The King of Kings Invitational wasn’t just Orange’s fourth tournament team championship this season. It also gave a possibly preview of what several Panthers could face in the individual state championships next month.
Last Saturday, Orange captured the King of Kings Championship with 209.5 point at Olympic High School in Charlotte. Northwestern High, out of Rock Hill (SC), finished 2nd with 139.5. Dixon High came in 3rd with 124.5.
Braden Homsey earned his fifth championship of the season at 195 pounds in dominant fashion. In three matches, Homsey earned a pin and two technical falls, including the championship match against Zatay Lindsey of Southern Durham 17-1. In the quarterfinals, Homsey pinned Joshua Vickers of Rutherfordton-Spindale Central in 1:55. Homsey punched his ticket to the semifinals with a 19-4 technical fall over Malcolm Grandison of Hopewell. Homsey is now 26-0 on the season.
After a runner-up finish at Eastern Alamance and third-place finishes in the Jim King Invitational and the Tiger Invitational, senior Gavin Wiggins earned his first championship of the season at the King of Kings. Taking the championship at 126, Wiggins squeezed out a 10-8 decision over Ethan Workman of Charlotte Latin School. Wiggins defeated Preston Scarborough of Central Academy of Technology and Arts 6-5 in the semifinals. Wiggins improved to 24-4.
The tournament also marked the first loss of the season for senior Josiah Ramirez, who fell in the championship match to John Carmella of Marvin Ridge 5-2. Ramirez scored two pins leading to the championship match, putting away Austin Brown of Central Cabarrus in 1:07 and Chase Hamlin of Northwestern in 2:00. Carmella and Ramirez are the two top-ranked wrestlers at 182 in the state, according to Kombatready.com. It was Ramirez’s first loss after 27 consecutive wins to start the season.
At 120, Justin Hutchins finished 2nd, his best performance yet in a tournament. Hutchins was pinned by Corey Smith of Dixon in the championship match. Hutchins earned his way to the title match by defeating Dylan Kelly of Marvin Ridge 7-5 in the semifinals. Hutchins pinned Aman Ellis of Olympic in 1:15.
Senior Bailey Hawkins finished runner-up at 132. Hawkins pinned Hunter Padgett of Dixon in :55 in the quarterfinals, then defeated Jordan McKinney of Northwest Cabarrus 6-2. Ethan Workman of Central Cabarrus claimed a 13-4 major decision over Hawkins in the finals. Hawkins is currently ranked 5th in 3A at 132 with a 26-4 record by Kombatready.com.
Daylan Alston claimed 2nd at heavyweight, boosting his record to 28-4. Alston pinned Michelle Elguero of Central Cabarrus in :11, then pinned DeAnthony Barnhardt of Northwest Cabarrus in 4:39. Thomas Hudson of Dixon pinned Alston in 5:10 for the championship.
Levi Anderson also finished 2nd at 138. He was narrowly defeated in the championship match by Nathan Buchanan of Central Cabarrus 2-1. Anderson had the longest road of any Panther to reach the finals. In the opening round, he pinned Southern Durham’s Demetrius Moore in :21, followed by another pinfall victory over Marvin Ridge’s Dheeraj Pannem in 1:10. In the semifinals, Anderson earned a major decision over Shemar Washington of Northwestern 13-4.
Mitchell Askew (113), Luke Riley (145) and Trey Jones (170) finished third in their respective weight classes.
Now, Orange enters the final week of the regular season looking to close out another Big 8 Conference Championship. After being inactive last week because of 11 inches of snow in Hillsborough, the Panthers senior night meet against Southern Durham was postponed. On Wednesday, Orange travels to Northern Durham for its first conference match against the Knights since 2001. Orange Wrestling Coach Spencer Poteat is trying to arrange the Southern Durham match to be contested at Carmichael Arena at UNC on Friday, but that won’t be finalized until Monday at the earliest. Orange is 16-0 overall, 5-0 in the Big 8.