Sandites send three to State Championship finals, trailing Broken Arrow by 1 point

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Junior Beau Bratcher pinned both of his opponents at State en route to the finals.

Story and photo by: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

Daton Fix is back in the finals, wrestling for his third State Championship, and this time he's joined by first-time finalists Jack Karstetter and Beau Bratcher. 

Six other Sandites are also still in the running for third place and will have to fight their way up through the consolation bracket.

There was a strange couple of minutes that found Zane Basma going into sudden victory overtime while Payton Scott was on the next mat over in ultimate tie-breaker overtime and at the same time the boys' basketball team was in Putnam City battling Broken Arrow in double overtime. Unfortunately overtime was not kind to Sand Springs and all three would end in defeat.

The Sandites qualified eleven for State, sent ten, and have only had one eliminated thus far.

Freshman Riley Weir (21-12) came into the tournament ranked 7th in 106 after a 3rd Place performance at Regionals. He has been battling an arm injury for the latter half of the season and it's been wearing on him noticeably for the last few weeks. In his first round he was pitted against #3 Colt Newton (20-12) of Choctaw for the fourth time this season and was pinned by his opponent for the fourth time this season. In the consolation quarterfinals Weir met Yukon's #6 Braden Fowler (24-12) and was eliminated by way of 14-4 major decision.

At 113 the Sandites sent junior Regional Champion #4 Michael Ritchey (23-18) against #3 Wes Hardin (31-12). The Westmoore wrestler prevailed with a 5-2 decision, but the Sandite rebounded with a 5-3 decision over Ponca's #7 Spencer Shickram (14-9) to advance to the consolation semi-finals. He will next take on Broken Arrow's #5 Tyler Lawley (23-12) who he defeated 3-1 for the Regional Championship.

Sophomore 120 pound Regional Champion #3 Blake Sargent (37-12) suffered a 4-2 tie-breaker upset to #8 Zackery Bibb (24-6) to start the tournament, and was in danger of being eliminated in the consolation quarter finals as he trailed to #5 Justin Gundlach (29-11) of Moore. Down 3-2 to start the final period, he got a takedown with under a minute to go and quickly turned it into a pin at 5:14. Next he will rematch Broken Arrow's #4 TaJuan Daniels (25-12) who he defeated 1-0 in the Regional Championship, 3-2 in the Sand Springs Invitational Championship, and 4-2 in sudden victory during a regular season dual.

126 pound junior #1 Daton Fix (44-0) pinned Bobby Robinson (30-13) of Deer Creek in 1:37 in round one, then majored #3 Drew Wilson (29-5) of Midwest City 15-3. The Championship round will be a rematch of Fix's last State Championship that saw the Sandite score an 11-3 major for the 120 pound title. 

132 pound junior Regional Champion #1 Jack Karstetter (39-7) ran up a 17-2 tech fall over Norman's #7 Jeffrey Adams (23-12) in 5:42, then registered a 15-4 major decision over #4 Marqual Graham (35-10) of Lawton. This is his second time qualifying for State, but last year he went 1-2 and failed to place. The Championship round will pit him against #2 Kruz Simons (33-11) of Edmond North. 

138 pound junior #2 Beau Bratcher (43-6) is a two-time Regional Champion but this is his first year placing at state. He picked an interesting way to get to the finals. He pinned both of his first two opponents in the exact same time. #7 Jeff Speer (23-10) of Choctaw and #5 Zach Johnson (33-14) of Westmoore both fell in exactly 4:48. The final match will be against #1 Jaxen Gilmore (38-3) of Yukon who holds a 2-0 decision over Bratcher from the Yukon finals. 

