COLUMBUS — Three Pickaway County wrestlers still have their eyes on the ultimate prize – a state wrestling championship – with another still in the hunt for a spot on the awards podium after thew first day of action at the state championships.
Teays Valley’s Trevor Bridges and Josh Zimmer along with Westfall’s Savannah Holderby advanced after their opening matches while Westfall’s Eli Wright bounced back to stay alive in the consolation bracket.
Circleville’s Keving Downing and Teays Valley’s Peter Graham each lost their two matches to complete their trips to the state tournament.
Division I
Bridges, a junior, advanced with a 5-1 decision over Hamilton senior Jayden Knowles (38-5).
“I started off my attacks, had to score as many points that I can, and wrestle all of my match, even if I was up big, then keep going with my attacks and not stop,” Bridges said of going after Knowles.
It was his first match at the state tournament after being an alternate last year.
“It was really exciting,” Bridges said. “I was kind of nervous, but, I mean, it’s the way it goes. There’s a lot of people watching me. I performed like I usually do and block them out while I wrestle.”
Bridges (45-7) will be back in 113-pound action around noon Saturday against Brecksville senior Rylan Seacrest (30-1).
“It’s definitely very exciting. I came here, I got the job done day one,” Bridges said. “But that’s not gonna stop me from coming on day two. I’m just going to get to my attacks and finish them and wrestle my hardest.”
Zimmer (38-5), a senior, began his tournament with a 4-1 decision over Archbishop Moeller’s Jonathan Frittinger (31-20).
“For Josh to come out here and dominate in that match, that’s what he planned to do,” TV coach Todd Nace said. “He’s got a tough one next tomorrow morning, but I think he’s ready, he’s so focused. He’s been a leader of the team the whole year from last April to now, and he just really is a great kid, and we want to see some good things from him.”
Zimmer will go up against Lincoln Rohr from Massillon Perry (36-9) in the 126-pound quarterfinals.
Graham ran into a tough first-round 190-pound matchup when he faced off against Caige Horak (43-2) from Massillon Perry, who placed third at 175 last year. Horak advanced by technical fall.
“That’s a super tough kid — probably going to win it,” Nace said.
Graham (36-12) faced Lakota West’s Cameron Fiasco in the consolation round.
It was a tight match when Fiasco got a takedown with a minute left to go up 4-1. Graham scored on a reversal, but had to give up an escape point and couldn’t get the move he needed as his junior season ended on the wrong end of an 11-3 major decision.
“Super proud of Pete. He’s been just a great competitor all year, and, making 190, two-time state qualifier; nobody’s going to be able to take that away from him,” Nace said. “He’s just a great kid and we love him, and we’ll see him back next year and he’s going to do some great things.”
With Bridges and Zimmer, the Vikings are alive for some good finishes this year.
“Two coming back the second day, we haven’t had that for a while,” Nace said. “We’re looking forward to tomorrow. We got some good draws if things don’t go right the first match, and we got some draws for the second match, we can do something special here this weekend.”
Girls
Westfall senior Savannah Holderby had a tough opening draw with two-time state runner-up Greeneview junior Lily Hedricks and was trailing when Hedricks was called for an illegal move. Unable to continue after being injured, Holderby advanced through a medical default.
“She grabbed the ankle and twisted the knee sideways,” Westfall coach Tim Geiger said. “You’re allowed to move it in the normal range of motion, but she pulled it sideways. That’s why it was illegal.”
While she wasn’t able to continue Friday’s match, Holderby’s already overcome so much to be in position to make the state tournament again that she shouldn’t be underestimated.
“She had two knee surgeries last year. She had one knee surgery the year before. So, she’s now had three knee surgeries and a shoulder surgery,” Geiger said. “She’s just so tough with everything she’s overcome.”
Her record stands at 9-2 after missing most of the season getting back to strength.
“We’ve kept her out a lot of the season. She wrestled one match during the season to certify for weight,” Geiger said. “She went into sectional, she beat the sixth ranked girl to win our sectional.”
Holderby’s next match will take place around 1 o’clock Saturday and she has Abigale Miller (38-4) from New Middletown Springfield waiting for her.
Division II
Wright (30-9) went up against last year’s fifth-place finisher in Eaton’s Presley Stewart (40-4) to open the 190-pound tournament and lost by technical fall 17-1.
The sophomore came back to pin West Geauga’s Austin Wheatley (39-10) in 43 seconds.
“I think that we came out a little deer in the headlights in that first one,” Westfall coach Will Breyer said. “And then for this one, we decided, it’s just another wrestling match, and let’s kick some @!?.”
Falling behind in the opener was something that is tough to come back from.
“Once you go get down 9-1 at states, you can’t come back,” Breyer said. “Because now he can just sit on it, and we’re trying to do things that we don’t want to do, and that’s what happened. It just got away from us way too fast, and you can’t make it come back.”
“The first one was bad, but I had to go,” Wright said. “And I gave it all I got, put all on the mat, win or lose, I just had to go.”
Wright gave credit to Breyer for getting him ready for the second match.
“He talks me up, gets me going, gets me where I need to be, gives me the right mindset,” Wright said. “After the first one, it was rough. I just had to let it go and go out there and win that one.”
Wright will be back on the mat around 11:45 but won’t know his opponent until the championship quarterfinals are complete.
Coming out as the fourth-seed from his district, Downing had the misfortune of facing off against Elyria Catholic freshman Grady Moos to start the day and lost by technical fall 16-1.
“He started off with a projected state champ and a really good kid from Elyria Catholic,” Circleville coach Marlin Ellis said. “We wrestled him really tough but state is a tough tournament.
“This is his first time here as a sophomore. He had a great season, and I look forward to a couple more trips here. He just had a tough go of it, but has had a great season overall and just look forward to the future.”
Downing (47-7) faced Licking Valley’s Brody Miller (37-12) in the consolation bracket and was pinned in the second round.
The experience of the state tournament will only help Downing, Miller said, as he comes back for his junior season.
“Not many people make it to state. Not many of us coaches made it when we were wrestlers,” Ellis said. “It’s the top 1 percent of wrestlers ever that even get to be here. So, the fact that he’s here so early in his career, and just the future’s bright to podium. This is just a start of a bigger journey.”
The state championships resume at 9:30 Saturday morning with Division III championship quarterfinals.