DECEMBER 16, 2020 – COVINGTON
Long-time rivals Covington and Miami East have had some heated head-to-head duals over the years and Wednesday night’s scum at Covington High School was no different as the two teams battled back and forth in the 11 matches wrestled.

The visiting Vikings entered the evening short handed from the start as senior Jarrett Winner and junior Cael Rose were spectators from the team bench.

This led to a shuffling of the lineup for both teams as three weight classes didn’t see matches. Returning two-time state qualifier and state runner-up wrestler Max Shore claimed a forfeit at 120 pounds for Miami East and Covington’s Michael Hagan (106) and Trey Kiser (170) had their hands raised with forfeits.

But each match wrestled was exciting – starting with a 126 pound tussle between Covington’s Kellan Anderson and Miami East’s Chance Rust. Anderson, who has qualified for the state meet three times and placed once, tied the score at 6-6 with a 1:31 pin to give Covington some early momentum.

The Vikings responded with a pin at 132 pounds as Garrett Kowalak caught Buccaneer freshman Jackson Shiverdecker with a throw straight to his back to put the Vikings up 12-6.

Returning three-time state qualifier and two-time state placer Cael Vanderhorst tied the team score at 12-12 with a 3:08 pin of Daniel Martin at 138 pounds and Buccaneer senior David Robinson followed with a thrilling 7-3 win over Layton Hughes at 145 pounds to put Covington on top 15-12.

Miami East responded once again as David Davis pulled out a tough 6-2 decision win over Covington’s Connor Sindelir at 152 pounds to tie the score for the third time at 15-15.

The momentum turned for good at 160 pounds as Covington’s Caleb Miller built an early lead on the Vikings’ Hunter Randall and held on for a 12-6 win.

The forfeit win by Trey Kiser followed at 170 pounds and Covington continued its run by winning the next three matches to virtually seal the contest.

First, Trentin Alexander pinned Ethan Ott in 5:44 at 192 pounds and Jensen Wagoner followed with a 13-3 major decision victory over Drake Bennett. Duncan Cooper capped the run with a nail-biting 3-1 decision victory over Dustin Winner to put Covington up 37-18.

Miami East has grit up and down the lineup, which Jayden Skeeby showcased in a hard-fought 5-3 decision win over Covington’s Ricky Stephan at 285 pounds.

The final match of the evening came after Covington’s Michael Hagan received a forfeit at 106 pounds as Miami East’s Cooper Shore took on Buccaneer freshman Jericho Quinter at 113 pounds in a battle between two top-five ranked wrestlers in the state.

And it was the most exciting match of the evening as each wrestle showcased amazing wrestling skills throughout the entire six-minute battle. But in the end it was Shore who came out on top with a 5-0 victory to make the final team score 43-21 in favor of Covington.

In jr. high action, Covington earned victories from Colt Williams (80), Caleb Ryman (92), Kacyn Hall (98, pin), Elijah Carnes (110), Justin Hall (134, pin), Mason Epperson (134, pin), Chase Willis (142), A.J. Garman (150), Zane Lemp (160, pin), Ashtin Gardner (205) and Forest Arthur (245). Winning for Miami East were Garrett Fine (104, pin), Emmit Ondura (116), Kira Cole (122, pin) and Aaron Mills (128, pin). Also wrestling well for the Buccs were Rowan Isaacs, Kaden Thompson and Jack Blumenstock.

MATCH-BY-MATCH RESULTS:
120 – Max Shore (ME) Forfeit – 0-6
126 – Kellan Anderson (COV) pin 1:31 Chance Rust (ME) – 6-6
132 – Garrett Kowalak (ME) pin 3:06 Jackson Shiverdecker (COV) – 6-12
138 – Cael Vanderhorst (COV) pin 3:08 Daniel Martin (ME) – 12-12
145 – David Robinson (COV) dec 7-3 Layton Hughes (ME) – 15-12
152 – David Davis (ME) dec 6-2 Connor Sindelir (COV – 15-15
160 – Caleb Miller (COV) dec 12-6 Hunter Randall (ME) – 18-15
170 – Trey Kiser (COV) Forfeit – 24-15
182 – Trentin Alexander (COV) pin 5:44 Ethan Ott (ME) – 30-15
195 – Jensen Wagoner (COV) maj dec 13-3 Drake Bennett (ME) – 34-15
220 – Duncan Cooper (COV) dec 3-1 Dustin Winner (ME) – 37-15
285 – Jayden Skeeby (ME) dec 5-3 Ricky Stephan (COV) – 37-18
106 – Michael Hagan (COV) Forfeit – 43-18
113 – Cooper Shore (ME) dec 5-0 Jericho Quinter (COV) – 43-21