Wewahitchka wrestlers have powerful showing at recent tournaments

Wewa girls wrestling 

Competing at the 17-team Panhandle Championship tournament hosted by Mosley High School on Saturday, Jan. 7, the Wewahitchka girls wrestlers “had a strong showing,” according to Gator coach Jay Rushing. 

Instead of team scores, the girls part of the tournament had an IBT, or Individual Bracketed Tournament, format. 

Junior Angel Williams, freshman Avery Forehand, and eighth grader Mia Beatty each finished third in their respective weight classes, while eighth grader Makani Young celebrated her birthday with a silver medal. 

Eighth graders Kameron Easter and Zoey Sapp, along with seventh grader Madi Ferrell took fifth place. Easter is currently ranked 18th in the state at 110 lbs. 

“These girls showed some grit, and battled through some minor injuries when some would pack it up and go home,” said Rushing. 

“We’re a young team,” he added, “ (but) they have caught on quickly to the sport.” “The future is bright for Lady Gator wrestling.” 

After a meet in Dothan on Monday, Jan. 9, the Wewa ladies will compete on Jan. 20-21 at Bay High followed by a meet at Lincoln High in Tallahassee on Jan. 28. 

Wewa boys wrestling 

In the 22-team boys round robin tournament, also held at Mosley, the Wewa boys finished with a 2-2 record to claim 12th place, defeating Destin and Choctawhatchee while losing to tournament champion Gulf Breeze and Westfield (Perry, GA). 

In duals, the Gators finished 2-4. 

“We took a couple of individual losses that we shouldn’t have,” said Gator coach Tracy Malcolm. “We also had a few unexpected wins that we weren’t counting on! Never a dull moment during competitions.” 

Here are the individual results for the Gator grapplers: 

Zeke Cooper, 106, went 4-2 (15-15 overall) 

Wesley Spencer, 113, 0-6, (7-22)

Jake Parker, 120/126, 5-1, (27-4) 

Luke Bryan, 132, 0-6, (10-22) 

Jarrett Spencer, 152, 2-4, (16-17) 

Conner Roberts, 170, 2-0, (26-2) 

Calvin Carpenter, 170/182, 5-1, (16-14) 

James Hardy, 220, 4-2, (19-13) 

Sam Hunter, 285, 3-3, (4-3) 

“Our goal is to peak at the right time, just as the regular season wraps up, (and) I believe we’re on track,” he added. 

Malcolm invited all wrestling fans to “come on out to the school” on Friday and Saturday, Jan. 13 and 14 for the Gator Brawl “to see how the wrestlers have progressed.”