WRESTLING: Bellevue's Justin Mayes, Sandusky's Elijah Hunter win individual district titles

NORWALK -- Bellevue's Justin Mayes and Sandusky's Elijah Hunter won individual championships at Saturday's Division II district wrestling tournament while the Redmen finished second in the team competition. Mayes improved to 49-0 on the season with four straight wins at 182 pounds, including a 7-3 decision against Ontario's Carter Kroll in the finals at Norwalk High School. Mayes will be Bellevue's first four-time state qualifier. Sandusky's Hunter scored a 12-3 major decision against Ashland's John Metzger in the finals. Hunter moved his season record to 29-2. Bellevue also had a pair of runners-up in Justin Smythe (138) and Max Ray (160). The Redmen will send five wrestlers to state. Joining Mayes, Smythe and Ray will be Collin Corapi, who finished third at 195, and Jayden Mayes, who lost his opening match before winning four straight in the consolation bracket. He took fourth. The top four finishers in each of 14 weight classes qualified for next weekend's state tournament at Marengo High School. Other area wrestlers who qualified for state: Perkins' Billy Smith (third at 106), Max Oprzadek (third at 138) and J.D. Thom (third at 160); Vermilion's Chris Bennett (fourth at 182); and Sandusky's Dyllon Pollard (fourth at 195). Justin Mayes, the state's top-ranked wrestler in Division II at 182, almost didn't make it to the finals. He gave up a late takedown to Madison's Nate Barrett that forced overtime. Mayes regrouped, though, winning 8-6 with a takedown. "It was a wakeup call," he said. "I needed that." The 182 final was stopped five times because Mayes' nose was bleeding, a souvenir from his semifinal scare. With tissue stuffed in his nose, he led the entire match after scoring a takedown at the first-period buzzer. In the third period he was feeling so good that he tried a 360-degree spin in an attempt to catch Kroll off guard. "Justin looked really good in the finals, not so good in the semifinals -- and he knows it," Bellevue coach Brett Adkins said. "I told him that could be the best thing for him." The Blue Streaks' Hunter was in total control in his championship match, scoring a takedown six seconds in. "He was real solid and wasn't in any real danger," Sandusky coach Shanan Aaron said. "He's definitely ready for next week at state. He has so much experience now that he doesn't get scared of the moment and these tough matches." Sandusky's Pollard, a senior who before this season had never made it past the sectional, lost in the second round and rebounded to win three matches in the consolation bracket to punch his state ticket. In his second consolation match he scored a takedown with 10 seconds left and defeated St. Marys Memorial Carter Sharpe 3-1. In the pressure-packed consolation semifinals -- known as the "blood round" because a victory is needed to qualify for state -- Pollard defeated Bryan's Dylan McCandless 3-2 before jumping into the air and celebrating with his coaches. "It was electrifying," Pollard said. "It was a once-in-a-lifetime feeling." "I've known him forever," Aaron said. "This was an amazing weekend for him and his family." Pollard lost to Bellevue's Corapi by pin in the third-place match. Corapi avenged a sectional final loss to Tiffin Columbian's Kasean Hatley in the blood round, winning 7-6 in overtime on a late takedown, raising his arms toward the crowd. Bellevue's Jayden Mayes defeated Akron St. Vincent St. Mary's Bryce Skinner 6-3 in the blood round after losing to him 7-2 in Thursday's first round. Perkins' J.D. Thom was another area wrestler to win in the consolation semifinals when he scored an 8-3 decision over Ashland's Chase Dillow. Thom lost 12-8 in the first round to Dillow before winning four straight matches. "J.D. was panicking about not making it back to state, but he fought back," Perkins coach Travis Crabtree said. "He kept his composure." Oprzadek qualified for state for the third time without hardly breaking a sweat Saturday. He defaulted in the semifinals due to injury concerns before scoring a 5-0 victory in the blood round. The Pirates senior won by injury default in the third-place match. "We defaulted in the semis to try to bring a healthy Max out there