By TODD REED
News Leader Sports Editor
www.tnl-news.com
It was a great day on the mats for Minerva last Saturday at Claymont High School.
The Lions had six wrestlers place, including three state qualifiers.
Heading to Columbus this weekend to compete in the State Wrestling Championships are district champion Micah Kullman, runner-up Zach Lutes and fourth-placer Scott Boyce.
"We're always happy with multiple state qualifiers, but it's like anything else, you always want more, but it is what it is. You don't dwell on it and you move on with what you have, and we have three good ones moving on.
"They each have their own unique obstacles that they have had to overcome to get to where they are. I'm proud of each one in many different ways."
Kullman (35-3) won the 160-pound title, winning the finals match 2-0 over Danny Costa of Edison.
The junior opened districts with a 10-2 decision over Josh Miller of Carrollton. He then beat Shane Silvers of London 18-6 and Cory Hosom of Lakewood 5-1.
"Micah has had to battle injuries all season," noted Coach Kullman. "A lot of people don't know that. It has been a job just keeping him on the mat at times. I never knew how important trainers could be. Our trainer, Dr. DiDomenico, has done a great job working with us and doing what it takes to get him healthy again. Through it all, he handled it like a champ.
"In this tournament, Micah was just solid all the way through. He maybe didn't open up the way that we (the coaches) thought he could, but he was clearly in control of his matches.
"If I can say this about my son, he deserves it. He's put the time in to get to where he's at. Moreover, he just loves the sport, and is very unselfish when it comes to giving back to others.
"He enjoys taking the time to help others all the way down to the youth wrestlers. I'm very proud of him."
Lutes reached the 140-pound finals with three wins - a pin at 3:10 against Clayton Coffman of Harrison Central, a 6-4 decision over Brit Yant of Olentangy, and a pin at 5:03 against Blake Scipio of Hilliard Bradley.
Wrestling for first, Lutes (29-6) was edged by Brandon Staudacher of Indian Creek 6-5.
"Lutes has come a long way through his career," commented Coach Kullman. "Wins didn't always come easy at first, but he's been resilient. He's always bounced back. And now, he beats a lot of people with technique and a style that is relentless with attacks.
"He beat some very tough kids in this tournament, because they couldn't keep up with him. His semifinals match was probably the best I've ever seen him wrestle. He's peaking at the right time. I'm very happy for him."
Boyce reached the semifinals with wins over Tommy Bolton of Bexley 14-5 and a 5-3 overtime decision against Caleb Hetterscheidt of Olentangy.
He then suffered 6-5 setback to Chris Baker of Jonathan Alder.
With a trip to Columbus on the line, Boyce pinned Michael Schlarb of New Philadelphia at 4:42.
Hetterscheidt gained some revenge, beating Boyce in the third-place match 3-2.
"Boyce had a rough ending last season with an injury that kept him out," stated Coach Kullman. "But this year he's been rock solid. He's an extremely hard worker and is very coachable.
"In this tournament, just like all year, he gave it his all every time he stepped out on the mat. He only knows one speed and he doesn't shift gears, so what he may lack in technique, he more than makes up for it with his pace.
"He's beaten several people this year, because they can't keep that pace the whole time. I think that even the guys that beat him this weekend, physically felt like they lost after the match, because of the way that he wrestles. He's fun to coach.
"With all that said, all three state qualifiers understand that we move on now. They have a good focus. They'll be ready."
Nathan Smith (31-6) will be an alternate to state, finishing fifth at 103 pounds.
The freshman started tournament action with a 9-3 win over Anthony Craig of Steubenville. He lost in the quarterfinals to Trevor Fiorucci of Olentangy 18-3.
In the consolation bracket, Smith beat Paul Swartz of Beaver 16-0 and Frankie Williams of East Liverpool 9-0.
Wrestling for state, Smith suffered a default loss to Payton Gutierrez of St. Francis DeSales.
Smith regrouped to win his fifth-place match, beating Sawyer Leppla of Cambridge 4-1.
"Probably the biggest dark cloud in the sky this past weekend was the situation that occurred with Nate Smith," commented Coach Kullman. In his go-to match, he was beating the DeSales kid when he was called for a slam and was disqualified because the kids wouldn't continue to wrestle.
"Nate was clearly the better wrestler and to end his season in this way was to say the least, very disappointing. It was a very unfortunate situation. It took a lot of character on Nate's part to come back and wrestle for fifth place (the alternate spot) just a short time later.
"To go out and perform, even though your heart was just ripped out just a little bit earlier, is tough. This kid is emotionally tough and he just got tougher."
Placing sixth were Logan Tucker (23-9) at 130 and Mike Wilson (28-11) at 215.
"Also coming up just a little short was senior Mike Wilson," continued Coach Kullman. "He had a tough weight class and missed qualifying by one match. He's grown a lot over the years and developed into a good leader for our team. He's a great kid on and off the mat. His parents should be proud.
"He is a four-time letterman, finishing with 75 wins in his career. He will be missed."
Minerva had two other wrestlers at districts - Kolby DePalmo (16-17) and Jacob Hawk (16-17). Both posted 1-2 records.
As a team, Minerva finished third with 100 points. Olentangy won the team title with 135.5 points, followed by Beaver with 119.5.
"Overall, this is a pretty unique group of kids," stated Coach Kullman. "We've never backed down to anybody all year. All of our kids battled. Everyone, underclassmen included, got here (to districts) and won matches. That will prove valuable in the future."
The 2010 State Wrestling Championships will be held March 4-6 at Value City Arena on the campus of The Ohio State University. Division II wrestling will get under way today (March 4) at 4:20 p.m.
Kullman will open up state against senior Andrew Nealan (31-7) of New Richmond. Nealan placed sixth at state a year ago at 160. The winner will battle either senior Ian Humphrey (40-2) of Lexington or senior Anthony Nadeja (23-3) of Hubbard.
Lutes will face junior John Novak (30-20) of Walsh Jesuit, who finished third at the Akron Firestone districts. The winner will take on either sophomore Felipe Martinez of St. Paris Graham or senior Brandon Volkman (37-9) of Wauseon. Martinez won the 130-pound state championship in 2009.
Boyce will take on junior Konner Witt (45-3) of Oak Harbor, the district winner at Marion Harding. The winner will face either junior Will LeBoeuf (35-8) of Dayton Oakwood or senior Randy Carpenter (39-8) of Ravenna.
treed@the-review.com
www.tnl-news.com
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