Claymont’s Stout places second at state after injury in finals

Claymont junior Kamden Stout experienced both the best and worst of wrestling while chasing a Division II state championship at 165 pounds this past weekend at the Schottenstein Center in Columbus.

Stout advanced to the final by winning a semifinal thriller, 7-4 in sudden victory over Law Davlin of Sandusky Perkins. That set up a championship bout with Joe Welch of Columbus DeSales.

Early in the final, with Welch leading 3-0, Stout suffered a severe knee injury and was unable to continue.

Stout opened the tournament with a 19-3 technical fall over Miles D’Orazio of Columbus Bishop Watterson, then pinned Keyno Mendez of Wapakoneta in 5:09 in the quarterfinals to advance to the semifinal against Davlin. Two of the three wrestlers Stout defeated at state finished in the top five. Mendez placed fifth, and another opponent finished third. With the heartbreaking loss in the final, Stout ended the season 44-5.

Stout’s performance helped Claymont tie for 14th in the team standings with 35.5 points, matching Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary. Columbus Bishop Watterson won the team title with 110.5 points.

At 132 pounds, junior Daniel McGarr faced a difficult path. In the first round, he lost to eventual third-place finisher Bronson Begley of Kettering Alter. In his lone consolation match, McGarr fell 8-2 to Carter Stuckey of Wauseon, who later earned All-Ohio honors with an eighth-place finish.

At 138 pounds, junior Dre’Vonn Searcy won his opening match with a 12-2 major decision over Ky’Ron Fikes of Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy. Searcy then lost to Columbus Bishop Watterson’s Thomas Lindsay in the second round. He rebounded with a consolation win over Owen Sterritt of Bellevue to guarantee a place on the podium before losing to Joseph Lugabihl of Wauseon. Searcy finished seventh by pinning Kettering Alter’s Ryan Morgan and ended the season 40-6.

At 144 pounds, junior Nile Abbuhl dropped a 5-0 first-round decision to Taggart Wade of Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary but came back with two consolation wins to reach the podium. Abbuhl pinned Max Monahan of Cincinnati McNicholas, then beat Mason Hill of Cambridge 12-8. After a 7-4 loss to Tyson Spicer of New Lexington, Abbuhl defeated Perry’s Anthony Trentaelli 4-2 to place seventh and finish the season 42-10.

Freshman Laiken Warner represented Claymont’s girls team in Columbus. Warner earned All-Ohio honors with an eighth-place finish. She lost her opening match but came back with two consolation wins, both by pin, before dropping her final two bouts. She finished her season 39-14.