Members of the Trinity wrestling team pose for photos after winning the Class 2A Midwest Regional. (Bob Sutton / Randolph Record)
Wrestlers from Randleman, Providence Grove and Southwestern Randolph also claim regional titles
LEXINGTON — Trinity’s wrestling team went out to prove a few points in the Class 2A Midwest Regional and that turned out productive.
The Bulldogs got the job done up and down the lineup Saturday at Lexington Middle School.
“We didn’t come to play around,” Trinity heavyweight Joseph Trahan said. “It’s solely a business trip. We couldn’t get it done in duals, so we came here ready. It’s still not done.”
Half of the 14 weight classes had a Randolph County champion, while all except four divisions had a finalist from either Trinity or Wheatmore.
Trinity’s Aiden Burkholder (106 pounds), Stephen Cross (113), Jaden Allred (138), Lawson Coltrane (165) and Trahan (285) joined Wheatmore’s Ayden Sumners (126) and Dominic Hittepole (175) as regional champions.
Runners-ups were Trinity’s Kayden Hess (132) and Wheatmore’s Spencer Moore (144) and Johnathan Kelly (215).
Other state qualifiers were Trinity’s Omega Edge (third, 120), Baron Justice (third, 144), Jayden Henry (third, 150) and Edgar Vasquez (fourth, 126) and Wheatmore’s Noah Browning (third, 190) and Nolan Hammonds (fourth, 132).
Trinity stacked up 222 points to runner-up Wheatmore’s 148 among the 22-team field. Trinity coach Brandon Coggins said he didn’t sense a strong first round from his team.
“We kind of came alive,” Coggins said. “I was pleased with the day.”
Burkholder pinned West Stanly’s Dax Osborne in 1:25 of the final for his third pin in three matches.
“I wasn’t getting tired in my matches and I was pushing the pace and getting to what works for me,” Burkholder said.
Cross edged Forbush’s Alan Benitez 5-4 in the title match after a technical fall and a 9-6 decision against second-seeded Sawyer Griffin of West Stanly.
Allred notched pins in all three of his bouts, including a fall in 4:40 against Michael Fischer of East Surry in the final.
Coltrane’s showdown with Lexington’s Leviathan Haynes was the last bout of the regional. Coltrane’s takedown with 12 seconds left broke a tie in a 7-4 victory.
“I had the conditioning to beat him,” Coltrane said.
Earlier, Coltrane pinned three straight opponents. He said he wanted more than just a spot in the state tournament.
“I put all this work in, so I might as well go out and do what I do,” he said. “… This puts that much more (emphasis) on how hard I’m going to work this week.”
Trahan had two first-period pins before flattening Forest Hills’ Terrel Williams in 4:21 of the final.
Sumners beat Mt. Pleasant’s Seth Almond 8-1 to win the regional after two first-period pins and a technical fall by shutout.
Hittepole’s 10-1 victory against Mt. Pleasant’s Jacob Reigel came after a bye and two pins. Hittepole was a 2023 regional champ as a freshman before placing second in the regional and state last year.
“I feel I’m back in my groove,” he said.
Wheatmore coach Kyle Spencer said it’s good to see wrestlers peaking at the right time.
Kelly, the eighth seed, had the biggest bump from seed to eventual place finish of any wrestler in the regional.
“I was very nervous at the beginning,” Kelly said. “I didn’t think I was going to make states. I was worried. I just came in here and I just wrestled.”
Kelly registered two pins sandwiched around a 14-4 quarterfinals upset of top-seeded Jonathan Zarate of Forbush.
“Once I started going in the match, I was wrestling good,” Kelly said.
North Stanly’s Nash Mullis topped Kelly by a second-period technical fall in the final.
Hess fell to Mt. Pleasant’s Cameron Gue by 8-0 after two pins and a decision to reach the final.
Moore’s title bout ended with Lukas Allman of Mt. Pleasant getting the pin in 2:15. Moore had a pin, technical fall and 12-5 decision against top-seeded Ayden Norman of Surry Central to advance.
Justice, the No. 8 seed, lost in the first round and then won five straight bouts, including one in overtime. He also had four pins in a total of 7:54 for the third-best rate in the regional for all weight classes. His 11-second pin of Forest Hills’ Cooper Polston was the second-fastest at the meet.
Edge had dramatics in the third-place match, trailing 10-2 before pinning West Stanly’s Brison Brosseau in the third period.
Class 2-A Mideast Regional
At Eden, Randleman’s Alex Raymundo (106) and Braxton Walker (215), Providence Grove’s Mitchell Freeman (157) and Southwestern Randolph’s Jose Flores (285) were champions.
Raymundo edged McMichael’s Colton McBride 11-10 in the final after securing a pin and technical fall in earlier rounds.
Walker’s regional title came with a 4-1 decision against Seaforth’s Ethan Kuball, the top seed. Walker dominated three earlier matches with a first-period technical fall and two first-period pins.
Freeman secured a 19-6 decision against South Granville’s Jamari Ray in the title bout. Freeman made his way through the bracket with a second-period pin, a first-period technical fall and a 10-3 decision.
Flores, the state champion two years ago in what was then the 220-pound class, was the No. 2 seed for the regional, which ended with his pin of McMichael’s Michael Vazquez in 2:28. Earlier, Flores registered a 55-second pin, a technical fall and a 7-1 decision.
Southwestern Randolph’s Michael Jaimes (second at 138) and Nathan Garner (third at 150) and Randleman’s Hezekyah Matson (third at 126) also qualified for states. Jaimes was a shutout victim via technical fall against Eden Morehead’s Elijah Horton in the final.
