GALLIPOLIS — The intensity level was ratcheted up several notches for the Division II District wrestling tournament, held at Gallia Academy High School Friday, March 1 and Saturday, March 2.

It was the same venue that hosted two Sectional tournaments simultaneously on Feb. 24.

There are three wrestlers from Fayette County who have qualified to this weekend’s State tournament at the Schottenstein Center on the campus of The Ohio State University.

Miami Trace junior Lyric Dickerson placed third at the District tournament and will be making his third trip to the State tournament.

Washington High School senior Brady Rohrer and sophomore Malachi McCullough will each be making their State tournament debut. Rohrer was third at the District and McCullough placed fourth.

As for the team event, the teams from the Claymont Sectional and the Steubenville Sectional, dominated the Gallia Academy Division II District.

The Blue Lions and Panthers each won Sectional titles on Feb. 24.

Teams from Claymont and Steubenville took the top eight spots at the District.

The Blue Lions were the top team from the Gallia Academy Sectional to place at District, taking ninth with 69.5 team points.

Miami Trace was 12th with 60.5 points.

Steubenville won with 112 points, edging Carrollton (111.5).

Indian Valley was third with 102 points, followed by New Philadelphia with 96.5 points, Beaver Local with 93.5 points, West Holmes in sixth with 84 points, Minerva seventh with 78 points and John Glenn eighth with 77 points.

Logan Elm was 14th with 56.5 points, Chillicothe was 19th with 41.5 points, McClain was 26th with 22 points, Circleville was 30th with 19 points, Jackson was 33rd with 14 points and Hillsboro was 35th with 9 points. (Note: many of those teams had just a few participants to begin with)

Dickerson (120) went 4-1 at the District.

He began the District tournament with a pin of Collin Ring of Beaver Local in 3:58.

In the quarterfinals, Dickerson won a 9-3 decision over Carter Abella of Maysville.

In the semifinals, Dickerson lost to Nile Abbuhi of Indian Valley, 6-4.

In the consolation semifinals, Dickerson defeated Casen Snyder of Washington with a major decision, 14-3.

That win guaranteed Dickerson a return trip to the State tournament.

He wrestled Mark Mueller of Minerva in the match for third place and won, 8-4.

“I honestly wanted to go to the finals,” Dickerson said. “The kid I just wrestled, he beat me before, by a point, at Cambridge.

“I just went in there and I was like, ‘alright, I’m not losing this one,’” Dickerson said. “I just went out there, put my head down and didn’t stop going after it.

“You still get a little excited, a little nervous on those bigger matches,” Dickerson said. “At this point, it’s really nothing to worry about. It really matters about how you perform. Obviously, here, it does matter how you finish.”

Dickerson has his sights set on placing at State this year after going 0-2 there as a freshman and 1-2 there last year.

“I believe I can make top five,” Dickerson said. “I want to place in the top five. I’m placing for sure, that’s my goal.”

Dickerson (43-6) will begin the State tournament with a match against the No. 2 seed from the Kenston District, sophomore Anthony Sindelar (41-7) of Streetsboro.

McCullough (150) went 3-2 at the District tournament.

He began with a pin of Lincoln Gilcher of John Glenn in 1:09.

In the quarterfinals, McCullough earned a 12-3 major decision over Ezekiel Williams of New Philadelphia.

In the semifinals, McCullough lost by major decision (18-5) to Colytn Reedy of Sheridan. Reedy went on to place second at the District.

In the consolation semifinals (the winner of which qualified to State), McCullough beat Asher LeBeau of Miami Trace, 7-6 in sudden victory.

In the match for third place, McCullough lost to Luke Kaiser of Athens, 1-0.

“It feels pretty good (to be going to State),” McCullough said following his last match at the District tournament. “I don’t think a lot of people thought I would beat Asher.

“I wrestled (Kasier) last week, too and he beat me by four points for the championship at Sectionals,” McCullough said. “We wrestled one other time a few weeks ago and he beat me, 5-4.

