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Four area wrestlers qualified for the state finals after placing in the top four at the New Haven Semistate in Fort Wayne.
Joey Navarro (275 pounds) and Anthony Boley (103) will represent the Warsaw Tigers, while Jesse Espinoza (112) and Nick Roelandts (119) will make the trip for the NorthWood Panthers.
The top four wrestlers in each weight class from the four semi-state competitions qualify for the state championship competition.Ê This is the sweet 16 of Indiana high school wrestling, a sport without the class system.Ê Wrestlers from small schools have an equal chance at the "Big Dance."
In wrestling, a small athlete has an opportunity to be the best in his weight class.ÊThere are 14 weight classes from 103 up to 275 pounds.
Warsaw's qualifiers are from opposite ends of the weight-class spectrum.
Boley, a sophomore, qualified for the semistate as a regional runner-up. At the Fort Wayne Semistate, Boley took fourth place.
Boley's first match was against Granley Early of Fort Wayne North Side, who came to the tournament with a record of 28-3.Ê Early nailed the first takedown, but Boley answered with a reversal to tie the score.
In the second period, Early was in the down position and scored a reversal to take the 4-2 lead.Ê Boley was in the down position in period three and scored a reversal to tie the score. In the overtime period, Boley nabbed a takedown with his toes just in bounds to win the match.
In his quarterfinal match, Boley's opponent was Alexandria's Adam Freeman, champion from the Delta Regional. Freeman, junior ranked No. 15, put his 35-3 record on the line, and came out in the first period and nailed a takedown to go up 2-0.
That would be Freeman's last score. Boley escaped, tossed Freeman to the mat and scored a nearfall to go ahead 6-2 at the end of the first period. Boley scored two more nearfalls to go up 11-2 before pinning Freeman in the third period at 5:04.
In the semifinals, Boley lost to Norwell senior Mark Kelwaski, who has a 33-3 record. Boley came close to pinning Kelwaski, ranked No. 4, putting him on his back twice. However, with a couple of takedowns and a reversal, Kelwaski edged out a 7-5 victory.Ê Boley was then pinned at 1:45 in the consolation round by Goshen's Gerardo Quiroz, who's ranked No. 6.
Navarro, ranked No. 1, went to the semistate as the Goshen Regional champion with a 33-1 record. In his quarterfinal match, Navarro defeated Norwell's Nick Krinn in a convincing 9-2 decision. In the semifinal, Navarro faced Fort Wayne Concordia's Stacy Beaty, a junior ranked No. 12 with a 28-3 record.
Usually quite confident on his feet, Navarro was somewhat tentative, and neither wrestler scored a takedown in period one. In period two, Beaty was in the down position and scored an escape and a takedown to go up 3-0.Ê Navarro responded with an escape of his own and again he scored an escape in period three.
Navarro was unable to come up with a takedown and lost to the eventual champion 3-2.
Navarro fought through the consolation match in spite of a painful muscle strain in the second period. His opponent was Yorktown's Eric Boyce, ranked No. 14 with a record of 36-3. Navarro had a couple of good shots in the first period, but Boyce successfully countered with a whizzer.Ê
In the second period, Boyce was in the down position and scored a reversal, but Navarro answered with an escape and a takedown to go up 3-2. Boyce scored a reversal to take the lead 4-3. Navarro made several escape attempts, but each time he was escorted out of bounds by Boyce.
In one effort at a stand-up, Navarro was taken hard back to the mat, and it was at this point that Navarro suffered the injury.Ê Navarro continued to wrestle but was unable to add to his score, and the match ended with Boyce winning 4-3.
NorthWood's Jesse Espinoza (112) advances to the state final tournament after taking fourth place at the semistate.Ê Espinoza won his first match, a 6-4 decision against Adam Overgaard of Yorktown.Ê In the semifinal, Espinoza lost an 11-2 major decision to Bluffton's Dan Sprunger of Bluffton.
Espinoza, a senior, takes a record of 32-2 to the state finals.
Nick Roelandts place third in the semistate after winning his first match by an 11-6 decision over No. 16 Brian Tun of Fort Wayne Wayne.
Roelandts continued to win, nailing Elwood senior Craig Standridge in 1:33.Ê In the semifinals, Roelandts was pinned in 53 seconds by eventual champ Nathan Hartinger of Peru.
NorthWood's Brandon Garner (130) was pinned in round one by second-ranked Matt Birner of Peru. Birner, a senior, went on to take runner-up honors in the semi-state. He now holds a 47-3 record.
Wawasee's semistate qualifiers did not advance to the state finals.
