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Locals have success at W.Va. state wrestling tourney

JAY W. BENNETT The Marietta Times Williamstown’s Mason Deem pinned Oak Hill’s Seth Martin in 3:41 Friday at the W.Va. state wrestling tournament in Huntington, W.Va.

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — St. Marys freshman Wiley Houser will wrestle for a state mat title Saturday night inside Huntington’s Big Sandy Superstore Arena.

Going into the final weekend of the West Virginia mat season, seven local grapplers had hopes of placing in the top six and winning a state crown.

Following Friday night’s state semifinals, only the Blue Devil Houser will have a chance to capture a state crown.

Houser rallied from a 6-4 deficit after two periods to take a 9-6 lead before he stuck Independence’s John Sanders with 19 ticks left in their match.

“Oh, Lord, I can’t take too many more of these,” said pumped up SMHS head coach Jay D. Smith right after the match. Houser now faces East Fairmont freshman Blake Boyers.

The only Williamstown wrestler who will place in the top six is 132-pound sophomore Mason Deem. Deem was in a must-win situation on Friday night and he came through thanks to pinning Oak Hill’s Seth Martin in 3:41. Deem, who is 3-1 through the first two days, will finish somewhere between third and sixth place.

The news wasn’t as good for the rest of the Yellowjackets of head coach Ryan Scott. Senior 113-pounder Brantley Guckert was unable to get a late takedown in a must-win consolation match late Friday night and was eliminated following a 3-2 setback to Ashby West of Oak Hill.

Guckert finished his final state tournament with a 2-2 record. WHS teammates Casch Somerville at 138 went 1-2 while both Colton Slagle at 120 and Julian Stoneman at 145 went 0-2.

Also, Blue Devil senior Antone Herring will place at 220. The St. Marys grappler lost his first match of the tournament, but then recorded three consecutive falls to secure a podium finish. He pinned South Harrison’s Seth Pumphrey in 1:39 and followed that with mat slappers against Sissonville’s Gavin Shamblin in 2:30 and Herbert Hoover’s Ben Bailey in 1:21.

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