2006-07 COVINGTON BUCCANEERS
Despite not having a state qualifier for the first time in sixteen years, the Covington wrestling program is stronger than ever. That may be a bold statement, but all you have to do to find proof is look at the youth on the varsity squad, the talent at the junior high level and the numbers in the youth program.
Buccaneer wrestling is on the rise and the 2006-07 season may be the start of great things to come.
The Buccs entered this season in what many considered to be a rebuilding year – after losing a very strong senior class to graduation last year. However, the wrestlers on this year’s team didn’t view it that way, as they put forth great effort throughout the season, coming away with some impressive victories.
Despite being a relatively young team facing an ambitious schedule, the Buccs wrestled to an overall dual meet record of 12-8, including victories over Dixie, Tipp City and Oakwood. The team also earned league bragging rights as they came away with a first place finish at the Covington Invitational.
In tournament action, the Buccs brought home some quality hardware, finishing as runnersup to Ayersville at the Lincolnview Invitational, and earning a third-place finish at the Ben Logan Invitational. The finish at Lincolnview is Covington’s best in five years, while the finish at Ben Logan is the team’s best ever.
The Buccs finished in sixth place (out of fifteen) at one of the toughest Sectionals in the state (boasting 23 state qualifiers, 15 state placers and four state champs). The team qualified six wrestlers – Sam Herron, Matt Breisch, Josh McMillion, Jake Jennings, Justin McMillion and Logan Hall – to the District tournament, which is the most since sending nine in the 1999-2000 season. Additionally, two others – Dylan Gustin and Quentin Layman – earned sixth place finishes.
At Districts, the Buccs finished in 20th place out of 48 teams, as the team amassed 32 points on eleven individual victories. Matt Breisch, Justin McMillion and Logan Hall each finished in the top-eight, while Sam Herron earned fifth-place overall and finished as a State Alternate. Despite a solid effort, the Buccs failed to qualify a wrestler to the State tournament this season – breaking a sixteen-year streak dating back to 1991.
Ryan White made it into the record books this year as he earned the 6th highest total for Career Near Falls with 118. Additionally, Justin McMillion matched the tenth best number of pins in a single season, earning 22 falls.
Congratulations to everyone on the team for your success and improvement throughout the year. With some hard work, those returning can accomplish quite a lot next season. A special thanks to our senior statistician, Hannah Clark, for all of your help over the past four years. We also want to thank our other statisticians, Cali Jo Deeter, Sammy Mattevi and Tara McNutt, as well as the Wrestling Parents and others who supported the team this year.
DUAL RECORD
TOURNAMENT RECORD
OVERALL RECORD
WINNING %
12-8
69-71
81-79
51%
2006-07 SEASON RECAPS
Buccs Take Care of Oakwood in Opener
DECEMBER 4, 2006 – COVINGTON
The Covington Buccaneer wrestling team started off their season with a nice performance versus Oakwood in front of their home crowd Monday night. The Buccs found themselves down 24-10 before capitalizing on three separate come-from-behind wins – two from the McMillion brothers – to best the Lumberjacks, 48-30.
The dual started at the 145 lb. weight class and Justin McMillion got Covington on track with a second period pin over Joel Turner after giving up two takedowns and trailing 4-1 early in the match. At 152 lbs, Ryan White followed suit with four takedowns and a couple of near falls en route to a 15-4 major decision over Oakwood’s John Harman. Oakwood then scored their first points at 160 lbs as Dan Kendig earned a first period fall over freshman Josh Shefbuch. The Buccs then forfeited the next three weight classes and found themselves down, 24-10, before Jake Wise earned a 2-0 decision over Oakwood’s Jake Horlacher at 285 lbs.
At 103 lbs, Covington’s Sam Herron found himself on his feet trailing by a point with time running out, when he dug deep, pushing the action, and came out on top of a scramble with his opponent on his back. Herron earned the pin before the buzzer sounded and provided the Buccs with a much-needed win. At 112 lbs, Matt Breisch squared off against one of Oakwood’s top wrestlers – returning district qualifier and near district placer, Paul Hochwalt. Breisch wrestled well throughout most of the match, but in the end, Hochwalt’s experience showed as he came away with a pin for the Lumberjacks.
Covington then found themselves on the receiving end as Michael Corkhum (119 lbs.) and Dylan Gustin (125 lbs.) earned forfeits, followed up by the Buccs‚ third come-from-behind victory. At 130 lbs, Josh McMillion trailed throughout most of the first two periods to Oakwood’s Brandon Bustillo before earning a takedown and near fall to take the lead. He gave up a few more points at the start of the third period then scored a decisive reversal, putting his opponent on his back and getting the pin. Quentin Layman then took a forfeit at 135 lbs, before Covington’s Jake Jennings concluded the dual in emphatic fashion with a 18-1 technical fall over Oakwood’s Landon Gray.
Wrestling on the opposite mat, the Covington jr. high team put in an impressive performance as well – against one of the area’s top teams in Indian Lake. Despite missing three kids from their lineup and forfeiting four weight classes and 24 points to the Lakers, the Buccs gave them all they could handle, narrowly losing, 46-42.
Winning by pin for the jr. high squad were Sam Angle (86 lbs), Zach Shilt (92 lbs), Cory Ely (110 lbs), Tyler Tebbe (122 lbs), Andrew DeHart (128 lbs) and Tyler Dollison (142 lbs). At 150 lbs, Cody Minnich picked up a forfeit. Also competing, but dropping their bouts were Lon Bitner (98 lbs), Brandon Flora (104 lbs), Ben Wilson (116 lbs) and Kody Spade (230 lbs).
The high school team will travel to the Northeastern Invitational dual meet tournament this weekend while the jr. high squad will compete at the Milton Union Bulldog Invitational.
Buccs Have BIG Weekend at Northeastern
Day 1: DECEMBER 8, 2006
The Covington wrestlers continued their winning ways this Friday night at the Springfield Northeastern Invitational.
In first round action, after evening the score with Finneytown, 39-39, the Buccs won on the tie-breaker criteria with a 6-3 advantage in pins. Covington had to forfeit three weight classes and found themselves down, 15-33, early in the dual, but came storming back to claim the victory.
Posting pins for the Buccs were Sam Herron (103), Matt Breisch (112), Quentin Layman (130), Jerry Evans (135), Justin McMillion (145) and Ryan White (152). Jake Wise (215) won a close battle by a 5-3 decision over Finneytown’s Jeremy Dunn. Ryan White’s match against Finneytown’s Marquis Brookins was a real thriller. The Buccs were trailing 33-39 heading into the final bout at 152 lbs. White had a 2 point lead with both men on their feet late in the third period, but Brookins took him down to tie the score. White quickly recovered with a reversal and put Marquis on his back and won by a pin with just 0.3 seconds left on the clock to seal the Buccaneer victory.
In second round action the Buccs faced a tough West Liberty Salem squad, who handed the Buccs their first dual loss of the year by a score of 33-35. West Liberty took an early lead claiming forfeits at 171 and 189 pound weight classes. Covington received their share of forfeits with Sam Herron, Dylan Gustin, Josh McMillion, Quentin Layman and Ryan White all making a trip to center-mat for a hand raising. Jake Wise continued his winning ways with a 3-0 win over Mark Parker at 215 pounds. Freshman Jerry Evans had a barn-burner of a match at 135 pounds against Tyler Sachs. Jerry fought from behind to take a one point lead in the third period but was then called for a one-point locking hands penalty as he tried to keep his opponent in bounds. The penalty tied the score 11-11 and sent the match into overtime. In the OT Sachs scored a takedown as the grapplers went out of bounds giving WLS a narrow 13-11 victory in the match.
In round 3, the Buccs rolled over Springfield South with a 57-24 victory. Winning big by pin for the Buccs were Jake Jennings (140), Justin McMillion (145), Ryan White (152) and Jake Wise (215). Receiving forfeits for the Buccs were Sam Herron, Matt Breisch, Dylan Gustin, and Josh McMillion. Quentin Lehman had an exciting back-and-forth match against South’s Jason Wray and came out on the winning end of the deal by a score of 9-8.
In 4th round action the Buccs faced the “B” Team which is made up of surplus wrestlers from all the teams that participated in the Northeastern Invitational. The following Bucc wrestlers had pins against Team “B”: Sam Herron, Matt Breisch, Jerry Evans, Jake Jennings, Ryan White, and Jake Wise. Covington’s Cody Swabb (145) was a member of Team “B”, but did not wrestle against the Buccs. He went 1-2 on the day including an exciting tee-totter of a match against a Finneytown wrestler where Swabb came out on top with the pin. The Buccs defeated Team “B” by the score of 54-23.
Four Buccaneer wrestlers went undefeated on the day: Sam Herron (103 lbs, 4-0, 2 pins), Quentin Layman (130 lbs, 3-0, 1 pin), Ryan White (152 lbs, 4-0, 3 pins) and Jake Wise (215 lbs, 4-0, 2 pins). Going 3-1 were Matt Breisch (112 lbs, 2 pins), Dylan Gustin (119 lbs), Josh McMillion (125 lbs) and Justin McMillion (145 lbs). Also contributing to the Buccs team victories were Jerry Evans (135 lbs) and Josh Shefbuch (160 lbs). At 171 lbs, Logan Hall – who is nursing an injury – picked up one forfeit at 171 lbs.
Day 2 of wrestling resumes tomorrow at 10 am at Northeastern High School.
Day 2: DECEMBER 9, 2006
After posting a 3-1 record on Friday, the Buccs concluded Saturday’s action at the Northeastern Invitational by claiming two more victories and suffering three narrow defeats to finish 5-4 overall as a team. Despite the setbacks – due in part to forfeiting three weight classes – the Buccs had a number of solid individual performances. Nine of the eleven wrestlers who started for the Buccs placed in the top four at the ten-team tournament.
At 103 lbs., Sam Herron took home first place on criteria with an 8-1 record with 3 pins. Finishing as a runner-up at 125 lbs was Josh McMillion who posted an 8-1 record with 2 pins. Taking third for the Buccs were Matt Breisch (112 lbs, 8-1, 4 pins), Dylan Gustin (119 lbs, 5-2), Justin McMillion (145 lbs, 7-2, 5 pins), Ryan White (152 lbs, 6-2, 5 pins) and Jake Wise (215 lbs, 7-2, 3 pins). Finishing fourth were Quentin Layman (130 lbs, 5-3, 1 pin) and Jake Jennings (140 lbs, 6-3, 5 pins).
Covington dropped its opening dual to the Northeastern Jets 48-31, but there were some bright spots for the Buccs despite the loss. Receiving pins for the Buccs were Matt Breisch at 119 pounds, Jake Jennings at 140 pounds, and Justin McMillion at 145 pounds.
In the 215 pound class, Jake Wise took the match to overtime, but wasn’t able to pull out the victory. Going into overtime with the score tied at 4-4, Wise scrambled with his opponent, Cody Shaw, until the final seconds. With time running out, Wise made his move, but Shaw countered the shot and was able to score to get the win. Wins by forfeit went to Sam Herron at 103 pounds and Josh McMillion at 125 pounds.
The next match of the day for the Buccs was against the Urbana Hillclimbers. Starting off for the Buccs with a win was Jake Wise who won his match after his opponent was not able to return to the mat after an injury he suffered when Wise was going for the takedown.
Matt Breisch followed Wise’s winning ways with a first period pin. Justin McMillion also got in the win column with a second period pin of Raif Tyree.
Ryan White, at 152 pounds, took control early against Dukie Sherman, but things didn’t stay that way. White had to fight his way back and hung on to get an 11-10 decision. Josh Shefbuch won big in his 160-pound match with a second period pin that secured the Buccs‚ team win, 45-36.
The third round of matches pitted Covington against the eventual tournament champion Kenton Ridge Cougars. Sam Herron started off the action for the Buccs, took the lead, and never looked back. He finished with a 16-3 win. Matt Breisch then took to the mat next and had to overcome his challenger’s long and lean physique to win his match 8-1.
Dylan Gustin, wrestling in the 119-pound class, tied up with Cougar Dylan Numbers. Gustin came away with the win in a hard-fought match that could have gone either way had it not been for Gustin’s drive to win. Josh McMillion followed with a pin over Tucker Armstrong in the first period to strengthen the Buccs’ team lead.
The Buccs suffered several setbacks before getting back on the winning track with a battle royale between Buccaneer Ryan White and Cougar Luke Klosterman. The match was a dogfight from the beginning and it didn’t stop until late in the third period when White pinned Klosterman. White’s pin came after he found himself on his back with Klosterman racking up nearfall points. White dug deep and worked out of the jam to come back for the pin and win. The pin wasn’t enough for the Buccs to win the dual though, with the final score 39-28.
For the next dual, Covington met the Northwestern Warriors and came away with another team win. At 285 lbs, Jake Wise and Josh Reynolds squared off in the first match and with Wise controlling, he worked into the second period to get the pin. Sam Herron then made short work of Brandon Miller with a quick pin in the first minute of the first period squeezing Miller to the mat for the win.
