Garaway wrestling sending 8 to state

The Garaway Pirates entered the Division III Coshocton District meet with high hopes of capturing the school’s first-ever district title.

That hope was dashed by a talented Barnesville team that edged past the Pirates 188.5-176, but it was tight throughout and came down to the wire.

The good news for Garaway was that it advanced eight individuals to the Div. III state tournament, trailing only Waynedale (10) and 25-time Div. III defending state champion St. Paris Graham (9) in number of individuals making it to state.

For Garaway head coach Greg Miller, it was both a jubilant moment and a tough pill to swallow watching his team pound its way to the brink of a title only to see it slip away.

“It was a bit disappointing because we were in position to grab that title," Miller said. “We both had opportunities to win it, and we knew there was no margin for error. Even though we have eight kids qualifying for state, it felt like we should have had maybe five kids wrestling in the finals, which would have made a huge difference.”

The biggest moments came in many of the winners’ bracket semis, where several Pirates fell to Barnesville wrestlers. Yet the Pirates fought back each time and put forth a huge effort in the final championship round, with seven of the Pirates wrestling for first place through sixth place coming away with victories.

However, Barnesville proved to be up to the challenge.

In the championship round, junior and returning state qualifier Mitchel Tetreault (150 pounds) fell behind early, got a second-round takedown and then held on for dear life against Adena’s Austyn Wharton.

Wharton chose to take down in the final period, meaning an escape, reversal or any type of penalty on Tetreault would have turned the tide.

Instead, the savvy junior managed to keep his foe down the entire two-minute span, making him a 4-3 victor.

“It’s tough to stay on top that long against that type of opponent,” Miller said. “We were in the corner debating on just kicking him out and leaving it tied and taking our chances, but Mitch is a confident kid and really showed what he’s made of by staying on top that long.”

“I’ve had to battle from behind a lot this year, so it was nothing new,” Tetreault said. “More than anything, I think that final period showed how much work I’ve put in this year, and I don’t care what the situation is. I never panicked.”

Even so, it took a monster effort for Tetreault to maintain control during the final period.

“My arms are still numb,” Tetreault said several minutes after the match.

After finishing runner-up twice at districts, he said it felt wonderful to finally come away with a title.

Thomas Grimm (215) was the only other Pirate to battle for first place, and after a tremendous tournament, he fell to champion Kolten Snyder of Union Local by fall.

In the consolation finals in a battle for third and fourth, the Pirates went to work in grinding out wins.

After suffering a tough loss in the semis after a critical foul call that many felt was questionable, Bryce Books (106) destroyed Chesapeake’s Bryce Myers in an 18-2 technical fall.

Lukas Miller (113) made quick work of Barnesville’s Hoyt Hartshorn by fall at 1:28, setting the stage for a thriller at 144, where Braylon Books went into overtime against Gavin Stacy of Mechanicsburg, where he found a way to take home a heart-pounding 15-12 win.

Moments later Colton Domer (165) also captured third in thrilling fashion when he came back late and held off Waterford’s Hayden Jones 5-4.

Matt Frey (175) then took care of Aiden O’Neal of Mechanicsburg by fall in 2:22. Dillon King (215), Garaway’s lone senior, faced a monumental task in facing Brody Perzanowski, one of Div. III’s top wrestlers, and battled before falling 2-1.

Other district qualifiers for Garaway included Alex Hamsher (157), who went 1-2 on the weekend, falling to a pair of podium placers.

In the Pirates’ only match-up for a fifth-place spot, freshman Bobby Bowers (285) fell by pin against Kam Lowry of Northridge.

That made nine Pirates who earned spots on the podium for the weekend and set the stage for eight of them to compete at state.

“There’s something special about wrestling at the Schott,” Miller said. “But at this point, we’re done being satisfied with just qualifying for state. We want to reach the podium and make some noise from a team perspective. We’ve got the numbers and the talent to do that.”

Miller said coming so close to a title and seeing many kids not reach the finals was heartbreaking and inspiring at the same time.

This marks the second time in a row the Pirates have taken home the district runner-up trophy, with Waynedale taking it last season.

“These kids have huge expectations,” Miller said. “This is going to drive them forward. There’s more work to be done, and we’re excited to get a chance to do even bigger things at state.”