Amelia's Luke Mentzel earned a 12-1 major decision victory over New Richmond's Jacob Nobel on Friday, Dec. 2, 2016.

Amelia's Luke Mentzel earned a 12-1 major decision victory over New Richmond's Jacob Nobel on Friday, Dec. 2, 2016.

By Garth Shanklin
Sports Editor

The New Richmond Lions wasted no time introducing their wrestling team to the school this past weekend. The team held their in-school dual on Dec. 2, welcoming the Amelia Barons to campus.

The event got started at the 138-pound class. Ryan Wolf defeated Amelia’s Adrian Root 11-5 to put the Lions ahead 3-0.

At the 145-pound class, New Richmond’s Casey Washburn pinned Amelia’s Trevor Click 1:53 into their match for the win, increasing the Lions’ lead to 9-0.

The 152-pound match ended with another pin. New Richmond’s Gavin Clark pinned Amelia’s Brandon Inhoff 54 seconds into their bout, giving the Lions a 15-0 lead.

The Barons got on the board in the 160-pound class. Luke Mentzel earned a 12-1 major decision victory over Jacob Nobel, giving the Barons their first four points.

New Richmond won the next match in the 170-pound class via pin. Clayton Holder pinned Dylan Heyward at the 2:35 mark for the victory.

Scott Troxell took to the mat in the 182-pound tilt for the Lions against Amelia’s Kyle Bray. Troxell won the match via pin in less than 20 seconds.

The Lions earned six points from the win, increasing their lead to 27-4. It jumped to 39-4 after back-to-back forfeits by the Barons in the 195 and 220-pound weight classes.

In the 285-pound tilt, the Barons earned a 14-7 decision victory with Jacob Dakin defeating Fred Simmons.

New Richmond returned to their winning ways in the 113-pound contest, with Owen Wash pinning Amelia’s Noah Gailey 2:38 into their match. Elijah Richards won his match against Amelia’s Sydney Gailey via pin 36 seconds into their bout, putting the Lions ahead 51-7. Amelia earned the final six points at the 126-pound class via forfeit, making the final score 51-13. The 132-pound match resulted in a double-forfeit.

The varsity Lions return to action on Friday, Dec. 16 with the first day of a two-day tournament in Blanchester. Amelia will compete at Edgewood High School in Trenton on Dec. 9.

On Dec. 3, the Lions welcomed middle school wrestlers from around the area to New Richmond for the New Richmond Middle School Invitational.

Ryle won the team title by more than 100 points, with Loveland coming in second place. New Richmond placed third. Amelia totaled 125 points, good for fifth place. Batavia placed sixth, one point behind Amelia. Williamsburg, CNE, Glen Este and Bethel-Tate rounded out the top 10.

Batavia seventh grader Brandon Sauter won the title in the 80-pound class by defeating Ryle’s Olivia Messerly in a 13-0 major decision. New Richmond’s Jackson Ober finished fifth in that same class by pinning Lakota West’s Casey Hochwalt.

In the 86-pound class, Batavia’s Hunter Shinkle placed second to Ryle’s Cole Thomas. Bethel-Tate eighth grader Joey Reinert placed third, with Glen Este seventh grader Michael Hubbard in fourth. Amelia’s Phoenix Simpson placed fifth.

Bethel-Tate’s Bubba Carter placed second in the 92-pound class. Glen Este’s Bryan Hertel finished fifth by pinning Amelia’s Lantz Orick in 1:35. CNE’s Vin Jetter earned an eighth-place finish.

Four local wrestlers made the podium in the 98-pound class. Batavia’s Brayden Zenni defeated Amelia’s Dylan Rowland for third place, with CNE’s Derrick Lay earning a 7-5 win over Conner’s Rudi Johnson for fifth. Glen Este’s Colton Bach placed eighth.

In the 104-pound class, Goshen’s Ace Atwood earned the title by defeating New Richmond’s Isaiah Walriven 2-0. Glen Este’s Evan Thomasson placed sixth, with Amelia’s Dylan Smith finishing seventh.

Amelia’s Isaiah Roberto placed second in the 110-pound class, falling to Ryle’s Michael Dodge in the championship. New Richmond’s Zane Naegele earned a fourth-place finish, with Brian Strunk finishing seventh due to a forfeit.

CNE’s Cyris Williams placed third in the 116-pound class by pinning New Richmond’s Tyler Seng at the 1:17 mark. Tristan Shepard placed sixth for the Lions, with Bethel-Tate’s Charlie Troxell finishing in seventh. Goshen’s Shawn Donaldson placed eighth.

In the 122-pound class, New Richmond’s Donnie McClanahan won the title with a 14-6 major decision victory over Ryle’s Carter Messerly. Teammate Nathan Daniels pinned Goshen’s Noah Martin 49 seconds into their match.

Another Lion, Avey Skaggs, finished second in the 128-pound class. Skaggs fell to Loveland’s Momo Wilson via pin at 1:17.

CNE’s Mavrick Conley finished fourth, one spot behind Goshen’s Rafael Farris. Amelia’s Hank Williams finished sixth.

In the 134-pound class, Bethel-Tate’s Logan Owens finished second. Williamsburg’s Joseph Bechtol finished third, with Glen Este’s Luis Jimenez finishing fifth. New Richmond’s Donavan Weeks placed sixth.

Williamsburg’s Trent Kellerman placed second in the 142-pound class. Glen Este’s Mason Gibson was third, followed by CNE’s Brayden Hicks. Bethel-Tate’s Mikey Molloy placed seventh.

In the 150-pound class, Odin Rayborn from Williamsburg placed second, with Amelia’s Caleb Alther in fourth. Glen Este’s Dustin Manwaring placed seventh.

In the 160-pound class, Amelia’s Jaden Hornsby pinned Glen Este’s Tony Fehr 49 seconds into their match to take fifth place.

Williamsburg’s Andrew Hatter placed second at the 172-pound class. Batavia’s Issac Hatter finished third, defeating teammate Tristan Colson-Wright. New Richmond’s Ethan Hayes placed sixth.

Colin Shelton finished second behind Indian Hill’s Nathan Berger in the 205-pound class. CNE’s Hunter Vires defeated New Richmond’s Cohen Utsinger for third place. Williamsburg’s Ivan Wallace earned a 2-0 decision win over Amelia’s Dylan Maple for sixth.

In the final weight class, Glen Este’s Justin Buser placed second to Lakota West’s Pete Fenton. CNE’s Dominic Meyer finished sixth, and Goshen’s Austin Grundy pinned Loveland’s Billy Jones to take home seventh place.