Monticello’s C.J. Houchens made short work of the field at 138 pounds in the Region 3C Championships held at Spotswood Saturday, pinning his quarterfinal and semifinal opponents before facing off against a Jefferson District foe, Western Albemarle’s Noah Honeywell in the final.
Houchens needed a little more time and effort in the title match, but defeated Honeywell 3-0 to earn a region championship and a favorable path in next week’s Class 3 state tournament.
Western Albemarle took sixth as a team at the Region 3C championships with a young, inexperienced roster gaining a lot of valuable experience for the Warriors.
Collin Castrina led the way for the Warriors, falling in the region title match at 120 pounds to Brookville’s Jalen Fyffe on a 4-2 decision. Castrina earns a spot in the state tournament with the win.
Honeywell also grabbed a runner-up finish for the Warriors at 138 pounds behind Houchens.
Beighley Austin took fifth place at 126 pounds, Zach Swales was fifth at 132 pounds, Cameron Greene was fifth at 170 pounds, Max Morrison was fifth at 182 pounds, Gus Hankle was fifth at 220 pounds
Monticello took 10th as a team in Region 3C highlighted by Houchens’ championship at 138 pounds. Jackson Perry finished fifth for the Mustangs to earn an alternate spot. Chris Taft finished sixth at 126 pounds for the Mustangs, Spencer Brookman was sixth at 220 pounds and Mitchell Graves was sixth at 195 pounds.
Fluvanna finished 12th as a team in the region. The Flucos’ Ethan Vernatter took third place at 170 pounds to punch his ticket to the state tournament. Shawn Metcalf also earned a state berth with a fourth place finish at 145 pounds.
Region 4B Recap
Louisa County may not have produced a region champion out of the challenging Region 4B, but five Lions punched their ticket to the state tournament in Fairfax this weekend.
The Lions finished fifth as a team at the Region 4B Championships held at Powhatan with Owen Grislick’s runner-up finish at 106 and Cameron Hornsby’s second place at 285 leading the way. Zion Villines took third at 120 pounds while Ben Froschauer took third at 170 to earn state tournament berths. Austin Mills rounded out the state-bound contingent with a fourth place at 152 while Anthony Ciotola at 126 and Kyle Alberts at 182 earned alternate slots with their finishes.
Region 4D Recap
Charlottesville’s wrestling team posted a state qualifier in David Wiles at 138 to highlight a strong day at the Region 4D championships at Amherst. Wiles pinned three straight wrestlers, twice in the third period, to advance to the region final before falling to Liberty Christian’s Connor McCann in the championship.
The Black Knights finished 10th as a team with Aiden Lewandowski taking fifth at 120 and Stuart Applestein finishing fifth at 106. Nima Tamang took sixth at 113 while Ben Yates also posted a sixth place finish at 182.
Region 3B Recap
William Monroe wrestling is sending four wrestlers to the Class 3 state meet after a solid day at the Region 3B championships. Kaleb Doshier led the Dragons’ effort with a runner-up finish at 126, needing just a 2-0 decision in the semifinals to get to the title bout where he fell in the first period to Skyline’s Ahlemann who boasts a 45-6 record.
William Rupe finished third for the Dragons at 160 pounds while Quinten Morris at 170 and Connor Redesike at 120 each finished fourth to earn state tournament bids. Joe Hale earned an alternate spot for the state meet by taking fourth at 106.
Joseph Willis and Gavin Hussar each took sixth at 220 and 132 pounds respectively.
Region 2B Recap
Madison County wrestles in a difficult region that’s home to a state powerhouse in Strasburg, but that didn’t stop the Mountaineers from putting a couple of wrestlers in the state tournament including a region champion.
Jacob Sacra won the Region 2B title with a third period pin to move his record to 42-2 on the year and create the most favorable path he could at the state tournament.
Marques Blakey will join Sacra in Salem at the state tournament after taking fourth at 113 pounds while Todd Davis earned an alternate slot at 195 with a fifth-place finish. J.D. Pollina finished sixth at 126.
Region 2A Recap
Goochland’s wrestling team competed in the Region 2A tournament on February 2, with Max Moreno, Romeo Moreno and Ethan Ford all earning state tournament berths with fourth place finishes. Blake Smith, Cody Nash and John Daly are alternates after finishing fifth.
