Numerous area schools will be represented by their wrestling teams and/or individual fighters at the 2022-23 OHSAA State tournament.
Saturday’s final day District meets set the stage for the upcoming finals, which will be held on Mar. 10-12 at Value City Arena in Columbus.
DIVISION II – STEUBENVILLE
West Holmes finished as the top overall team at the Division II District meet held at Steubenville High School, totaling 159 points ahead of runner-up Indian Valley (114.5) and third-place New Lexington (112). Mason Taylor won the 133-pound division over Chillicothe’s Cannan Smith, while Louden Dixon (138) and Elisha Baldridge (285) earned First Place match wins. Peyton Martin also took a Fifth Place final win.
Carrollton (108) finished in fourth place with Levi Pidgeon winning in the 126-pound division. Landon Jenkins (106) and Ben Zinda (190) each won Third Place matches for the Warriors, while Josh Carman (138, Second Place) and Kail Snair (113, Fourth Place) finished in the top six.
Strader, Connor Norris (120), Hunter Dietrich (175), and Kaiden Haines (190) also finished as First Place runners-up for 5th-ranked Minerva (106.5 points), while Mark Mueller was sixth in the 113-pound division.
Claymont (58.5, 11th) had Third Place Elijah Parrish (132) and Fourth Place Thayne Mahaffey (157), along with Third Place Wyatt Shaw (285). Indian Valley’s Leroy Steagall (126) took Third Place, while Hunter Albright (6th, 132), Quake Beatty (3rd, 144), and Jaxon Burcher (2nd, 215) finished in the top six.
Also in the top six were New Philadelphia’s Ezekiel Williams (4th, 144), Edgar Meija-Ramos (6th, 165), and Garrett Dillon-Rine (5th, 285).
DIVISION III – HARRISON CENTRAL
Sandy Valley’s Branden Boggs and Evan Natale each finished in Third Place to lead the Cardinals at the Division III Districts in Heath.
Among other area top-six finishers were Newcomerstown’s Henry Booth (3rd, 106 pounds), Dominique Millender (6th, 150), and Bladon Garland (6th, 190); Ridgewood’s Jesse Maple (3rd, 132); Tuscarawas Valley’s Josh Owens (5th, 138) and T.J. Wilson (4th, 144); and Malvern’s Tyson Clear (2nd, 157), Xavier Watson (2nd, 175), and Zach Babiczuk (4th, 215).
Barnesville won the Districts with a 203-point team total.