Seven first-place finishes

BRITTNI MCCOY
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN

CANNONSBURG — Martin County High School wrestling opened the season in dominant fashion Dec. 6. Coach Josh Muncy’s Cardinals crew racked up seven individual championships and multiple podium finishes at the AWC Invitational hosted by Boyd County.

At 106, Brody Jewell went 4-0 with three pins and a forfeit to claim the first title of the day for Martin County. Jewell needed less than a minute in his first two bouts, pinning Boyd County’s Toby Prince in 55 seconds and teammate Xavior Price in 59 seconds. He then decked Russell’s Uriah Rowsey in 34 seconds before winning by forfeit in the finals to finish with 18.0 team points.

Jeremy Mollett dominated the 113-pound bracket for first place. Mollett recorded three straight first-period pins on his way to the title, sticking Greenup County’s Waylon Hall in 1:04, Boyd County’s Jaxon Allen in 1:41 and Boyd County’s Gavin Payne in 1:58. 

At 120, Blake Lemaster battled back to take third place. After a bye into the quarterfinals, Lemaster opened with a fall over Lawrence County’s Bentley Fleming in 1:33 before dropping his semifinal by pin to Fairland’s Levi Mitchell. Lemaster responded with two more pins, decking Boyd County’s Kaiden Diaz in 1:04 and then beating Fleming again by fall at 4:29 in the third-place match.

Noah Bowens reached the finals at 144 and finished as runner-up. Bowens pinned Fairland’s Colton Patton in 56 seconds in the quarterfinals, then advanced to the title bout with a fall over Russell’s Dylan Burton at 2:49. He finished second after being pinned by Boyd County’s Jace Bowling in the championship.

Martin County’s first tight decision win came at 150. Jeremy Begley navigated a stacked bracket to stand atop the podium. Begley opened with a third-period pin of Russell’s Jack Madden at 3:20. He then outpointed East Carter’s Parker Fouch 5-4 in the semifinals. In a thriller for the title, Begley edged Boyd County’s Chase Gillum 8-7 to finish 3-0.

At 157, Parker Maynard joined the list of champions with a run of three pins. Maynard stuck Russell’s Ivan McDaniels in 1:06 in the quarterfinals. He then flattened Boyd County’s Braxton Duncan in 1:30 in the semifinals. He closed his day with a quick first-period fall over Boyd County’s James McDaniels in just 40 seconds in the championship bout.

The Cardinals placed two wrestlers at 165. Cole Jewell finished runner-up after he opened with a 16-1 technical fall over Greenup County’s Aiden Baker in 2:07. He pinned Greenup’s Tristan Parrish in 3:01 in the semifinals. He then fell in the title match to Boyd County’s Tony Leader by pin at 4:53.

Jake Stafford also picked up an early-season win at 165. He pinned Russell’s Jiraiya Wears in 1:27 in the quarterfinal round before dropping his semifinal and consolation bouts.

James Begley went 3-0 with three pins after stopping Lawrence County’s Gavin Diamond in 1:17, Boyd County’s Amos Blankenship in 1:00 and East Carter’s Dylan Burton in 3:13 in the championship.

At 190, Easton Slone turned in another undefeated run to claim the title. Slone pinned Boyd County’s Payton Pressley in 34 seconds, then defeated Raceland’s Harley Brown 9-5. He followed with a fall over Lawrence County’s Remi Marcum at 1:56. He capped the bracket with a pin of Raceland’s Ethan Rogers at 2:20.

The Cardinals closed the day in style at 215. Brayden Fannin racked up four pins and 28.0 team points on his way to the championship. Fannin needed just 47 seconds to pin Russell’s Wyatt Hudson in the opening round, 22 seconds to defeat Greenup County’s Jaxon Shackelford in the quarterfinals and 29 seconds to stick Boyd County’s James Stamper in the semifinals. He sealed his title with a fall over Fairland’s Matthew Daily in 1:23 in the finals.

At heavyweight, Liam May added 4.0 points at 285. May opened his tournament with a pin of Boyd County’s Brayden Blanton at 3:27 before dropping his semifinal and consolation matches.