West Holmes began the road to the state tournament by advancing 10 wrestlers to districts from the Division II Steubenville Sectional on Feb. 22.
Peyton Martin (120 pounds, 3-0, three falls), Louden Dixon (150, 3-0, one) and Cole Porter (175, 3-0, one) all earned titles while AAJ Roberts (132, 2-1) finished runner-up.
Snaring third-place finishes were Hunter McCluggage (157, 3-1, one), Easton Ross (215, 3-1, three) and Dylan Sours (heavyweight, 3-1, three).
Wyatt Crabb (106, 2-2, one) and Gabe Umstead (126, 2-2, two) both finished fourth to nab district spots. Cam McCluggage (190, 0-2) placed fifth but advanced because the fourth-place finisher at the Steubenville Sectional withdrew from the district tournament.
Ian Daugherty (138, 2-2, one) and Lincoln Goans (165, 2-2, one) also placed fifth and will be district alternates.
With all 14 wrestlers placing in the top six, the Knights finished second in the nine-team field, trailing only Steubenville 229-210.
Earning his first sectional crown and third trip to districts, the state’s seventh-ranked Martin rolled through his opponents, culminating in a fall win (1:52) in the championship match.
“Peyton dominated on the mat today with three first-period pins,” Knights coach Scott Vaughn said. “I was really happy that he wrestled intensely and looked sharp. He didn’t give his opponents a chance to do anything.”
Dixon had to battle into overtime to secure his second straight sectional title and third district appearance. Dixon, a two-time state qualifier, 2024 state placer (fifth at 144) and third-ranked wrestler in the state, battled top-ranked and multi-time grade school and junior high state champion Jake Hughes (Beaver Local) to a 2-2 tie at the end of regulation and the one-minute sudden victory period in the title match. Dixon scored an escape in the first 30-second overtime period, then rode out Hughes in the second 30-second overtime period to secure the 3-2 win and championship.
“Louden continues to be overlooked, and he has a chip on his shoulder about it,” Vaughn said. “In the finals I thought he wrestled a very clean match. Proud of him for that performance.”
Porter, now a four-time district qualifier and first-time sectional champion, had to hold on in his championship match with Landon Crosier (Steubenville). Porter, ranked 10th in the state, led 12-6 over Crosier, who closed Porter’s lead to 15-13 late in the match. Porter scored a late takedown to secure an 18-15 decision win.
“Cole had a pretty strong bracket, top to bottom,” Vaughn said. “He worked his way through it pretty well. In the finals he was dominating before a little slip-up allowed Crosier to get back into the match. Cole did a nice job gathering himself to finish the match and take the championship.”
Roberts locked up his first district berth in the championship semifinals with a come-from-behind 7-6 decision victory over Ethan Starr (Indian Creek).
Hunter McCluggage, Ross and Sours all ended their days with strong wins. McCluggage, who earned his third district berth, downed Clayton Myers (Cambridge) by a 14-6 major decision. Ross, making his first district trip, pinned James Thomas (Morgan) at the 3:11 mark. Sours, now a two-time district qualifier, flattened Devin Waggy (Morgan) in 2:10.
Crabb and Umstead earned their first district trips with fall wins in the consolation semifinals.
