It is early in the season, but many area wrestlers are already making strong statements on the mat.
Allen East senior Kade Wireman is one of those grapplers who are raising eyebrows.
Last season, as a junior, Wireman fell just short of making it to the state championship match in the 150-pound weight class in Division III. Wireman eventually placed third.
This season, Wireman is not only focused on getting back to the state tournament, but he wants to be at the top of the awards podium at the end of the tournament.
At last week’s Defiance Tri-State Border War Wrestling Invitational at Defiance High School, Wireman placed fourth in the extremely competitive 150-pound weight class. Wireman went 5-2 in the tournament.
Wireman’s losses last week came in the semifinals against Sycamore’s Eugene Harney in a 7-2 decision and then against Mohawk’s Jace Margraf in the third-place match, 7-5. Last season, Harney placed third at the Division I state tournament in the 144-pound weight class.
Wireman said that ever since last year’s state tournament, he has been focused on one thing – winning a state title.
“I’m out here, working every day. … Even on Sundays, we are in the wrestling room,” Wireman said after his team won its fourth consecutive Allen County team title (12/17/22). “I’m grinding as hard as I can, just trying to make everyone else better. I want to be on top of that (awards) podium this year (at the state tournament). … I don’t have any other goals but that.”
As a team, Allen East had the best area performance at the Tri-State Border War, finishing 11th in a field of 55 schools.
Allen East heavyweight Eli Criblez, who placed fourth at last year’s D-III state tournament at 285, won the title at the Tri-State Border War. Teammate Trenton Gatchell (157) placed fourth at the Tri-State Border War.
Other area teams that competed at last week’s Tri-State Border War included Columbus Grove (22nd), Defiance (28th), Elida (34th), Paulding (37th), Bluffton (48th), Ottawa-Glandorf (53rd) and Lima Central Catholic (54th). Napoleon won the title.
Columbus Grove’s AJ Schafer, who was a Division III state-qualifier last season as a junior, placed fifth in the 215-pound weight class at the Tri-State Border War.
Schafer suffered a tough loss in the quarterfinals and had to wrestle back to get into the fifth-place match, where he won an overtime-thriller against Franklin’s Talan Summers, 3-2.
Schafer’s teammate, Kyle Lathrop, placed seventh in the 175-pound weight class.
Defiance’s Mason Ducat placed third at 132.
Elida had a couple wrestlers place at the Tri-State Border War. Skylar Kirk notched a sixth-place finish at 126 pounds. Teammate Dejuan Jones placed eighth at 215 for Elida.
Paulding’s Dawson Lamb notched a fifth-place finish at 157.
At this year’s Allen County Invitational, there were many area wrestlers who performed very well.
Allen East led the way with five champions. Aizik Myers (106), Jacob Pinks (150), Kade Wireman (157), Trenton Gatchell (165) and Eli Criblez (285) won titles for the Mustangs.
Spencerville had four Allen County champions. Nyah Hodge-Miller (113), Carder Miller (132), Maddox Jurek (190) and Logan Johnson (215) led the Bearcats, who finished third as a team.
Other Allen County champions included Bath’s Carter Deppe (120), Elida’s Shanndon Smith (138) and Parker Guth (144), Austin Shafer (126) from Delphos St. John’s, and Pandora-Gilboa’s Mitchell Blank (175).
This coming Saturday, the Spartan Wrestling Invitational will take place at Lima Senior. Out of the 17 teams scheduled to compete, 10 of those squads are Lima area schools. There should be an abundance of competitive matchups between local wrestlers at this invitational.
St. Marys, fresh off an impressive fourth-place finish at the extremely competitive Marion Harding Classic this past weekend, will compete at the
Spartan Wrestling Invitational.
Tate Hisey led the way for the Roughriders at Marion Harding with a title in the 120-pound weight class.
Girls to have their own state tournament
For quite some time, girls have competed in the boys invitationals and postseason tournaments. That will not change this season.
However, this season, the girls will have their own state tournament. According to a news release back in May, the Ohio High School Athletic Association is planning to hold the girls state tournament alongside the boys state tournament at Ohio State’s Jerome Schottenstein Center in March.
According to the OHSAA, the state tournament will remain a three-day, five-session event, held Friday through Sunday (March 10-12). The OHSAA said there would be adjustments made in the time schedule and other aspects of the state tournament, due to the addition of a girls division.