After a series of forfeits by Northwestern, the action resumed with Jake Jennings taking on Josh Weekly. Jennings was all over Weekly and pinned him with a forward stack. Justin McMillion increased Covington’s team lead by finishing off his opponent with a fireman’s carry takedown to a double grapevine pin.
Josh Shefbuch and Josh Kelly were next up. Shefbuch first scored the takedown followed by near fall points. Before the period was finished, Shefbuch finished off Kelly with a pin. The pin by Shefbuch ended the dual with Covington winning by a score of 60-12.
Covington met Springfield North for the final dual of the day and lost by the closest of margins – a 42-42 tie that was broken on the fifth tiebreaker criteria. Beginning at 285 lbs, the teams traded a couple forfeits before Covington got rolling with Josh McMillion pinning Sam Heaston in the 125-pound weight class. Next up was Jake Jennings going after Bryce Shaw. Jennings made short work of Shaw and pinned him in the first period.
Justin McMillion looked to have his work cut out for him against Kevin Weber and was behind in points, but a reversal by McMillion was all that was needed. From the reversal, McMillion worked to Weber’s head and shoulders and wore him down. The all-out effort by McMillion got him a pin and a comfortable team lead.
The Panthers won the next two weight classes to force the tie and conclude the action for the day.
The Buccs have a week of practice before traveling up north to the Lincolnview Invitational on Saturday, Dec. 16, for their third meet of the season.
Young Buccs Take 2nd at Lincolnview
December 16, Van Wert – Lincolnview Invitational
Despite traveling up north to the Lincolnview Invitational with their youngest team over the past few seasons, the Covington wrestling team scored their highest finish ever at the tournament – earning a second place finish with 218.5 points. Heading into the finals, the Buccs were in position to take home the championship as they clung to a 1 point lead over Ayersville. The Pilots were on fire in the finals, however, as they surpassed Covington to take first in the eleven-team field with 235.5 points. Fairview and Spencerville finished third and fourth, respectively, at the Olympic-pool style tournament.
The Buccs also matched their previous high of nine placers – accomplishing the feat with only eleven wrestlers competing, as they forfeited the 130, 189 and 285 lb. weight classes. Covington competed pretty well in the finals – winning five of their nine matches – but they probably needed two more victories to take first place.
A pair of Buccaneers won championships in their individual weight classes. At 145 lbs, Justin McMillion handed Ayersville one of their only losses in the final round as he defeated Scott Hoshock for first place. McMillion started off strong with two takedowns and a three point nearfall before pinning Hoshock in the second period.
At 152 lbs, senior Ryan White claimed the first individual championship of his high school career as he defeated Richie Smith of Fairview. White stormed out to a 9-1 lead and hung on at the end for a 13-7 victory. Both wrestlers upset the top two seeds to reach the finals.
Finishing up in second place for the Buccs were Matt Breisch (112 lbs), Dylan Gustin (119 lbs), Logan Hall (171 lbs) and Jake Wise (215 lbs). Taking third were Sam Herron (103 lbs) and Josh McMillion (125 lbs), while Jake Jennings finished with a pin for fifth place at 140 lbs. Also competing and winning matches for Covington were Aaron Devenport (135 lbs) and Josh Shefbuch (160 lbs).
Round 1:
The Buccs faired well in first round action. Wrestling began at 119 lbs with an exciting back and forth battle between Lincolnview’s Seth Wisner and the Buccs Dylan Gustin. In a match with multiple lead changes, Dylan caught Wisner with an impressive stack maneuver to score 3 near fall points. Wisner narrowly escaped being pinned as he was able to squirm out of the stack. Gustin held on to win by a score of 13-8. At 125 pounds, Josh McMillion wrestled a solid match against Spencerville‚s Robert Brenneman. Josh came up with a 5-0 victory for the Buccs.
Aaron Devenport wrestled his first ever high school match against Dalton Hall of Ayersville in 135 pound action. Aaron found himself down by a score of 2-1 late in the third period. With 10 seconds left Devenport threw a crossface maneuver in an attempt to score a takedown. A scramble ensued, and Aaron couldn’t quite obtain control. Although Aaron lost by a score of 1-2, it was a very close hard fought match. At 145 lbs, Justin McMillion defeated AJ Gribble of Wayne Trace with a flurry of takedowns that had statistician Hanna Clark’s pencil burning. McMillion scored a 23-7 tech fall in that match. Ryan White made quick work of Delphos Jefferson’s Braytan Kruse with a pin in 1:25 at 152 pounds. Logan Hall saw his first action of the year for the Buccs at 171 lbs as he took on John Price Jr. of Van Wert. Logan defeated Price with a 23 second pin utilizing an inescapable rat-tail combined with a figure-four of the head.
Round 2:
Undefeated Buccaneer Sam Herron saw action in round 2 at 103 lbs. vs Joey Adams of Hicksville. Sam continued to wrestle solid by defeating Adams 8-3. Josh McMillion followed Sam’s performance with an exciting 5-4 victory over Mitch Kiser of Lincolnview. Justin McMillion then one-uped his brother with a pin of Coldwater’s Nate Harlow in 1:23. Jake Jennings won at 140 lbs in impressive fashion by pinning Spencerville’s Alex Stanford with a fall time of 1:49. Ryan White followed up with a pin of his own in the second period against Nick Meyers of Lincolnview. Logan Hall preserved the stretch of pins recording a fall in 1:09 over Lincolnview’s James Wiseman. Jake Wise saw his first action of the day in the second round at 215 lbs. Jake pinned Nick Gable from Coldwater in the second period to put the finishing touches on a successful second round for the Buccs.
Round 3:
Sam Herron took on 1st seed Caitlin Rohn of Ayersville. Yes, Caitlin is a girl, and she‚s as tough as they come. Entering the third period with the score tied 2-2 Caitlin scored a takedown, then Sam quickly reversed Caitlin and took her to her back with a turk move, but couldn‚t hold her long enough to get near fall points. At the end of regulation the score was tied 4-4. This took the match into sudden victory overtime. The two battled for position, and Caitlin worked her way behind Sam, needing only to pull her head out of Sam’s clutch to score the takedown. Caitlin and Sam battled in this poison for about 10 seconds, when Caitlin successfully pulled her head out to secure the takedown and hand Sam his second loss of the season in one of the most exciting matches of the tourney.
In later action Dylan Gustin (119) pinned Stephen Dix of Fairview. Justin McMillion (145) had a barn-burner of a match against VanWert’s Kirtis Calvelage. In a very physical match that could have gone either way, Justin ended up squeezing Calvelage to the mat for a pin with just 5 seconds left in the match. At the same time on another mat, Ryan White(152) was taking some lumps against a tough Pat Holmes of Spencerville – the second seed. Holmes had White down by a score of 8-0 and had Ryan in a cradle going for a pin when Ryan put his own cradle on Holmes in what can best be described as a double cradle situation. Ryan used his balance to roll Holmes to his back, and held on for a come from behind pin that brought the Covington loyal to their feet. Josh Shefbuch (160) notched a mark in the win column with a pin over Fairview’s Michael Blosser. Logan Hall continued to dominate at 171 lbs with another 1st period pin over Ayersville’s John Mahany. Jake Wise (215) wrestled a low scoring match against Adam Caudill from Spencerville. Jake found himself behind by a score of 0-1 late in the match, then with 40 seconds left Jake scored a reversal as the clock wound down to win a tight 2-1 victory to polish off the third round.
Round 4:
Sam Herron sought redemption by coming out strong in round 4 facing Lincolnview’s Damien Schmersal. Sam did just that, pinning Damien with a 55 second fall. In 125 pound action Josh McMillion defeated Brian Voisard of VanWert by pin. Jake Jennings (140) followed with another pin in the second period against Lincolnview‚s James Brake. And, as they say, “one good turn deserves another”, Justin McMillion (145) followed up with a pin in the first period against Fairview’s Cody Davis. Ryan White (152) came through with a pin against Brady Otten of Coldwater to earn a trip to the finals. Logan Hall (171) followed suit with a 27 second pin over Columbus Grove’s Clay Widau. Jake Wise put the finishing touches on round 4 with a pin over Van Wert’s David Maxwell in a time of 1:55.
Round 5:
Sam Herron (103) got the Buccs started on the winning track in the fifth round by pinning Austin Craig of Van Wert in the first period. Aaron Devenport added to the Buccs team points by pinning Columbus Grove‚s Michael Goedde. At 215 pounds for the Buccs Jake Wise pinned Lincolnview’s Andy Watkins. Going into the final round Covington led the tournament by 1 point with 176.5 points over second place Ayersville.
Covington travels to face Mechanicsburg – a team ranked in the top-ten in the state – in a dual on Tuesday, Dec. 19, at 5:30 pm, along with the jr. high team.
Buccs Wrestlers Take On Mechanicsburg
December 19, 2006 – Mechanicsburg
The Covington High School and Jr. High wrestling teams made a road trip on Monday night for a dual meet with the Indians of Mechanicsburg. Both squads put in impressive performances as the Jr. High cruised to a 63-11 victory while the high school nearly upset the favored and state-ranked (#9 AP) Mechanicsburg squad, 33-35.
Starting off the junior high meet for the Buccs was 86-pounder Sam Angle who faced Dalton Hildebrand. Late in the second period, with the score tied 2-2, Angle broke the tie with a reversal to go up 4-2. Angle fought off Hildebrand in the third period to get the decision and the first win of the night for the Buccs.
At 92 pounds, Zach Shilt squared off against Jacob DeLay. Shilt kept the match under control and in the third period with less than a minute to go, put the pin to DeLay.
Cory Ely versus Logan Turner, in the 116-pound class, was a quick match for Ely. With just 55 seconds into the match, Ely pinned Turner using the cradle to give Covington their third win of the night.
Next up was Tyler Tebbe wrestling against Justin Howell in the 122-pound class. Tebbe went to work quickly and scored a takedown and near fall points to go up 5-0. He continued to hold his own and in the third period got the pin at 3:40.
Up next was the 128-pound class. Buccaneer Andrew DeHart took control using the slide-by then racked up back points, and finished his challenger off with the pin at the 53-second mark.
At 134 pounds, Tyler Dollison and Zach Wells squared off. Dollison followed his teammates lead and pinned Wells at 56 seconds.
Cody Minnich (142 lbs) dropped his bout in the final match of the dual. Receiving forfeits for the Jr. High were Brandon Flora (98 lbs), Lon Bitner (104), Ben Wilson (110) and Joe Evans (160). When it was all over, Covington took the dual by a score of 63-11.
The High School dual began with the Buccs giving up a forfeit at 285 lbs, but receiving one at 103 lbs. as Sam Herron had no challenger.
The 112-pounders started the night off with Buccaneer Matt Breisch meeting Ryan Toney. Breisch controlled the action on his feet and worked his way to an 8-1 decision over Toney to get Covington a 9-6 lead. At 119, Dylan Gustin gave it his all but was overcome by Mechanicsburg state qualifier, Nick Zeigler, in a technical fall.
At 125 lbs., Josh McMillion faced Indian Brendon Klaus – a wrestler who won 25 matches last season. McMillion and Klaus battled back and forth and as the second period ended, the score was tied 3-3. McMillion broke the tie to go ahead 5-3 with a reversal and hung on for the decision.
In the next bout, Quentin Layman (130 lbs) found himself down by two points and while working for a reversal got caught on his back, bringing the team score to 14-14. The Buccs picked up 6 more points when Aaron Devenport got a forfeit at 135 lbs.
Next, Jake Jennings faced Dalton Black in the 140 lb. match. Jennings looked to be in trouble early, but worked his way out of a near-pin situation to pin Black with a double-arm bar in combination with a figure-four on the head to give Covington a 24-17 lead.
In one of the marquee match-ups of the evening, sectional placer Justin McMillion (145) surprised state placer Cody Toney, taking him down for the initial lead. Toney came right back with a couple takedowns, but McMillion battled to the end, earning the final takedown, but falling short, 6-8. Despite losing the match, McMillion had nothing to be ashamed of as he gave Toney all he could handle, but time ran out and McMillion couldn’t quite finish what he started.
Ryan White (152) wrestled in another exciting match as he squared off against district qualifier Ethan Price. Their bout went back and forth with White holding onto a slim lead after the first two periods. Tied up 10-10 while on their feet, late in the third period, Price scored on a 5-point maneuver to bring the Indians within a point of the Buccs, 23-24.
Next on the mat for the Buccaneers was Travis Wamer at 160 pounds wrestling against Keith Hurst. Wamer, wrestling his first match of the season after coming off surgery for a summer injury, shook off the rust, earning a couple takedowns then pinning Hurst to extend Covington’s lead to seven.
At 171 lbs, Logan Hall battled with state-placer Blaine Klaus into the third period, but Klaus managed to get the pin to bring the Indians within 1 point. Mechanicsburg then picked up a forfeit at 189 lbs. to regain the lead, 35-30.
