GH sending school-record nine wrestlers to state finals

Grand Haven added another milestone to its stellar season on Saturday, as the Buccaneers qualified a school-record nine wrestlers to the individual state finals on March 1-3 at the Palace of Auburn Hills.

To qualify for the finals, wrestlers had to finish in the top four at the regional meet, which was hosted at Grand Haven High School.

“We didn’t have the same energy that we did on Wednesday (at the team regionals),” said Grand Haven coach James Richardson. “That’s the most encouraging thing. We looked flat, yet we still qualified nine.

“In the placement round, which deterines if you qualify for state or you miss out,  we had five kids in that, and all five moved on,” he added. “We had two overtime matches and one one-point match.”

Among the Bucs’ record nine were a pair of regional champions — Connor Moynihan at 171 pounds and Garrett Kelly at 215. Moynihan improved his outstanding season record to 43-2, while Kelly now stands at 36-9.

Finishing runner-up in their respective weight classes were sophomore Dakota Juarez at 152, and freshmen Camden Bertucci at 103.

Earning third-place finishes were Matt Mulcahy at 215 and Dakota Smith at 189; while Allen Torres placed fourth at 135, as did Josh Juchartz at 125 and Ian Radde at heavyweight. Juchartz scored a takedown with 15 seconds remaining in the third period in his placement round match to qualify.

To read more of this story, see today's print or E-edition of the Grand Haven Tribune.