Mavs matmen runners-up at duals
A successful holiday weekend concluded with a runner-up finish in a top dual meet tournament for the Anderson County High School wrestling team on Saturday.
The Mavericks won three of their four matches at the Chris Vandergriff Duals, hosted by Knoxville Halls High School.
They opened the dual tournament with a 66-14 victory over Pigeon Forge. The Tigers didn’t have their full roster in North Knox County as many of their top athletes were competing at a tournament in Johnson City.
ACHS would cruise and eventually earn a berth in the championship match where it fell to Kingsport Dobyns-Bennett. The Indians would defeat the Mavs and earn the championship, but that didn’t dampen the accomplishments on a long day on the mats.
“We wrestled really well,” Anderson County coach Matt Slone said. “We were really outgunned against Dobyns-Bennett because they have so many great wrestlers, great athletes. They have a lot of good wrestlers up and down the lineup.
“Pigeon Forge didn’t have a full team. They had their No. 1’s at a tournament in Johnson City, so we beat them up pretty good.”
The win over Pigeon Forge earned the Mavericks a showdown with David Crockett, a top team from Northeast Tennessee. ACHS would win that match by a slim 39-33 margin.
“Crockett is a top team. They’re one of the best, and they had all of their guys,” Slone said. “Josh Bingham pinned a really good opponent, and we really had a bunch of our guys wrestle well.
Bingham competes in the 165-point weight division.
Freshman 126-pounder Kyden Matchette had a big day Saturday, according to Slone.
The Mavericks also notched a historic win over Maryville, earning a 48-28 victory over the Rebels. It was Anderson County’s first win over the Rebels in recent memory.
“It wasn’t our first win over Maryville, but it was our first win against them since coach (Alex) Cate took over their program,” Slone said.
Cate was a star grappler for the host Red Devils during his high school career.
Evan Prewitt, the Mavs’ 152-pounder picked up a key victory, and Morgan Dye, who was competing outside his weight division, had a big day.
“I have to mention, Morgan Dye. He’s our 215-pound wrestler and he’s not a full 215,” Slone said. “We moved him up to heavyweight and he did really well. He was giving up a lot of weight but he won a big match against Maryville.
“We had a lot of young guys do well, a lot of freshman, and they did a good job by just not getting pinned.”