The dual finished up with Covington gaining the last victory as Jake Wise (215) earned a 1-0 decision over Josh Salyers. The win wasn’t quite enough though and Mechanicsburg hung on to take the dual by a score of 35-33. Josh Shefbuch and Cody Swabb both saw action in JV matches.
The high school team will travel to the GMVWA Holiday tournament at Vandalia Butler High School on Friday and Saturday, Dec. 29 and 30, while the jr. high squad doesn’t compete again until January 9 when they travel to Arcanum for duals against the Trojans and the Lehman Cavaliers.
Buccs Gain Experience in GMVWA Tourney
DAY 1: December 29, 2006 – VANDALIA
The Buccs returned to the mat on Friday at the GMVWA Holiday Tournament – a monster tournament with roughly 45 teams participating. Covington’s relative youth and inexperience showed as they struggled when wrestling a number of elite wrestlers throughout the day.
Despite their team struggles, five of the eleven competing wrestlers recorded victories on the day, putting Covington in 36th place with 32 team points. Two of those wrestlers – Matt Breisch (112 lbs) and Justin McMillion (145 lbs) – are still alive for Saturday’s action, while the other three – Jake Jennings (140 lbs), Ryan White (152 lbs) and Jake Wise (215 lbs) were eliminated in the final round of the day. At 171 lbs, Logan Hall was forced to withdraw from the tournament after aggravating an injury in his first match.
The brackets are set for 32-men, but when there are more than 32 participants in any given weight class, they run what are called “rat-tails” before the first round of action. Jake Jennings (140) was the first Buccaneer wrester to chalk up a win in the rat-tails with a 15-0 technical fall over Matt Dickey of Brookville. He followed that victory with a pin over Vandalia Butler’s Corey Adams, before losing by technical fall to the top seed, Tucker Guy of Miamisburg. Jennings then lost his final bout to Tyler Sharp of Lebanon.
The Buccs recorded their second win of the day in first round action at the 112 lb weight class when Matt Breisch pinned Emmanuel Osei of Trotwood Madison. In his next bout, Matt hung tough against the 5th seed, Sam Scheuer of Ryle, only to fall in the second period. In his final match of the day, Breisch had a back-and-forth match against Troy’s Riley McCormick. Matt scored the initial takedown, only to be reversed, but then Matt re-reversed Riley, pinning him with a headlock in the second period to advance to Saturday’s action.
Justin McMillion followed Breisch’s lead, despite dropping his first match, 16-4, to Matt Prater of Tecumseh. In the first round of the consolations, Justin McMillion (145) tech-falled Steven Herick of Milton Union in the second period. In his next match, Justin defeated Charles Mason of Princeton by the score of 11-2, to stay alive in the tournament.
Ryan White (152 lbs) and Jake Wise (215 lbs) were each a single point from joining their teammates on Saturday. Initially, White dropped a 5-0 decision to Rob Holt of Miami Trace – a wrestler who would go on to upset the no. 4 seed. But in the rat-tail consolation round, Ryan defeated Indian Lake’s Bruce Lamb by a pin in the second period. He followed that up with a exciting victory over Rick Kairn of Lebanon. In come-from-behind fashion, Ryan White (152) executed a standing reverse-half-hip-trip to put Rick Kairn of Lebanon straight to his back, resulting in a pin in 1:16.
In his final match against Centerville’s Francois Hagenimana. Ryan looked to be in control with a takedown and back points in the first period, however the ruling on the mat was that time ran out before the back points were awarded. Ryan continued to wrestle solid throughout the match, but found himself down by one point with time running out. The final score was 6-7, with Hagenimana winning this close match.
At 215 lbs, Jake Wise started off strongly as used a “stack” to record a pin over Miami Trace’s Glenn Keaton. He took the mat next against the 8th seed Cortlen Banks of Edgewood. Jake came up on the short end of a hard fought match with a score of 1-5. In his final bout, Wise controlled most of the action against the 7th seed, Tony Pelligrino of Tecumseh, but gave up a sudden takedown with seconds left to fall 3-2.
Also participating in the tournament were Sam Herron (103), Dylan Gustin (119), Josh McMillion (125), Quentin Layman (130), Aaron Devenport (135), and Travis Wamer (160).
DAY TWO: December 30, 2006 – VANDALIA
In Saturday’s action, Matt Breisch (112 lbs) squared off against Jake Sage of Fairmont in the third consolation round. Breisch was quickly in on the legs of his opponent but they went out of bounds before he could secure the takedown. Sage shot in on the restart and took Matt down. Then, as Breisch attempted a reversal, he got caught on his back and pinned. Breisch concluded the tournament having scored a couple of nice victories and gaining valuable experience as a freshman wrestling on a big stage.
Justin McMillion followed in the 145 lb consolations against another Fairmont wrestler – Tyler Smith. Smith earned the only takedown in the first period, but McMillion began the second period with a reversal and three-point near fall. Before the period ended, however, Smith earned his own reversal and near fall as McMillion trailed 6-7 heading into the third period. The pair traded takedowns and escapes before Justin hit a nice throw, putting his opponent to the back and earning a pin for the Buccs.
In his next match – against returning placer Jared Wright of Indian Lake – McMillion had a difficult time stopping his opponent’s arsenal of moves. Trailing by nine entering the third period, McMillion gave up another takedown before earning an escape. Then, on his feet, Justin hit another great throw, putting Wright straight to his back, earning a takedown and near fall points. Still trailing, with seconds ticking off the clock, McMillion worked to get both his opponents shoulders to the mat. He came within a fraction of an inch from pulling off the upset, but was unable to secure the pin. A win in this match would have assured Justin of placing at the prestigious tournament.
After the final round of action, Covington finished in 38th place overall (out of 46 teams) with 36 points and gained a great amount of experience for their young team. The Buccs travel to the Troy Invitational on Friday and Saturday, Jan. 5th and 6th.
Buccs' Gustin Takes 2nd, Team Takes 8th
Troy Invitational – Friday Night
The Covington Buccs traveled to Troy for the Troy Invitational on Friday night for their fourth tournament of the season. After two championship rounds of wrestling, the freshman class led the way for the Buccs as four of the six picked up wins and three advanced on to the semifinals.
First up for the Buccs was Sam Herron (103) versus #4 seed, Zane Goldberg of Miami East. Herron fought Goldberg into the second round and reversed him, but Goldberg re-gained control and went on to defeat Herron 13-4.
Getting Covington on the scoreboard first was freshman Jerry Evans (135). He and Jake Myer of West Milton battled back and forth with Evans scoring the first takedown, but Myer getting the reversal to tie the score. Evans quickly reversed Myer and went on to get the first period pin to end the match.
Following Evans‚ lead, freshman 125-pounder Josh McMillion scored a quick takedown on Chris Mitchell of Kenton Ridge and never looked back. He quickly dispatched Mitchell with a pin at 1:16.
Sophomore Quentin Layman (130) found himself overmatched against Tom Blackmore of Troy, dropping his first bout of the tournament.
Sophomore Jake Jennings was the next wrestler on the mat for Covington in the 140-pound class. His challenger was the #1 seed, Sean Scaglia of Kenton Ridge. Jennings nearly scored the first takedown, but couldn‚t quite finish. Scaglia proved to be too much and went on to win the match, 12-3, despite Jennings‚ stellar effort.
At 145 pounds, Justin McMillion took to the mat against Zach Sturwold of Troy. The two battled to a 3-3 tie at the end of the first period with takedowns and escapes between the two of them. The score was tied 4-4 with one minute left in the third period until Sturwold let go of McMillion to give McMillion a one-point lead. The release proved costly because McMillion scored a takedown that gave him the lead and the match.
Ryan White (152) met #4 seed, Levi Harris of Greenville at center mat. At the end of the first period, White found himself in a 9-2 hole. Throughout the second and third period, White was on top of Harris, but couldn‚t turn him for back points to get the win.
The next wrestler for Covington was Travis Wamer, a 160-pounder. He grappled with Dane Cope of Indian Lake. Cope scored on takedowns to build a lead that held up for the win.
The final wrestler for the Buccs in the first round was Jake Wise in the 215-pound class. He man-handled Nathaniel Graham of Tipp City, getting a pin with just 40 seconds gone off the clock.
Taking the mat first in the quarterfinal round was freshman Matt Breisch (112) who advanced with a first-round bye. He met up with Bradley Carter of Kenton Ridge. Breisch had his work cut out for him having to deal with Carter‚s distinct height advantage, but overcame the deficit to win the match 13-8 and advance to the semifinals.
Following Breisch was freshman Dylan Gustin (119). After a first-round bye, Gustin took to the mat against another Dylan – #4 seed Dylan Numbers from Kenton Ridge. After yielding the first takedown, Dylan was given an escape when his opponent couldn‚t turn him. Gustin promptly earned the next takedown and pinned his opponent before the first period ended to pull off the upset and join Breisch in the semifinal round.
Next, freshman Josh McMillion matched up against Dustin Fugate of Milton-Union. With a 4-0 lead going into the second period, McMillion worked himself out of a cradle that looked like it might to do him in. At the end of the second period, the score was tied 5-5. The battle continued in the third round with McMillion getting the lead on a takedown. Scoring on near fall points secured the win for him as he too advanced to the semifinal round.
Continuing for Covington in the second round was another freshman, Jerry Evans. He tangled with #1 seed Justin Shilt of Greenville, but the going was tough and he suffered his first loss of the evening.
The wrestling continued with junior Justin McMillion and #3 seed Zach Prager from Greenville, meeting mat middle. Both wrestlers tested the water through the first period with neither scoring. In the second period, with McMillion on the bottom, he received one penalty point when Prager was called for locking hands. In the third period, with McMillion in the top position, he was hit with a controversial stalling call, which evened the score to a 1-1 tie. With just ten seconds remaining, Prager got loose from McMillion to take the lead 2-1. As time ran out, McMillion used a head-and-arm throw to take Prager down, but it was too late for the score and McMillion lost a heartbreaker.
Wrestling his first match of the night after sitting through a first-round bye was freshman Josh Shefbuch against #3 seed Eric Lennartz from Troy. Shefbuch, giving up a lot of weight and experience, lost the match despite an all-out effort.
The last match of the night for the Buccs pitted Jake Wise (215) against top-seeded state qualifier Justin Fletcher from Greenville. Fletcher attacked aggressively, but after a scramble, Wise gained control ˆ earning the first takedown. As they grappled on the mat with Fletcher working for a reversal, Wise found himself in a precarious position and his experienced opponent quickly took advantage, reversing and pinning Wise.
All Buccaneer wrestlers will compete on Saturday. The first consolation round begins at 10 am, while semi-finals start at 11:15 am.
Troy Invitational – Saturday
After day two of the Troy Invitational, the Buccs finished up in 8th place out of fifteen teams with 98 points. Indian Lake won the tournament followed up by Greenville and Troy. In all, Covington had seven of its twelve wrestlers place in the top six, with one – Dylan Gustin – becoming the first Covington freshman to make the finals at Troy in over fifteen years.
Saturday’s action started with the consolation rounds of the tournament. Sam Herron (103) scored first for the Buccs as he faced Joey O‚Brien of Tipp City. Herron took control with four takedowns before racking up near fall points and getting the pin.
Next, both Quentin Layman (130) and Jerry Evans (135) gave it their all in their bouts, but fell short of victory, and were eliminated from the tournament.
Jake Jennings and Josh Barrer from Tipp City tangled at 140 lbs. Jennings looked to be in trouble when Barrer put him in a cradle, but Jennings hooked Barrer‚s leg, got a reversal, and took control to build a 9-4 lead. Barrer wasn‚t done though and Jennings had to keep up the fight till the clock ran out. The final score was 11-6 in Jennings‚ favor.
Justin McMillion (145 lbs) went to work on Casey Beck from Tipp City and built a 7-1 lead in the first period. In the second period, McMillion scored on a reversal, went to the double-arm bar and put Beck on his back for the pin.
Ryan White (152) took to the mat against John King from Milton-Union. With King in the lead at the start of the second period, White got control and took the lead with near fall points. The near fall points were earned when White put King on his back, but the clock for the second period ran out as the referee was slapping the mat. The two continued the battle through the third period and White came out the victor.
In a cross-county match, it was Jake Wise against Bill Heilman from Miami East. At the end of the first period, neither wrestler had scored, but that changed in the second period. Wise took the shot, but Heilman countered and eventually pinned Wise.
The last match of the consolation rounds put Josh Shefbuch on the mat against Jacob Welty from Graham Black. Shefbuch, wrestling up a weight class, gave Welty all he could handle, but it just wasn’t enough and Welty won the match.
Semi-finals
The semi-finals of the championship rounds kicked off next with Matt Breisch (112) and Zac Peterson of Graham Black. Breisch met his match in Peterson and fought through two periods before getting pinned.
The next Buccaneer on the mat was Josh McMillion (125 lbs) against Adam Wittle from Indian Lake. McMillion had it rough and lost the match by pin.
Following McMillion was Dylan Gustin (119) against Jordan Bair from Graham Black. Gustin took it to Bair in the second round and after a marathon near fall, Gustin finally got the pin at 3:52 to advance to the finals.