152 pound sophomore #3 Payton Scott (18-5) qualified for State after winning his first Regional Championship and pinned his first opponent, Westmoore's #7 Trey Painter (33-10) in 3:52. The next round however was against #2 Joseph Messer (29-3) of Norman North and the two were evenly matched at 1-1 at the end of regulation. Neither scored in the sudden victory round, both scored an escape in the tie breaker rounds, but Scott was unable to prevent Messer from escaping during the ultimate tie breaker and lost 3-2. Scott will next take on Ponca City's #4 Ezequiel Rubio (25-12) in the consolation semi finals. The Sandite is 2-0 against his opponent this season, pinning him in 3:00 to start the season, then trumping him 7-3 in the Regional finals. 

160 pound junior #3 Zane Basma (33-12) came in Runner-Up at Regionals after forfeiting the Championship round due to some deeply bruised ribs. This is his second time qualifying for State and he'll be looking to place for the first time. He defeated #5 Sam Hensley (31-14) of Edmond Memorial by 8-3 decision. In the next round, however, he was upset by #7 Moses Mayhue (29-8) of Union in a 4-3 tie-breaker decision. Next up Basma will take on #4 Cooper Coil (28-12) of Edmond North in the consolation semi finals. 

170 pound senior #7 Trace Fleischman (10-5) got off to a great start at State after upsetting #3 Jacob Schimmels (24-6) of Deer Creek with a 3-1 decision. In the next round, however, he went down 13-6 to Broken Arrow's #2 Isaiah Page (35-4). This is Fleischman's second trip to State. Last year he took 3rd place. He'll be working toward the same place this year if he can defeat #4 Jace Brownlee (29-8) of Stillwater. Brownlee defeated Fleischman 6-3 at Regionals.

Consolation semifinals begin Saturday at 10:30. Choctaw is currently in first place with 103 points, followed by Broken Arrow with 63.5 and Sand Springs with 62.5.

9 Sandites remain at State, only slightly behind Broken Arrow and Choctaw

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By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

The remaining Sandites have about an hour long break before the next round begins at the 6A State Championship in Oklahoma City. 

Charles Page wrestling qualified eleven for the tournament with seven Regional Champions, more than either Broken Arrow or the Dual State Champions from Choctaw. Unfortunately 220 pound junior and Regional Champion Delvin Jordan was unable to participate dropping the number to nine. 

106 freshman Riley Weir (20-12) came in third at Regionals and was pitted against Choctaw's Colt Newton (40-3) in the first round and was pinned in 0:41. From there he was majored 14-4 by Yukon's Braden Fowler and eliminated. 

113 Regional Champion Michael Ritchey (22-16) was defeated in round one by Westmoore's Wes Hardin (31-11) by a narrow 5-2 decision but managed to hold the lead in the next match for a 5-3 victory over Spencer Schickram (14-9) of Ponca City. 

120 Regional Champion Blake Sargent (36-10) went into overtime with Zackery Bibb (24-5) of Capitol Hill and lost 4-2 in the tie breaker round. He fell in an early hole to Justin Gundlach (29-11) of Moore and trailed 3-2 going into the final period, but rallied for a takedown and pin at 5:14 to stay alive in the consolation bracket. 

126 two-time undefeated State Champion Daton Fix (44-0) pinned Bobby Robinson (30-13) of Deer Creek in 1:37.

132 Regional Champion Jack Karstetter (38-7) breezed through his first match with a 17-2 tech fall over Norman's Jeffrey Adams (23-12) in 5:42.  

138 Regional Champion Beau Bratcher (40-6) pinned Choctaw's Jeff Speer (23-10) in 4:48. 

145 Regional Champion Payton Scott (18-4) pinned Westmoore's Trey Painter (32-10) in 3:52.  

160 Regional Runner-Up Zane Basma (32-11) scored an 8-3 decision over Sam Hensley (31-13) of Edmond Memorial.  

170 Trace Fleischman (10-4) placed fourth at Regionals but rebounded big time at State with a 3-1 upset of West Regional Champion Jacob Schimmels (23-6) of Edmond. 

The top three teams are as close now as they have been all season with Broken Arrow at 25.5, Choctaw at 25, and Sand Springs at 23.5.  

The semi finals will begin at 7:15.  

