BERLIN- Stephen Decatur’s varsity wrestling team lost a tough one to Atholton in the state 3A-East regional championships last week after falling behind early and mounting a big comeback that fell just short.
Atholton’s Peter Frazier beat Decatur’s Shamar Barnes at 106, Drew Pruitt pinned Austin Miller at 113 and David Panda pinned Jagger Clapsadle at 120 to jump out to an early lead. Decatur’s Cade Solito pinned Shea Collins at 126 to get the Seahawks on the board at 16-6, and Jeremy Danner beat Derek Noppinger at 132 to cut the lead to 16-10.
Atholton’s Michael Altamarino pinned Jhymir Blake at 138 and Stephen Frazier pinned David Braciszewski at 145 to extend the lead to 28-10. After Decatur’s Johnny Hofman beat Mateo Rodriguez at 152, Atholton’s Alex Mattes pinned J.J. Purnell at 160 and Sean Billups won a decision over Lukas Layton at 170 to stake Atholton to a seemingly insurmountable lead at 37-13 with four matches remaining.
The Seahawks had one big run left in them, however. D.J. Taylor won by an injury default at 182 and Deletez Smith won by forfeit at 195 to cut the lead to 37-25. Caleb Bourne got a big pin over Miles Easterling at 220 to cut the lead to 37-31. With just the 285 bout remaining, Decatur trailed 37-31 and would need a pin to force a tie in the match. Decatur’s Shakur Nock won by decision over Haashim Rahman for three points and the Seahawks fell just short at 37-34.