“I feel pretty good (heading to State),” McCullough said. “I’m healthy. I’m going to try and make it to day two, that’s my main goal when I get to State. I’m trying to at least place, but, I’m fine with not. I just want to go out there and wrestle my best.”

McCullough (24-11) will face the winner of the Wilmington District, junior Mitchell Younger (34-4) of Bishop Watterson, in his first match at State. Wrestling starts Friday at 1 p.m.

Rohrer (285) went 5-1 at the District tournament.

In his first match, Rohrer pinned Landon Gill of Philo in 1:15.

In the quarterfinals, Rohrer lost by pin to eventual District champion Garrett Dillon-Rine of New Philadelphia in 2:23.

Rohrer then set about winning four matches in a row.

In the second consolation round, Rohrer pinned Malikye Peterson of Athens in 3:00.

In the third consolation round, Rohrer won an 11-2 major decision over Davey Adkins of Waverly.

In the consolation semifinals, Rohrer beat Mason Wilt of St. Clairsville, 4-3.

In the match for third place, already assured of a trip to State, Rohrer beat Conner Green of Logan Elm, 7-3.

“I came in here not thinking I was going to get third,” Rohrer said. “But, you just have to wrestle your hardest. Just try, that’s pretty much it.”

Rohrer (28-14) will face the No. 2 seed from the Wilmington District, senior Ian Rutherford (38-13) of Granville.

“I just have to practice harder, work on conditioning more,” Rohrer said when asked about getting ready for State. “And, get on that podium.”

“It was a good tournament for us,” Washington head coach Louis Reid said. “Any time you get someone to the State tournament, it’s a good thing.

“We’re happy to have two going to State and a State alternate,” Reid said. “We also had Casen Snyder place sixth.

“Our goal was to get four or five to State,” Reid said. “But, we’re happy with getting two. We placed ninth overall, so, we moved up.”

The Blue Lions were 14th at the Steubenville District last year.

“Only two of our kids are seniors,” Reid said. “Brady Rohrer, that’s a good way to finish his career by making it out to State.

“Last year Malachi didn’t place at the District,” Reid said. “And this year, he’s a State qualifier.

“We’re very proud of our overall team effort,” Reid said. “We had nine kids make it to day two (out of 12). Some of our kids made it close to the placement round and some of our kids bowed out early. The overall effort was good.

“Malachi wrestled a smart tournament,” Reid said. “Brady wrestled really well, extremely well.

“Mack (Parsley, a State-qualifier last year) had a tough bracket,” Reid said. “We knew it was going to be tough.

“And then Casen Snyder, he was our surprise placer,” Reid said. “He’s a freshman.”

“It’s always a tough weekend,” Miami Trace assistant coach Jacob Garringer said. “Because, you have kids moving on and you have kids whose careers are coming to an end. That’s always tough.

“Lyric punched his ticket (to State), we’re really proud of him,” Garringer said. “Our two seniors, Asher (LeBeau) and Conor (Harrison), they’ve been working very hard and they came up a little bit short. That’s always tough to see.”

Both placed fifth at the tournament and are State alternates.

“I’m glad they both came back and got fifth place,” Garringer said. “They at least have a shot (this) week.

“Lyric’s goal is to place (at State),” Garringer said. “Winning that match (for third and fourth) was big. That kid actually beat us earlier in the year. Beating him gives us a little bit of confidence. You don’t want to be a No. 4 seed going into State, because you have to wrestle a No. 1 seed from another District.

“We had some other kids who wrestled very hard this weekend,” Garringer said. “Everybody made it to the second day, so, that was big.”

Miami Trace ended up with eight competitors at the District. District-qualifier Spencer Smith was not able to take part in the District tournament.

Conor Harrison (190) went 3-2 at the District.

Harrison’s opponent in the first match defaulted.

In the quarterfinals, Harrison won an 8-4 decision over Connor Nichols of Gallia Academy.

In the semifinals, Harrison lost by pin to Logan Niceswanger of Morgan in 1:07.