Consolation quarter-finals
The consolation semi-finals were the next order of the day. In a re-match from an earlier tournament, Sam Herron (103) went up against Cody Harding from Kenton Ridge. Herron took a 7-2 lead into the third period and built on that lead until he pinned Harding with twenty-one seconds left on the clock.
Next up was Jake Jennings (140). He matched up against Hayne Housley from Troy. Housley initially took down Jennings, but Jennings got the reverse followed by two near fall points. The two grapplers battled through the second period, which ended knotted up 7-7. Jake began the third period from the bottom position and earned an escape only to be taken down by Housley making the score 8-9 in favor of Housley. Housley locked hands from the top position giving Jake a penalty point to again tie the score 9-9. With Jake still in the bottom position and time running out, Jake scored a reversal from a switch with 5 seconds left to earn an exciting Buccaneer victory.
Next up at 145 pounds was Justin McMillion vs Ben Retherford of Kenton Ridge – a wrestler who beat McMillion, 14-9, earlier in the season. Justin made short work out of the Cougar using a double grapevine to secure the fall in the first period.
Ryan White (152) must have liked what he saw from Justin’s match, as Ryan followed suit with a first period pin over Fairborn’s Micah Gwin.
Consolation Semi-finals
Matt Breisch (112) wrestled a close match against Miami East‚s Chris Heiss. Late in the third period with Matt ahead by a narrow margin of 3-2, Matt stayed aggressive and scored a takedown to secure a 5-2 victory and advance to the consolation finals.
Just as the starting whistle blew, Josh McMillion (125) hit an awesome throw against Lucas Fowler from Springfield North to put Fowler straight to his back. The head-and-arm toss earned Josh a pin with just 21 ticks off the clock.
Other Buccaneers who dropped bouts in this round – sending them to the fifth/sixth place match – include Sam Herron (103), Jake Jennings (140), Justin McMillion (145), and Ryan White (152).
Finals
The final matches began in a random-like order as opposed to the conventional 103 lb. start. Up first, Justin McMillion faced Cody Ray of Indian Lake in a battle for fifth place at the 145 lb. weight class. Battling illness, Justin couldn’t keep up with his opponent, dropping the bout and finishing in 6th place.
Josh McMillion (125) took the mat next against the #3 seed Daniel Edwards of Greenville in a match to determine third place. The bout was tied, 2-2, heading into the third period, but Edwards scored a takedown and nearfall to win 7-3, dropping McMillion to 6th place.
At 152 lbs, Ryan White faced his old teammate, Kyle Chalmers of Troy. In a back-and-forth match, White came up on the short end, losing 6-8 to finish 6th.
Sam Herron (103) gave Covington its first win in the finals as he took the mat against Brandon Miller of Northwestern in a match to determine fifth place. Sam took control early and never looked back, winning by a pin in the second period.
At 140 lbs, Jake Jennings gave the Buccs another win with a victory over Joshua Buck of Belmont. Jennings finished in fifth place by pinning Buck after building a 7-2 lead.
In the final two matches of the tournament, freshman Matt Breisch (112) and Dylan Gustin (119) dropped their bouts to Zane Rove of Troy, 8-0, and Ben Ballentine of Springfield North, by fall, respectively. Breisch finished up in fourth place for the Buccs, while Gustin ended up as tournament runner-up.
The Buccs have a week off before traveling to Tipp City for a tri meet with the Red Devils and the Troy Trojans on Wednesday, Jan. 17.
Final Team Scores:
Indian Lake – 200.5
Greenville – 192.5
Troy – 185.5
Graham Black – 178
Miami East – 120
Springfield North – 112
Kenton Ridge – 102
Covington – 98
Xenia – 90
Springfield Shawnee – 75
Fairborn – 63
Northwestern – 41.5
Tippecanoe – 40.5
Milton Union – 26
Belmont – 16
Buccs Lock Up With Troy and Tipp
January 17, 2007 – Tipp City
Tuesday night, Tipp City held a senior night for the Red Devils, as they hosted fellow Miami County squads, Covington and Troy in a tri-meet. Troy won both of their duals, defeating Covington, 53-19, while Covington bested Tipp City, 46-36.
Starting off the night for Covington was Sam Herron against Blake Stradling of Troy in the 103 lb class. Herron fought Stradling hard and in the second period looked to be in trouble, but he worked out of a near-pin to reverse Stradling. After Stradling regained control in the third period, Herron reversed him, but the clock ran out before Herron could get to work and Stradling went on to win the match, 13-5. At 112 lbs, Covington’s Matt Breisch earned the first takedown, but found himself in trouble after Zane Rowe of Troy reversed him for a pin.
Covington’s Dylan Gustin and Troy’s Adam Sturwold battled into the second period and with 56 seconds left on the clock, Gustin put Sturwold on his back for the win. At 125 lbs, Josh McMillion gave the Buccs another victory over Troy’s Ian Brush. McMillion and Brush exchanged points until the third period when Brush was awarded a penalty point to tie the score, 9-9. McMillion took the lead when Brush was called for locking hands, and then went on to score back points to secure the win, 13-9.
Troy’s Tom Blackmore (130 lbs) was in control for the first half of the match vs. Covington’s Quentin Layman, before Layman reversed Blackmore to his back, almost pinning him. After earning near fall points, Layman attempted additional pinning combinations, nearly turning Blackmore, but Blackmore regained control with a reversal and pin.
At 135 lbs, Troy’s Kyle Lyons earned a 17-7 decision over Aaron Devenport , before Jake Jennings (140 lbs) regained control for the Buccs, making short work of Troy’s Hayne Housley with a pin just 48 seconds into the match.
Troy’s Zach Sturwold (145 lbs) followed that up with a 9-4 decision over Covington’s Justin McMillion. Sturwold controlled the match into the second period and had McMillion in trouble, but McMillion waited patiently until the time was right and reversed Sturwold. In the third period, Sturwold regained the top position, but as the wrestlers were going out-of-bounds, McMillion scored two points on a reversal. Sturwold came back at McMillion to win the match in the end.
At 160 lbs, Covington’s Ryan White faced his former teammate Kyle Chalmers, who bested him 8-6 at the Troy Invitational. White and Chalmers tied up in the first period and stayed that way until time ran out. The second period was like the first until White was able to turn Chalmers and win nearfall points. The near-pin by White seemed to light a fire in Chalmers and the fight was on. White survived the challenge and went on to win the match, 17-7.
At 171 lbs, Covington’s Travis Wamer faced Troy’s Brad Pierce. With Pierce in the lead as the first period was ending, Wamer reversed him and had Pierce on his back, but the time was too short for Wamer to capitalize. In the second period, Pierce scored on nearfall points and in the third period he went on to win the match. At 171, Troy’s Eric Lenartz pinned freshman Josh Shefbuch.
Covington’s Jake Wise (215) squared off against Andy Blankenship and it what turned out to be a very evenly matched contest. Blankenship scored first with a takedown as the wrestlers went out of bounds. Blankenship put Wise on his back and was close to getting the pin, but Wise worked out of it and reversed him. In the second period, Blankenship was awarded a penalty point giving him a 6-4 lead. With seconds on the clock, Wise hit a switch, nearly taking Blankenship to his back, but the Trojan held on for the win.
Covington forfeited the 189 lb and 285 lb weight classes to Troy.
In Covington’s dual with Tipp City, Sam Herron gave the Buccs a strong start as he scored first with a takedown, moved to the head, and earned nearfall points to build a first period lead over Tipp’s Joseph O’Brian. In the second period, O’Brien scored a takedown, but Herron fought back and built on his lead. The third period was all Herron who went on to pin O’Brien.
The Buccs then picked up a few forfeits from Matt Breisch (112 lbs), Dylan Gustin (119 lbs) and Josh McMillion (125 lbs). Tipp City would later gain forfeits from Zachary Watkins (189 lbs) and Jake Roberts (285 lbs).
Tipp’s Brian Smith (130 lbs) came out strong and overwhelmed Covington’s Quentin Layman for a pin and Tipp’s first victory. Despite yielding the first takedown to Covington’s Aaron Devenport (135 lbs), Tipp’s Baily Cole earned a second period pin for the Red Devils.
At 140 lbs, Covington’s Jake Jennings used a fireman’s carry to take down Tipp’s Josh Barrere and put Barrere in trouble as time was running out in the first period. Jennings got the back points to give him a 5-0 lead when the whistle blew. Through the second period and into the third, Jennings smothered Barrere, but couldn’t quite pull the trigger, winning the match decisively, 11-0.
The Buccs would gain another victory as Justin McMillion (145 lbs) and Tipp’s Case Beck worked to a 4-4 tie into the third period. In the third period, McMillion took control, but was reversed by Beck. The reversal was short-lived though and McMillion reversed Beck and pinned him.
At 152, Covington’s Ryan White racked up six takedowns before pinning Tipp’s Jared Black. Phillip Roth (160 lbs) got Tipp City back on the board with a first period pin over Travis Wamer. Matthew Henrici (171 lbs) followed that up with another Red Devil victory by pinning Covington’s Josh Shefbuch.
In the final bout of the dual, Covington’s Jake Wise (215 lbs) faced Tipp’s Nathaniel Graham. Wise scored on a takedown, added back points to his lead, and continued to work on Graham. In the second period, he finished Graham off with the pin to give the Buccs the victory.
In reserve action, Covington’s Jerry Evans (135) went 2-0 with 2 pins as he defeated Joshua Weston and Brett William, both of Tipp City. Red Devil Mark Price (145) earned a technical fall over Covington’s Cody Swabb.
Covington will compete next at the Ben Logan Invitational on January 27, while Tipp City travels to the Indian Lake Invitational.
Buccs Take 3rd at Ben Logan
Jan 27, 2007 – Ben Logan
The Covington wrestling team traveled east to the eleven-team Ben Logan Invitational on Saturday and despite their relative youth, the Buccs brought home a third-place trophy – earning their highest finish ever at the tournament. Ben Logan won the tournament with 216 points, followed by Tecumseh with 205. Covington finished with 174.5 points and although they faced tough match-ups in the finals, the team managed to hold off late surges by Northeastern (166.5) and Kenton Ridge (154).
Covington’s underclassmen did more than their share in getting the Buccs into the third-place spot heading into the finals, but then it was the upperclassmen earning important victories in the last round to keep them there.
Sophomore Sam Herron (103 lbs), along with freshmen Matt Breisch (112) and Josh McMillion (125), all advanced to the finals, but fell short in their final bouts to finish in second place. Herron went 3-1 with 3 pins, Breisch went 3-1 with 2 pins, and McMillion went 2-1 with 1 pin.
Freshman Dylan Gustin (119 lbs) and sophomore Jake Jennings (140 lbs) both finished in fourth place for the Buccs, along with junior Justin McMillion (145). Gustin went 2-2 with 2 pins, Jennings went 3-2 with 3 pins, and McMillion went 3-2 with 2 pins and a technical fall.
In need of a victory in the final round to keep Covington from slipping on the leader board, senior Ryan White delivered in a big way. In the battle for fifth-place at 152 lbs, White faced Skylar Wohlgamuth from Ben Logan, a wrestler who defeated him 6-3 earlier in the day. Wohlgamuth got the early two points, but White tied the match up on a reversal. After Wohlgamuth was awarded an escape, White scored on another takedown followed by nearfall points. He then went on to cradle up Wohlgamuth and give the Buccs a pin, finishing 3-2 overall, with 3 pins.
Junior Logan Hall followed suit in his 171 lb. fifth-place bout with Chris Horne of Ben Logan. Hall kept after Horne throughout the first period to go ahead 8-0. In the middle of the second period, Horne made a desperation shot that cost him the match. When he came in, Hall pancaked him backwards onto his back. It didn’t take long after that for Hall to get the pin, finishing 3-2 overall, with 3 pins.
In the final match for the Buccs, junior Jake Wise (215) competed for third place against Travis Richardson from Greenon. In the second period from the down position, Wise earned an escape, shot for a takedown and was able to extend his leg on a single-leg inside trip to go into the third period leading 3-0. He added to his lead with nearfall points and went on to win the match 5-0 to earn third place, finishing 4-1 overall, with 1 pin.
Other Championship Round Bouts
Covington’s first wrestler in the championship round was Sam Herron against Luke Smith from Ben-Logan. Smith struck first with a lift and takedown and tried to pin Herron, but Herron bellied down to avoid it. At the end of the first period, Smith had a 5-0 lead. Smith took over where he left off and continued to work on Herron until he got the pin. Despite the loss, Herron still came away in second place for the tournament.
Matt Breisch and Slade Wilcoxen from Bellefontaine squared off in the championship round for the 112- pound class. The battle was on from start to finish, but in the end Wilcoxen won the match by a score of 4-3.
Dylan Gustin and Jeff Collins from Tecumseh wrestled for third place in the 119-pound weight class. Gustin suffered the loss as a result of a pin.
