A total of 15 wrestlers from the Chagrin Valley Conference punched their tickets to the state championships with a top-four finish at one of three district tournaments on Saturday.
Perry earned four state berths while Edgewood and Crestwood both will send two wrestlers to Columbus next weekend. Berkshire, Chagrin Falls, Cuyahoga Heights, Hawken, Kirtland, Orange, and West Geauga each qualified one wrestler to the state tournament.
Four others finished fifth at the district tournament and will serve as a state alternate.
Orange’s TeAndre Allen, Chagrin Falls’ Sam Partain, and Berkshire’s Lucas Stoddard are headed to Columbus as No. 1 seeds after winning a district title on Saturday.
Allen became Orange’s first district champion since Hafeez Hussein in 2000. Hussein went on to win the state title that season. Allen is now a two-time state qualifier.
He won the 126-pound title at the Division II Perry District a pin, a technical fall, and two one-point decisions. Allen edged St. Vincent-St. Mary’s Bryce Skinner in the championship bout, 3-2, and is 10-2 on the year.
Partain improved to 33-3 with his four wins at 150 pounds at the Perry District.
He used three decisions to advance to the championship bout where he defeated Aurora’s Nic Willingham, 5-1, to become the Tigers’ first district champion since 1998.
Other state qualifiers out of the Perry District included Edgewood’s Kyle Biller (3rd, 144) and Josh Biller (4th, 150); Perry’s Zach Bellissimo (3rd, 120), Brock Christian (2nd, 132), Calvin Rowan (2nd, 144), and Ryan Brubaker (4th, 157); and West Geauga’s Jack Sparent (2nd, 138).
Perry’s Dominic Ciolli (113) and Ethan Hicks (165) both placed fifth and will serve as state alternates. Edgewood’s Zeke Lucas (175) ad Troy Peterson (285) both finished sixth.
Stoddard was the CVC’s lone district champion out of the Division III Garfield Heights District. He advanced to the state tournament for the third straight season and won his second straight district championship.
He opened the tournament with back-to-back pins at 190 pounds and then edged Mogadore’s Tyler Knight in the semifinals, 4-0. Knight is a four-time state qualifier.
Stoddard closed out his district title run with a 3-2 decision over Southeast’ Jadyn Sapp, the 2021 district champion at 195 pounds.
Cuyahoga Heights’ Luke Torgerson finished as the district runner-up at 175 pounds. He won his first three matches by decision then fell to Garfield’s Keegan Sell in the championship round, 14-2.
Other Division III state qualifiers included Crestwood’s Mason Daniels (4th, 120) and J.P. Wrobel (3rd, 126); Hawken’s Patrick Reineke (3rd, 120); and Kirtland’s Will Davidson (3rd, 132).
Hawken’s Jacob Hlifka placed fifth at 144 pounds and will serve as a state alternate.
Sixth-place finishers included Berkshire’s Johnny Heiden (132) and Josh Brown (150); Hawken’s Will Greenberg (285); Independence’s Vinnie Kubicki (113); and Kirtland’s Gaetano Savelli (144), Louka Babic (165), and Brennon Braud (190).
