Thirteen Historic Triangle wrestlers took to the mats on Friday during the condensed Virginia High School League’s state tournaments for Groups 1A through 4A at the Salem Civic Center in Salem.
In the Group 2A tournament, Bruton finished in a tie for 23rd with Nandua and Virginia High.
Bruton’s Jaquille Fyffe-Blair (220) advanced to the semifinals after defeating Richlands’ Andrew Hicks by a 7-1 decision.
Fyffe-Blair, a senior, lost a tough 4-2 decision in the semifinals against Tyler Gilbertson of King William before dropping the third-place bout against Mark Alexander of Clarke County in overtime.
Bruton sophomore Jason Callaham (138) and senior Alberto Boites (195) each lost in their opening bouts, ending their tournament run due to the single-elimination format.
Historic Triangle schools did not fare as well in the Group 3A tournament, as all three wrestlers were eliminated in the quarterfinals. Lafayette and Warhill tied with eight other schools in 24th place, failing to collect any team points.
Warhill sophomore Trey Drummond (113) and Lafayette sophomore Kane Hurt (138) both lost by being pinned in 2:51 and 1:07, respectively. Lafayette senior Tyler Shaw (126) lost a 10-3 decision to Sebastien Phillips of Broadway.
The Group 4A tournament was well-represented by local wrestlers. Jamestown and Tabb each sent three wrestlers, while Grafton had one.
Jamestown had the best team finish of the Historic Triangle schools by ending the meet in 21st, while Tabb logged 23rd. Grafton finished in a tie for 26th with no team points collected.
Of the seven to wrestle in the quarterfinals, two wrestlers made it to the semifinals: Jamestown sophomore Caden Darber (126) and Tabb senior Bailey Hicks (152).
Darber’s championship hopes were dashed in the 126 semifinals as he was pinned in 1:08 by John Handley’s Lio Quezada. Hicks’ semifinal bout went a full three rounds before he succumbed to a 10-5 decision defeat against Woodgrove’s Joseph LaRock.
In the third-place bout, Darber rebounded by defeating Woodgrove’s Dylan Shockey, pinning him at the 4:57 mark to take the bronze. Hicks logged a fourth-place finish after dropping the third-place bout to James Wood High wrestler Jimmy Woznak via a tight 3-2 decision.
Junior Will Speight (126) of Tabb, senior David Matthews (138) of Jamestown, junior Travis Heatwole (170) of Jamestown and senior Robert Wiscarson (285) of Tabb all lost via pin in the quarterfinals. Grafton’s lone wrestler, senior Brian DeCesare (138), was defeated in a 5-3 decision.
Below are the full Historic Triangle results:
Individual Results
Quarterfinals
2A
138: Jacob McNutt (Grundy) def. Jason Callaham (Bruton) via fall in 2:51
195: Jarren Burnette (Martinsville) def. Alberto Boites (Bruton) via decision 2-1
220: Jaquille Fyffe-Blair (Bruton) def. Andrew Hicks (Richlands) via decision 7-1
3A
113: Ashton Brown (Brookville) def. Trey Drummond (Warhill) via fall in 2:27
126: Sebastien Phillips (Broadway) def. Tyler Shaw (Lafayette) via decision 10-3
138: Hunter Bolen (Christiansburg) def. Kant Hurt (Lafayette) via fall in 1:07
4A
126: Caden Darber (Jamestown) def. Tatom Tyree (Amherst County) via decision 9-3
126: Lio Quezada (John Handley) def. Will Speight (Tabb) via fall in 0:22
138: Mark Weinstock (Chancellor) def. Brian DeCesare (Grafton) via decision 5-3
138: Matt Raines (Faquier) def. David Matthews (Jamestown) via fall in 4:50
152: Bailey Hicks (Tabb) def. Luke Mitchell (Jefferson Forest) via major decision 13-1
170: John Borst (Sherando) def. Travis Heatwole (Jamestown) via fall in 1:12
285: Ben Avery (Sherando) def. Robert Wiscarson (Tabb) via fall in 0:50
Semifinals
2A
220: Tyler Gilbertson (King William) def. Jaquille Fyffe-Blair (Bruton) via decision 4-2
4A
126: Lio Quezada (John Handley) def. Caden Darber (Jamestown) via fall in 1:08
152: Joseph LaRock (Woodgrove) def. Bailey Hicks (Tabb) via decision 10-5
Third-Place Bouts
2A
220: Mark Alexander (Clarke County) def. Jaquille Fyffe-Blair (Bruton) via fall in 5:41
4A
126: Caden Darber (Jamestown) def. Dylan Shockey (Woodgrove) via fall in 4:57
152: Jimmy Woznak (James Wood) def. Bailey Hicks (Tabb) via decision 3-2