Josh DeGood (112) lost in round one to Goshen's Kevin Russell in a 5-4 decision.Ê In his first match, Wawasee's Mike Hanlin (125) was pinned by Peru's Bret Nye in 5:36. Tom Bryan (275) won his first match in a 3-3 overtime win by criteria over Elkhart Memorial's Jason Dickison.
In his next match, Bryan lost a 2-1 decision to Yorktown's Eric Boyce.
Other Warsaw wrestlers, Isaac Perry (160) and Kris Hueber (215), also failed in their efforts to advance to the state championship.
Perry lost in a 13-6 decision to unranked Kevin Replogle of West Noble.Ê Replogle placed fourth and takes a record of 32-2 to the state finals.
The Northern Lakes Conference sends eight grapplers to compete in the state finals. Along with the two from Warsaw and the two from NorthWood, four others advance. From Goshen, Quiroz (103) took third place, and Schuyler Barkes (135) was champion. Northridge's Tom Kidder (130) took fourth place. Plymouth's Matt Arvesen was the champion at 189 pounds, winning his finals match with a pin in 12 seconds.
The state finals begin at Conseco Field House, at 6 p.m. Friday with first-round matches. Wrestling continues Saturday for those who win Friday.
ÊResults from New Haven Semi-state Wrestling at Fort Wayne
Championship and Consolation Matches Ê
103 John Sheets, Belmont pins (3:45) Marc Kelwaski, Norwell
ÊÊÊ Gerardo Quiroz, Goshen pins (1:45) Anthony Boley, Warsaw
112 Brent Walker, Elwood dec. (10-8) Andy Uhl, East Noble
ÊÊÊ Dan Sprunger, Bluffton maj. dec (11-2) Jesse Espinoza, NorthWood
119 Nathan Hartinger, Peru dec. (4-0) Pat McClain, Churubusco
ÊÊÊ Nick Roelandts, NorthWood dec. (7-0) Brice Keller, Yorktown
125 Matt Bohren, Woodlan dec. (5-4) Josh Thacker, E. Memorial
ÊÊÊ Aaron Purvis, Oak Hill dec. (12-8) Bret Nye, Peru
130 Ben Sprunger, Bluffton dec. (8-6) Matt Birner, Peru
ÊÊÊ Ryan Landis, Adams Central dec. (6-4) Tom Kidder, Northridge
135 Schuyler Barkes, Goshen dec. (4-2) Josiah Mosier, Yorktown
ÊÊÊ Jonathan Brownlee, FW Snider dec. (12-6) Robbie Rassler, Prairie Heights
140 Jarlad Ridley, FW Northrop dec. (3-1) Tom Freidt, Belmont
ÊÊÊ Andrew Provines, Leo dec. (3-2) Ramsey Bollenbach, South Adams
145 Zach Craig, Delta dec. (7-2) Huston Smith, Huntington North
ÊÊÊ Clint Pontius, Jimtown dec. (3-1) Kelii Kahalekomo, Muncie Central
152 Shawn Barnett, Jimtown dec. (3-1) Matt King, Tipton
ÊÊÊ Kamal Bacon, Concordia by default over Brian Lapp, Homestead
160 Josh Booker, FW Luers pins (3:04) Jared Hargis, Muncie Central
ÊÊÊ Randy Baker, Belmont maj. dec. (12-3) Kevin Replogle, West Noble
171 Pat Ayelle, FW Luers dec. (3-2) Ming Ling, DeKalb
ÊÊÊ Aaron Kerkhof, Delta dec. (3-2) Joshua Buuck, FW Dwenger
189 Matt Arveson, Plymouth pins (0:12) Mike Kelsey, Blackford
ÊÊÊ Chuck Geyer, Elmhurst dec. (10-4) Dan Schwartz, South Adams
215 Bryan Kapp, Homstead dec. (3-1) Josh Lepper, FW Snider
ÊÊÊ James Stembel, Bremen dec. (2-1) Trent Marsh, Frankfort
275 Stacy Beaty, FW Concordia dec. (6-5) Greg Wagner, FW Snider
ÊÊÊ Eric Boyce, Yorktown dec (4-3) Joey Navarro, Warsaw
ÊFinal matches of other area wrestlers not in top four
112 Josh DeGood, Wawasee dec. (5-4) by Kevin Russell, Goshen
125 Mike Hanlin, Wawasee pinned (5:36) by Bret Nye, Peru
130 Brandon Garner, NorthWood pinned (1:31) by Matt Birner, Peru
160 Isaac Perry, Warsaw dec. (13-6) by Kevin Replogle, West Noble
215 Kris Hueber, Warsaw dec. (12-8) by Josh Lepper, FW Snider
275 Tom Bryan, Wawasee dec. (2-1) by Eric Boyce, Yorktown
