the Ridgeview dual.
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