Good to be Good: Collin Good's 175 title highlights 11 state qualifiers at Perry District

PERRY — Unranked all season long, Northwestern’s Collin Good had something to prove Saturday.

He went out and showed everyone that the rankings had it all wrong as the senior went on to capture the 175-pound title, highlighting a strong final day for locals at the Division III Perry District tournament.

“Feels good to be the underdog,” Good said, following his thrilling 6-5 decision over Kirtland’s Louka Babic. “I've been unranked all year long in the state rankings, so to come in here and go to state as a top-four seed … this means a lot.”

And Good did it the way he has been winning the past two weeks: building a lead and holding off his opponents in the closing seconds.

The result was a district title and the upperclassman’s first career state berth as he was one of 11 local wrestlers to punch their respective tickets to next weekend’s OHSAA State Championships in Columbus. Fellow Huskie Trent Sigler (120 pounds), along with the Tuslaw trio of Kaden Lawson (106), Maxwell Cooper (144) and Jacob Lyons (150) all finished as runners-up after two grueling days at Perry, while Waynedale’s Stephen Patterson (106), Chippewa’s Ben Pierce (113), Waynedale’s Caden Schmeltzer (132), Rittman’s Joey McGuire (138), Dalton’s Kaden Russell (144) and Loudonville’s Caleb Gregory (190) also locked up automatic bids to the state tournament.

Thanks to two automatic state qualifiers, three state alternates and two others that placed sixth, Waynedale took runner-up as a team with 97 points, just beating out South Range (96.5) and finishing behind champion Rootstown (141). Tuslaw was fifth overall with 75.5.

Good, however, was the lone area grappler to stand atop of the podium after an impressive win over Babic — the 14th-ranked wrestler in the weight class, according to Intermat Ohio.

After a scoreless opening period, Good followed a quick escape with a takedown in the opening minute, before adding another with just three seconds left in the second to build a 5-1 lead.

“I saw his gas tank was going down, he was getting sloppier and slower,” he said. “He was taking shots and I was just countering him.”

Babic countered with a quick three points of his own to open the third, but an escape and some crafty defense was enough to help Good walk way with the win, similar to his one-point semifinal victory over Brandon Bruce-Bay of Cleveland Central Catholic.

“I mean, (Babic) is a good wrestler, and he knew what he was doing, so it was tough not to give it up," Good said. "I gave him one on that stalling call, but in the end, I was able to come out with the win.

“It just comes down to a mentality battle in the third period, who wants it more.”

Both Cooper and Lyons were involved in two of those most action-packed finals bouts of the closing round.

Cooper battled with Columbiana Crestview’s Braden Stallworth shot-for-shot, with the two wrestlers each having a reversal each in the second period, before a late Stallworth reversal in the third proved to be difference in a 4-3 decision.

“It didn't come out how I wanted it too, but I think I wrestled tough,” said Cooper, who will be making his second straight trip to state. “I just tried to be aggressive and stay on my offense. That helped me win those three matches to get to the final.

“I'm not mad about it. I'm just ready for states next week and I want to place high there.”

It was a similar tightly-contest bout at 144 as Lyons followed a late takedown from Joshua Greenwood of Beachwood with an escape and then earned a penalty point, after a unsportsmanlike infraction was whistled on Greenwood as time expired in regulation, to force a sudden-victory period.

From there, Greenwood was able to takedown the Tuslaw junior with 16 seconds remaining for the 7-5 decision.

But, despite the loss, Lyons was pleased with his day and is ready to make it onto the podium next weekend.

“I was trying to be more patient on my shots,” he said. “At sectionals, I was not very patient and had too many close matches. I wanted to use my energy at the right time, instead of just going all out and being exhausted. I think I was able to do that.”

Lawson and Sigler both dropped their finals matches after impressive runs to the finals in their respective lightweight brackets.

Just a freshman, Lawson had a pin and two victories by decision to get into the final, before dropping a 12-2 major decision to Lake Catholic’s Parker Pikor, while Sigler stormed out to an early lead before losing by pin to another Lake Catholic wrestler in Joey Romano.

“I was nervous before the tournament,” Lawson said. “This is probably one of the toughest districts to come out of, at 106, so I'm happy. I just had to wrestle.”

For Sigler it was a tough finish to what was a strong two days for the senior. He led 5-0 early, thanks to a takedown and near fall, but Romano was able to reverse Sigler late in the period before picking up the pin.

It was just the second loss of the year for Sigler.

“I stopped his first couple of shots, and I felt good, got a quick takedown and I think I probably went too fast and put him to his back,” he said. “I should’ve wrestled smarter. I was just thinking pin, pin. Next time I got wrestle smarter. I mean, I had a takedown, felt good, felt fast, felt strong.

“Hey, I got another week and everyone is 0-0 next week.”

After wrestling back in the consolation bracket, Patterson, Pierce and Schmeltzer all picked up victories in their respective third-place matches.

Patterson locked-up a 6-5 decision of Liberty’s Quinton Burns in his final contest of the weekend, while fellow freshman Pierce pinned Rootstown’s Will McEwuen at the 2:29 mark.

“This was my goal, but I didn't really expect to actually make it,” Pierce said. “It's exciting. Third is alright with me. I'm happy to be here, happy to have qualified.”

Schmeltzer, the lone returning All-Ohioan in the crop of locals competing at Perry, bounced back from a semifinal loss to Landen Duncan of Chalker with a 26-second pin and then a hard-fought 6-4 decision of Rootstown’s Nick Malek.

“I was definitely disappointed (after the semifinal loss), but I was able to bounce back,” Schmeltzer said. “I just wasn't into it and there were a couple things that went against me, but that's no excuse. I should've been up to begin with. I'll strategize this week and I'll beat him at state next week.”

Fourth-place finishes went to McGuire, Russell and Gregory, all of whom will be making their first state appearance this upcoming weekend.

And for McGuire, the junior knew it was a possibility and didn’t want leave anything to chance.

“I knew I had a chance, I just had to work hard and have enough heart,” he said. “I just had to give all the energy that I had, wrestling smart and make good decisions.”

A handful of area wrestlers were state alternates after fifth-place finishes, earlier in the day, as Lance Kearney (Waynedale, 120), Lincoln Guthrie (Norwayne, 126), Collin Kearny (Waynedale, 138), Robert McCrork (Waynedale, 150), Greyson Siders (Dalton, 165), Jack Waldron (Orrville, 175) and Nate Morris (Chippewa, 215) will have to wait and see if a spot opens up this week.

This article originally appeared on The Daily Record: Wrestling: Northwestern's Collin Good leads 11 state qualifiers in D3