Wednesday, January 12, 2011
The Covington High School wrestling team hosted fellow Miami County teams Troy, Tipp City and Miami East in a double dual format Wednesday night. In the opening round, Covington defeated Tipp City, 54-12, while Troy bested Miami East, 47-24. Covington then earned a hard-fought victory over Troy, 40-36, to improve their dual meet record to 14-4 overall. Tipp City and Miami East initially tied 39-39, but the Red Devils earned the tie-breaker point for most first-points scored to win 40-39.
Sam Angle started things off for the Buccs against Tipp City, earning a 13-0 major decision over Thomas Gay at 145 lbs. Andrew DeHart (152) and A.J. Ouellette (160) picked up forfeits for Covington before Tipp’s star wrestler Jake Watkins pinned Brian Olson (171). Justin Daniel (189) picked up a forfeit and Cody Burton (215) earned a pin for Buccs over Alex Demers before Tipp City’s Josh Ringo (285) picked up a forfeit.
At 119 lbs, Bryton Lear extended Covington’s lead to 34-12 with a pin over Tyler Hare. Brock Smith (125) and Kyler Deeter (130) followed suit with pins over Tipp City’s Jordan Holzfaster and Jarrett Wasson, respectively. Brandon Flora then picked up a 9-3 victory over Thomas Connor for the Buccs.
The final bout of this dual was a special one as Covington senior Tyler Tebbe (140) racked up eleven takedowns en route to a 24-9 technical fall victory over Ben Patzek for his 100th career victory.
In their final dual, Covington had their work cut out for them against Troy. The competition started at 152 lbs as Andrew DeHart picked up a pin over Steven Gohrband. Troy would tie things up 6-6 though, with a Kevin McGraw pin over A.J. Ouellette (160).
The Buccs then tried a strategic move that ended up paying off as they sent Gage Looker to take a forfeit at 171 lbs and bumped Brian Olson up a weight to wrestle Troy’s Corbin Gearheardt at 189 lbs. Olson came through in a big way with an 11-3 major decision victory and four team points.
Troy regained a sizeable lead, 30-16, however, with a Chris Williams pin over Cody Burton (215), forfeit wins by Alec Sears (285) and Brandon Stradling (103), and a Tyler Sparks pin over Bryton Lear (119). Cole Cochran (125) then extended the lead for the Trojans, 36-16, with a pin over Brock Smith, but it wouldn’t be enough.
Covington’s Kyler Deeter picked up a big pin at 130 lbs over Mason Perkins and Brandon Flora (135), Tyler Tebbe (140) and Sam Angle (145) picked up forfeit victories to give the Buccs the 40-36 win.
In JV action, Covington’s Zach Shilt (125) earned a pin over Troy’s Kyle Maynard, while Cody Adams (189) lost by pin to Troy’s Dominique Foster.
Covington’s varsity travels to Brookville on Monday, January 17, while the JV team competes at the Northwestern Invitational on Saturday, January 15.
