Polk County brought home a pair of individual titles and a third-place team finish from Wednesday’s James Short North Knight Invitational wrestling tourney at North Henderson.
Styler Blackwell and Zalen McCraw each won their weight classes to lead the Wolverines, who finished only behind Pisgah and Science Hill (Tenn.) in the 20-team field that included competitors from three states.
Two other Polk wrestlers, Liam Jackson and Efrain Rivera, finished as the runner-up in their respective weight classes. Amon Villarreal and Jacob Ed each placed third in their divisions.
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Blackwell, making his season debut, won the 165-pound class. He pinned West Henderson’s Zachary Blankenship in the championship match. McCraw claimed the 175-pound class, winning all his matches by pin before scoring a major decision over Pisgah’s Luke Early in the final.
113
Round 1 – Liam Jackson (PC) p. Jaxon Fisher (Smoky Mountain) (Fall 0:46)
Round 3 – Liam Jackson p. Brody Hoffman (Maiden) (Fall 5:30)
Championship Bracket – Liam Jackson d. Luke Brown (T.C. Roberson), 12-6
1st Place Match – Saxon Mattison (Science Hill) tech. fall over Liam Jackson, 15-0
120
Round 2 – Efrain Rivera (PC) p. Porter Gonzales (West Henderson) (Fall 0:36)
Round 3 – Efrain Rivera p. Sahir Caracmo (Rock Hill) (Fall 1:25)
Championship Bracket – Efrain Rivera maj. dec. Liam Perry (Watauga), 12-3
1st Place Match – Mac Johnson (Cape Fear) tech. fall over Efrain Rivera, 17-1
126
Round 1 – Amon Villarreal (PC) p. Cooper White (Brevard) 1-2 (Fall 1:44)
Round 2 – Amon Villarreal tech. fall Leland Carroll (Hendersonville), 16-0
Round 3 – Amon Villarreal tech. fall Tony Austin (Asheville / SILSA), 17-0
Championship Bracket – Bryson Mcfalls (Mitchell) d. Amon Villarreal, 8-7
3rd Place Match – Amon Villarreal p. Caiden Vick (Smoky Mountain) (Fall 3:59)
132
Round 2 – Aiden Billings (PC) p. Alejandro Ramos (North Henderson) (Fall 1:55)
Round 3 – Kyle Simpson (Parkwood) p. Aiden Billings (Fall 1:04)
Consolation Bracket – Logan Hudson (East Henderson) d. Aiden Billings, 14-9
7th Place Match – Thomas Hutchinson (Rock Hill) maj. dec. Aiden Billings, 13-3
138
Round 1 – Kail Burnette (Pisgah) p. Jaxtyn Virgil (PC) (Fall 4:17)
Round 2 – Takota Tala (Parkwood) tech. fall over Jaxtyn Virgil, 19-3
Round 3 – Beattie Hendley (Watauga) d. Jaxtyn Virgil, 14-12
144
Round 1 – Alex Herrera (James F Byrnes) p. Conner Ahlert (PC) (Fall 5:07)
Round 2 – Mason Maybin (East Henderson) p. Conner Ahlert (Fall 1:47)
Round 3 – Jacob Cruz-Reyes (Pisgah) d. Conner Ahlert, 10-7
150
Round 1 – Jacob Ed (PC) p. William Lippard (Watauga) (Fall 1:12)
Round 2 – Jacob Ed p. Izick Thao (Maiden) (Fall 1:56)
Round 3 – Jacob Ed p. Braeden Parrish (Science Hill) (Fall 2:54)
Championship Bracket – Reid Whitesell (Rock Hill) d. Jacob Ed, 3-0
3rd Place Match – Jacob Ed p. Tre Sias (James F Byrnes) (Fall 0:35)
157
Round 1 – Jonathan Chapman (Pisgah) p. Danny Bradley (PC) (Fall 2:46)
Round 2 – Brendan Lewis (Hendersonville) p. Danny Bradley (Fall 1:58)
Round 3 – Kashawn Busby (Rock Hill) p. Danny Bradley (Fall 2:39)
165
Round 2 – Styler Blackwell (PC) p. Jeff Bowen (James F Byrnes) 0-2 (Fall 0:54)
Round 3 – Styler Blackwell p. Govany Cruz (Smoky Mountain) 1-2 (Fall 1:00)
Championship Bracket – Styler Blackwell maj. dec. Francisco Hernandez, 18-5
1st Place Match – Styler Blackwell p. Zachary Blankenship (West Henderson) (Fall 2:35)
175
Round 1 – Zalen McCraw (PC) p. Avery Carpenter (Franklin) (Fall 1:20)
Round 2 – Zalen McCraw p. Jaysin Erwin (Mitchell) (Fall 0:34)
Round 3 – Zalen McCraw p. Samuel Eli Blanton (North Henderson) (Fall 3:14)
Championship Bracket – Zalen McCraw p. Blake Walter (James F Byrnes) (Fall 3:18)
1st Place Match – Zalen McCraw maj. dec. Levi Early (Pisgah), 13-4
190
Round 1 – Chester Wilson (PC) p. Cole Fleeman (Science Hill) (Fall 0:57)
Round 2 – Chester Wilson p. Kadin Chaga (Rosman) (Fall 3:56)
Round 3 – Jaxon Metcalf (East Henderson) p. Chester Wilson (Fall 2:33)
Consolation Bracket – Henry Stubblefield (T.C. Roberson) d. Chester Wilson, 9-2
7th Place Match – Chester Wilson p. Paul Burnette (Pisgah) (Fall 2:48)
