BY ROGER SMITH
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN
LOUISVILLE — Martin County Cardinals Youth Wrestling Club entered the KFWC State Championships ready to battle Sunday at the Kentucky Expo Center in Louisville. Out of 94 teams, the Cardinals finished fifth overall and as runner-up in Division 3. They also saw two state champions crowned and packed home two silver medals, two bronze medals, a fourth-place finish and a lot of pride in their program.
Jeremiah Vanhoose and Lukas Mays both brought home gold medals and state champion titles—Mays’ third straight. Nolan Muncy and Bryce Williamson finished with silver medals as runners-up, Greyson Maynard and Jeremiah Looney brought home bronze medals and Tyson Muncy finished in fourth place. Bransyn Hannah, Ryder Endicott, Ezra Bowen, David West, Jase Vanhoose, Jason West, Bradlee Smith, Kianna Chaffin and Jeffery Looney all made their marks in a stacked field of young wrestling talent.
Coach Andrew Chaffin says his grapplers “are as tough as nails.”
Vanhoose stood atop the podium as the 10U 67 lbs state champion. A gritty and methodical championship run saw Vanhoose win five straight matches using a mix of falls and decision victories to clinch gold. His most dominant performance was a 12-0 major decision in the second round. Vanhoose’s title bout against Jace Kaufmann ended in a clinical 5-0 decision, capping off a 27-point effort for the Cardinals.
Mays took his turn at the top of the 53 lbs 10U podium after capturing a statement-making third straight state title. It was a flawless championship campaign for May, who stormed through his bracket with three pins and a tech fall, collecting 29.5 team points for Martin County. His fastest fall came in just 13 seconds against Allie Goodson, and he finished the job in the finals, pinning Brodie Furnish in 43 seconds to claim the state title.
Nolan Muncy gave a strong silver-medal effort in the 12U 135 lbs division. He powered through the bracket pinning his first two opponents before grinding out a pair of tight decisions to make the finals. His championship match was a down-to-the-wire contest, where he came up just short 4-3 against Caenan Grayson. Muncy’s runner-up finish added 24 team points to Martin County’s total.
Williamson marked his strong runner-up finish in 12U 74 lbs by pulling in 23.5 team points. He powered through the early rounds with authority, racking up a 16-0 tech fall and two first-period pins. Williamson’s finals match was an all-out battle with Holdon Allen narrowly edging him out 10-9 in a thriller.
Jeremiah Looney fought through a gauntlet of close matches in Youth Open 8U 62 lbs, grinding his way to a hard-earned third-place finish. His tournament run started with a thrilling sudden victory (13-10) over Leighna Robertson in the opening round. After dropping an 18-14 decision to Max Johnson, he rebounded in the consolation bracket. Looney rattled off four straight wins, including a 56-second pin and a clutch 8-6 decision over Johnson in their rematch. In the bronze medal bout, he once again thrived under pressure, pulling out a 15-12 sudden victory over Colt Strange to cap off a gritty podium finish.
Maynard went on a mission in the 10U 71 lbs competition to finish in third place. He stacked up three straight victories, including a first-period pin in the quarters. Though he fell in the semis, he rebounded with a dominant 14-5 major decision in the consolation semis and a 9-6 win in the third-place match. Maynard’s 23 team points helped solidify Martin County’s effort.
Tyson Muncy went on a tear to finish fourth in the 10U 56 lbs division and add 23 team points. After an opening-round setback, he ripped through the consolation bracket with five straight pins, including a lightning-fast 16-second fall over Fynn Dean. His workhorse momentum carried him to the third-place match, where he narrowly fell to Chance Gilliard in a 9-6 decision.
Bransyn Hannah (8U 53) came out swinging in the opening rounds, dominating Joseph Hagan with an 18-2 tech fall before securing a major decision over Owen Johnson (11-2). But the road to the podium got rough in the quarterfinals, where he fell in a hard-fought 12-6 decision to Everett Brewer. A tough consolation match against Thomas Cooper (9-0 major decision) ended Hannah’s run, but his early performances earned him 6.5 team points.
Ryder Endicott (10U 59) opened his tournament with back-to-back first-period pins, dispatching Alexander Thomas in 1:39 and Hunter Craven in just 24 seconds. His run was cut short by a quarterfinal loss and a sudden-victory heartbreaker in the consolation round (10-7). His 8 team points were a solid contribution.
Ezra Bowen (10U 63) picked up a first-round bye and delivered an 11-4 decision win over Gabriel Ogg before injury and a fall ended his championship pursuit. While his final standing was unrecorded, Bowen added 4 team points to Martin County’s tally.
A tough outing for David West (10U 84 lbs) saw him receive a bye before dropping back-to-back matches, falling in 2:58 in the second round and dropping a tight 3-1 decision in the consolation bracket.
Jase VanHoose (12U 86) faced two close losses, battling through an 11-0 major decision in the first round and a 3-2 nailbiter in the consolations, keeping him just short of making a deeper run.
Jason West (12U 86) put up an explosive start, pinning both of his first two opponents in under two minutes. But his momentum was stopped in the quarters by Zeagon Harris, followed by a second-period fall in the consolations. Still, he managed 8 team points in the effort.
Bradlee Smith (12U 92) fired back after an opening-round loss, rattling off two straight pins—including a 22-second fall—before falling in the third consolation round by tech fall (18-1).
Kianna Chaffin (12U 108) started with a bye but was unable to find footing in the following rounds, falling twice in the early going.
Jeffery Looney (12U 108) fought through a close 7-3 decision loss in his opening round but could not recover in the consolations, ending his run with an early fall.