The Miami Trace Panther wrestling team is looking to build upon a solid group of returning underclassmen. The first test began this past weekend at the very competitive, 16-team Cambridge Invitational. Some early season injuries forced the Panthers to send a less-experienced, but determined line-up to this opening tournament.
The Panthers’ head coach, Ben Fondale, was pleased with his team’s fifth-place finish. \
The Panther head coach gave the following assessment on his team; “Often times at the beginning of the season, teams will not bring the effort and intensity to the mat like they should. However, the effort from our boys was there and they wrestled with intensity. We had a lot of inexperienced guys have their first varsity match on Saturday. As a coaching staff, we are proud of the effort. Our junior varsity also wrestled hard while our varsity was at Cambridge.”
On an individual basis, returning State alternate Weston Melvin capped the tournament off as the 113-pound champion, going 5-0 on the day.
Returning State qualifier, Mcale Callahan finished the tournament with a runner-up finish in the 152-pound weight class, dropping a match in the finals by an 8-3 score.
In addition, an impressive freshman debut by Vincent Munro earned him a third place finish at the 132-pound weight class.
Graham Carson earned a tough win over a state-ranked opponent in his final match of the evening to finish in third place at 145-pounds. Other placers on the day are as follows: Kylan Knapp (5th place; 160 pounds); Ashton Curtis (6th place; 182 pounds); Bryce Bennett (5th place; 195 pounds); Grant DeBruin (4th place; 285 pounds)
The Panthers return to competition on Thursday at Chillicothe and will travel on Saturday to compete in the Hamilton Township Invitational.