Josh McMillion and Tucker Armstrong from Kenton Ridge were center stage for the championship in the 125-pound class. McMillion looked to be pinned in the first round, but fought out of the hold. Armstrong continued to put the pressure on McMillion and eventually won by pin.
Jake Jennings and Daniel Klontz Springfield North were the wrestlers in the 140-pound class going for third place. Klontz scored on the takedown and went on to pin Jennings with eight seconds left in the first period.
Justin McMillion was the Buccs representative in the 145-pound class. He and Jeff Pencil from Northwestern were wrestling for third place. The two are not strangers to each other, having met in earlier season action. Pencil took the lead at the end of the first period, reversed McMillion in the second period, and then pinned him to collect third place and McMillion fourth.
1st Round
Starting the Buccs off right for the day was Sam Herron (103) versus Zach Walton of Greenon. Sam made quick work of Walton with a 0:21 second pin.
Following Herron’s lead, Matt Breisch (112) took on Brad Boyle from Greenon. Breisch had his way against Boyle and racked up points with a series of takedown to go into the second period with a solid lead. He took Boyle down in the second period and pinned him at 2:52
Dylan Gustin (119) got in on the pin-to-win action against Dylan Numbers from Kenton Ridge. Gustin started the match in control and continued that way, take a 6-2 lead into the third period. From the bottom position at the start of the second period, Gustin turned on Numbers, but Numbers got to his feet before going out-of-bounds. On the restart, Gustin was taken down but held on to go into the third period with an 8-5 lead. In the third period, Gustin put Numbers to the mat and finished him off by pin at 5:23.
Quentin Layman (135) versus TJ Rigel from Tecumseh: Layman was pinned by the top-seeded wrestler in the first period.
Jake Jennings (140) was the next pin-man for Covington. He did it in lightning-quick fashion against Bobby Frost from Benjamin-Logan. Jennings took Frost to the mat quickly and then pinned him in forty-one seconds.
The next Covington victory was by Justin McMillion (145). He went toe-to-toe against Josh Berry from Kenton Ridge: Berry scored first on the takedown and was working hard, but McMillion worked out of the grip, earned an escape, and then used a slide-by to get his first takedown and a 3-2 lead to finish the first period. From the neutral position at the start of the second period, McMillion threw his opponent to his back for a pin at 2:34.
Travis Wamer (160) matched up against Jay Engle from Greenon. Wamer kept Engle working throughout the match, but in the end Engle defeated Wamer by pin.
Jake Wise (215) was the last Covington match of the first round. He locked up with Jeff Shaw from Indian Hill. Wise earned the first points on a takedown late in the first period. With the use of a double-grapevine hold, he put Shaw’s shoulders on the mat at1:48.
2nd Round
Matt Breisch started the second round of wrestling for the Buccs. He went center-mat against Chris Mitchell from Kenton Ridge. Breisch took control of Mitchell quickly and worked for the first period pin, but couldn’t get it. In the second period, Breisch took the down position, escaped, and shot on Mitchell before Mitchell knew what was happening. The end result was Breisch putting Mitchell in a near side cradle for the pin.
Josh McMillion was next up for the Buccs against Brian Levingston from Ben Logan: Through two periods, McMillion and Levingston battled back and forth with neither able to gain the upper hand. In the third period, with McMillion in the top position, he got Levingston to his back for nearfall points to take the lead. McMillion had to use his legs to tie up Levingston who was putting on a last ditch effort. With time running out, McMillion hung on to earn the win.
Jake Jennings was next up for Covington against Brandon Flanery from Northeastern. Jennings and Flanery tied up for a brief moment before Jennings scored a takedown and then released Flanery. The next takedown by Jennings came by way of an ankle pick and again a release. Jennings scored on two more takedowns to end the first period in the lead. The second period was again all Jennings and he ended it with a pin to win the match.
Justin McMillion and Landon Schmelzer from Ben Logan were the next two wrestlers. McMillion wreaked havoc on Schmelzer through the first period and squeezed him for back points to earn a tech fall decision.
Ryan White (152) had his first match of the day, after a first-round bye, against Skylar Wohlgamuth from Ben Logan: White had to work from a 6-0 deficit going into the third period and worked Wohlgamuth hard for nearfall points, but the clock became the enemy and time ran out for White giving Wohlgamuth a 6-3 win.
Logan Hall (171) wrestled his first match against Jeremy Sanders from St. Charles. In a fast and physical match, Hall and Sanders traded takedowns, escapes, and reverses to end the first period with Sanders in the lead 5-3. The second period was a mirror image to the first with Sanders gradually building a lead. In the third period, Hall fought hard, but was pinned as time ran out.
Jake Wise against Aaron Pisegalo from Tecumseh was the last match of the round for Covington. Wise got the first takedown points and held the 2-0 lead going into the second period. Wise kept after Pisegalo and built an 11-1 lead on nearfall points with Piseaglo only scoring on an escape allowed by Wise. In the third period, Wise maintained control to finish the match 13-5.
3rd Round
Ryan White went right after Ricky Craig of Bellefontaine and never looked back. He had Craig in trouble most of the first match, but couldn’t pull the trigger for the pin. He continued the pressure until he got the pin at 3:50.
Travis Wamer and Trey Gieseck from St. Charle’s were on the mat next. Wamer fell behind early in the first period 2-0 and fought hard, but Gieseck got the pin as the clock went to zero.
Logan Hall and Steven King from Northeastern: Hall jumped on King quickly and stacked him for takedown and nearfall points before King worked out of it, but Hall went right back at him for the pin.
4th Round
Herron v Bill Thomas from Indian Hill: Herron stuck Thomas to the mat on the whistle and got the pin thirty seconds later.
Dillon Gustin v Josh Lunsford Northeastern: Gustin scored quick on a takedown, but Lunsford answered with an escape. Gustin went back to work and took down Lunsford and then stacked him for nearfall points. Before he could finish Lunsford off, the match was stopped due to an injury suffered by Gustin. When the match resumed, Gustin picked up where he left off and pinned Lunsford at 3:14.
Jake Jennings v Josh Weekly from Northwestern: Jennings built a 4-1 lead in the first period when he got the takedown on Weekly. He followed up with two nearfall points to end the first period. In the second period, Jennings scored on a reversal to strengthen his lead after having Weekly on top of him for most of the period. In the third period, Jennings finally put Weekly down for good with a pin and one second left on the clock.
Justin McMillion v Kevin Weber from Springfield North: Both wrestlers fought for position until McMillion took his shot and muscled Weber to the mat and to his back all in one motion. The pin came 41 seconds to keep McMillion on the winning track.
Ryan White v Broc French from Northeastern: White had his hands full with French who was the number one seed in the tournament. White gave an all-out effort, but he still came up short, losing to French.
Logan Hall v Vet Smelko from Tecumseh: This match for Hall was as physical as his earlier match and stay 0-0 until the end of the first period when Smelko scored a takedown. The match ended in the second period when Hall re-injured a knee and couldn’t continue.
Jake Wise v Cameron Bowling from St. Charle’s: With the match tied at 0-0 going into the second round, Wise took the down position looking for the escape point. He got the point when he stood up and broke Bowling‚s grip. The one point lead held up through the remainder of the period. Using Wise‚s strategy, Bowling took the down position, but he was able to score a reversal and took the lead. A re-start after both wrestlers went out of bounds put Wise back on the bottom. He again got an escape point to tie the match up 2-2. At the end of regulation with the score tied, it went into overtime with the first takedown giving the wrestler the win. The first overtime period didn‚t break the tie so the next overtime with each wrestler getting the opportunity to earn an escape. Wise took the down position first and he did his part, but Bowling couldn’t answer and the match went to Wise.
5th Round
Herron v Harting from Kenton Ridge: Herron struck first with a takedown and then went to work on Harting‚s head. Harting didn’t tolerate that long and score on the reversal to tie the score. Herron fought back, got control, and went on to get the pin.
Josh McMillion v Jacob Pursley from Bellefontaine: McMillion took control of the match and built a 9-4 lead in the second period. Pursley reversed though and looked to have McMillion in trouble, but McMillion earned a reverse and went to work. He upped the score to 16-8 and then added more points to his lead. With thirteen seconds left, McMillion finished him off by pin.
Dylan Gustin v Heath Allen from Ben Logan: Dylan got pinned
Jake Jennings v Kurt Seeley from Ben Logan: Up against the number one seed, Jennings had a hard time getting anything on the more experienced wrestler. In the second period, Jennings was almost pinned, but he bridged up and when he was done he was facing Seeley. Seeley used his knowledge and skill to re-gain control and went on to win the match.
Justin McMillion v Hunter Pool from Ben-Logan: McMillion also found himself against the number one seed and stayed in the fight giving Pool all he could handle. With time running out, McMillion had Pool on his back and was working to the double-grapevine to finish him off, but the clock saved Pool from defeat.
Ryan White v George McGill from Northwestern: White had a seesaw battle against McGill. When it looked like McGill was in trouble, he worked his way out of the jam and when he put White in trouble, White worked his way out of the jam. The back-and-forth battle ended when White got on top of McGill, worked to his head, and pinned him.
Logan Hall and Zach Leonard from Northeastern were next on the mat. Logan took to the mat, despite his knee injury, and rather than risk hurting it further and not being able to finish the match, made short work of Leonard with a pin with just thirty seconds gone from the clock.
Jake Wise v Brian Sears from Northeastern David Fenning from St. Charle’s: Wise struck first when he pulled Sears from the out-of-bounds line and then dumped him with a single-leg. Later in the match, Sears was able to work in a cradle on Wise and get him to his back. Wise fought hard, but couldn’t escape the hold and was pinned for his first loss of the day.
Buccs Battle at Dixie
Jan 30, 2007 – Dixie
The Covington wrestling team traveled to Dixie High School to participate in a “bracket tri-meet” with the Greyhounds along with Middletown Madison and Troy Christian. With this format two of the teams wrestle on one mat while the other two wrestle on the other. In the second and final round, the winners of the first round face each other on one mat while the losers square off on the other.
In their first dual, the Buccs faced the Dixie Greyhounds, the No. 3 ranked Division III team in the Greater Miami Valley. The action started at 135 lbs, where Covington‚s Josh McMillion, who just missed making weight at 125 lbs, bumped up to avoid giving the Greyhounds a forfeit. After being in early trouble, McMillion escaped and re-grouped to go into the second period only down 2-1. Robinson kept after McMillion, however, and earned a 9-4 decision for Dixie.
At 140 lbs, Covington’s Jake Jennings squared off against Dustin Chatterton in a back-and-forth match. Chatterton got the win in the end with a head and arm pin to give the Greyhounds a 9-0 lead. Justin McMillion (145) then gave the Buccs their first win as he took to the mat like a man possessed and built a four-point lead to get things going, before pinning Cory Million at 1:34.
At 152 lbs, Ryan White also got a quick start and built to a 5-0 lead before Dixie’s Matt Smith was awarded a penalty point. Smith scored another point on an escape, but White came back with another takedown and then got nearfall points with a cradle. With the score at 9-6 going into the third period, White went back to the cradle and this time got the pin to give Covington a 12-9 lead.
Dixie’s Joey Blosser then gave the lead back to the Greyhounds as he came out aggressively and earned a pin over Travis Wamer.
Covington then made a strategic move by bumping up their 171 pounder, Logan Hall, to the 189 lb. weight class to face Dixie’s Ryan Leech. Both wrestlers tied each other up throughout the first period to end it 0-0. In the second period, with Leech taking top, Hall scored on an escape and went to work. When Leech tried a slide-by, Hall countered and took him to the mat for a 5-0 lead. In the third period, Hall caught his opponent on his back as he was trying a reversal and earned the pin.
Jake Wise (215) then followed suit versus Dixie’s Jake Shope. Wise struck first with a takedown and went to the cradle to tilt Shope up for nearfall points and a 5-0 lead. The next move by Wise was a stack that was inescapable and scored the pin for the Buccs, giving Covington a 24-15 lead.
The Buccs looked to wrap up the victory in the next weight class – 103 lbs – as Sam Herron moved quickly to escape from trouble and come out on the better end versus Dixie’s Steve Fredrickson with the first takedown. Herron kept after Fredrickson in the second period and kept him on the mat. He worked in the half-nelson, but it was short-lived because both wrestlers went out-of-bounds. As the clock was running out, Fredrickson was able to reverse Herron to tie the match 4-4. In the third period, the battle continued, but Herron couldn’t hang on and lost 10-9.
At 119 lbs, freshman Dylan Gustin appeared overmatched as he faced Dixie’s Josh Cummins. Gustin gave Cummins a fight through the bout, however, fighting off his back, to lose just 9-2, in what turned out to be a key match for the Buccs. Dixie then bumped their state qualifier, Robert Beech to 130 lbs to face Quentin Layman. Layman got in deep on a double leg and nearly finished, but Beech used a neck-wrench to counter and take Layman down for the pin.
It wasn’t enough for Dixie, however, as Covington held on to win 30-27, upsetting the Greyhounds on their home turf.
