The Signal Mountain Eagles wasted no time punching their ticket for the State Duals wrestling tournament in Franklin next Saturday.
The defending Class A-AA champs advanced with a commanding 70-12 win at home over an outmatched Seymour team in a match that took roughly 45 minutes to complete
Signal Mountain coach Houston Clements was somewhat curious about how his team would respond after such an emotional victory over rival Soddy Daisy on Tuesday in the Region 4-A Duals, but there was absolutely nothing to worry about as the guys in red and black took care of business in a hurray as they advanced by winning their 19th match in 21 decisions.
“Tonight was a good night for Signal Mountain wrestling and a whole lot less stressful for me,” Clements said while members of his team were rolling up the mat once the action had ended.
“Seymour is a well-coached team that were missing some key guys, but we can’t afford to look past anyone. I was most interested to see just how we would respond following the big match on Tuesday, but they responded in a very positive manner.
“This is basically the Round of 16. We’re 100 percent healthy and I couldn’t feel any better about where we stand right now as we have a lot of momentum.
“It will be a real battle next Saturday as at least six teams have a legitimate shot at winning, but we’ll go up there and give our best shot and just see how everything unfolds,” he added.
Signal Mountain won 12 of the 14 matches with eight pins, one major decision and three forfeits.
Six of those pins came in the first period, including three in the first minute.
Jackson Davis had the quickest as it took just 14 ticks for him to get the win at 160. Daniel Odom opened the match with a 33-second pin at 285 while Jackson Owens got a pin in 44 seconds at 138.
Carter Lynch (120), Ethan Uhorchuk (126) and Eben Shriner (152) also had first-period pins while Caleb Uhorchuk got his in 3:57 and Jacob Winchester in 4:19 at 220.
Cameron Elliott just became eligible for the Eagles after transferring from another local school and posted an impressive 17-4 major decision. His presence could be valuable in upcoming state tournaments.
“Cameron just became eligible this week and it’s great to have him in the lineup as he can be a key part of our success in the coming weeks,” Clements added.
JoJo Uhorchuk (113), Carson Burkholder (182) and Christian Garner (195) all claimed forfeits for the winners.
Samuel Comes remained unbeaten at 27-0 with a pin at 106 for Seymour while Skyler Campbell had the other pin, this one coming with 14 seconds left in the match after he had broken away from a 4-4 tie with a takedown and pin.
Odom and Comes traded pins for their teams at the start before Signal won the next eight matches to secure the win.
Signal Mountain enters next week’s state meet at 19-2 while Seymour ends its dual meet season at 18-14.
SIGNAL MOUNTAIN 70, SEYMOUR 12
(Match began at 285 pounds)
106 – Samuel Comes (Seymour) pinned Luke Higdon, 3:19;
113 – JoJo Uhorchuk (Signal) won by forfeit;
120 – Carter Lynch (Signal) pinned Kaden Malin, 1:55;
126 – Ethan Uhorchuk (Signal) pinned Tyson Johnson, 1:19;
132 – Caleb Uhorchuk (Signal) pinned Keegan Perkins, 3:57;
138 – Jackson Owens (Signal) pinned Lincoln Toomey, :44;
145 – Cameron Elliott (Signal) major dec. Hunter Scott, 17-4;
152 – Eben Shriner (Signal) pinned Houston Cates, 1:36;
160 – Jackson Davis (Signal) pinned Jackson Stafford, :14;
170 – Skyler Campbell (Seymour) pinned Jaxon Quails, 5:46;
182 – Carson Burkholder (Signal) won by forfeit;
195 – Christian Garner (Signal) won by forfeit;
220 – Jacob Winchester (Signal) pinned Austin Bush, 4:19;
285 – Daniel Odom (Signal) pinned Caleb Thompson, :33.
(Email John Hunt at nomarathonmoose@gmail.com)