Every second and every point matters in wrestling.
In danger of dropping just its second match of the year, Mount Airy’s varsity wrestling team trailed Ashe County 37-27 with just the 106- and 113-pound weight classes to go. Hope Horan earned the Bears earned six points in a forfeit win at 106, leaving the weight of the world on the shoulders of freshman Brison George.
George, who came into the May 19 tri-meet against Bishop McGuinness and Ashe County with a 6-1 record, faced off against Ashe’s Ryder Phipps. George either had to pin his opponent (worth six points) or earn a technical fall (worth five points) for Mount Airy to win. A win via major decision would tie the score at 37, and a regular decision victory would put the Bears one point short of the Huskies.
George took a 2-0 lead with takedown in the first period. Before his opponent could think, George forced Phipps onto the mat and pinned the Husky with 31 seconds remaining in the opening period.
The win moves Mount Airy to 8-1 on the season.
George’s win secured the win for the Granite Bears, but it was a true team effort earning 39 points.
The match against the Huskies opened with Mount Airy’s Jeremiah Wall pinning Bryson Trivette in the 120 match. Trivette led 6-3 after the first period and 9-7 after the second. Trivette never trailed before he was pinned in the third period.
Mount Airy earned six more points in a forfeit win at 126, but then the score was tied at 12-12 after Ashe’s 132 and 138 wrestlers both picked up wins.
Defending N.C. 1A 145-pound state champion Franklin Bennett was next. Bennett continued his stellar junior campaign with a win over Ashe County’s Luke Sheets.
Another medalist from the 2020 1A State Championship, Connor Medvar, picked up a big win in the 152 match. Medvar put his undefeated season on the against the Huskies’ Andrew Peterson.
The two were tied 2-2 after the first period, then Medvar outscored Peterson 6-0 in the second period. Medvar’s lead grew to 9-3 before the junior managed to pin his opponent with six seconds left in the third period.
The overall match may have ended differently had Medvar earned the Bears only four points instead of six.
Ashe’s Matthew Peterson earned the Huskies a win in the 160 match with a 10-0 major decision, but Mount Airy’s Aidan Horton managed to not give up the pin. The Bears’ Luke Leonard responded with a 4-1 decision win in the 170 match to add three points to Mount Airy’s total.
Following the 170 match, Mount Airy led 27-16. Ashe County won the next three matches via pin to go up 34-27. Matthew Bagley kept the Bears alive by not getting pinned in the 285 match, instead falling in a 4-2 decision.
This kept the Bears withing striking distance, which allowed Horan’s and George’s wins to life Mount Airy over the Huskies.
Prior to the match against Ashe County, Mount Airy warmed up with a 72-12 win over Bishop McGuinness. The visiting Villains only had four wrestlers, so the following Bears won via forfeit (weight class in parentheses): Horan (106), George (113), Wall (120), Caleb Johnson (132), Avery Poindexter (138), Franklin Bennett (145), Aiden Horton (160), Edwin Ramirez (170), Luke Leonard (182) and Saverio Lennon (220).
Bishop McGuinness won the 195 and 285 match via forfeit.
The first of two individual matches saw Alex Cox win the 126 bout with a first-period pin. Medvar then won the 152 match with a pin at the very end of the first period.
Source: https://www.mtairynews.com
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