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State of upset: Clay's Orth knocks off defender
COLUMBUS - Northwest Ohio brought a limited number of wrestlers to the Division I state wrestling tournament.
But the wrestlers who represented this area in Thursday's first round at Ohio State's Schottenstein Center did so in grand style.
Clay's Mark Orth made the biggest splash, knocking off defending state champ Shawn Fayette of Miamisburg 10-5 in his first-round 135-pound match.
It was an impressive turnaround for Orth, who lost to Fayette 9-1 in the Greater Miami Valley tournament earlier this season.
"The first time I wrestled him I realized he was a defensive wrestler, so every time I would shoot he would counter," Orth said. "This time I tried to play defense,
to make him come to me and then counter his mistakes."
Orth and Fayette went back and forth in the first two periods, with Orth leading 5-4 entering the third period. Fayette escaped early in the final period, but Orth used a takedown and three near-fall points in the final moments to claim the win.
The Clay senior, 25-9, was the only wrestler to beat a defending state champ.
"When he escaped, I knew it was going to be a battle until the end," Orth said. "He tried to take a shot, then wing me over, but I caught him and took him down.
"It was a super-exciting moment. I took [out] the big dog right off the top."
Clay coach Gerry Anthony said Orth used his early-season loss to Fayette to his advantage.
"He had nothing to lose," Anthony said. "I told Mark before the match, 'He's going to be taking you lightly, and the pressure was on [Fayette].' We know Mark is tough, and we hope he keeps surprising people at this tournament."
Actually, Orth wasn't the only area D-I wrestler who upset a defending state champion - albeit with an asterisk. St. John's Kevin Schoen topped last year's junior high titlist, Joe Tayse of powerhouse Massillon Perry, 11-4, at 189 pounds. Schoen, a senior, welcomed the experience factor against the freshman champ.
"That's probably the hardest I've wrestled," Schoen said. "I knew if I could keep my technique I'd have a chance, but I didn't know it would be that decisive."
Start's Nate Brubaker, who lost a pair of matches at last year's state tournament, opened impressively by pinning Ryan Quinn of Cincinnati Oak Hills in 4:09 in the 171-pound match.
"I felt good in warm-ups, and I felt good with my offense," Brubaker said. "I worked a lot harder this year, because I know this is my last shot and I want to go big.
"I think I'm wrestling a lot smarter this year. I'm seeing openings better and taking advantage of them. I'm not as sloppy as last year, and I'm more mature this year."
Clay's Nick Garcia (103) was thrown to his back for five points midway through the third period before scoring a reversal with 11 seconds left to top Dublin Coffman's Ryan Murdock, 6-5.
"I was just thinking I have plenty of time," Garcia said. "I've been down in matches plenty of times. You can't lose your composure or get sloppy."
Orth and Garcia's teammates, Angelo Amenta (130) and Chico Cloyne (160), weren't as successful. Amenta, a sophomore, lost his opening match to Drew Hammer of Cincinnati Moeller by a 9-5 score, then won his first consolation match to stay alive.
Cloyne, a junior, suffered a 15-0 technical fall at the hands of Caleb Marsh of Marysville, a two-time state place-winner. Cloyne then was pinned by Harrison's C.J. Rivera.
Findlay teammates Michael Alexander (171) and Max Gladstone (285) both won their opening matches. Alexander claimed a 6-2 decision over Billy Malicote of Middletown, while Gladstone knocked off Brandon Bucknell of Twinsburg 6-4.
Tyler Trautwein of Fremont Ross won his first match at 189, beating Fred Robertson of Maple Heights 5-3.
Today's wrestling includes a pair of sessions at 10 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. leading up to tomorrow's championship rounds.
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