Harrison County wins its first wrestling regional title in 38 years
A new alignment of Kentucky’s high school wrestling regions offered a fresh opportunity for Harrison County’s tradition-rich program to end a 38-year team title drought.
The Thorobreds took advantage on Saturday, if just barely.
Harrison County topped Great Crossing 275.5 points to 274.5 points in the team standings of the Kentucky High School Athletic Association Region 6 Wrestling Championships at Bryan Station High School.
“I’m proud of the kids. It’s all about the kids,” Harrison County Coach Josh Ashbrook said.
But it’s also about history. And this year’s Harrison County team has secured its place in it.
This is Ashbrook’s ninth season as head coach. He was an individual region champion and All-America high school wrestler for the Thorobreds in the 2000s. For the last seven years under Ashbrook, Harrison County has finished runner-up in the old Region 8, which was also home to wrestling powerhouse Johnson Central.
The last time Harrison County won a region title, Ashbrook’s father, Greg, was a member of the team in 1984.
“I’ve preached to the boys all week about the camaraderie and what it would mean to our program and our community if we brought a region title back, because it’s been a long time,” Ashbrook said.
The team victory included two individual region titles, one at 150 pounds for Logan Dingus, the son of assistant coach Eric Dingus, who also wrestled for Harrison in his day, and the other at 120 pounds for Leydon Nelson, who grabbed a technical fall victory on points, 19-4, despite suffering a shoulder injury in the second of three periods.
“It’s hurtin’,” Nelson said after the meet with a medal around his neck and a sling around his right arm. How did he get hurt? “I don’t really know. I was trying to pin him and I felt it pop.”
Clearly favoring the arm after the incident, Nelson nearly got pinned. Though he had built a substantial lead, he knew a momentary lapse could cost him the match.
“The adrenaline was coming. I know I needed that win,” Nelson said. “I was really wanting it. I fought through it. It was pretty tough, but I really wanted that match.”
Nelson not only held on, he padded his lead to the 15-point margin that triggers a win by technical fall.
“He’s tough as nails,” Ashbrook said. “And I know that’s cliché … but the kid is tough. He could have laid down on us and if he did, we wouldn’t have won. I’m very proud of him. He’s a great kid.”
All top four finishers in each weight class at each of the state’s regionals qualify for next weekend’s State First Round of the KHSAA Wrestling Championships. The western half of the state, Regions 1-4, will compete at Union County High School in Morganfield. Regions 5-8 will compete at Great Crossing High School in Georgetown. The State Final Round will be held the following weekend at George Rogers Clark High School in Winchester.
Second-place Great Crossing will have 11 wrestlers competing next weekend, including five individual region champions: Trent Cano (106 pounds), Rowdy Benner (126), Gus Roberts (132), Nicholas Armentano (138) and Aiden Butler (157). Warhawks Coach Sam Murdock was named region coach of the year.
Twelve of Harrison County’s 14 wrestlers will be there, as well.
“It’s great to see the program evolve. We have 40 boys and around 33 girls. We have about 35 in our youth and about 30 in our middle school, so as a program, we’re trending in the right direction,” Ashbrook said. His girls’ team has won two coaches’ association state titles.
Lafayette’s Giannone named most outstanding wrestler
Brayden Giannone, who won a state championship as a sophomore but had to withdraw from last year’s state event due to COVID-19 protocols, won the 165-pound weight class for his fourth straight region title and was named the meet’s most outstanding wrestler.
After missing last year’s state championships, he’s more determined to win it all again this year. He was a state runner-up as a freshman.
“Oh man, it sucked because my goal was to get as many state championships as I could,” Giannone said. “Not being able to compete my junior year to get my second one hurt, definitely.”
Giannone, who recently committed to continuing his wrestling career at Washington and Lee University, won his first match of the day 18-0. He won the rest by fall, including the title match in under a minute.
“Overall, I’m pretty happy with what I’ve done in high school,” he said. “I’d like to cap it off with a state championship this year. Aside from wrestling, I feel like I’ve grown into a much better leader for the team as captain and made a lot of friends like family.”
Lafayette will send two other champions to semi-state. Jasitin Kubwimana won at 144 pounds and Nic Russell got the 285-pound win when his finals opponent withdrew due to injury. Overall, Lafayette finished sixth out of 15 teams.
That’s a boost for a Generals program under Coach William Green that had a hard time attracting wrestlers this year. It only had six of a possible 14 wrestlers in the regional.
“I’m extremely proud of my guys,” Green said. “Our numbers are low, but ‘this too shall pass,’ if you know what I’m saying. We’ll come back. Those guys stepped up and they represented.”
COVID-19 protocols kept both of Green’s qualifying wrestlers out of the state championships last year. Green said he hadn’t missed a state meet in two decades of coaching.
Comeback win part of big day for Douglass
Among Frederick Douglass’s nine state qualifiers were two individual region champions, Lawson Hill at 190 pounds and John Bronson at 175. Hill won his match by fall, but Bronson’s came in overtime after a dramatic, last-second rally.
Bronson trailed his finals match 6-4 in the closing seconds. He got one point as his opponent, Harrison County’s Jacobie White, let him off the mat after restarting from the down position. Then, a split-second before the clock ran out, the referee awarded the tying point to Bronson after signaling a stalling penalty against White.
“I didn’t know what I was going to do,” Bronson said of his comeback. “I was a little anxious to be completely honest, but I figured if I work hard enough, it’s going to happen. That’s just way the world works.”
In overtime, any scoring move wins the match. Bronson hooked his opponent’s legs and took him down butt-first to the mat for two points and the win, 20 seconds into OT.