Covington 30, Dixie 27
103: Steve Fredrickson (D) dec. Sam Herron (C), 10-9
112: Matt Breisch (C) win by forfeit
119: Josh Cummins (D) dec. Dylan Gustin (C), 9-2
125: double forfeit
130: Robert Beach (D) pin Quentin Layman (C), F1:40
135: Logan Robinson (D) dec. Josh McMillion (C), 9-4
140: Dustin Chatterton (D) pin Jake Jennings (C), F3:58
145: Justin McMillion (C) pin Cory Million (D), F1:44
152: Ryan White (C) pin Matt Smith (D), F3:33
160: Joey Blosser (D) pin Travis Wamer (C), F1:27
171: double forfeit
189: Logan Hall (C) pin Ryan Leach (D), F5:30
215: Jake Wise (C) pin Jake Shope (D), F1:53
Covington next faced Troy Christian – a team sporting numerous state placers and qualifiers ˆ in the championship round as the Eagles advanced with a victory over Middletown Madison. The young Buccs wrestled hard, but found out why Troy Christian is the top-ranked team in the Greater Miami Valley and No. 2 ranked team in the state. Only three of Covington’s eleven competing wrestlers earned victories in the dual as the team dropped the contest to Troy Christian, 58-12.
Highlights for the Buccs included victories by Matt Briesch (112), Ryan White (152) and Jake Wise (215).
At 112, Breisch and Libengood squared off and stayed locked up until Breisch threw the head and arm to earn a takedown. He squeezed Libengood in a headlock, but couldn‚t pin him and the clock ran out with the score 5-0. The match stayed tight through the second period with Breisch adding to his lead on a reversal, but Libengood answering back to close the gap. The third period was Libengood mounting a comeback and Breisch clinging on to the lead. As the clock wound down, Libengood was trying to pin Breisch with a wrist-and-half series, but Breisch fought it off and held on for an 8-7 win.
Facing Troy Christian’s Chris Burns at 152 lbs, Covington’s Ryan White initially drove Burns to the mat for what looked to be two points, but the ref saw otherwise and called them out-of-bounds. Burns scored on a takedown when White slipped to his knees, but White answered with a quick escape. Once free, White bulldogged Burns to the mat, but again the ref called out-of-bounds and didn’t award takedown points. White hip-tossed Burns to the mat a third time and this time earned the takedown and then the pin at 2:42.
At 215 lbs, Covington’s Jake Wise squared off against the Eagle’s Josh Delver. Using an extended leg trip, Wise put Delver down for the first points of the match, but a penalty point awarded to Delver made the score 2-1. On the re-start, with Delver down,Wise had to really work to keep him from getting away. The second period started with Wise down and Delver allowing him to stand up for the escape point. With the score now 3-1 in Wise‚s favor, Delver desperately looked for the takedown to tie the match. He didn’t get it and the match went into the third period with Wise clinging to the 3-1 lead. When the third period started, Delver took the down position and quickly scored on an escape to close within one point. Delver then tied the score when Wise was called for stalling. With the match tied 3-3 at the end of the third period, it was headed for overtime. Wise won the match when Delver went to throw him, lost his balance, and Wise jumped on top for the two points and the win.
Winning by pin for Troy Christian were Ben Sergent (119), Zac Hancock (130), Casey Thome (140), Zach Toal (145), Robel Campbell (160) and Sam Akins (171). Jordan Hancock (103) won by major decision.
Troy Christian 58, Covington 12
103: Jordan Hancock (TC) maj. dec. Sam Herron (C), 14-3
112: Matt Breisch (C) dec. Cody Libengood (TC), 8-7
119: Ben Sergent (TC) pin Dylan Gustin (C), F1:14
125: Ryan Essex (TC) win by forfeit
130: Zac Hancock (TC) pin Quentin Layman (C), F1:13
135: Jordan Thome (TC) pin Josh McMillion (C), F1:33
140: Casey Thome (TC) pin Jake Jennings (C), F3:23
145: Zack Toal (TC) pin Justin McMillion (C), F3:42
152: Ryan White (C) pin Chris Burns (TC), F3:42
160: Robel Campbell (TC) pin Travis Wamer (C), F1:00
171: Sam Akins (TC) pin Logan Hall (C), F5:39
189: T.J. Klepinger (TC) win by forfeit
215: Jake Wise (C) dec. Josh Delver (TC), 5-3 OT
Young Buccs Drop Dual With Tigers
February 2, 2007 – Covington
The Covington high school and jr. high wrestling teams hosted Versailles on Friday night in a pair of exciting duals. Parents of the high school wrestlers and statisticians were also honored this evening where the jr. high squad bested Versailles, 42-38, while the high school team fell 24-43 to the Tigers.
The high school dual started at the 135 lb. weight class where Versailles Drew Trump picked up a forfeit. Starting the action at 140 lbs. for the Buccs was Jake Jennings versus Versailles‚ Derek Oliver – a returning state qualifier.
With 30 seconds remaining in the first period, Jennings shot a double-leg takedown and lifted Oliver before putting him to the mat for the first points of the match. In the second period, Oliver chose down and managed to reverse Jennings. Oliver then released Jennings with intentions of taking him back down, but Jennings prevented the attack. At the end of the second period, the score was 4-2, Jennings. In the third period, Oliver took the lead on a takedown that put him ahead 6-5. He released Jennings giving Jennings the point and a tie. Oliver got what he was looking for when he scored on the takedown to win the match 8-6.
The Buccs would pick up their first win in the next bout when Justin McMillion (145) battled Versailles‚ Aaron Coons. McMillion struck first, but couldn’t finish and Coons was able to counter for the takedown. McMillion then tied the score with a reversal and kicked Coons loose. Another takedown gave McMillion a 6-4 lead. In the second period, McMillion started from the down position. He quickly escaped and the fight was on.
Coons came hard and scored a takedown as the wrestlers went out-of-bounds, but as he tried to tilt on the start, McMillion went topside and earned the reversal. He then picked up Coons, and put him on the mat. As the clock ran out for the second period, McMillion held a 12-6 lead. In the third period, Coons was quick to score with a reversal and put McMillion in trouble to earn nearfall points. McMillion responded with a reversal to a headlock and bulldogged him to his back. The effort was worth three back points. Coons got out of the mess to earn a point, but McMillion went right back to work and with the period over, he won 22-11.
The third match of the night pitted Covington’s Ryan White against state-ranked Ryan Schmitmeyer in the 152- pound class. When Schmitmeyer shot, White countered with a whizzer to earn a takedown. The 2-0 lead for White held up for the first period. Schmitmeyer earned his first point of the match in the second period on a penalty against White for locking hands. Schmitmeyer then tied up the match when he escaped from White’s grasp, and took the lead, 4-2, when he got a takedown with time running out at end of the second period. White started in the down position in the third period and built to his base, but went out-of-bounds before he could capitalize. On the re-start, he sat out, but Schmitmeyer hooked his leg preventing the reversal. White gained enough control to earn the reversal points to tie the score 4-4 and send it into overtime. In overtime, once again Schmitmeyer shot first, but missed out and White sprawled and was able to get behind Schmitmeyer despite once again having his leg hooked to score the takedown and the win.
At 160 pounds, Covington’s Travis Wamer came out strong, quickly shooting in on Versailles‚ Alex Cox, nearly taking him to his back, but he couldn’t hold on as Cox eventually earned a pin for the Tigers.
Covington’s Logan Hall (171) and Versailles state-ranked David Oliver met next. Each wrestler traded shots early, but with the clock in short-time, Oliver scored on a double-leg takedown. With Hall down at the beginning of the second period, Oliver tried to turn Hall, but nothing worked. Hall was awarded a controversial penalty point to close 2-1 as the clock ran out. The third period was as much of a battle as the first two periods until Oliver escaped and went ahead 3-1. He got the next two points on a takedown to increase his lead and get the win.
Versailles would get forfeits in two of the next three weight classes as Erik Cain (189) and Mike Treon (285) extended the Tigers lead. At 215 lbs, Covington’s Jake Wise met up with another state-ranked Oliver – Ethan Oliver. The match went into the second period, 0-0 with Wise in the top position. Oliver earned a one-point escape in the middle of the second period and followed with a shot, but couldn’t finish. At the end of the second period, Oliver clinged to a 1-0 lead. The third period started with Oliver releasing Wise. With the score now tied 1-1, Oliver came in low and Wise tied up, but couldn’t hang on. Oliver worked around to earn the takedown. Wise was then awarded a penalty point, to put the score at 3-2 in Oliver’s favor. With Wise trying to escape, the clock ran out giving Oliver the win.
The 103 lb. class was a match-up of height in Covington’s Sam Herron against build in Matt DeMange. Height prevailed in this match with Herron working to a 4-0 lead to end the first period. When the whistle blew for the second period, Herron quickly worked an escape from the down position and then got two more points for a takedown. He slipped in the double-grapevine and looked to have a pin, but Demange fought the challenge off until the second period buzzer rang. The third period was a mirror to the second period, with Herron scoring first on an escape, then a takedown. This time Herron went to the pancake trying to pin DeMange, but settled for a 16-0 technical fall.
Covington then picked up forfeits by Matt Breisch (112) and Josh McMillion (125). In between, Covington’s Dylan Gustin battled Versailles‚ Curtis Dirksen. Both wrestlers displayed quickness in this match with Dirksen scoring the first takedown. Despite Dirksen’s effort, he couldn’t do anything on top with Gustin and the period ended 2-0. In the second period, Dirksen got an escape and then a takedown and released Gustin. Dirksen scored on another takedown and built his lead from there to win the match by major decision, 13-1.
The 130-pound class saw Buccaneer Quentin Layman and Tiger Luke Cox in another display of speed. The first period ended with Cox leading 2-0 after he scored the only takedown of the period. At the start of the second period, Cox shot out of the down position, but Layman was ready and kept him down. Layman put in the legs and used a power-half to turn Cox to his back, but couldn’t hold on for nearfall points. Cox answered the challenge with a reversal and then built a lead for a technical fall decision.
Both Cody Swabb (140) and Josh Shefbuch (160) both saw reserve action with Shefbuch coming back from an eight point deficit to narrowly lose, 10-8.
Versailles 43, Covington 24
103: Sam Herron (C) 16-0 technical fall over Matt DeMange (V)
112: Matt Breisch (C) win by forfeit
119: Curtis Dirkson ( V) 13-1 major decision over Dylan Gustin (C)
125: Josh McMillion (C) win by forfeit
130: Luke Cox (V) 21-6 technical fall over Quentin Layman (C)
135: Drew Trump (V) win by forfeit
140: Derek Oliver (V) 8-6 decision over Jake Jennings (C)
145: Justin McMillion (C) 22-11 major decision over Aaron Coons (V)
152: Ryan White (C) 6-4 overtime decision over Ryan Schmitmeyer (V)
160: Alex Cox (V) pinned Travis Wamer (C), F1:20
171: David Oliver (V) 5-1 decision over Logan Hall (C)
189: Erik Cain (V) win by forfeit
215: Ethan Oliver (V) 3-2 decision over Jake Wise (C)
285: Mike Treon (V) win by forfeit
Buccs Capture Covington Invitational Title
February 10, 2007 – Covington
The Covington High School and Jr. High wrestling teams both put in impressive performances at the Covington Duals Invitational on Saturday as both squads captured their respective championships, winning each of their duals by a significant margin. The tournament featured most of the Cross County Conference schools: Arcanum, Covington, National Trail, Tri-County North and Twin Valley South, while Lehman also competed in the high school tournament.
The High School team went 4-0 on the day with victories over Twin Valley South (60-12), Arcanum (60-18), Lehman (59-18), and Tri-County North (51-18). The Tri-County North Panthers finished as runner-up with a 3-1 record as they edged Lehman, 36-31, in their dual.
Going 4-0 on the day for the Buccs were Sam Herron (103 lbs, 2 pins, tech. fall), Matt Breisch (112, 2 pins), Dylan Gustin (119, 1 pin), Josh McMillion (125, 1 pin), Justin McMillion (145, 3 pins), Ryan White (152, 1 pin) and Jake Wise (215, 3 pins).
In their dual with Twin Valley South, senior Ryan White (152) had an exciting match with South’s Levi Baron. Baron initially gave White trouble as the first period ended 2-2. White then went to work in the second period with an escape and a couple of big throws to come out on top with a 17-4 major decision.
Another exciting match involved Travis Wamer (160) versus South’s Brian Dalton. Wamer quickly went to work by getting the first takedown and racking up near fall points, but had to survive a comeback attempt, en route to a 10-6 win. Covington would go on to win 12 of the 14 weight classes.
In round 2, the Buccs faced the Arcanum Trojans and Justin McMillion (145) got Covington off to a fast start versus Arcanum’s A.J. Aikman. In what has become McMillion’s trademark style, he took to the mat with a man-on-a-mission attitude and scored on takedowns and nearfall points to take a 6-1 lead into the second period. The match got interesting in the second period when Aikman nearly took McMillion down, but it was not to be. McMillion took back over and finished Aikman off with the headlock to pin.
