The Alabama State Duals Finals are set

The Finals of the Alabama State Duals will take place this Friday at the Birmingham Crossplex. I have requested media credentials, but the AHSAA is significantly limiting attendance so I don’t know if I will be present for the action. If not, I will be on trackwrestling where it will be streamed live (just the video it looks like - no audio - again I contacted the AHSAA about announcing each dual, but never heard back).

7A: Thompson 69, Auburn 12

It took the Warriors of Thompson a day longer than everyone else, but tonight they punched their ticket to the finals with a solid performance over Auburn. Thompson jumped out on top early with a decision win by Parker Edmondson followed by falls from Wilson Kennedy, James Latona, Will Garrett, Will Miller, and Carson Freeman before Auburn was able to get on the board. Dakota Bowden got a fall over Kinglsey Walters at 182, but by that time Thompson was well on their way to another trip to the finals - leading 33-6. Jeremiah Coney and Jeffery Tubbs put the icing on the cake with 2 more falls and Thompson rolled to a 69-12 final when it was all said and done. They will get Vestavia at noon on Friday.

7A: Vestavia Hills 50, Hewitt-Trussville 18

Vestavia jumped out quick on the Huskies - putting up 16 quick points before Dalton Zimmerman was able to get 6 back for Hewitt at 120. Unfortunately for Hewitt that would as close as they would get as they traded two matches to one for much of the rest of the dual. Lucas and Logan Reaves each won for the Huskies to give them a little life (trailing 29-15) with 5 bouts left, but Jack Lamey, John Edwards, and Riggs Manown shut the door with 2 falls and a 10-5 decision to put the dual out of reach. Vestavia will take on the winner of Thompson and Auburn Friday at noon central (I think that is the time … nothing on the AHSAA website with times or who is wrestling).

5A-6A: Gardendale 32, Arab 27

This one lived up to the hype. We started at 160 and Gardendale got the ball rolling with their team captain Carson Kim putting an 11-1 decision on Logan Silva. Arab bounced back with Caleb Roe getting a major over Derrick Orvik and so it went. Arab’s big guys stepped up at 220 and 285 … Robertson got the fall and Morgan edged Riley Dunn 9-8 to put Arab put 17-8. Each team was pushing for bonus points early - knowing that it might come down to just a few points in the end. Joseph Ivey pushed the Arab lead to 21-8 at 106. Webb got Gardendale back on track with a 21-6 tech fall and Jacob Holland answered with a close 6-4 decision over Daishon Powe - putting the score 24-13 with 5 matches remaining. But this is the part of the lineup where Gardendale does their work … Isaiah Powe looked like one of the best wrestlers in the state (can anyone say Land vs. Powe in the State Finals?) with a quick fall to cut the lead to 24-19. Bronson Jackson stepped up huge for Arab at 132 - downing Brody Scoggins 6-4 in a match that could’ve gone either way. Melton Powe answered for Gardendale with a fall and we sat at 27-25 heading into the last two matches. Sanchez vs. Lawler was the match of the night … back and forth battle that saw a takedown by Sanchez with little time remaining to give Gardendale the lead for the first time all evening 28-27. Keenan Wyatt put an exclamation point on it with a 17-4 major of Joshua Roe and Gardendale advances.

NOTE: I will have pictures from this dual posted later on Wednesday.

5A-6A: Wetumpka 42, Gulf Shores 25

Looks like this one started at 106 and Gulf Shores’s Noah Guthrie got his team off on the right foot with a 10-2 major decision of Roman McWilliams. Wetumpka answered in a big way with 5 straight wins including falls by Chad Strickland, Mason Dickey, and Kyler Adams to put Wetumpka up big 25-4 after 6 matches. Jacob Killough, Weston Reed, and Alex Baez each won for Gulf Shores (Reed when Christian Preston was DQ’d at 145) to cut the Wetumpka lead to 25-19 heading into the final 5 matches. Americus Bartee, Devin Palmer and Mason Blackwell put an exclamation on the win for Wetumpka as each got falls and put the dual out of reach. Drake Ewing and Charlie Hollis each got nice wins at 220 and 285 for Gulf Shores, but it was too little too late and Wetumpka advances with a 42-25 win. Wetumpka will face Gardendale on Friday at 3 (I think).

1A-4A: Cleburne County 48, New Hope 31

The dual kicked off at 120, which was a good starting place for Cleburne since they have two hammers at 106 and 113 to help at the end. Anthony Champion pinned Layton Pohl and Ian McGowan got a forfeit as Cleburne climbed to a 12-0 lead to start. New Hope answered wtih falls from Jonathan Richards and Walter Allen to even the score at 12 after 4 matches. Brennan Butler pinned Matthew Lemley at 145 to put Cleburne in the lead, but only temporarily because Noah Morrison, Ethan Hendrickson, and Ricky Toney each won for New Hope to put them in the lead (25-18) for the first time in the match. Cleburne countered with falls from Gavin Wright and Russell Clanton and a forfeit at 195 to put them up 36-25 heading into the final 3 matches. When Thomas Walls pinned Eli Brown at 285 - we knew that New Hope had a chance - cutting the lead to 36-31 heading into the final two matches. Austen Mayfield and Shamar Heard slammed the door on any comeback and booked Cleburne County’s trip to the final 2 with 2 falls.

1A-4A: Ashville 63, St James 16

Ashville looked every bit of the best team in 1A-4A with an absolute beating of St James in the semis. The Dogs jumped out to a 33-0 lead with falls from Jabe Burgess, Luke Harris, Trenton Martin, Jacob Ebner, and Mason Wilson from 160-285. St James really needed wins at 220 and 285 if they were going to be able to hang with Ashville … add in a solid 9-2 win from Dylan Harris over Clayton Craft and this one was over before it began. Braylen Corley got St James on the board with a fall at 106 and Tennison Norton and Logan Hartson each put points up for St James, but it wasn’t going to be enough as we moved into the last 4 weights with Ashville leading 39-16. St James would have needed 4 falls over the last 4 matches to claim a 40-39 win, but Nick Spears put that idea to bed with a pin of Granger Hicks at 132 and Ashville rolled to a 63-16 win and into the finals opposite Cleburne County.