Southland Academy wrestlers win region title

Published 4:03 pm Thursday, January 30, 2020

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From Staff Reports

 

AMERICUS – The Southland Academy Varsity Wrestling Team took to the mat to compete in the Region 3-AAA Tournament and was able to come out on top as region champions. The tournament was held on Wednesday, January 29, at Southland Academy.

The Raiders had eight first-place finishers, two second-place finishers and one third-place finisher. The top four finishers in each weight class qualify for the Georgia Independent School Association (GISA) State Tournament to be held Thursday and Friday, February 6-7, at the GSW Storm Dome.

In the 120-lb. Weight Class, Tanner Humphrey took the top spot to punch his ticket to State, while Adam Del Vecchio of Valwood finished second. Keaton Griffin took first place for the Raiders in the 132-lb. Weight Class, as he outlasted Alex Gee of Valwood. Will Rhodes won the individual region title for SA in the 145-lb. Weight Class by outlasting Valwood’s Brooks Browning. SA’s Landon Griffin also won first place for the Raiders. Griffin defeated John Owens of Deerfield-Windsor to take the 138-lb. Weight Class individual title. Collins Reese of Tiftarea Academy came in third place.

Southland Academy sophomore John Saye (yellow) is seen here wrestling in the Glory Days Tournament held at Southland Academy a couple of weeks ago.
Saye won the 220-lb. Weight Class to secure his spot in the upcoming GISA State Tournament.
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In the 170-lb. Weight Class, Riley Parker was another Raider to win first place, as he defeated second-place finisher Luis Martinez of Crisp Academy. John Branch of Deerfield-Windsor finished in third place in that weight class.

Kolden Kinney took the title in the 195-lb. Weight Class for SA. Kinney defeated James Peterman of Valwood to secure his first-place finish. Kinney’s teammate, Tyler Joyner, won the 182-lb. Weight Class by defeating Bay Moorman of Valwood.

The final first-place finisher for the Raiders was John Saye. Saye outlasted Evans Plowden of Deerfield-Windsor to win the 220-lb. Weight Class title. Marc Brookhouser of Valwood finished in third place in that weight class.

In the 160-lb. Weight Class, SA’s James Griffin finished in second place behind Mark Coley of Tiftarea Academy, but still qualified for the state tournament. Colman Fort finished in second place for the Raiders in the 152-lb. Weight Class behind Jacob Odom of Crisp Academy. John Luke Owens of Tiftarea finished in third place in that weight class and John Cornwell of Valwood finished in fourth.

In the 126-lb. Weight Class, SA’s Johan Garcia qualified for the state tournament by finishing in third place. Eli Griffin of Crisp Academy finished in second place and Will Custer of Deerfield-Windsor won the title in that weight class.