TC gets 3 to state; Bellevue wins 1st district title

NORWALK — Columbian had five wrestlers competing Saturday at the Division II district meet in Norwalk. The hope, as stated by coach Travis Salyer and a few of the athletes, was to get all five to state next week in Columbus. That didn't happen. But the Tornadoes still had quite a showing. One-hundred-twenty-six-pound sophomore Bret Minnick and 152-pound sophomore Brody Conley each claimed championships for the Tornadoes, and 132-pound freshman Maddox Simcoe secured a spot in Columbus with a third-place finish. It helped the Tornadoes place fifth at the district with 99 1/2 points. "Great tournament. We said all week, 'Five for five' was our thing," Salyer said. "Five guys at districts, we wanted to send five guys to state. We had five district placers." Columbian added a pair of alternates, as Joey Simcoe (170) and Kasean Hatlay (182) each finished fifth. "Two guys came up a little short," Salyer said. "Obviously we looked to have everybody down there, but they wrestled hard, they battled back in their last match, and they finished hard. We had two champions, we didn't have any champions last year at district, so that's an awesome positive. We had a great tournament run." That also was true of Columbian's Sandusky Bay Conference Lake Division rivals, the Bellevue Redmen. Bellevue brought nine wrestlers to Norwalk, and all were alive in the tournament's second day. Of that group, 182-pounder Justin Mayes — who placed third at state a year ago — gained Bellevue's only title. Four teammates will join him at state, including his brother, 120-pounder Jayden Mayes, who was a runner up. "It's awesome," Justin Mayes said. "This is probably my favorite tournament this year, because my brother is obviously making it with me, and that's an awesome accomplishment for him." Also going to state for the Redmen are Max Ray, a runner up at 145, and two fourth place finishers: Collin Corapi (170) and Dylan Adkins (220). Bellevue added a pair of alternates, with fifth-place finishes from Caiden Walters (132) and Justin Smythe (138). That, plus a sixth from 126-pounder Noah Alda, helped the Redmen claim the district title with 138 1/2 points. Perkins finished second with 132 1/2 points. Bellevue coach Brett Adkins said he believes it's the program's first district championship. "We did it as a team. We brought nine guys here, had everybody in it the second day. I think we did really well, getting five guys out with two alternates," coach Adkins said. "Everybody did their part, as far as winning this as a team. That's what you've got to do, just everybody do as much as they can." Clyde will send two wrestlers to state after getting a third from 160-pounder Derick Coleman and a fourth from 126-pounder James Batesole. Upper Sandusky's Emery Pahl, a 138 pounder, also will compete this week after a third-place finish. For Conley, Saturday was some redemption, after getting sick during last year's district meet and settling for third at 145 pounds. Now wrestling at 152 pounds, Conley tore through the field, winning his first three matches by pin before facing Ontario's Ethan Turnbaugh for the championship. Conley scored a quick takedown, led 9-4 after the first period, and rolled to a 12-5 victory. Now, the sophomore has his eyes on another title. "That's just something I've been looking forward to all my life," Conley said about being a state champ. "I've grown up around wrestling. That's the biggest thing, my biggest accomplishment. That needs to be done before I'm out of high school." Like Conley, Minnick had little trouble in the tournament, scoring two pins and a tech fall over the first three rounds. "I think it went well," Minnick said. "I think that as (the matches) went on, it got better. I don't know. There wasn't a lot of pressure, like I thought there was going to be. I was just calm." In the finals against Vermilion's Brandon D'Egidio, Minnick started out with a takedown and a nearfall, jumping out to a 5-0 edge. The start keyed a 9-6 victory. "It means a lot. The first points always help, because I don't want to settle on a lead, but I'm comfortable there," Minnick said. Salyer said Minnick and Conley powered through their brackets. "Great runs for both of those guys, just dominant performances all the way to the finals," he said, "and they even both dominated the finals." Maddox Simcoe lost to the eventual district champion, Firelands' Payton Burgdorf, in the 132-pound quarterfinals. But he rebounded, winning all his consolation matches to take third. "Beautiful tournament for a freshman," Salyer said. "A big confidence boost." Justin Mayes wasn't lacking confidence. He essentially went unchallenged in the 182-pound bracket, as the Bellevue junior recorded three pins, and then an 11-3 major decision in the finals against Ashland's Jakob Beverly. "I got second (here) last year, and I got third in the state, but I'm on a mission this year," he said. "Just going out there, wrestling hard, giving 100 percent effort. I've got four more matches." It capped a great day for Bellevue, and a solid day for area wrestlers. "Wrestling is fun," Justin Mayes said, "as long as you make it fun."