In the consolation semifinals, Harrison lost 2-0 to Brayden Bernard of Philo.

In the match for fifth place, Harrison’s opponent forfeited.

Harrison ended his senior season with a record of 31-19.

Asher LeBeau (150) went 3-2 at the District tournament.

LeBeau began the tournament with a pin of Ethan Weaver of Minerva in 1:38.

In the quarterfinals, LeBeau lost by a 22-9 major decision to Brody Saccoccia of Steubenville. Saccoccia went on to win the District title.

In the second consolation round, LeBeau pinned Conner Spicer of New Lexington in 1:51.

In the third round of consolation matches, LeBeau earned a 17-10 decision over Levi Strahler of Warren.

In the consolation semifinals, sometimes referred to as the ‘go-to-state’ match because the winner gets to wrestle for third and fourth place, LeBeau lost 7-6 to Malachi McCullough of Washington.

LeBeau finished his senior season with a record of 40-12.

Sophomore Tyler Stevens (165) of Miami Trace was 1-2 at the District meet.

Stevens began with a 3-2 win over Nathan Gottke of New Lexington.

In the quarterfinals, Stevens lost to Justin Cox of Beaver Local, 3-1.

That put Stevens in the second round of consolation matches. There he was pinned by Edgar Mejia-Ramos of New Philadelphia in 1:05. Stevens completed the season with a record of 32-12.

Junior Garrett Carson (157) went 2-2 at the District.

In the opening round, Carson lost an 11-9 decision to Talan Bailey of Philo. Bailey went on to place third to qualify to the State tournament.

In the first round of consolation matches, Carson won a 14-1 major decision over Joshua Smith of McClain.

In the second consolation round, Carson won a 6-5 decision over Tristan Vires of Washington.

Carson then faced Jacob Householder of Sheridan in the third consolation round. Householder won that match, 2-1. Carson ends the year with a record of 29-20.

Junior Landon St. Clair (144) was 1-2 at the District tournament.

He began with a pin of Carlos Gonzalez of McClain in 5:05.

In the quarterfinals, St. Clair was pinned by Cooper Smith of Steubenville in :47. Smith went on to place second at the tournament.

In the second consolation round, St. Clair fell to Lincoln Wallace of Minerva, 8-2. St. Clair finished 27-9 for the season.

Junior Brice Perkins competed at the District at 138 pounds for the Panthers. He went 2-2.

Perkins won his first match by pin of Keadyn Castle of Fairfield Union in 1:03.

Perkins lost in the quarterfinals, 7-6 to Tyler Ulmer of New Philadelphia. Ulmer went on to placed second at the District.

Perkins won a 6-2 decision over David Little of Logan Elm in the second consolation round.

Perkins’ run ended with an 8-0 major decision loss to Marshall Laishley of Cambridge. Perkins finished the year with a record of 32-16.

Sophomore Will Enochs competed at 126 pounds for Miami Trace, going 1-2.

Enochs was pinned by Levi Pidgeon of Carrollton in the opening round in 1:26. Pidgeon went on to qualify to State with a fourth-place result at the District.

Enochs won in the first round of consolation matches, a 15-0 tech fall of Kayden Danver of East Liverpool.

Enochs then lost by pin to Grady Toye of West Holmes in 1:34. Enochs ended the season with a record of 29-14.

For the Blue Lions, freshman Nathan Snyder competed at 106 pounds, going 0-2.

Snyder lost his opening round match to Andrew Siembida of Circleville by pin in 1:09. Snyder then lost in the first consolation round to Ryan South of Philo by a 15-4 major decision.

Snyder finished the season at 21-18.

Freshman Bradley Forsythe was at 113 pounds for the Blue Lions. He went 1-2 at the District.

Forsythe won his first match with a pin in 3:01 of Shawn Metzger of John Gleen.

He then fell to Camden Richardson of New Philadelphia by pin in :38.

