#1 Sandite Wrestling headed to State Championship Finals after hammering Union 48-6
/"Are you not entertained?"
Jack Karstetter encourages the crowd's applause after wining his match.
Story and photo by: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief
Sand Springs started off hot at 154, winning five straight over the Redskins en route to an incredible 48-6 Dual State Semi-Final win. The still undefeated No.1 team in 6A now has only one dual left between them and the first Charles Page State Championship since the girls' basketball team won it way back in 1994.
152 #3 Payton Scott (13-4) had another narrow decision, defeating Christian Mayhue 4-3, followed by 160 #3 Zane Basma (29-9) who was working on a pin when time ran out and he was stuck with a 7-2 decision over #2 Moses Mayhue for a 6-0 team lead.
#4 Trace Fleischman (5-2) had no problem taking a commanding 11-4 lead into the final period at 170, then added a takedown before letting Elijah Tomlin out once more. He got another takedown five seconds before the buzzer for a 15-5 major decision.
At 182 #4 Lane Lettich (12-7) was pitted against #5 Jonathan Waters and the two stalemated through the first. Waters started the second on bottom and scored a quick reverse. Lettich escaped to end the period, then did it again to start the third tied at 2-2. The Sandite got the takedown 40 seconds in, then gave up an escape to look for bonus points. Waters wouldn't give up a pin, but Sand Springs still got the 4-3 decision to remain undefeated in the dual.
Moving to 195, Sand Springs had a 13-0 lead as they pitted #9 Zach Sims (21-20) against Matt Horrocks. The first period was scoreless but Sims earned a quick escape after starting the second on bottom. At 4:54 Sims picked up the first pin of the night and increased the team lead to 19-0.
220 Delvin Jordan (14-4) started the second in a 2-1 deficit to #4 Seth Mischler but took the lead towards the end of the period with a pair of near-fall points. The Sandite picked up an escape to start the third and held off his foe for a 4-2 decision.
The Sandite streak came to a close at heavyweight as Gage Fain (11-18) fell by way of 6-0 decision to #4 Elwood Tomlin, but 106 freshman #7 Riley Weir (18-8) got things back on track with a dominating performance over Caron Watson that culminated in a 12-3 major decision.
At 113 #5 Michael Ritchey (19-16) fell to a 2-1 deficit to #4 Mason Naifeh after the first, barely picking up the escape seconds before the whistle. He tied it up after escaping to start the second, but thirty seconds later Naifeh picked up two on a takedown. Ritchey got another escape to narrow things to 4-3 and started the third on top before getting reversed and near-felled for a 9-3 loss.
At 120 #5 Blake Sargent (32-10) and Cordney Chairs went scoreless through the first two periods but Sargent put in major work in the third for a series of near-falls and an 11-0 major decision, effectively cinching the dual victory with a 30-6 lead and only three matches left.
126 #3 Jack Karstetter (32-7) worked it over on Jalen Hernandez and was seconds away from a first period pin when the clock ran out and he had to settle for near-fall points. The Sandite started the second with a reversal for a 7-0 lead then picked up the pin.
Union forfeited 132 to #1 Daton Fix (38-0), then put up Brendon Mudget against #2 Beau Bratcher (36-6) in 138. Bratcher took a 2-0 lead into the second and worked it up to a 7-0 decision.
The final match of the night was 145 Cody Mathis (15-12) vs. #5 Gabe Evans. The two were tied 3-3 going into the third when Mathis scored a takedown for the lead. Evans scored an escape but Mathis advanced the lead for a 7-4 decision for the win.
The Sandites will take on No.3 Choctaw in the finals at 6:30 pm after the Yellowjackets upset No.2 Broken Arrow in their semi-finals match. The Sandites have yet to meet Choctaw this season but the State Championship in softball also pitted Sandites against Yellowjackets, so in a way this is almost a rematch for Sand Springs in their third championship appearance this school year.