Perhaps the most exciting bout of this dual involved Covington’s Josh Shefbuch (171) and Arcanum’s Taylor Holsapple. Shefbuch wasted no time and scored quickly with the takedown, but Holsapple countered with a reversal and nearfall points to go ahead 5-2. Shefbuch answered with his own reversal, but Holsapple again earned a reversal and near fall to take a 10-4 lead. Josh did not quit, however, trading moves with his opponent, and putting him to his back and nearly earning the pin, but Holsapple was saved by the clock and came away with a 15-11 win. The loss must not have sat well with Josh, however, as he would go on to pin his next two opponents. The Buccs won 10 of 14 weights in this dual.
In their third dual, the Buccs earned some impressive victories against the Lehman Cavaliers. Perhaps their biggest win came in the 215 lb. class where Jake Wise faced the Cavalier’s top wrestler, Jeff Ward. Ward came out with aggression and tried to take control, but was unsuccessful. Wise got on the scoreboard with a takedown and rode out his opponent until time ran out in the first period. In the down position to start the second period, Wise earned a switch and two points to improve his lead, 4-0. The third period began with Ward in the down position and needing an escape to get on the scoreboard. Ward got his first point when he was awarded a penalty point and he didn’t stop there. He then earned an escape and started to go to work, but the clock put an end to his challenge and Wise won by a score of 5-3.
At 125 lbs, Josh McMillion earned a nice victory over Lehman’s Kameron Leuenberger. Leuenberger jumped out to take the lead, but McMillion answered with a reversal and nearfall points. McMillion got busy in the second period, but once again Leuenberger answered caught McMillion on his back to close within four points. The third period started with McMillion on top and he widened the gap with two nearfall points before pinning his opponent with eleven seconds left on the clock.
Quentin Layman (130 lbs) followed suit in a competitive match with Lehman’s Michael Josefovsky. Layman quickly took Josefovsky to the mat for the first two points of the match, but Josefovsky reversed him to tie the match 2-2. The second period started with Layman in the top position. He put in the legs and worked Josefovsky to his back, but got a little high and gave his opponent control. Layman then answered Josefovsky’s reversal with one of his own to tie the score 4-4. Layman went on to score numerous nearfall points and came away with a 15-4 major decision in helping the Buccs win 11 of the 14 weight classes.
The final dual of the day featured Covington against the other undefeated team thus far – the Tri-County North Panthers. The Buccs had little trouble, however, as they won 11 of the 14 weights in this dual as well.
At 103 lbs, Sam Herron faced his top challenger of the day in North’s Joe Bess. Herron waited till the time was right and ankle-picked Bess into a takedown. From there, he worked to Bess‚ head, tied up the arms, and smothered him for nearfall points. At the end of the first period, Herron was in the driver’s seat, 7-0. The second period started with Herron in the down position. He got out of there quickly, put Bess on his back, and quickly earned the pin.
Matt Breisch (112) then put in an equally dominating performance versus Nathan Arnold. In the first period, Breisch racked up takedown and nearfall points to take a 9-2 lead into the second period. He built on his lead in a similar fashion in the second period and then sank a half-nelson to pin Arnold.
In another impressive performance, Covington’s Jake Jennings earned a nicely executed victory over Brandon Millhouse. Millhouse got right after Jennings, and was close to getting a pancake before Jennings changed levels and lifted his opponent in the air and straight to his back for a first period pin.
The Buccs also earned some nice victories in some cross-over matches. At 171 lbs, Covington’s Logan Hall faced off with National Trail’s Nick Hiestand – a wrestler who pinned Hall only one week ago. The muscular Hiestand threw Hall out-of-bounds, but kept his feet in with the hold to earn a takedown before Hall escaped to close the first period 2-1. Hall would then escape in the second to tie the bout 2-2. In the third, Hiestand earned an escape from the down position to take a 3-2 lead, but Hall countered with a penalty point and takedown to lead 5-3. Hiestand would once again escape, but failed in his takedown attempt as Hall got some revenge in earning a nice 5-4 victory for the Buccs.
At 119 lbs, Dylan Gustin put in an efficient workmanlike performance wresting Lehman’s Kameron Leuenberger. Gustin was able to four separate takedowns to take an 8-3 lead before finishing off his opponent with a pin.
The Jr. High team matched the High School’s dominance as they went 3-0 in the tournament with victories over Twin Valley South (66-0), Arcanum (56-9) and Tri-County North (49-13).
Going undefeated on the day were Brandon Flora (98 lbs), Corey Ely (110), Andrew DeHart (116), Ben Wilson (116), Tyler Tebbe (122), Joe Evans (160) and Steven Ray (172). Ely wrestled exceptionally well as two of his victories came against top-notch opponents – one a winner of the prestigious Bulldog Invitational.
Finishing with only one loss were Sam Angle (86), Zach Shilt (92), Lon Bitner (104), Tyler Dollison (134) and Cody Minnich (150).
Six Buccaneers Qualify for District
February 16, 2007 – Sectional Wrestling – Day 1
After the first day of the Division III sectional wrestling tournament, Covington sits in 4th place out of 15 teams on the strength of six semi-finalists. All four of Covington’s seeded wrestlers advanced to the semi-finals, while two additional wrestlers pulled off upsets to advance.
At 103 lbs, no. 4 seed Sam Herron advanced with a first round bye and a first period pin over Joe Bess of Tri-County North in the quarterfinals. He will face top-seed Cody Libengood of Troy Christian in the semis.
Matt Breisch (no. 4 seed, 112 lbs) followed suit with a first round bye and a second period pin over Nathan Arnold of Tri-County North. Breisch will square off with top-seed Ben Sergent of Troy Christian.
After advancing with a bye in the first round, no. 4 seed Josh McMillion had a scare in the quarterfinals in his match with Kyle Reese of Mechanicsburg. Reese stormed out to a 6-0 second-period lead before McMillion tied it up 6-6 heading into the third. Reese was able to ride McMillion out and take the match into overtime, where Josh came out on top of a scramble for an overtime victory. McMillion will face top-seed Zac Hancock of Troy Christian in the semis.
Josh’s brother, Justin – the no. 3 seed at 145 lbs – had a little easier of a time as he also had a first-round bye then racked up seven takedowns before pinning A.J. Salini of Triad in the quarterfinals. McMillion will face no. 3 seed Curt Levy of West Liberty Salem.
Scoring the first big upset for the Buccs was Logan Hall wrestling at 171 lbs. He faced second-seeded David Oliver of Versailles – a wrestler who bested him 5-1 two weeks ago – and pulled off an inspiring 5-3 victory. In the second round, Hall moved on with a 12-8 victory over Stephen Schlater of Tri-County North. Logan will wrestle no. 3 seed Nick Hiestand of National Trail in the semifinals.
Dylan Gustin (119 lbs) scored the next big upset for Covington. In his quarterfinal match with no. 4 seed Curtis Dirkson of Versailles, Dylan avenged an earlier-season 13-1 loss to his opponent by coming back from a 4-1 deficit and scoring a takedown and three near fall to win 12-4. In the semifinal round, Gustin will square off with top-seed Greg Bogard of Troy Christian.
Also winning matches for the Buccs were Quentin Layman (130 lbs), Jake Jennings (140 lbs) and Ryan White (152 lbs). They are still alive in the consolation rounds of the tournament along with Josh Shefbuch (189 lbs) and Jake Wise (215 lbs). Cody Swabb (135 lbs) and Travis Wamer (160 lbs) saw their seasons come to an end.
Wrestling continues Saturday starting at 10:30 am. The finals are set for 6 pm. The top four wrestlers in each weight class will advance to the District tournament held at Kettering Fairmont High School.
Team Scores (Day 1)
1. Troy Christian 105.5
2. Miami East 63.5
3. Mechanicsburg 62.5
4. Covington 55.0
5. Dixie 53.0
6. Versailles 51.0
7. W. Liberty Salem 49.5
8. Brookville 45.0
9. Arcanum 26.0
10. Triad 23.5
11. Lehman 14.0
12. Tri-County No. 12.0
13. National Trail 8.0
14. Northridge 8.0
15. Twin Valley S. 3.0
February 17, 2007 – Sectional Wrestling – Day 2
The Covington wrestling team finished up with 115 points, good for sixth place overall out of fifteen teams at the Division III sectional tournament. All four of their seeded wrestlers finished in the top four to advance on to the District tournament, while the Buccs sported two additional qualifiers who were not seeded.
Unseeded junior Logan Hall (171 lbs) probably had the biggest day for the Buccs as he followed up his upset win on Friday with another upset win in the semifinals – this time over no. 3 seed Nick Hiestand of National Trail, 4-1. Hall would finish as runner-up to the #4 ranked wrestler in the state, Blaine Klaus of Mechanicsburg.
Finishing in third place for Covington were sophomore Sam Herron (103 lbs) and junior Justin McMillion (145 lbs). Herron lost his semifinal bout, but then advanced to the consolation finals with a 12-2 major decision over Ryan Toney of Mechanicsburg. He would then go on defeat no. 3 seed Stephen Fredrickson of Dixie – a wrestler who defeated him by one point earlier in the season – by a 12-4 major decision.
After losing his semifinal match, McMillion earned a tight 7-6 victory over Aaron Coons of Versailles and followed that up with a 6-4 decision over William Moore of Miami East for third place overall.
Three wrestlers placed fourth for the Buccs – earning the final District berths for their weight classes. At 112 lbs, freshman Matt Breisch advanced to the consolation finals with a second period pin over Jake Miller of Triad, before dropping a 7-0 decision to Travis Wooten of West Liberty Salem. Freshman Josh McMillion (125 lbs) then advanced with a third period pin over Beau Ballinger of Triad before falling to Andy Bruns of Versailles.
At 140 lbs, unseeded sophomore Jake Jennings battled through the consolation bracket with a 4-0 decision over Daniel Pennington of Northridge, before facing no. 3 seed Josh Stone of Arcanum – a wrestler who bested Jennings 7-4 a week earlier. With the score tied 2-2, Jennings caught Stone on his back after a scramble and came away with a pin to earn his first District berth. Jake would lose his final match to Dustin Chatterton of Dixie to finish in fourth place.
Also placing for the Buccs were freshman Dylan Gustin (119 lbs) and sophomore Quentin Layman, both of whom finished in sixth place overall. Layman won a key 14-10 decision over Tyler Sachs of West Liberty Salem then followed that up with a 12-0 major decision over Michael Josefovsky of Lehman to place for Covington.
The Buccs had a couple heart-breaking losses earlier in the day as senior Ryan White and junior Jake Wise fell short in their attempts to qualify for Districts. In White‚s final bout, he squared off against no. 4 seed Ryan Schmitmeyer of Versailles. In a back and forth match, White found himself trailing 4-3 in the third while in the top position. He managed to lock up a cradle and put his opponent on his back but was only able to get a count of one before time expired. White concluded a great senior season, while Schmitmeyer would go on to place third.
At 215 lbs, junior Jake Wise faced Josh Delver of Troy Christian and also found himself down by a point with time running out. Wise made a nice shot late in the third period but was unable to finish as he dropped a 3-2 decision to his opponent who would also go on to place third overall.
2007 Covington Division III Sectional Scores
1. Troy Christian 286.5
2. Mechanicsburg 183.5
3. Versailles 163.5
4. Miami East 161.5
5. Dixie 118.0
6. Covington 115.0
7. W. Liberty-Salem 105.5
8. Brookville 97.0
9. Triad 68.5
10. Arcanum 38.0
11. Tri-County No. 38.0
12. Lehman 37.0
13. National Trail 13.0
14. Northridge 8.0
15. Twin Valley South 3.0
Season Ends at District Meet
February 23, 2007 – KETTERING (District Wrestling Day 1)
Covington’s six district qualifiers competed in the first three rounds of the Division III District tournament held at Kettering Fairmont’s James Trent Arena on Friday. Three Buccaneers advanced into the championship quarterfinals before dropping their next bouts while two more are still alive in the consolation rounds. After the first day of wrestling, Covington sits in 21st place out of 48 teams with 16 points.
Action began with Sam Herron (103) who faced freshman Chris Beck (26-13) of Lincolnview. Beck scored the first takedown, then is a flurry of points, Sam scored a reversal, followed by a Beck escape. In the second period Sam worked an escape, but Beck answered with another takedown. Sam reversed Beck and controlled from there on, finishing with a third period pin.
Next up was Matt Breisch (112) vs Paul Hochwalt a sophomore (32-4) from Oakwood who placed first at the Clinton Massie sectional. Hockwalt proved to be more than Matt could handle, as Matt fell to the Lumberjack by pin.
Josh McMillion (125) had a tough draw as he faced junior and prior 2005 state champ Daniel Kolodzik (29-3) of Miami Valley School. Kolodzik scored the first takedown, then worked to turn Josh to his back, but Josh fought hard and was able to recover off his back. Josh went into the second period behind 5-0. Kolodzik scored a reversal early in the second period, and again put Josh on his back. Josh fought hard, but was defeated by Kolodzik on points with a tech fall in the second period.
