(Cougar senior Evan Alger earned another Region Championship Saturday)
With the Class 4, Region D Meet now completed, Pulaski County High School will be well-represented the weekend of February 17 at the Virginia Beach Sports Center when three State Qualifiers and one State Alternate attempt to bring home the gold for the Cougar Nation.
For Head Coach Bobby Alger, the journey to this point has been one full of ups and downs … highs and lows.
“All of our wrestlers worked hard today, and I am very proud of all who participated. I saw some good things I didn't expect to see out of some of our less experienced wrestlers, which was nice. I saw a victory, which honestly would have been an upset in the bracket, slip away from Molly (Keller) which was heartbreaking. I watched Nicholaus (Golden), who I have coached since he was six years old, wrestle his last high school match. That one hit hard. I also watched three of my wrestlers in the finals, and one of them walk away with another championship. Needless to say, I ran the entire gamut of emotions today.”
Three Cougar wrestlers qualifies for the State Meet and one will serve as an alternate. To qualify for the State Meet, a wrestler must finish in the top four in their weight class.
In the 190-pound division, Cougar senior Evan Alger (32-4) earned his second straight Class 4, Region D Championship with three straight pinfall wins. His day started with a bye, but he pinned Morgan Hancock of EC Glass in quick fashion to advance. Alger pinned Dominic W. Turner (39-12) of Orange County. In the championship match, Alger pinned 25-11 Owen Townsend of Western Albemarle to win the gold.
Xavier Ramsey, a junior with a record after the region meet of 27-7, will be competing in the 113-pound division after earning second-place at the regional meet. His weekend started with a bye, but he won his first match in the quarterfinals by pinfall against Wyatt Witt of Western Albemarle. In the semifinals match, Ramsey pinned Blake White of Louisa County. In the championship matchup, Ramsey fell in a 17-0 technical fall to Justin Jones (42-1) of Orange County.
Gavin Warner, a senior with a record of 31-8, will be competing in the State Meet after finishing second at the regional meet. After a first-round bye in the 126-pound division, Warner pinned Stanley Hurt of EC Glass. He earned a 12-4 major decision over Aidan Sliger of Orange County to advance to the championship match. In that match, he fell to Braden Henderson (32-3) of Blacksburg.
Nicholaus Golden, with a record of 36-13 in the 132-pound class, earned the right to serve as a State Alternate after earning a fifth-place finish. He began the day with a bye, then earned a 12-1 major decision over Sophia Slaughter of Orange County. Golden fell in a 12-4 major decision to Tharun Svetanant (20-3) of Blacksburg to drop into the consolation semifinals. He lost that match in a 7-4 decision to Caden Thomas of Salem. In the fifth-place matchup, Golden pinned Hudson Stearns of Western Albemarle.
In the 138-pound division, senior Molly Keller (21-9) saw her regular season come to an end, but she will go on to represent the Cougars and Pulaski County in the first VHSL All-Women’s Championship February 24-25 at Unity Reed High School in Manassas. This first All-Women’s event will be a combined event with wrestlers from Classes 1-6. First round and consolation matches will take place Friday, February 24. Semifinals and consolations, consolation finals, and championship matches will take place Saturday, February 25.
Junior Austin McNeal (21-15) finished 2-3 at the meet to earn sixth place in the 144-division. Sophomore Carson Hall was pinned and lost a decision in the 150-pound division. Freshman Patricia Eubanks suffered two pinfall defeats in the 157-pound division. Freshman Damien Ledbetter wrestled in the 175-pound division, suffering two pinfalls.
Sophomore Shawn Head wrestled in the 215-pound division and finished 1-3, pinning Justin Williams of Halifax County. Sophomore Thomas Head wrestled in the 285-pound division and lost two matches by pinfall.
“I’m proud of our wrestlers,” Coach Alger said. “They’ve all shown growth and improvement throughout the season. The regular season is over. Now our focus for the next two weeks is what we have worked all season for, and that is the VHSL 4A State Championships. We are going to go and try to make a little noise down there and walk away with some hardware.”