Annapolis head coach Tom Sfakiyanudis was pleased that his Panthers' wrestlers had engaged in a rigorous offseason training regimen, and their dedication paid off with last weekend's championship at Saturday's Andy Perez Co-Ed Memorial Tournament at Cambridge-South Dorchester High.
Senior Ronan Keohan (157) and sophomore Steven Umana (106) joined juniors Carmine Zimmerelli (113), Davis Ruhf (165) and Grayden Stramanak (285) among Annapolis' five champions and 12 wrestlers who finished within the top three of their weight classes as the Panthers (288 points) outpaced runner-up North Caroline (231) and the nine-team field.
Runners-up were juniors Teddy Sfakiyanudis (138) and Myles Rankin (144), with third-place finishes from juniors Conrad Femrite (120), Jaeger Franz (126), Trevor Price (132) and Chris Smotherman (215) along with senior Hugh Michalski (150).
Ruhf and Keohan are the lone seniors who placed in the tournament on the underclassmen-laden squad. Ruhf was a runner-up in Anne Arundel County as well as the regionals, and Teddy Sfakiyanudis was fourth at counties and third at regions.
"They were all mostly sophomores last year, and now they're juniors. Davis and Teddy were both state qualifiers last year, but that's it on past accolades from the team," said Tom Sfakiyanudis, a 1992 Annapolis graduate who was a county champion, regional runner-up and a Class 4A-3A state semifinalist.
"The team performed great last weekend. They put in a lot of work over the summer, and it really showed up on the mat. I was really proud of them. We have a tough stretch coming up against some top teams, we're really hoping to continue with this success."
Third-place Wicomico crowned juniors Tavenon Outlaw (120), Deion Finney (126), Peyton Travers (190) and senior Jabez Baptiste (215).
Also winning titles were Kent County sophomore Scottie Ford (138) and senior teammate Brady Sutton (144), Colonel Richardson freshman Evan Alexander (132), Mardela sophomore Addison Davis (150) and North Caroline junior Corey Bunce (175).
Rising Sun is a Knightmare at Parkville.
Rising Sun crowned senior two-time Class 2A-1A state champion Tyler Garvin (120), his sophomore sibling Zach Garvin (157), junior Xzavier Brown (126) and senior Mason Testerman (190) among its four champions as the Tigers (222 points) out-paced runner-up Calvert Hall (196) and third-place Linganore (187) at Saturday's Knightmare Invitational Tournament at Parkville High in Baltimore County.
Testerman is a returning Class 2A-1A state runner-up, Brown was fifth at states, and Zach Garvin, sixth for the Tigers, who placed nine wrestlers within the top four of their weight classes.
Runners-up for the Tigers were sophomores Adan Stewart (113), Tyler Henderson (138), and junior Elijah Farr (215), with freshman Izaiah Brown (106) and senior Jonathan Horne (132) each finishing fourth.
Tyler Garvin earned Outstanding Wrestler honors for lightweights, and his brother, Zach, did the same winning Outstanding Wrestler for middleweights.
The Garvin's father, Luke, 44, was a 103-pound Class 2A-1A state champ in 1996 and a runner-up at 112 pounds in 1997. Their uncle, Seth, 45, was a third-place finisher at 112 pounds in 1995 and serves as the Tigers' head coach.
"Our team captains all made the finals at the Knightmare with Tyler Garvin, Xzavier Brown, Mason Testerman and Elijah Farr as well as standout performances by our sophomores Adan Stewart, Tyler Henderson and Zach Garvin. We also had contributions from Jonathan Horne, Izaiah Brown and Kaleb Johnson, who was sixth at 285 pounds," Tigers' coach Seth Garvin said.
"It was also an amazing moment when Tyler Garvin took home the Outstanding Wrestler honors for lightweights, and his brother, Zach Garvin, took home Outstanding Wrestler for middleweights with an impressive tech fall in the finals. This was a great step in the right direction for this team, building up our young wrestlers and highlighting the talent we have on this squad."
Champions for Huntingtown were freshmen Owen Hayden (106) and Landon Vercoe (113) along with junior Blake Ashley (144), while Calvert Hall crowned sophomore Joshua Jackson (132) and junior Griffin Stewart (138).
Linganore’s senior Class 4A-3A state runner-up Ethan Arneson, Lansdowne junior Sean Lippman (150), Henry Wise senior Ray Hicks (165), Eastern Tech senior Anthony Oge and Edgewood junior Miles Putney (285) all reached the championship podium.
Landon takes Magruder Mad Mats
Landon crowned senior James Hanley (120) and junior Tiller Smith (215), the latter for the third straight year as the Bears placed nine wrestlers within the top four of their weight classes to win last Saturday's 16-team Mad Mats Invitational Tournament at Magruder.
Hanley pinned all three of rivals in less than a combined two minutes, in succession registering falls in 30, 38 and 48 seconds, the latter being Magruder sophomore Sava Makarov. As a result, Hanley won the tournament's award for the most pins in the least amount of time award, his victories totaling one minute 56 seconds.
Hanley and Smith are returning Interstate Athletic Conference champions, with Hanley having placed second at last year's Maryland Independent Schools state tournament, and Smith, fourth.
Runners-up for the Bears were freshman Dennis Leary (106), junior French Pope (190) and senior Connor Koegel (157), with third-place finishes from sophomore Joe Papalia (126), junior Theo Shockey (132) and senior Michael War (138).
Freshman Domingo Escudero (113) was fourth for the Bears, who were coming off a ninth-place finish at the season-opening Raymond Oliver Invitational McDonogh Tournament won by St. Mary's Ryken of Leonardtown on Dec. 1-2.
Smith pinned all three of his foes at Magruder as well, including a championship bout fall 1:46 over Poolesville senior Andrew Fraser.
"I wrestled hard all week in the room trying to get back into it," Smith said. "I'm trying to win some of the tougher matches this year, so this gives me a lot of momentum coming off of the McDonogh tournament."
Einstein's Class 4A-3A state runner-up Stone Yuen (126) earned a 12-9 championship victory over senior Duncan Stadler of Jackson-Reed. Stadler had won his semifinal bout, 9-5, over Magruder junior Class 4A-3A state champion Neil Sharma.
Bullis crowned three champions in freshmen Noah Tucker (150) and freshman Salah Tsarni (157) as well as junior Sepanta Ahanj-Elias (175), while runner-up Blake had two champions in freshmen Eli Moy (106) and sophomore Brody Matson (113).
Poolesville juniors Vinnie Volpe (144) and Shimma Wexler (165) reached the championship podium, as did Magruder senior Max Pasquier (138) and Good Counsel sophomore George Tate (190).
Comments