State Wrap Up - Episode 6: The Ironmen (and women) Georgia and Tennessee
One of the first things I look at when a state tournament finishes is … who was able to bounce back and fight their way back through to make the podium. If there is one attribute that epitomizes wrestling or wrestlers it is perseverance. And there are few better pieces of evidence than the ability to pick yourself up and fight back to make the podium when your goal was to win it all.
Each of the wrestlers below lost their first match and fought back to find a spot on the podium. Because each bracket is different (especially in Tennessee this year) - being an “Ironman” or “Ironwoman” might be different from bracket to bracket. I like the term Ironman or Ironwoman because I think it captures in a single word what it takes - not only physical ability and determination, but also mental as well as psychological strength to battle back.
In Georgia - all of the boys brackets had 24 wrestlers and Georgia placed top 4 … meaning a wrestler had to win a minimum of 4 matches to make the top 4 (and in some cases 5 matches). On the girls side - brackets varied significantly in size so making the top 4 was incredibly difficult if you lost your first match (in fact - just one wrestler accomplished that feat).
In Tennessee - 1A-2A and 3A were 16-man brackets and they placed top 6 … so the path was easier than it was for Georgia boys, but still not an easy task (in fact to make the podium they would have had to win a minimum of 3 matches). Division 2 and Girls were smaller brackets - at 8-man (women) brackets so we identified those that lost their 1st round match and came back to finish 3rd.
Congrats to each of the wrestlers below for finding a way to pick themselves up and fight back through the “backside”.
Georgia
Joey Bambinelli - Mill Creek - 7A 160 3rd
Easton Bishop - Woodland - 5A 126 4th
Braydon Bowen - Troup - 4A 126 4th
Trent DeBow - Wesleyan - 1A 152 4th
Aaron Kirkland - Buford - 6A 195 4th
Chandler Lynn - Toombs County - 2A 170 4th
Zac McAfee - Sonoraville - 3A 170 4th
Armando Monroy - Calhoun - 5A 113 4th
Brayden Nance - Cherokee Bluff - 3A 160 3rd
Richard Ransom - Collins Hill - 7A 182 3rd
Jacob Robinson - Pope - 6A 113 4th
Sarai Sanders - Hillgrove - Girls 162 3rd
Jacob Voyles - Banks County - 2A 106 3rd
Chavis Watson - Baldwin - 4A 132 3rd
Bleu Winters - Rockmart - 3A 126 4th
NOTE: It has been brought to my attention that every wrestler that lost in the consi semis finished 5th (there was no 5th/6th match). It isn’t listed on trackwrestling so that is why they were not included previously. Those wrestlers that lost their first match of the tournament and battled back to 5th are listed below.
Paul Carroll - Newnan - 7A 285 5th
Aiden Chilson - Lee County - 6A 170 5th
Justin DiCono - North Paulding - 7A 132 5th
Kenly Eavenson - Franklin County - 3A 113 5th
Zane Fairbanks - Oconee County - 3A 145 5th
Carter Fleming - Elbert County - 2A 113 5th
Brandon Green - Cairo - 4A 195 5th
Chaz Hammock - Lamar County - 2A 152 5th
Ayden Hecht - Ola - 5A 152 5th
Hernan Hernandez - North Murray - 3A 132 5th
Jahlil McKenney - Eagles Landing - 5A 285 5th
Jude Niemi - St Anne Pacelli - 1A 106 5th
Travis Nollman - Ola - 5A 160 5th
Ronald Pierce - Gilmer - 3A 138 5th
Caleb Reining - Greenbrier - 5A 160 5th
Victor Reyes - North Forsyth - 7A 195 5th
Kiernan Sherwood - North Gwinnett - 7A 152 5th
Wyatt Sligh - Harrison - 7A 113 5th
Reid Smith - Hampton - 4A 182 5th
Austin Sorrelle - Dade County - 2A 220 5th
Dylan Tucker - Richmond Hill - 6A 182 5th
Cade Wallace - Bremen - 2A 152 5th
Tyrone Wright - Spencer - 4A 195 5th
Tennessee
Lily Chantler - Northwest - Girls 170 3rd
Tim Charpenter - Lakeway Christian - D2 132 3rd
Perrin Clark - East Ridge - 1A-2A 132 4th
Zachary Duessler - Rossview - 3A 182 4th
Calvin Eason - Father Ryan - D2 126 3rd
Grace Elliot - Siegel - Girls 112 3rd
Ethan Lipsey - Bradley Central - 3A 113 3rd
Finley Jameson - Summit - 3A 152 6th
Brady Jarvis - Wilson Central - 3A 160 5th
Luke Justice - Summit - 3A 170 6th
Graham Keating - Oakland - 3A 285 5th
Robert Laxton - Cleveland - 3A 152 3rd
Rylee Lent - Independence - Girls 103 3rd
Benton Magourik - Whitwell - 1A-2A 138 5th
Seth McCoy - Forrest - 1A-2A 138 6th
Wemawamungu Moktani - Munford - 3A 126 4th
Jeremy Peters - Knoxville Halls - 3A 120 6th
Jesse Richardson - Wilson Central - 3A 285 6th
Colby Sinclair - Maryville - 3A 182 6th
Addie Stadler - David Crockett - Girls 132 3rd