The Pioneer wrestling team continues to wreak havoc.
Warren County had a stellar showing Saturday at the Mountain Top Invitational at Sewanee, taking third place overall. Fueling the team was the performance of seven medal winners.
Ike Gillentine, Garrett Vallum, Ethan Jaco and Ethan Cowan each took second in their respective weight classes. Caleb Mackie came in third in his 106-pound class, while Alec Smith and Noah O’Shields finished fourth.
Gillentine was also part of the event’s best match, a brawling tussle with Coffee County’s Reynaldo Reyes in the 182-pound championship. Gillentine fell 14-8 after earning his way to the final with two first-round pins and a 9-8 decision over Fairview’s Jacob Clevenger in the semifinals.
Vallem had a similar run to his second-place finish in the 195-pound division. Vallem topped Coffee County’s Zachary Galy in the second round, then outlasted Shelbyville’s Gregory Guinn 10-3 in the semifinals. Vallem fell in the finals to Cody Delano, a region runner-up and state qualifier a year ago.
Before falling in his finals matchup with Matthew Pack from Harpeth High, Jaco was a menace on the mat. The 138-pound Pioneer had his first match stopped when he went ahead on points 16-1 on Gavin Prater, then took just 55 seconds to take down Boyd Buchanan’s Alexander Coker.
Cowan cruised to the finals in the 160-pound class, earning a pair of byes due to his season record. In the semifinals, Cowan beat Timmy Kern from Cheatham County on points, 5-3.
Mackie finished with three pins, while Smith finished with two and O’Shields added a pin and decision win.
The Pioneers were back in action at home Tuesday for senior night. More information will follow in Friday’s Southern Standard.
Pioneers fall short
of district title
The Warren County wrestling team came up one win short of a district title when it fell at Tullahoma last week. The Pioneers were defeated 39-20 by the Wilidcats.
“It was a great night of wrestling,” said WCHS coach Matt Turner. “We came up short on the scoreboard, but we saw our program take the next step in becoming a great program. All but three matches went the full six minutes.”
Gillentine once again found himself in one of the most thrilling matches. The sophomore went to sudden death overtime to beat Brian Nelms 7-5, with Turner adding, “Ike dominated late for the victory.”
Torren Stacy and Mackie each had wins by major decision, with Stacy dominating Cole Morse 11-1 at 126 pounds and Mackie winning 15-7 at 106.
Tony Curtis, Vallem and Jaco also took home wins by decision against the Wildcats.
Turner believes those wins will be valuable down the road.
“We had some guys win some very big matches. They will help in seeding for the region tournament,” said Turner.
The region team tournament, which will be held at Siegel, is set for Thursday, Jan. 24. The region invitational tournament will be held Feb. 8-9 at home.
