BEDFORD, Ind.
BEDFORD, Ind.
Jennings County won four individual titles and edged defending champion Floyd Central for the Hoosier Hills Conference wrestling title on Saturday afternoon at Bedford North Lawrence.
The Panthers won their first championship since 2004, scoring 207 points to the Highlanders’ 202.5. Floyd Central also had four division winners, but the Panthers scored valuable points in the consolation matches.
“I’ve grown up competing my whole life, and I don’t enjoy getting second place,” Floyd Central coach Brandon Sisson said. “That’s part of it; you want to win.”
Floyd Central had the most dramatic win of the meet. Chase Herron, a champion last year at 160 pounds, trailed 3-1 with six seconds left in the 170 final against Columbus East’s Jimmy Fisher. Herron, nursing an injured left shoulder, scored a two-point takedown and rolled Fisher for two back points at the buzzer for a 5-3 triumph.
“After everything I’ve been through, I wasn’t going to let that put me down,” Herron said. “No way I was going to let myself lose. I could have laid down, but I had to suck it up. It just shows all the effort I’ve been putting in is paying off. These are the little steps to take to the ultimate goal.”
Floyd’s Corey Troutman also posted an impressive win, dominating Jennings County’s Colton Pifer 15-3 in the 152-pound final.
“This is gaining momentum to put me on the road to State and helps the snowball keep rolling,” Troutman said.
Floyd also had two top seeds triumph. Jarod Cunningham pounded Jeffersonville’s Stephen Jones 17-0 in the 113 final, and Sean Brown pinned Jeff’s Taivon Lucas in 1:16 at 120.
Jennings County’s victories came at 106 (Kyle Lewis defeated Columbus East’s Will Conner 5-4), 138 (Ethan Herrin pinned Madison’s Chris Tingle in 5:04), 182 (Peyton Shepherd clipped Columbus East’s Coy Park 5-0) and 220 (Colton Castetter defeated BNL’s Nick Joyner 5-0).
Jeffersonville’s Gavan Jolley-Little successfully defended his 285 title. Jolley-Little, 40-1 and ranked No. 7 in the state, trapped Floyd’s Franklin Forte in 51 seconds in the championship match.
Madison had three victorious top seeds. Chayce Young (40-2) won three matches by pin at 126, Jordan Partee (last year’s champion at 152 and ranked sixth at 160) improved to 42-0 with his title, and Mitchell Sandlin (the defending champion and ranked No. 15 at 195) had three pins.