Trevor Tolbert signs letter of intent

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By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

 Charles Page High School senior Trevor Tolbert became the twelfth of his class to sign a college letter of intent. Tolbert signed to play baseball for Southwestern Christian University in Bethany, Oklahoma.

Tolbert is the middle child of Jason and Deena Tolbert. His older sister Jacie is an athletic trainer for the Oklahoma Sooners and can often be seen on television during the football games. 

SWCU is a private Pentecostal junior college that competes in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletes (NAIA) and the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCAA) and is part of the Sooner Athletic Conference. 

The SWCU Eagles have spent the last few years completely reinvigorating their baseball program after a dismal 8-45 record in 2014. Last year they finished the season 26-26 and they're slated for even more improvement this year as they're off to an 8-1 start and are undefeated at home. 

Tolbert plans to study Criminal Justice with the goal of becoming a game warden.  

 

Charles Page has also seen four football players, three softball players, and four soccer players sign this year.  

Daton Fix wins third Regional Championship, headed to State still undefeated

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Story and photograph by: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

Charles Page High School junior #1 Daton Fix (42-0) just doesn't slow down. At this point it wouldn't be much of a surprise if he pinned Chuck Norris. It was a surprise, however, to see the two-time State Champion wrestling at 126 lbs instead of cousin Jack Karstetter.

Fix has wrestled 132-138 for the entirety of the season, but cutting a weight class didn't throw him off any as he pinned Daniel Sheets (Bartlesville) in 0:51, then made some of the top dogs in the state look like beginners. #7 Clayton Seleznoff (Moore) was teched 19-4 in 2:26, followed by last year's State Runner-Up #3 Andrew Nieman (Stillwater) who went down 26-11 in 5:40. 

For Fix, State Championships are just a stepping stone to his true goal of being an Olympic Gold Medalist. For most high school athletes that would sound a bit extreme, but Fix already has a Junior Olympic Silver Medal that he got in Nanjing China two summers ago. 

This is his third undefeated season and he has an overall career record of 115-0. Nearly half of his wins this season were by pin. He's won six tournament championships this season and is currently ranked third nationally by FloWrestling. 

Fix will first meet Deer Creek's #8 Bobby Robinson (29-12) for the first time. From there he'll be pitted against either #5 Brady Mattioda (26-12) or #3 Drew Wilson (28-4). He's never wrestled either of them. 

On the other side of the bracket is #2 Dalton Duffield (39-3) of Westmoore. Duffield is Fix's closest competition, but Fix already has three wins in the books against the senior. They first met in last year's 120 lbs State Championship match where Fix walked away with an 11-3 major decision. The Sandite extraordinaire added two more major decisions last summer in freestyle tournaments. 

Barring a David vs. Goliath upset that even the Biblical hero would be dumbfounded by, Sand Springs should be able to count on a third consecutive Championship from one of the greatest athletes in school history.

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Sandite Blake Sargent wins Regional Championship, headed to State

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Blake Sargent works on a takedown against TaJuan Daniels.

Story and photo by: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

Charles Page High School sophomore Blake Sargent (36-11) won his first Regional Championship by a single point, earning the #3 ranking in 6A. In the first round he pinned Garett Koss (Owasso) in 0:46, then defeated Grant Fox (Jenks) 3-2. Next to go down was #5 Justin Gundlach (Moore) by 6-3 decision, and Sargent was pitted against #4 TaJuan Daniels for the third time this season.

It's tough to beat an incredible wrestler three times in a season, especially one so close to you in talent. In the Broken Arrow dual the two ended the third period tied 2-2 and Sargent narrowly got the win with a sudden victory takedown. They next met at the Sand Springs Invitational in the finals round where it came down to a 3-2 decision for the Championship. Once more the crucial matchup was decided by a single point as the Sandite won his second tournament of the season with a 1-0 decision.

Sargent got to see a fair bit of action his freshman year, placing 3rd at both the Perry Tournament of Champions and the Jay Hancock Memorial Invitational. This year he repeated his 3rd place finish at Perry, came in 9th at the Kansas City Stampede, and finished 5th at Yukon.

