WHITEHALL — Whitehall sent 13 wrestlers at Saturday’s district tournament on to the regional round, including nine district finalists.
Vikings Nolan Taranko (126 pounds), Darnell Mack (150), Ryan Goodrich (157) and Gavin Craner (175) earned district titles. Mack and Goodrich won close battles in the finals against Newaygo’s William Berenbrock and Belding’s Blake Peasley respectively to earn championships. Craner romped through the tournament with three pins, and Taranko won a close semifinal decision over Alex Russo of Grant before being awarded the district title by medical forfeit due to an injury to his opponent.
Whitehall runners-up were Cody Manzo (106), Max Krukowski (120), Ryne Christensen (138), Liam Leeke (144) and Blake Morningstar (215). Christensen recorded two pins and a major decision to reach the finals. Morningstar had two pins, and Manzo earned a technical fall and a pin in the tournament.
Kolten Weiler (113) and Jason Smith (285) each earned third place. Smith had an especially exhausting day, losing an overtime match to Jamario Dash of Orchard View and then escaping Isaac Delgado of Wyoming Lee by ultimate tiebreaker in the blood round. He had two pins on the day as well; Weiler also had two pins.
Caden Varela (132) and Blake English (150) rounded out Viking qualifiers, each taking fourth place. English had a pin and a technical fall in the tournament.
Montague was in the Whitehall district as well and qualified five wrestlers to regionals. Jimmy Thommen led the way, earning a 113-pound district title. Thommen had a pair of major decisions and a pin on the way to the top of the podium.
Chris Aebig (132) and Isaac French (190) finished in third place; Aebig faced Varela in the third-place match, coming away with a 10-1 victory. He also had a pin and another major decision on the day.
Taking fourth for Montague were Brock Hunter (106) and Fletcher Thommen (144). Thommen wrestled Leeke in the semifinals and the two turned in a hard-fought match, with Leeke winning 14-12. Hunter faced Manzo in the semis and was defeated by his Whitehall foe.
Kaiden Jeffery, Malachi Plunkett and Maverick Osborne each won a match in the districts before bowing out.
Reeths-Puffer sends 4 to next round
Reeths-Puffer qualified four wrestlers to the regionals at Saturday’s Division 1 district meet in Grand Haven. Two were runners-up - Arin Maynard (106) and Jake Rozycki (120).
Also qualifying for the Rockets were Ian Cook (132) and Nathan Stafford (285), both in third place. Cook scored two pins in the tournament.
Lyric Stewart and Sage Secrest each scored two pins for the Rockets but fell short of regional qualification, and Nathan Reeves also won twice. Earning single wins for R-P were Blake Miller, Mason Goodno, Hunter Eek, Andrew Corradin, and Owen Schab.