In the second round of consolation matches, Forsythe was pinned by Walker Archer of Maysville in 2:30. Forsythe finished his freshman season at 13-10.

Casen Snyder competed at 120 pounds for Washington, going 3-3.

Snyder lost his first match, 4-0 to Carter Abella of Maysville.

In the first round of consolation matches, Snyder beat Collin Ring of Beaver Local, 15-0.

In the second consolation round, Snyder advanced with a 4-2 win over Glaine Holzschuh of Logan Elm.

Snyder then won a 10-2 major decision over Crespo Reyes of New Philadelphia.

Snyder then met Lyric Dickerson of Miami Trace and lost that match, a 14-3 major decision.

In the match for fifth and sixth place, Snyder met Abella again. Abella won this encounter, 5-2.

Snyder finished the year with a record of 16-14.

Junior Talon Freese was at 126 pounds for Washington, going 1-2.

In his first match, Freese defeated Julius Mullins of Steubenville, 10-3.

In the quarterfinals, Freese lost to Danny Waite of Maysville by pin in 5:26. Waite would go on to place third at the District.

Freese then lost by pin in the second consolation round to Connor Norris of Minerva in 2:58. Freese ends his junior season at 20-11.

Freshman Jared Riveria was in the 138-pound weight class for the Blue Lions at the District tournament, going 0-2.

Riveria lost his first match by pin to Luke Skinner of Sheridan in 2:45.

In the first round of consolation matches, Riveria lost by pin in :55 to Slade Armstrong of Tri-Valley. Riveria concludes his freshman season at 8-21.

Another freshman, Wesley Gibbs, competed at 144 pounds for the Blue Lions at the District tournament, going 2-2.

In the first round, Gibbs won a 10-1 major decision over Scott Gaskin Jr. of Logan Elm.

In the quarterfinals, Gibbs was pinned by Louden Dixon of West Holmes in 1:05.

In the second consolation round, Gibbs pinned Jaleel Brown of Tri-valley in 1:49.

In the third round of consolation matches, Gibbs lost to Caleb Monlux of Maysville, a 5-3 sudden victory. Gibbs ends his first varsity season at 21-10.

Senior Tristan Vires was at 157 pounds for Washington at the District, going 1-2.

Vires won his opening match over Hayden Stevens of Tri-Valley with a 15-6 major decision.

In the quarterfinals, Vires lost by a 12-4 major decision to Savier Faulks of Steubenville. Faulks went on to win the District title.

Vires fell in the second round of consolation matches to Garrett Carson of Miami Trace, 6-5.

Vires ends his senior year with a record of 30-12.

Returning State qualifier, junior Mack Parsley, was at 165 pounds for Washington. He went 3-2.

In his first match, Parsley won a 15-2 major decision over Thad Nikodyn of Sheridan.

Parsley won a second major decision in the quarterfinals, 10-1 over Landon Crosier of Steubenville.

Parsley lost by pin in 1:42 to Cohen Bunting of John Glenn in the semifinals.

In the consolation semifinal, Parsley fell to Steven Davis of Gallia Academy by a 10-4 decision.

Parsley then beat Landon Crosier of Steubenville, 5-2 to place fifth and become a State alternate.

Parsley ends the year at 33-12.

Brendan Peters was at 175 pounds for Washington at the District. He went 1-2.

In his first match, Peters was pinned by Hunter Dietrich of Minerva in :31. Dietrich went on to win the District title.

Peters defeated Ayden Blue of Circleville in the first consolation round, 4-2.

In the second consolation round, Peters lost a 9-1 major decision to Nolan Carson of New Lexington. Peters finishes his junior year with a record of 24-14.

Sophomore Cameron Jones competed at 190 pounds for the Blue Lions at the District tournament, going 0-2.

In his first match, Jones was pinned in 2:35 by Logan Niceswanger of Morgan. Niceswanger went on to win the District title at 190 pounds.

Jones then fell by a 10-0 major decision to Levi Wood of River Valley. Jones finished the season with a record of 13-19.