Photo Credit: Charles Pulliam; Williamson Herald
By Maurice Patton for the Williamson Herald
Picking up pins in four of five opening matches Tuesday, Centennial gained an early lead and some momentum against visiting Summit before holding on for a 36-33 win in District 11-AAA wrestling action.
Starting with the 160-pound weight class, the Cougars got back-to-back pins from Zach Ables and Bailey Patton, then two more by 195-pounder Aaron Dittmer and 220-pounder Noah Schwartz for a 24-6 cushion.
“Four pins in our first five matches was huge,” Centennial coach Philip Pelkey said. “It pumped our bench up and took a little air out of (Summit).
“We went over the match with our kids about how we needed to not get pinned, not get teched. We knew Noah could beat (Ruben Ladron) when we got that matchup.”
Summit 285-pounder Hunter Hancock, who placed sixth in Class AAA last season, answered with a first-period pin as the Spartans won three straight clashes and cut the margin to 24-19. However, seniors Adam Fuller (120) and Cole Iler (138) added pins for the hosts and Summit could only muster a couple of major decisions by Nathan Porter at 126 and Esteban Remillard at 132 as the late rally fell short.
“We knew coming in it would be a dual decided by bonus points,” Summit coach Pete Miller said. “They got six pins and that gave them the edge.
“It’s a tough district. Anything can happen on any given night. That’s what makes it exciting. You get what you earn, and they earned it. We looked like we hadn’t been on the mat in two weeks. You have to be ready to wrestle on any given night.”
Both teams will be back on the mat Thursday, as Summit goes to Brentwood and Centennial to Independence. The Cougars dropped a 61-15 decision to Independence in the finals of the Garner/Dyer Duals in Tullahoma last month.
“We talked at the beginning of the year about, if we get five guys that can get (pins), and the rest give up decisions, we can win any match,” Pelkey said. “We think we’ve got some guys that can consistently get pins.”
Centennial 36, Summit 33
160 – Zach Ables (C) p. Sam Jones, 1:57; 170 – Bailey Patton (C) p. Ryan McDaniel, 1:52; 182 – Zack Carney (S) p. Jamari Wilson, 2:27; 195 – Aaron Dittmer (C) p. Tanner Choate, 3:36; 220 – Noah Schwartz (C) p. Ruben Ladron, 5:39; 285 – Hunter Hancock (S) p. Grey Drewery, 1:33; 106 – Logan Powers (S) md. Tyler Dittmer 12-4; 113 – Zach Thomas (S) d. Ethan Harvey 12-7; 120 – Adam Fuller (C) p. Cole Klingensmith, 3:06; 126 – Nathan Porter (S) md. Hunter Wisniowski 16-5; 132 – Esteban Remillard (S) md. Kiefer Bangham 9-1; 138 – Cole Iler (C) p. Christian Grady, 0:49; 145 – Sean Butler (S) d. Spencer Harvey 10-3; 152 – Sawyer Knott (S) d. Taylor Pate 8-6/OT.