Mat Canes End Season at State

The Mat ‘Canes had four wrestlers qualify for the state traditional tournament at Gwinnett Center last week- end.

In order to place, or win a medal, a wrestler has to finish in the top six in the state. None of the ‘Canes managed to place, but they all did finish well. Senior Brandon Barger won his first match, lost his second, won his third and lost his fourth to finish in eighth place, just one win away from placing.

Head Wrestling Coach Andy Rewis said, “Brandon has had a great career here. He was a state placer as a sophomore. For the last three years he has been one of the top wrestlers in the state in his weight class, and he finished the season with a record of 58-7.”

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Sophomore Justin Bradley also finished in eighth place and was a match away from placing. His record for the year was 59-19.

Juniors Oscar Sandoval and Victor Bautista both finished in the top 12. Sandoval finished the season with a record of 61-5, and Bautista finished 32-9.

Coach Rewis said, “Justin, Oscar and Victor will be returning next year and they will be the guys we will count on. All four of our qualifiers wrestled well, but when you get down to the top 16 wrestlers in the state there is no room for a mistake. We had a tremendous year, team-wise and individual-wise.

“Some people talked about our region being weak, but Morgan placed fourth in the state and barely beat us out in the region. Then when we got to the sectionals there was Jefferson, who won the state by 140 points.

“We faced some good competition and had great success and I think our kids are beginning to believe we can compete with anyone, and that’s a good way to end the season.”