WINCHESTER, Ky - One week after Ryle High School hosted the first round of the state meet, 10 Northern Kentucky schools made the trip to George Rogers Clark High School for the final bouts of the season. A total of 32 individuals took to the mats across all 14 weight classes hoping to bring hardware back to the region.
Several wrestlers made the trip to Winchester for the second consecutive year. Others were on their maiden voyage, looking to make an impact at the state level. A few others had changed weight classes in hopes that a fresh start would bring prosperity.
From individuals to teams, state champions to podium finishers, here is how Northern Kentucky fared at the wrestling state championships.
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Simon Kenton's Braydan Blevins became Northern Kentucky's first state champion when he defeated Harrison County's George Dennis in the 106-pound championship. The final was a rematch of the semi-state semifinal where Dennis defeated Blevins.
"It kind of benefitted me knowing that I came here as an underdog. But I still knew I could win it," Blevins said.
Blevins, who qualified for the state tournament at 113 pounds in 2022, began the final bout down 2-0. He fought back with escapes and reversals to take a commanding 6-2 lead, then held off Dennis by a final score of 7-4. Since they had faced off just one week prior, Blevins knew what he had to do to secure the victory.
"About halfway through the match, I realized that every time I got my under hooks, he backed away, so he didn't want to go upper body with me. So I used that to my advantage," Blevins said.
The win gave Blevins a record of 59-10 to finish the season. Dennis took just his second loss of the season after entering the championship at 42-1.
Ryle's Landen Evans made it two-for-two, following Blevins with a dominant win at 113 pounds. The Raider sophomore entered the tournament as the state's top-ranked wrestler in his weight class. On his way to the final match, he defeated opponents from St. Xavier, Boyle County and Union County.
"I feel like once you get a few wins, your confidence goes up a lot," Evans said.
Evans' opponent was fellow sophomore Ren Birk from Great Crossing. Evans made quick work of his counterpart, owning a 2-0 lead after one period before increasing it to 5-0 after two periods and eventually winning by a final decision of 7-0. Evans knew that if he could do what he wanted, the title bout wouldn't be much of a fight.
"Once I got into the third period, and he chose top, I knew I was gonna get out, and it was over," Evans said.
The Raider sophomore finishes the season with a record of 45-4, while Birk ends his sophomore campaign at 33-5.
Walton-Verona sophomore T.J. Meyer entered the state tournament as the defending runner-up at 120 pounds and looked to make it three championships in as many weight classes for Northern Kentucky. His path to the final bout included opponents from Western Hills, Simon Kenton's Jonah McCloskey (who took fifth at 120 pounds) and John Hardin. He faced Union County's Jayden Raney in the title bout. Union County had one of the largest cheering sections, but Meyer didn't let that get to his head.
"I don't really think too much about the team they're from or who they are. I just keep a clear headline and head straight forward," Meyer said.
The bout was scoreless after the first period, but Meyer got on the board first with an escape. Raney countered with a reversal and an escape of his own to take a 3-1 lead in the third period. Meyer fought back, getting a second escape with 10 seconds left. But time ran out on his comeback, meaning Meyer earned the silver medal for a second year in a row.
"It feels pretty good, I gotta be honest. Even though it wasn't first and that's always what I strive for, but it felt very good," Meyer said.
Walton-Verona, Ryle place in the top eight of team standings
From a team perspective, Meyer's effort led Walton Verona to a sixth-place finish in the team standings. The Bearcats also got contributions from Hunter Isaacs (third at 138 pounds), Mason Schweitzer (third at 144 pounds) and Luke Hyden (fourth at 215 pounds).
The Ryle Raiders were right behind them in seventh. In addition to Evans' win, Seth Page (fifth at 126 pounds), James Haas (fifth at 144 pounds) and Caleb Duke (sixth at 175 pounds) also scored points to factor into the result.
Familiar faces, unfamiliar weight classes
Several wrestlers made a return to the state championships after placing in 2022, with some changing weight classes.
Campbell County's Mason Orth bested his fourth place from a year ago, taking third at 113 pounds. McCloskey wrestled at 106 pounds a year ago before making weight at 120 pounds. Ryle's Rider Trumble also leveled up from 120 pounds to wrestle at 132 pounds. Schweitzer made his second-straight appearance in the 144-pound class.
Rilen Pinkston, who won the first regional championship in Highlands history, wrestled at 150 pounds after competing at 144 pounds last year. Scott's Aiden Zinser was yet another fighter to add weight over last year, going from 150 pounds to 165 pounds. Finally, Willie Rodriguez went from 190 pounds to 285 pounds, a move that was partially impacted by his football career.
Other medalists:
106: Clayton Badida (Conner) 7th
113: Mason Orth (Campbell County) 3rd; Aiden Marquis (Conner) 8th
120: Jonah McCloskey (Simon Kenton) 4th
126: Seth Page (Ryle) 5th; Maalik Washington (Conner) 7th; Christopher Ferraro (Campbell County) 8th
138: Hunter Isaacs (Walton-Verona) 3rd
144: Mason Schweitzer (Walton-Verona) 3rd; James Haas (Ryle) 5th
150: Rilen Pinkston (Highlands) 6th
157: Kyle Richmond (Campbell County) 7th
165: Aiden Zinser (Scott) 5th
175: Caleb Duke (Ryle) 7th
190: Travis Steiber (Ryle) 8th
215: Luke Hyden (Walton-Verona) 4th
285: Emauryon Arnold (Holmes) 4th; Willie Rodriguez (Covington Catholic) 5th
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