Two Rivers Conference wrestlers shine at East Regionals
Even with a combined seven losses in the championship round, all was not lost for Two Rivers Conference powers Corinth Holders and Western Harnett at Sunday’s finale of the two-day N.C.High School Athletic Association 3-A East Regional Wrestling Tournament at the Corinth Holders Gymnasium.
That’s because the top four finishers in each weight class advance to the 3-A States, which will begin Thursday in Greensboro.
Four Corinth Holders standouts will compete at the state event thanks to their regional runner-up performances. League rival Western Harnett also qualified a quartet of performers, three of whom were regional finalists.
“The number of guys we had in the finals was a record for our school,’’ said Corinth Holders 145-pounder Alex Staples, who dropped a 13-1 major decision to West Brunswick’s Lincoln Smith in the title round. “But it’s bittersweet because we could not finish with a win. At the same time, our season is not over. We are excited about (the states). We will have another chance.’’
Joining Staples as region second-place medalists were teammates Noah Vasquez (182), Larry Williams (220) and Frankie Miller (285).
“This was a great finish for our school,’’ said Corinth Holders coach Kristian Stewart. “We had a lot of young guys who stepped up this year. We have so much potential for the future. I can’t wait to see what we can do.
“Even though we lost our matches in the finals, I was sitting in the (coaching) corner thinking that our guys wrestled better in those matches than they had all day. I think they learned a few things, and everybody held their own.’’
Western Harnett’s senior-dominated squad also made a splash at the regionals with three finalists, along with fourth-place finisher Jacob Dawson, a senior at 138.
Championship-match competitors for the Eagles were Anthony Thompson (113), Mason Morris (132) and Jordan Guimont (152) — all upperclassmen.
Guimont’s loss was especially devastating as he led by two points in the closing seconds before an escape and subsequent takedown with literally one second left gave a 5-4 victory to West Brunswick’s Peyton Tipton.
“We knew it would be tough at 113 and 132 because our guys were going up against state championship contenders,’’ said Western Harnett head coach Casey Gashaw. “(Guimont’s) match was his to win. (Tipton) just went for a desperation throw. I thought maybe his foot was out-of-bounds, but you can’t leave it in the referee’s hands. I think this will be good for (Guimont). It will motivate him going into the state tournament.’’
This was a season Gashaw had been pointing toward for the past three campaigns. With that in mind, Gashaw upgraded his club’s schedule considerably in 2015-16 so his top performers will be ready for the challenges of the postseason.
“With eight seniors, it was time to go all out,’’ Gashaw said. “I wanted to make things hard for these guys so they had to work for everything they got.’’
In the regional team standings, Western Harnett finished in seventh place at 85.5 points. Host Corinth Holders was one place behind at 78, while Cleveland was 15th at 35 points.
Perennial powerhouse Havelock was the team champion at 189 points, following by West Brunswick with 167.5 markers.
Rocky Mount’s Wilson Smith, a defending state title holder and All-American, was selected as the Most Outstanding Wrestler with a victory in the 126-pound class. Smith decisioned previously unbeaten Rae’sae Settles from Wilson Fike by a 9-2 margin in the finals. Smith is now 34-1 for the campaign.
Cleveland will have one representative at the states as Jakob Cox claimed fourth place at 152.
This story was originally published February 15, 2016 at 10:25 AM with the headline "Two Rivers Conference wrestlers shine at East Regionals."