to get to the state tournament," Crabtree said. Perkins 106-pounder Billy Smith blew through the consolation bracket with four straight wins -- two on pins -- to grab third place. He defeated Wauseon's Collin Twigg 7-2 to claim third after losing 3-2 to Twigg in Thursday's second round. Smith recorded his 100th career victory Saturday. "Billy wasn't going to be stopped today," Crabtree said. "I was a lot more impressed with the way we wrestled today than we did Thursday and Friday. To get three out of here is pretty good." Five area wrestlers finished in fifth place and will be state alternates: Bellevue's Evan Straub (220) and Brock Nunez (285); Clyde's Lance Overmyer (120) and Cade Carroll (170); and Port Clinton's Jameson Mullens (145). ----- Team standings1. Buckeye 148.5; 2. Bellevue 144.5; 3. Akron SVSM 134.5; 4. Wauseon 132.0; 5. Aurora 125.0; 6. Ashland 118.5; 7. Columbian 118.0; 8. Ontario 68.5; 9. Perkins 68.0; 10. Mad. Comprehensive 67.5; 11. St. Marys Memorial 67.0; 12. Clyde 48.0; 13. Bowling Green 47.0; 14. Sandusky 41.0; 15. Wapakoneta 35.5; 16. Upper Sandusky 34.5; 17. Napoleon 34.0; 18. Galion 30.5; 19. Celina 29.0; 20. Bay 28.0; 21. Shelby 27.0; 22. Benedictine 22.0; 23. Vermilion 21.0; 24. Bryan 17.0; 25. Elida 14.0; Orange 14.0; 27. Clear Fork 13.5; 28. Port Clinton 13.0; 29. Chagrin Falls 11.0; 30. Defiance 10.0; Mansfield Senior 10.0; Ottawa-Glandorf 10.0; 33. Fostoria 9.0; 34. Rossford 8.0; 35. Beachwood 6.0; Huron 6.0; 37. Norwalk 4.0; 38. Maumee 2.0; Van Wert 2.0; 40. Chaney 1.0 First Place 106: Codie Cuerbo (Aurora) pin Tyler Hisey (St. Marys Memorial) 1:21113: Kenneth Crosby (Akron SVSM) dec. Robbie Sagaris (Aurora) 9-4120: Cameron Deiter (Bowling Green) dec. Damon Molina (Wauseon) 5-1 126: Eddie Pinc (Buckeye) dec. Landon Engle (Celina) 7-3132: Bret Minnick (Columbian) dec. Elliott Alessia (Akron SVSM) 7-6138: Eddie Neitenbach (Buckeye) dec. Justin Smythe (Bellevue) 12-9145: Jayden Jones (Ashland) dec. Maddox Simcoe (Columbian) 3-2152: Elijah Hunter (Sandusky) maj. dec. John Metzger (Ashland) md12-3160: Ethan Turnbaugh (Ontario) dec. Max Ray (Bellevue) 6-3170: Brody Conley (Columbian) pin Hunter Hutcheson (Mad. Comprehensive) 1:29182: Justin Mayes (Bellevue) dec. Carter Kroll (Ontario) 7-3195: Dylan Fishback (Aurora) pin Trenton Osborne (Mad. Comprehensive) 0:30220: Bryson Getz (Akron SVSM) dec. Mason Cover (Bay) 3-1285: Todd Allen (Buckeye) dec. Demitrius Hernandez (Napoleon) 4-1 Third Place 106: Billy Smith (Perkins) dec. Collin Twigg (Wauseon) 7-2113: Colin Mellott (Wapakoneta) dec. Logan Cravatas (Buckeye) 5-3 120: Dierre Clayton (Akron SVSM) dec. Antwan Sagaris (Aurora) 7-2 126: TeAndre Allen (Orange) dec. Jayden Mayes (Bellevue) 5-0132: Lawson Grime (Wauseon) pin Griffin Adkins (Ashland) 0:30138: Max Oprzadek (Perkins) def. C.J. Poole (Columbian) Default145: Mike Kinzel (Bowling Green) dec. Emery Pahl (Upper Sandusky) 7-5152: Trevor Badiu (Buckeye) dec. Connor Twigg (Wauseon) 10-6160: J.D. Thom (Perkins) maj. dec. Zaidan Kessler (Wauseon) md10-2 170: Austin Kovar (Wauseon) pin Ryan Price (Akron SVSM) 1:46182: Nate Barrett (Mad. Comprehensive) pin Chris Bennett (Vermilion) 1:53195: Collin Corapi (Bellevue) pin Dyllon Pollard (Sandusky) 2:40220: Carson Ingram (Shelby) pin Jakob Beverly (Ashland) 0:46285: Jake Bever (Ashland) pin Alex Griffith (Galion) 3:38 Fifth Place 106: Jacob Ohl (Ontario) dec. Colyn Limbert (Buckeye) 11-4113: Trevor Hisey (St. Marys Memorial) pin Frank Depinet II (Upper Sandusky) 2:08120: Lance Overmyer (Clyde) maj. dec. Case George (Ashland) md8-0126: Bryce Skinner (Akron SVSM) pin Zaden Torres (Wauseon) 4:54132: Bo DiJulius (Aurora) dec. James Simms (Fostoria) 6-0138: Conner Douglass (Elida) pin Angel Rosales (Ottawa-Glandorf) 5:00145: Jameson Mullens (Port Clinton) dec. Nicholas Abounader (Benedictine) 9-4152: Sam Partain (Chagrin Falls) def. Landon Campbell (Galion) Default160: Chase Dillow (Ashland) pin Cameron Krueger (Clyde) 3:53170: Cade Carroll (Clyde) dec. Dillon Badiu (Buckeye) 6-5182: Stashu Patterson (St. Marys Memorial) pin Manny Aller (Columbian) 1:49195: Dylan McCandless (Bryan) pin Kasean Hatlay (Columbian) 0:59220: Evan Straub (Bellevue) dec. Ronald Williams (Benedictine) 6-0285: Brock Nunez (Bellevue) dec. Jaden Banister (Wauseon) 3-1