Grubb makes history; wrestlers advance

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent editor

A first took place at Lima Central Catholic on Saturday, and Crestview, Lincolnview and Van Wert all had wrestlers advance from sectional wrestling to district competition on Saturday.

Division III sectionals at Lima Central Catholic

LIMA — Gavin Grubb became Crestview’s first ever sectional champion on Saturday.

The 126-pound senior accomplished the historic feat by pinning Landon Dasher of Paulding in the finals in just 46 seconds in the Division III sectional finals at Lima Central Catholic on Saturday. Grubb’s other wins on the day came via a :09 pin of Ada’s Zaiden Denslow in the quarterfinals, and a pin of Columbus Grove’s Evan Pitts in :54 in the semifinals.

“My advice to him was get on the mat and get off the mat as quickly as you can,” head coach Jake Sawmiller said. “Leave no room for mistake. I guess he took that advice to heart today. He’s such an amazing wrestler and just gave himself the best possible chance he could as he heads into a very deep district bracket where he needs to find a way through seven of the top 12 wrestlers in the state to advance.”

Other district-bound wrestlers from Crestview are Levi Grace (third, 150), Evan Walls (third, 215), Jackson Marks (fourth, 138) and Ayden Martin (fourth, 165). Grace pinned Riley Mueller of Delphos St. John’s in 3:28 in the third place match, and Walls pinned Parkway’s Derrick Wagner in 2:47. Marks lost by default in the fourth place match and Martin dropped a 3-1 sudden victory match to Braeden Conn of Parkway. As a team, Crestview finished seventh at sectionals.

Lincolnview’s Cody Ricker also qualified for district competition. Ricker finished fourth at 144 pounds after being pinned by Coldwater’s Brady Hamilton in his final match of the day. Teammate Joey Sawyer will serve as a district alternate at 138 pounds after finishing fifth at sectionals. The Lancers finished 12th overall.

Allen East edged Columbus Grove for the team title (189.5-188), followed by Coldwater (143.5), Parkway (129), Paulding (127), Wayne Trace (90), Crestview (88), Spencerville (71), Delphos St. John’s (69), Antwerp (51), Ada (40.5), Lincolnview (35), Lima Central Catholic (11) and Delphos Jefferson (9).

Division III district wrestling will be held at Troy’s Hobert Arena on Friday and Saturday.

Division II sectionals at Defiance

DEFIANCE — Van Wert finished fifth out of 11 teams at the Division II sectionals at Defiance High School on Saturday.

The Cougars were led by nine placers, including four district qualifiers – Breese Bollenbacher (2nd), Owen Bates (3rd), Xavier Leal (3rd) and Briggs Wallace (4th). Bollenbacher (25-12) took the runner-up spot at 285 after dropping a 10-0 major decision to Isaac Lehman (51-2) of Napoleon. At 106 pounds, Bates (31-9) defeated Jerimiah Cisco (17-14) via pin in 2:56, while Leal (35-12) beat Celina’s Aaren King (36-10) 7-2 for third at 126. In final match of the day, Wallace (32-12) dropped a tough 3-1 decision to Hayden Groll (41-15) of Napoleon. The four Van Wert wrestlers will return to the mat at the Division II Norwalk district on Friday and Saturday.

Joaquin Estrada (113) and Matthew Dunno (120) each finished in fifth place to become district alternates. Earning sixth place finishes for the Cougars were Renson Spear (132), James Smith (157) and Morgein Bigham (190).

“Our guys were wrestling well enough to put themselves into position to qualify to the next level,” head coach Ben Collins said. “We have 8 guys in the consi-semi’s, they were in a position to win and get in. It worked out for some and not for others, but they gave themselves a chance. The plan is to really peak in our wrestling and fitness this week so that the guys are at their best when it matters the most. We look forward to the opportunity to compete this weekend against the best in our district.”

Wauseon won the team title with 265 points, followed by Wapakoneta (232), Napoleon (166), St. Marys Memorial (136.5), Van Wert (109.5), Celina (106.5), Defiance (104.5) Shawnee (81.5), Bath (52) and Bryan (50.5).

Sempkowski makes history

Jillian Sempkowski represented Van Wert wrestling in the OHSAA pre-regional meet at Archbold High School on Friday night. The sophomore finished in fourth place, qualifying for next Sunday’s regional meet at Marysville High School. Sempkowski is the first female Cougar wrestler to qualify to the regional level. Individual results are as follows:

Jacee Altaffer (Montpelier) fall :50 over Sempkowski (VW)
Sempkowski (W) fall 1:58 over Halle Stevens (Wauseon)
Neveah Vermillion (Liberty Benton) fall 3:52 over Sempkowski (VW)