Warriors wrestlers pin a victory at West Holmes’ tournament

With sectional tournaments less than a month away, Carrollton’s wrestling coaches have got to be pleased with their athletes’ progress. The program is operating like a finely-tuned, yet ferocious, machine.

Case in point: When Eastern Buckeye Conference rival Salem visited Carrollton for a dual meet Jan. 22, the Warriors were less than hospitable hosts as they dispatched the Quakers 59-17.

Winning by pin were Sawyer Broadwater, Ozzy Roybal, Cael Lowdermilk, Jayden Sutton, Ja’waye Richardson, and Jamasen Powell. Cohen Little and Jaxon Sutton won by forfeit, and Andrew Childs picked up a win by technical fall. Brody Gonda win 8-1, while Darrion DePalmo won 7-2 as Carrollton thoroughly dominated Salem.

That was just the hors d'oeuvres before the main course, however, as Carrollton competed in the Todd Day Memorial Wrestling Tournament, hosted by West Holmes High School Jan. 24. There, wrestling against a field of 14 other schools, the Warriors emerged victorious, claiming the team title with a total of 246.0 points. West Holmes was named runner-up with 225.5 points while Avon Lake placed third at 210.0.

Adding to Carrollton’s trophy case, the Warriors sported two individual champions: Broadwater (113) and Lowdermilk (138). Broadwater scored a 12-8 decision over Dover’s Brock Reynolds, while Lowdermilk earned a 5-1 decision over Buckeye’s Logan Letner.

Little (106), Zander Spilker (132), John Childs (144), Jayden Sutton (150), and Richardson (157) all placed second, Jaxon Sutton (120) and Gonda (165) finished fourth, and Roybal (126) was fifth. Easton Russell (144) and DePalmo (175) both placed sixth, respectively.

Also scoring points for Carrollton were Gavin Godfrey (106), Owen Mabry (113), and Wyatt Ridzon (285), who finished eighth place. Powell (190), Lucas Mitchell (157), Isaac Day (150), and Luke Motz (120) placed 10th.

The boys weren’t the only ones busy racking up victories on the mat as Carrollton’s Lady Warriors also had a busy week. They got their week rolling by participating in a tri-dual match against Richmond Edison and Claymont. 

Carrollton defeated the Wildcats by criteria after the two teams tied at 36 points apiece. Kristen Hawkins, Juliaunna Miller, Kira McDaniel, Ashley Jasso, and Breeanna Arquilla all won by forfeit, while Riley Alborn scored a pin.

Against the Mustangs, Carrollton was not so lucky, losing 46-36. Hawkins, Jasso, and Alborn all recorded pins, while Palas and Arquilla each were awarded forfeits.

Bowling

While the wrestlers were on the mats, Carrollton’s bowling teams were busy on the lanes as they faced off against United Jan. 20 and Marlington Jan. 22.

Against the Golden Eagles, the host Warriors easily won, 2,507-1,770. This one was over following the first games as Carrollton opened up a 491-pin advantage. Jace Eckinger did the most damage, rolling a 457 series that included games of 234 and 223. Noah Hutson rolled the high game of 262 while logging a 425 series.

The Lady Warriors were almost as dominant, winning 2,112-1,642. Jocelynn Burkhart (191-165) rolled the high series of 356 to lead the way, and was followed by Karlee Russell and Carrie Hawk, who rolled series of 338 and 335.

Two days later, Carrollton was back at it, this time making up a canceled match from earlier in the season against EBC foe Marlington. The boys made it two in a row on the week with a 2,597-2,024 beat down of the Dukes, while the girls won even more impressively, defeating Marlington 1,967-1.345. 

The boys were led by Khalen Green’s 438 series, while Hutson added a 436 and Eckinger posted a 416. For the Lady Warriors, Russell laid down a 345 series, while Burkhart added a 327.

With the victories, both the Warriors and Lady Warriors remain perfect on the season at 10-0 overall, 4-0 in the EBC, and 6-0 in the Stark County High School Bowling Conference’s American Division.