“I’ve been waiting for this chance to win the region for a long time. I’m glad I’ve finally got to take advantage of it,” Bronson said.
Frederick Douglass finished third in the team standings, its best team finish yet under Coach Ed Towle. Among their best finishers was Peyton Mayo, a seventh-grade phenom wrestling at 285 pounds. Mayo placed second after withdrawing from the finals due to injury.
“I’m proud of every one of my teammates,” Bronson, a senior, said. “We’ve all wrestled really well this year, and I think we proved that today.”
Bryan Station finishes strong
First-year Bryan Station coach Josh Hovden will have six wrestlers move on to state, including 215-pound champion Jahvon Frazier.
The Defenders finished in fourth place, up from eighth last year and good enough for a coaches’ association team trophy.
“Station has had a phenomenal year this year,” said Hovden, whose son, Grant, will be among those at state. “We started the year with 30 wrestlers, which is the biggest team to my knowledge in Bryan Station history. It’s been very fun.”
Hovden said his wrestlers have been increasing their own numbers by promoting the program within the school.
“I love the team bonding that we have,” said Frazier, who is just a sophomore. “And how when I get on the mat and wrestle it helps with football, too. It’s really fun.”
Frazier has a laid back demeanor, according to his coach, something that might have helped after what looked to be an early win by fall was corrected by the referee in his finals match.
“My foot was out. I didn’t even notice,” Frazier said.
Frazier wasted little time getting the pin for real later in the match.
“That doesn’t happen very often, but as long as a guy can keep their head under control and not freak out … J’s pretty decent about that,” Hovden said. “He keeps his head in it.”
Among other Lexington teams, Paul Laurence Dunbar finished seventh and will send three wrestlers to state, Henry Clay finished ninth and will send two wrestlers to state and Tates Creek finished 10th and will send three wrestlers to state.
Region 6 wrestling championships
State qualifiers listed:
Most outstanding male wrestler: Brayden Giannone, Lafayette.
Coach of the year: Sam Murdock, Great Crossing.
106 — 1. Trent Cano, Great Crossing; 2. Steven Smith, Frederick Douglass; 3. Mat Wasson, Harrison County; 4. Carson Webster, Grant County. Title match: Cano over Smith (Dec 8-1).
113 — 1. Ethan Davis, Grant County; 2. Aydn Funkhouser, Harrison County; 3. Anthony Condi, Frederick Douglass; 4. Nathan White, Henry Clay. Title match: Davis over Funkhouser (Dec 3-2).
120 — 1. Leydon Nelson, Harrison County; 2. Jonah Baysinger, Scott County; 3. Noah Toomey, Grant County; 4. Triton Moncrief, Frederick Douglass. Title match: Nelson over Baysinger (TF 19-4)
126 — 1. Rowdy Benner, Great Crossing; 2. Maximus Moncrief, Frederick Douglass; 3. Joel Muleva, Bryan Station; 4. Elliot Pope, West Jessamine. Title match: Benner over Moncrief (Fall)
132 — 1. Gus Roberts, Great Crossing; 2. Logan Hein, Harrison County; 3. Keaton Shott, Paul Laurence Dunbar; 4. Francis Cox, Bryan Station. Title match: Roberts over Hein (Fall).
138 — 1. Nicholas Armentano, Great Crossing; 2. Anthony Webster, Grant County; 3. Maurice Murphy, Frederick Douglass; 4. Landon Baker, Harrison County. Title match: Armentano over Webster (Fall).
144 — 1. Jasitin Kubwimana, Lafayette; 2. Micheal Watts, Harrison County; 3. Ethan Sentelle, Great Crossing; 4. John Alden, West Jessamine. Title match: Kubwimana over Watts (Dec 8-4).
150 — 1. Logan Dingus, Harrison County; 2. Malachi Young, Great Crossing; 3. Jaris Bloom-Doyle, Paul Laurence Dunbar; 4. Jacob Wolfe, Frederick Douglass. Title match: Dingus over Young (Fall).
157 — 1. Aiden Butler, Great Crossing; 2. Alex Sledd, Harrison County; 3. Naser Eqal, Tates Creek; 4. Grant Hovden, Bryan Station. Title match: Butler over Sledd (Fall).
165 — 1. Brayden Giannone, Lafayette; 2. Joshua Strayer, Great Crossing; 3. Jack Howard, Harrison County; 4. Foster Reeves, Paul Laurence Dunbar. Title match: Giannone over Strayer (Fall).
175 — 1. John Bronson, Frederick Douglass; 2. Jacobie White, Harrison County; 3. Logan Julian, Tates Creek; 4. Caleb Combs, Bryan Station. Title match: Bronson over White (OT 8-6).
190 — 1. Lawson Hill, Frederick Douglass; 2. Grayson Dell’Acqua, Harrison County; 3. Jadan Hackney, Henry Clay; 4. Jesse Shaddix, Great Crossing. Title match: Hill over Dell`Acqua (Fall).
215 — 1. Jahvon Frazier, Bryan Station; 2. JD Tucker, Harrison County; 3. Joaquin Solis, Great Crossing; 4. Adam Lynch, Tates Creek. Title match: Frazier over Tucker (Fall 0:00).
285 — 1. Nic Russell, Lafayette; 2. Peyton Mayo, Frederick Douglass; 3. Gary McCaulley, Bryan Station; 4. Chase Little, Great Crossing. Title match: Russell over Mayo (M. For.).
This story was originally published February 13, 2022 at 1:47 PM.
