Untitled Document
February 19, 2011
CROWN POINT’S TSIRTSIS WINS THIRD STRAIGHT STATE CHAMPIONSHIP
Crown Point’s Jason Tsirtsis dominated the competition in impressive fashion all weekend and won his third straight championship during the IHSAA Individual Wrestling State Finals at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
Tsirtsis won all four of his matches including a 15-5 decision over Terre Haute South’s Phelan Montgomery in the 140 pound final. The junior became the 32nd individual in state history with three or more titles and stands at 128-2, including 42-0 this year, heading into Crown Point’s appearance in next weekend’s Team State Finals.
Four individuals won the second state championships of their careers, including three who went back-to-back.
Princeton’s Drake Stein successfully defended his 171 pound championship outlasting South Dearborn’s Nicholas Manning with a 4-1 decision. Stein finished 46-0 after a 44-2 finish a year ago.
Crown Point’s Eric Roach won his second straight 145 championship when he earned a 3-1 decision over Jeffersonville’s Renaldo Weekley, giving the Bulldogs a pair of winners. Roach, currently 42-0 heading into next weekend’s team tournament, finished 42-0 in 2010.
In the 119 pound final, Lake Central’s Kyle Ayersman (52-0) trailed New Castle’s Brenden Campbell the whole match until tying it in the closing seconds to force overtime and won on a takedown in the extra session. It was Ayersman’s second state championship after winning the 112 pound title a year ago. It was Campbell’s only setback of the year (54-1).
After winning the 103 pound championship as a freshman in 2008 and a 125 runner-up last year, Ethan Raley of Indian Creek finished his senior year back at the top of the awards podium. Raley’s 5-3 decision over Devon Jackson of Yorktown capped a 34-1 year and another blue ribbon medal. Jackson fell short for the second year in a row after a runner-up finish at 130 in 2010.
Indian Creek and Castle both matched Crown Point with two state champions of their own.
Trey Reese of Indian Creek finished 32-0 with his pin of Perry Meridian’s Logan Cooper in the 215 pound final. Reese pinned all four opponents he faced during the two days, the first to do so since D.J. Radnovich of Gibson Southern in the 1998 215 pound class. Castle brothers Doug and Chad Welch, identical twins, went back-to-back winning the 152 and 160 bouts, respectively. Doug (50-1) defeated New Castle’s Connor Mullins, 1-0, and Chad (51-0) emerged with a 3-0 decision over John Sims of Evansville Mater Dei. They became just the third set of twins to win championships in the same school year and first since 1963.
Mason Todd of Pendleton Heights (32-0) proved the class of the 112 weight class with a 3-0 decision over Warsaw’s Jarred Brooks. Brooks had beaten Cody Phillips of Union County in the semifinals and derailed Phillips’ bid for a third consecutive state championship. Phillips had won the 103 pound title the last two years but settled for third.
Danville’s Neal Molloy and Culver Community’s Jeremiah Harvey each became their school’s first wrestling state champion.
Molloy secured a perfect season (50-0) with an 8-1 decision over Collin Crume of Jimtown in the 130 pound match and Harvey survived an overtime encounter with Damon Howe of Plymouth at 285.
Jared McKinley of Perry Meridian put an exclamation point on his 53-1 season with a pin of Roncalli’s Josh Kieffer at 125. It was Kieffer’s second runner-up finish in three years (112). Nathan Boston of Lawrence North is 46-0 heading into next week’s team competition after topping Josh Fuqua of Crown Point, 13-3, in the 103 final. Garret Goldman of Bloomington North carried the 189 pound class with a 2-1 victory in overtime over Indian Creek’s Aaron Stevenson. It was Stevenson’s only loss of the season.
The weekend’s three session event drew 27,999 fans.
The 73rd Annual IHSAA Individual Wrestling State Finals
Feb. 18-19, 2011
Conseco Fieldhouse, Indianapolis
State Championship Match Results
103 – Nathan Boston, 9, Lawrence North (46-0) def. Josh Fuqua, 9, Crown Point (41-2), decision, 13-3.
112 – Mason Todd, 11, Pendleton Heights (32-0) def. Jarred Brooks, 11, Warsaw (30-2), decision, 3-0.
119 – Kyle Ayersman, 11, Lake Central (52-0) def. Brenden Campbell, 11, New Castle (54-1), decision, 10-8 OT.
125 – Jared McKinley, 11, Perry Meridian (53-1) def. Josh Kieffer, 12, Roncalli (44-5), fall 1:56.
130 – Neal Molloy, 10, Danville (50-0) def. Collin Crume, 12, Jimtown (49-5), decision, 8-1.
135 – Ethan Raley, 12, Indian Creek (34-1) def. Devon Jackson, 11, Yorktown (51-1), decision, 5-3.
140 – Jason Tsirtsis, 11, Crown Point (42-0) def. Phelan Montgomery, 12, Terre Haute South (41-1), decision, 15-5.
145 – Eric Roach, 12, Crown Point (42-0) def. Renaldo Weekley, 12, Jeffersonville (50-2), decision, 3-1.
152 – Doug Welch, 12, Castle (50-1) def. Connor Mullins, 11, New Castle (52-3), decision, 1-0.
160 – Chad Welch, 12, Castle (51-0) def. John Sims, 12, Evansville Mater Dei (21-6), decision, 3-0.
171 – Drake Stein, 12, Princeton (46-0) def. Nicholas Manning, 12, South Dearborn (33-1), decision, 4-1.
189 – Garret Goldman, 12, Bloomington North (40-1) def. Aaron Stevenson, 12, Indian Creek (41-1), 2-1, OT.
215 – Trey Reese, 12, Indian Creek (32-0) def. Logan Cooper, 12, Perry Meridian (49-4), fall 3:20.
285 – Jeremiah Harvey, 12, Culver Community (45-4) def. Damon Howe, 12, Plymouth (36-3), decision, 3-1 OT.
PRINCETON’S DRAKE STEIN WINS MENTAL ATTITUDE AWARD
Following the state tournament, the IHSAA Executive Committee named Drake Stein of Princeton High School as the recipient of the Ward E. Brown Mental Attitude Award.
The award is named in honor of the IHSAA’s fourth commissioner (1976-1983) in 1985. Recipients of the award must be nominated by their principal and coach and must excel in mental attitude, scholarship, leadership and athletic ability in the sport.
Stein completed his senior season with his second consecutive state championship at 171 pounds.
He is a National Honor Society member and has been involved in the Environmental Club, Drama Club, Thespian Society and Spanish Club and ranks 13th in his senior class academically. He’ll wrestle at Purdue University where he intends to study Mechanical Engineering.
He is the son of Mike and Jill Stein of Francisco, Indiana.
Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance, corporate sponsor of the IHSAA, presented a $1,000 scholarship to Princeton High School in the name of Stein.
VSN MEANS ACTION PHOTOGRAPHY
Visit our friends at Visual Sports Network, the IHSAA’s official photographer for all state championship events and one of the leading action photographers in the Midwest. VSN, which was on site on both Friday and Saturday, has captured thousands of images from this year’s State Finals and will have them ready for viewing and purchase beginning Monday.