COLUMBUS, Ohio – This was not how Elyria’s wrestlers wanted their season to end as a team.
The Pioneers’ 31-27 loss to Massillon Perry in the semifinals of the OHSAA state wrestling dual team tournament means their focus shifts to the upcoming individual gauntlet. The individual sectional tournament begins Monday, Feb. 20.
Elyria, Brecksville and St. Edward qualified for the Division I quarterfinals, which began Sunday morning at Ohio State’s St. John Arena in Columbus. Brecksville lost to Mason in the quarterfinals, 39-21. St. Edward reached the finals to take on Perry in pursuit of its third state team title in the team tournament’s five-year history.
Lake Catholic also reached Columbus in Division II. The Cougars fell, 57-13, to four-time state champion St. Paris Graham Local in the semifinals.
Only one team from Northeast Ohio entered final session of the day, and that did not sit well with the Pioneers. They split their 14 semifinal matches with Perry, but the Panthers accumulated the necessary points to advance.
“They had to go through a lot to beat us,” Elyria senior 182-pounder J.T. Brown said. “I don’t think our team has felt this bad before. For me, it’s going to transfer into fuel for the next couple of weeks until state.”
Brown won his match, 17-7, against Perry’s Zach Blackiston.
Heavyweight Kevin Vough, who closed the Pioneers’ semifinal with a 9-0 major decision against Matt Carrick, left Ohio State on Sunday sure they can bring plenty back to Columbus. The individual state championships are March 9-11 at Schottenstein Center.
“It got away from us, but at the same time it’s not over yet,” Vough said. “We can put at least seven guys on that podium at states.”
As for Lake Catholic, St. Paris Graham Local posed a difficult challenge.
A greater challenge considering the Cougars were without key wrestlers Hunter Ryan (120-pound junior) and Collin Langer (152-pound senior). Both qualified for last year’s state tournament as individuals.
“It’s tough to beat St. Paris Graham,” Lake Catholic coach Eric Lakia said. “We’ve got to continue to get better at wrestling. We have positives from being top four in the state.”
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