MUSKEGON — Whitehall made swift work of its opposition Thursday night at the district tournament hosted by Orchard View, dispatching Orchard View and rival Montague to claim their 13th trophy in 14 years.
The finals went to the Vikings, 64-12, with every bout earning bonus points for the winner. Whitehall moved on to Wednesday's regional meet, which it will host. The semifinal matchup will be against Tri-County, followed by a potential finals match against the Grant/Grand Rapids Catholic Central winner.
Montague took an early lead in the teams' regular-season matchup before the Vikings scored the expected win, but that didn't happen this time, as a forfeit win was followed by a technical fall by Max Krukowski and pin victories by Kolten Weiler and Caden Varela to make it 23-0.
"I think we're wrestling the best we've wrestled all year," Whitehall coach Justin Zeerip said. "We're trying to
peak our guys, and we're just trying to get sharper. Practices are
going to be a little shorter, so we're trying to make the most of every
practice and every match and not take anything for granted. I feel good
with where we're at right now."
After a pair of Montague pins - Gavyn Maddox and Fletcher Thommen won those bouts - Whitehall took wins the rest of the way. The Wildcats scored something of a moral victory when Gavin Craner had to settle for a technical fall in his bout; the defending state champion and Central Michigan signee has pinned the vast majority of his opponents in his to-date undefeated season. There has not been a hint of drop-off in Craner's performance after a banner junior season.
"I think Gavin is a really motivated individual," Zeerip said. "He's competitive. He
wants to always keep getting better. He's never satisfied and just wants
to keep getting better so he can be prepared for college. He really
wants to win a state championship this year, and it's been a really good
motivator for him. He's just competitive in every single thing he does."
Whitehall's Gavin Craner grapples with Montague's Isaac French during Thursday's district finals match at Orchard View. Craner rolled to a win, continuing his unbeaten season, as the Vikings won the match.
In addition to Craner, Liam Leeke, Blake English and Isaac O'Boyle earned technical falls in Whitehall's closing run. Billy Darke, Wyatt Jenkins and Tommy Leeke scored pins, and Tanner Woodworth earned a major decision.
English, one of the Whitehall seniors on their last postseason run, said the team's constant work in the wrestling room - even on days where wrestlers work so hard that they might annoy their sparring partner - has contributed to its success.
"It's trusting your teammates, knowing they've got your
back and you've got theirs," English said. "Everything you put in in the wrestling room, you get to go show on the mat."
Varela was able to overcome having to go to blood time on a few occasions during his victory, a running theme of his career. However, he's never seemed to get fazed when forced to get checked out, even if it interrupts the flow of a bout going his way.
"I think it's important
that he stays cool and calm and collected about
it," Zeerip said of Varela. "He did that. I thought he wrestled really well tonight. It's cool
for him to end his senior year in team districts like that, and we're
excited for what he has to come."
Montague ended what's been a strong year, especially considering how young the team is; coach Kris Maddox said only two seniors wrestled against Whitehall. Despite that, the Wildcats finished third in the West Michigan Conference and had their fourth straight winning season in duals.
"There's
times in wrestling where you know that somebody's just
better than you and that's going to happen," Maddox said of the Whitehall match. "You've got to look
for improvement in yourself and as a team. We're getting there. We've seen some good stuff out of some of
our newer guys...We're improving. That's one thing. When we look back, we
want to keep making little steps. We'd like to make (those steps) bigger, but over time, I think
that's going to be better. When you're making small steps over long
periods of time, it's going to bring longevity."
Montague routed Oakridge 66-11 in the semifinals earlier Thursday. Thommen and Maddox each picked up wins on their way to 2-0 evenings, and Michael Jones, Brock Hunter, Tony Garcia and Clay Jordan won bouts on the mat.
Whitehall's semifinal win was 74-6 over Orchard View. Craner, Jenkins, Liam Leeke, English, Colton Kyser, Hunter Peterson and Max Krukowski won on the mat, and O'Boyle and Varela each won as part of a 2-0 night.
Whitehall's wrestling team celebrates its district championship after defeating Montague and Orchard View Thursday night.
The Vikings have every belief that they'll be back in Kalamazoo to end the team season, and hopefully wrestle in the final match.
"Our kids have been working for this
postseason all year long and all season long," Zeerip said. "I think
they're excited to finally get to go out and compete
like this."