Jake Jennings (140) had just as tough a first round draw as Josh McMillion. Jake faced senior Josh Falk (37-1) of Bluffton, who was state champ his sophomore year, and runner up last year. When discussing Josh Falk, Jennings has the utmost respect for the prior champ. In the match, Falk scored a takedown, then released Jake for an escape. Falk went to work and again scored another takedown. Falk scored again with near fall points using a tilt. At the end of the first period, Jennings found himself down 9-2. He fought hard, but it seemed at every corner Falk capitalized. The final score was Falk 17, Jennings 2. When asked what it was like to wrestle Falk, Jennings replied, “It wasn’t as bad as I thought. He’s (Falk) very strong and uses his hips well.”
Justin McMillion (145) faced Greenview'[s Brock Wagner, a sophomore with a record of 14-17. Justin and Wagner locked horns in a battle for the takedown early in the first. Justin prevailed with a beautifully executed front headlock-head-in-the-hole takedown. Justin wrapped his opponent up in a cradle, but tottered and was unable to gain any back points. Justin entered the second period with a 2-1 lead. Half way through the second period Wagner tied the score with an escape, then took McMillion down to overtake Justin with a 4-2 lead. Justin wasted little time getting a reversal to tie the score 4-4 with less than 3 ticks off of the clock into the third period. Justin then scored two nearfall before Wagner earned an escape, score McMillion up 6-5 with 30 seconds in the match. A dogfight ensued as Wagner attempted a takedown to secure a victory, but Justin would have none of that. Justin held on to win by a score of 6-5.
Logan Hall (171) wrestled sophomore Cameron Via (21-20) from Preble Shawnee. Logan was on a mission from the starting whistle, quickly scoring a takedown and two near fall. Logan finished off Via with a pin in 1:10.
Championship Quarterfinals:
Sam Herron (103) faced the champ of the Blanchester sectional, Chris Yeary (31-3), a very strong and fast opponent from Reading. Yeary got the first takedown, but Sam fought his way up and out for an escape, and ended the first period down 1-2. Sam chose the bottom position to start the first period in hopes of getting another escape, but Yeary wrapped Sam up into a cradle for three back points, followed by a tilt for two more back points, followed by a cradle for three more. The second period ended with Sam in the hole 10-1. In the third period Sam was in the top position and was able to hold onto Yeary for half of the period before Chris scored an escape and won 11-2.
Justin McMillion (145) took the mat against the Lima sectional champ, senior Dylan Ford (34-3) from Allen East. In this match, Dylan scored the first takedown halfway through the first period, but Justin soon escaped. Ford scored another takedown and the period ended with Justin down 1-4. Ford scored a two point reversal, and Justin immediately scored an escape. Ford took Justin down again, this time straight to Justin’s back. Justin executed an amazing bridge with an arch-and-twist to get off his back (score 11-2 in favor of Ford.) Justin earned an escape as time ran out in the second period. Dylan took McMillion down early in the third. Justin then attempted a patented head-and-arm and nearly caught Ford for a 5-point play, but Ford was able to hold him off. Justin managed a nice shot to earn the final takedown, but time expired with Ford the winner by a score of 15-7.
Logan Hall (171) had his work cut out for him, facing the champion from the Lima sectional Tyler Kunk (43-3) of Coldwater. Kunk scored first with a takedown, then Logan earned an escape. Kunk scored again with a takedown, and the first period expired with Kunk ahead 4-1. In the second period Logan earned another escape, tied up with Kunk and nearly hipped him to his back before losing that battle and getting pinned.
First Consolation Round:
Matt Breisch (112) faced Justin Phelps (sophomore, 19-12) from Lockland. Matt scored the first takedown with a solid double-leg and the first period ended with Matt ahead 2-0. Matt scored another picture perfect double leg to start off the third period, then trapped Phelps in an arm bar to eventually secure the win with a pin half way through the second period.
Josh McMillion (125) wrestled against Toree Wilson from Dayton Stivers. McMillion scored the first takedown and quickly released Wilson in an attempt to repeat another takedown to expand the lead. Unfortunately the plan didn’t work out quite like Josh wanted, as Wilson scored the next takedown against Josh. Josh however redeemed himself by earning a reversal just as time ran out in the first period. The ability to score just as time is running out in the early periods show poise and experience which is rare for a freshman. Josh ended up finishing off Wilson with a pin midway through the second period to advance tomorrow into the second round of the consolations.
Jake Jennings (140) took the mat vs. Tyler Monesmith (32-11, sophomore) from Preble Shawnee. Jake got off to a rocky start in this match as Monesmith caught Jake in a five point throw that put Jake to his back, fighting not to get pinned for almost the entire first period. In the second period, Jake got some redemption by quickly reversing Monesmith. Jake had Monesmith in a power-half that under most circumstances would have scored near fall points, however Moneysmith must be made of rubber, as he was able to tuck his head and avoid being scored upon. Jake went on to score two more points, but eventually was pinned by Monesmith. This loss ended Jake’s season, but he can stand proud as his contribution to the team this season has helped the Buccs win a number of duals, and place high in several tournaments.
February 24, 2007 – KETTERING (District Wrestling Day 2)
After the second day of wrestling at the Division III District tournament at Kettering Fairmont’s James Trent Arena, the Covington wrestling team finished up in 20th place overall out of 48 teams with 32 points. The Buccs just missed getting a state qualifier as sophomore Sam Herron (103 lbs) finished up in 5th place overall, earning the state alternate spot. Three other Buccaneers – freshman Matt Breisch (112 lbs), junior Justin McMillion (145 lbs) and junior Logan Hall (171 lbs) – each finished one match short of placing at the tournament.
Second Round Consolations:
Sophomore Sam Herron (103), with a record of 30-12, tangled with Ryan Johnston, freshman from Bluffton (11-16). Sam started strong with a single leg takedown, followed up by a beautiful surfboard with a figure-four on the head for three nearfall points. To start the second period, Sam got an early escape, then battled for almost half a period before earning a takedown with a front quarter-nelson, taking Johnston to his back for the second time, ending the second period with Sam ahead 11-0. In the third period, Sam ended up pinning Johnston to advance to the third round of the consolation bracket. When asked how he felt about the match, Sam simply said, “fine”.
Freshman Matt Breisch (112), with a record of 29-12, took to the mat against Tyler Borton, freshman (28-7) from Clinton Massie. The first period of this match was a real dog fight. Although Matt came close to earning a takedown, no points were awarded and the first period ended knotted up 0-0. In the second period Matt earned a hard fought escape, and again the two grapplers battled and scrambled with neither wrestler able to secure a takedown until 15 second were left on the clock when Borton took Matt down. Matt quickly countered with a reversal and two back points. Breisch started the third period in the top position and held Borton down for over a minute before Borton escaped. Then Breisch went to work with a takedown and three nearfall points to win the match 11-3. After the match, Matt said he felt “pretty good” about his victory.
Freshman Josh McMillion (125) with a record of 28-13, wrestled senior Robert Beach, a returning state qualifier from Dixie, with a 31-8 record. Josh and Robert wrestled the first period to a 0-0 tie. In the second period, Josh tried one of his patented head-and-arm throws, but slipped and gave up the takedown and two near fall points. In the second period, Josh earned an escape, but gave up another takedown to Beach. The second period ended with Josh down 6-1. In the third period Beach got an reversal, then two more back points against Josh. Beach dominated the remainder of the match to end Josh’s season with a 16-1 tech fall.
As a freshman, Josh has had a stellar season, racking up 28 victories. This gets Josh off to a great start on his way to making the school record books for career victories.
Justin McMillion, junior (145) with a record of 33-14, took on Brandon Miller, senior from Blanchester (36-9). Justin started off strong with a five point throw to finish the first period with a 5-0 lead. Justin put it in cruise control from there as he wrestled solid through this match on his way to a 14-6 victory.
Logan Hall junior (171) with a record of 20-12 grappled against Tim Smithson, sophomore from Blanchester (18-16). Hall struck first when he tied up with Smithson and threw him for the takedown. After the takedown, both wrestlers went out-of-bounds and on the re-start, Hall kept Smithson on the mat until the first period ended. On the start of the second period, Smithson was awarded an escape point. With both wrestlers now in the neutral position, Smith tried a head-and-arm on Hall, but when they landed, Hall was on top for two more points. Hall went back to work on the re-start after an injury time out and rode Smithson through the second period. In the third period, Hall started from the down position and Smithson went to work. The work was short-lived because Hall worked out of Smithson‚s grip and scored a reversal to take a 6-1 lead. The next point scored was by Smithson when Hall let him up. Smithson went on to score again, but it was in vain because the clock had run out giving Hall a 7-4 win.
Third Round Consolations:
Sam Herron (103) wrestled Daniel Jacobs, sophomore from Oakwood (26-12). Jacobs took the first shot, but had no luck. He tried a second time and it paid off this time when Herron sprawled and got behind him for the two-point takedown. The two-point lead held up through the first period. In the second period, Herron started from the down position and kept Jacobs from scoring through the second period. The third period began with Herron on top this time and after several stalemates, Jacobs looked to be working out of Herron’s control, however time expired, giving Sam the win.
Matt Breisch (112) grappled against Kyle Begg, sophomore from Bluffton (38-5). Kyle scored a takedown and the first period ended with Begg ahead 2-0. In the second period Begg scored a reversal then three nearfall to take the lead 7-0 going into the third period. Begg went on to defeat Matt by a score of 16-1. This ends Matt‚s season. Like Josh McMillion, as a freshman with 30 wins, Matt also has a nice shot at eventually getting in the record books for career wins. Matt‚s technique is very polished for a freshman. Covington coaches, wrestlers, and parents alike were delighted to have Matt as a welcome addition to our team this year, both on and off the mat.
Justin McMillion (145) took on returning state qualifier Curt Levy, junior from West Liberty Salem (45-5). Levy grabbed McMillion‚s ankle for the first takedown of the match and the two points he scored were the only two points for the first period. The second period started with McMillion in the down position and Levy on top. McMillion looked to have at least an escape, if not a reversal, in the works when the referee called the wrestlers out-of bounds. McMillion scored an escape to close within one of Levy, but Levy answered back with another takedown to lead 4-1. In the third period, Levy himself earned an escape and went back to work to score another takedown. With time getting short, McMillion earned an escape followed by a takedown, but Levy answered back with the reversal and went on to win the match 12-5.
Logan Hall (171) wrestled Sam Akins, sophomore from Troy Christian (20-17). Hall drew first blood when he scored on the takedown and looked to have Akins in trouble, but Akins managed to earn an escape point. The first period ended in Hall’s favor, 2-1. In the second period, Hall took the top position and cranked Akins over, but not long enough for nearfall points. After a stalemate call, the match restarted and Akins worked his way to another escape point to tie the match 2-2. Now in the neutral position, Hall fought off a strong effort by Akins to get a takedown. With Hall starting on the bottom in the third period, Akins put Hall into a full-nelson, an illegal hold, and Hall was awarded a penalty point to go up 3-2. Hall scored again on an escape to go ahead 4-2, but Akins answered back with a takedown to tie the match 4-4. Once again, Hall escaped to regain the lead, but once again Akins answered with a takedown and that takedown down gave him the lead 6-5. Another full-nelson by Akins got Hall another penalty point and tied the match sending it into overtime. In overtime, Hall was penalized a point for a controversial stalling call that gave the match to Akins. The loss ended Hall‚s season with a record of 21-13.
Consolation Semi-Finals
Sam Herron (103) represented the Buccaneers in the semi-consolation round against Brian Merschman from Delphos- St. John’s. . Merschman, a freshman, brought a 31-9 record to the table against Herron’s record of 32-12. The match for Herron had everything at stake because a win for Herron meant earning a state tournament berth that would continue Covington’s sixteen-year streak of state qualifiers. Both wrestlers tested the waters throughout the first period, with neither scoring, ending the period 0-0. The second period started with Merschman starting in the down position after Herron deferred. Herron rode Merschman to the mat hard, but Merschman got to his feet. Herron threw Merschman back to the mat and tried to get control with a headlock, but both wrestlers went out-of-bounds.
On the restart, Herron tried to cradle, but Merschman rolled through and Herron missed on scoring. On his second cradle attempt, Merschman caught Herron on his back in the roll-through and scored reversal points followed by nearfall points. When the dust settled, Merschman had a 5-0 lead. In the third period with Herron needing points, he took the down position for the start. Merschman was able to pick up two more nearfall points before Herron escaped to get on the board 5-1. As the clock was winding down, Merschman shot and snagged Herron’s leg. He pressed on and earned three nearfall points to make the score 8-1 when the clock ran out.
Herron later picked up fifth place overall and state alternate status when his opponent – Alex Panno of Blanchester – was forced to forfeit the bout due to an injury. Should one of the four state qualifiers in his weight be unable to compete next weekend, Herron would have the opportunity to compete in the State Championships in Columbus.