This year he went undefeated in regular season duals before finally falling 9-8 to Wesley Hardin (30-11) during the Dual State Quarterfinals against Westmoore, then getting majored 10-1 by Garrett Rowe (37-5) during the Championship dual against Choctaw. He also gave up a 12-3 major to Rowe at Perry. Hardin will be wrestling at 113 at State. 

Rowe is the #1 seed in 120 going into State and is the biggest obstacle in Sargent's path. The two are on opposite sides of the bracket, though, and first Sargent must overcome #8 Zackery Bibb (23-5) of Capitol Hill in the opening round. This will be the first time the two have met. Bibb was last year's 5A State Runner-Up whose only losses were to the State Champ.

From there he will either get a rematch against Gundlach, or meet #2 Tanner Cole (34-1) of Deer Creek for the first time this season. That match will be every bit as difficult as Rowe. Cole was undefeated in the season till he met Rowe in the West Regional finals and was pinned. He also pulled off a one-loss season last year en route to a 5A State Championship title. Cole and Sargent have met once before, at the OK USA Freestyle State Tournament last May. Cole walked away with a 10-0 major decision that time. 

Other opponents that the Sandite could encounter include #7 Cordney Chairs (17-17) of Union, #6 Josh Suter (28-8) of Norman, and #4 TaJuan Daniels (24-11) of Broken Arrow. 

Sargent has yet to encounter Suter, but he has 3-0 records against both Daniels and Chairs. His most recent matchup with Chairs wasn't even close as he recorded an 11-0 major decision at Dual State. He also posted a 7-1 regular season dual victory, and defeated him at the Sand Springs Invitational semifinals. That one was a lot closer however, at 1-0.

Sandite Michael Ritchey wins Regional Championship, headed to State

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Story and photo by: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

Charles Page High School junior Michael Ritchey (22-17) won his first 6A East Regional Championship with a pair of close decisions Saturday night at Broken Arrow. The Sandite narrowly overcame Shawn Tillman (Muskogee) 1-0 in round one, but then pulled off his first technical fall of the season 17-2 in 5:59 over Caron Watson (Union). In the finals he was pitted against Broken Arrow's Tyler Lawley and triumphed 3-1.

Before this year Ritchey's only experience on the varsity mat was the Jerry Billings Tournament and the Jay Hancock Memorial Invitational his sophomore year where he placed 5th and 6th respectively. 

This year he made his dual debut with a 3-0 decision over Owasso's Wyatt Johnson and followed it up with a 5th place performance at the Perry Tournament of Champions where he only lost two matches. Both were to the same opponent, a highly ranked Kansas wrestler. 

From there he placed 4th at both the Bobby Lyons Tournament and the Jay Hancock Memorial before winning his first tournament at Regionals. 

His first round at State will be against Westmoore's #3 Wes Hardin (30-11). From there he will take on either #7 Spencer Schickram (14-7) or #2 Conner Holman (36-6).

Ritchey narrowly defeated Schickram 7-5 at the Ponca City dual and narrowly lost 6-4 to Holman during the Dual State Championship dual against Choctaw. Either of those matches could easily go either way.

Other contenders include #1 Paxton Rosen (40-2) who's been having a remarkable season with Edmond North. Ritchey defeated Rosen 14-11 last May at the OK USA Freestyle State Tournament, but so far as scholastic wrestling goes, it's Rosen with the 2-0 record. Rosen defeated Ritchey 9-3 at Geary, then became the only foe to tech fall the Sandite when he won 15-0 at the Yukon tournament. 

Ritchey has a 2-0 record against #8 Chase Slatton (31-14) of Jenks with close decisions of 5-1 at Yukon and 9-8 during the final regular season dual. Ritchey beat #5 Tyler Lawley (22-11) at Regionals, but has yet to meet #6 Taylor Holman (31-10) of Midwest City.