By CHIP CIRILLO | Photos by STEVE WHEELER
Centennial’s Jacob Knight pinned his way to a tournament title this weekend.
Knight stuck all four of his opponents to win the 195-pound weight class at the 48th G.P. West Invitational at Brentwood on Saturday.
Knight (29-8) pinned McCallie junior Walker Robinson (19-8) in 54 seconds in the final to win his first tournament.
“No,” said Knight when asked if he entered the invitational thinking he could win it.
“It was really tough, especially my second match,” Knight said about a pin of Soddy-Daisy junior Curtis Settles (16-6) in 4:35. “It was so much harder than any other one.”
Knight also pinned Stewarts Creek’s Andrew Acosta in 1:41 in the first round and Brentwood’s Drake Cunningham in five minutes in the semifinals.
Summit junior Sawyer Knott (34-3) won 170 with a 12-1 major decision over Soddy-Daisy freshman Hayden Manor (21-5).
“I’ve been keeping myself in good condition,” said Knott, who also won 170 at last week’s Father Ryan Invitational. “That helped me keep my head and not get too psyched out for the matches.”
Knott went 4-0 after a first-round bye. He took third at 145 in the tournament last year.
Franklin sophomore Job Dooley (36-2) won 120 with a 7-2 decision over Lawrence County sophomore Luke Dezember (23-4).
“It’s really a big deal,” Dooley said. “It’s one of the biggest tournaments we get to wrestle in all year, especially before regionals and state.”
Dooley went 4-0 at the tournament after advancing on byes the first two rounds. He took second at 113 last year.
Dooley finished fifth at 113 at the Division I meet last season.
“I think I can win it,” Dooley said of the state meet at 120. “I think I’ve got a good shot at winning.”
He’s ranked second behind William Blount’s Calvin Martin and has a 2-1 record against him.
Brentwood’s Graham Brothers (20-6) captured third at 120 after pinning Stewart Creek’s Jaylen James (28-8) in 3:20.
“This is kind of his first time down at 120,” Bruins coach Joe Blair said. “He just got recertified. He’s actually able to go 115 for the region now. I feel good about how he’s looking right now.”
Ravenwood senior Nick Freeman (27-3) won 138 with a 10-7 decision over Arlington junior Harris Phillips (29-7).
“It was pretty tough,” said Freeman, who may compete in club wrestling at Ohio State next season. “He was a really strong guy.”
Freeman went 4-0 after a first-round bye. He took third at 113 in the invitational as a sophomore and fourth at 132 last year.
Summit took third in the team standings with 203.5 points, finishing behind Arlington (214) and Soddy-Daisy (212).
The Spartans claimed fourth last year and seventh in 2015.
“These guys are just mat rats,” Summit coach Pete Miller said. “They love wrestling, they love competition and when the bright lights are on and there are people in the stands they want to put on a show.
“We put four guys in the finals, which is definitely impressive for us. Seven guys in the top three, half the team. It’s just a great group of knuckleheads. Our wrestling family is phenomenal.”
Summit senior Sean Butler (26-6) took second at 145 after a 5-3 sudden victory loss to Stewarts Creek senior Jason Chambers (28-4) in a final that was named best match of the tournament.
“His chain wrestling is great,” Chambers said. “It’s hard to stay in position. Great wrestler.”
Summit senior Kobey Desselle (26-8) took second at 160 after Blackman senior Matthew Sells (26-0) pinned him in 1:20.
“He was the defending state champ at 152, a two-time state finalist and I just went out there and gave it my all,” said Desselle, who has come back from a right knee injury that required surgery and a screw to repair cartilage damage last year. “The doc really put me in great shape to be able to wrestle this year.”
Summit junior Nathan Porter (31-3) finished second at 132 after an 8-3 loss to Stewarts Creek senior Gabe Rogers (24-8) in the championship.
Summit’s Zach Rogers (106), Brady Woodward (113) and Cole Klingensmith (126) each finished third. So did Page’s Nick Oberstaedt (138) and Franklin’s Nick Galbreath (170).
Centennial (seventh), Franklin (eighth), Brentwood (ninth) and Page (10th) rounded out the top 10 in the 20-team tournament.
Riverdale heavyweight Nick Boykin (34-0) was named the outstanding wrestler of the upper weight division and Soddy-Daisy’s 126-pounder Charles Wheaton (24-1) won the lower weight award.
The tournament is named after former Brentwood coach G.P. West, a National Wrestling Hall of Famer.
G.P. West Invitational
1, Arlington 214; 2, Soddy-Daisy 212; 3, Summit 203.5; 4, Blackman 183.5; 5, Stewarts Creek 143.5; 6, McCallie 140.5; 7, Centennial 124.5; 8, Franklin 122.5; 9, Brentwood 113.5; 10, Page 113; 11, Riverdale 108.5; 12, Oakland 97; 13, Houston 94.5; 14, Ravenwood 94; 15, Antioch 73; 16, Siegel 68; 17, Lawrence Co. 60.5; 18, Overton 60; 19, Dickson Co. 54.5; 20, Stratford 39
Championship Round
106 pounds: Alex Whitworth, McCallie, pinned Dominic Williams, Lawrence Co., 1:06; 113: Michael Cannon, Arlington, maj. decision over David Medina (Riverdale) 12-0; 120: Job Dooley, Franklin, dec. over Luke Dezember 7-2; 126: Charles Wheaton, Soddy-Daisy, pinned Luke Kearns, Arlington, :53; 132: Gabe Rogers, Stewarts Creek, dec. over Nathan Porter 8-3; 138: Nick Freeman, Ravenwood, dec. over Harrison Phillips, Arlington, 10-7; 145: Jason Chambers, Stewarts Creek, sudden victory over Sean Butler, Summit, 5-3; 152: Tony Wilson, Soddy-Daisy, dec. over Michael Moultry, Siegel, 11-6; 160: Matthew Sells, Blackman, pinned Kobey Desselle, Summit, 1:20; 170: Sawyer Knott, Summit, maj. Dec. over Hayden Maynor, Soddy-Daisy, 12-1; 182: Judah Duhm, McCallie, pinned Christian Salter, 5:54; 195: Jacob Knight, Centennial, pinned Walker Robinson, McCallie, :54; 220: Ty Boeck, Soddy-Daisy, maj. Dec. over Alan Roaten, Arlington, 16-8; 285: Nick Boykin, Riverdale, pinned Jonathan Metcalf, Arlington, :59
