Huntsville and Weaver Capture AHSAA State Wrestling Duals Titles
By Josh Bean | For the AHSAA
BIRMINGHAM – Nothing has been normal for Huntsville High School wrestling this week.
A winter storm dropped ice and snow across the Tennessee Valley, closing school and forcing the Crimson Panthers into virtual training. “We had 50 kids doing push-ups on Zoom,” Huntsville coach Patrick Harris said.
It worked. Huntsville (33-1) repeated as the Class 7A wrestling duals champion, defeating Enterprise 56-16 in the championship match at Bill Harris Arena at the Birmingham CrossPlex. Weaver also beat Saint James 42-23 to win the Bearcats first-ever Class 1A/4A duals title.
“This is such a hard-working team, and it’s enjoyable for us, as coaches, to watch,” Huntsville’s Harris said. “That challenge from the weather made today even more enjoyable.”
Huntsville earned five wins by pin, by Cordell Lee (134 pounds), Jay Colbaugh (146 pounds), Yanik Simon (152 pounds), John McKinney (177 pounds) and Griffin McKinney (217 pounds), in the championship round. Once Huntsville built an insurmountable lead, Huntsville’s Zachary Teter (287 pounds), Kiyan Simon (115 pounds) and Wallace Blue (122 pounds) won by forfeit.
The Class 7A championship match capped a full day for action at the CrossPlex, with competition in duals semifinals and championship matches for all four AHSAA wrestling classifications. In addition, the three-day girls championship tournament ended with Daphne winning a third title in the last four years.
Here’s a look at the duals action on Friday evening at the Bill Harris Arena.
CLASS 1A-4A FINALS: Weaver (22-0) won three of the last four matches by pinfall and earned a 42-23 victory over Saint James. Cael Fuller (108 pounds), Haiden Hise (122 pounds) and Dalton Fink (128 pounds) delivered the crucial pinfall victories.
It’s the first duals title for Weaver, which has a starting lineup featuring five eighth graders and two freshmen.
“We’re young, but this is probably the scrappiest team I’ve ever had,” Weaver coach Andy Fulmer said. “They just find a way.”
CLASS 7A CONSOLATION FINALS
HEWITT-TRUSSVILLE 54, SMITHS STATION 18: The Huskies reeled off eight straight wins, starting with Tucker Winn at 140 pounds and ending with Mason Holloway at 217 pounds, en route to the runaway win.
Smiths Station’s Marshel Culbertson (287 pounds) and Timothy Luttrell (134 pounds) won by pinfall.
CLASS 7A SEMIFINALS
HUNTSVILLE 36, HEWITT-TRUSSVILLE 30: Huntsville’s Jake Ciccolella (140 pounds), Jay Colebaugh (146 pounds) and Yanik Simon (152 pounds) recorded three straight pins, and Kiyan Simon’s technical fall win at 115 pounds clinched the victory. Hewitt trailed most of the match, but pinfall wins by Delvecchio Alston (192 pounds), Zack Chatman (287 pounds) and Gavin Battle (108 pounds) made it close.
ENTERPRISE 38, SMITHS STATION 28: Enterprise won the first eight matches, including six of the eight by decision. Smiths Station rallied with three pinfall wins in the last five matches and got another win by forfeit.
CLASS 1A-4A CONSOLATION FINALS
ST. JOHN PAUL II 41, RANBURNE 40: The Falcons earned pinfall wins in four of the first five matches and then had to rally at the end to earn third place. It all came down to the final match, as Xavier Escorpizo earned a 23-8 technical fall victory over Ranburne’s Johnny Mack English at 128 pounds. To get the team win, Escorpizo needed to win by technical fall or pin to earn the needed points for the Falcons. Twelve of the 14 matches ended in pinfall, with each team earning six. Ranburne’s Braden Driver defeated Andy Maroyka at 140 pounds by major decision 12-3 to earn four points, and Escorpizo’s technical fall earned five points and the dual-match win.
CLASS 1A-4A SEMIFINALS
WEAVER 66, ST. JOHN PAUL II 16: Weaver (21-0) remained undefeated in dual-match action, as the Bearcats earned 11 pinfall wins, including seven in a row. St. John Paul’s Jack Von Eschenbach (42-1) won his match at 152 pounds by pin, one of the lone highlights for the Falcons.
SAINT JAMES 48, RANBURNE 24: Saint James (16-3) reeled off six straight wins to start the match. Ranburne was trying to return to the finals after falling to Dora in the 2023 championship match. Emmett Rasmussen (25-4) won by major decision for Saint James, winning 13-3 over Connor Champion at 159 pounds.
CLASS 7A DUALS FINALS
HUNTSVILLE 56, ENTERPRISE 18
134 pounds: Cordell Lee (Huntsville) over Torrian (Enterprise HS) Fall 1:33
140 pounds: Grier Hunt (Enterprise HS) over Jake Ciccolella (Huntsville) Dec 11-5
146 pounds: Jay Colebaugh (Huntsville) over Konner Galvez (Enterprise HS) Fall 3:36
152 pounds: Yanik Simon (Huntsville) over Carmine Hernandez (Enterprise HS) Fall 0:55
159 pounds: Lemuel Lynon (Enterprise HS) over Shane Smith (Huntsville) Dec 5-3
167 pounds: Brock Fields (Huntsville) over Marcus Holder (Enterprise HS) TF 19-3
177 pounds: John McKinney (Huntsville) over Kody Sigmon (Enterprise HS) Fall 0:40
192 pounds: Troy McDanels (Huntsville) over Xavier Henderson (Enterprise HS) Dec 4-1
217 pounds: Griffin McKinney (Huntsville) over Jace Himes (Enterprise HS) Fall 1:52
287 pounds: Zachary Teter (Huntsville) won by forfeit
108 pounds: Karter Stiffler (Enterprise HS) over Lewis Carter (Huntsville) Fall 0:47
115 pounds: Kiyan Simon (Huntsville) won by forfeit
122 pounds: Wallace Blue (Huntsville) won by forfeit
128 pounds: Kameron Stiffler (Enterprise HS) won by forfeit
CLASS 1A-4A DUALS FINALS
WEAVER 42, SAINT JAMES 23
134 pounds: Gabriel Snyder (Weaver) over Luke Robbins (St James) Dec 6-3
140 pounds: Dylan Brown (Weaver) over Logan Hartson (St James) Dec 5-4
146 pounds: Gianluca Torres (Weaver) over Conner Johnston (St James) Dec 6-3
152 pounds: Miles Zukowski (St James) over Dashawn Kirby Barnes (Weaver) Dec 3-2
159 pounds: Caden Thornton (Weaver) over Emmett Rasmussen (St James) Dec 9-2
167 pounds: Christopher Thornton (Weaver) over Gavyn Capilouto (St James) Fall 2:23
177 pounds: Pruitt Conner (St James) over Hunter Hise (Weaver) TF 15-0
192 pounds: Brooks Bacheler (St James) over Zachary Hooks (Weaver) Dec 5-3
217 pounds: Brandon Jolliff (Weaver) over Cecil Edwards (St James) Fall 0:54
287 pounds: Owen Penney (St James) over Caden Green (Weaver) Fall 1:53
108 pounds: Cael Fulmer (Weaver) over Easton Turner (St James) Fall 3:28
115 pounds: Noah Rains (St James) over Peyton Andrews (Weaver) Fall 4:40
122 pounds: Haiden Hise (Weaver) over Andrew Shalayda (St James) Fall 1:25
128 pounds: Dalton Fink (Weaver) over Braylen Corley (St James) Fall 2:49
AHSAA 2024 State Wrestling Duals Championships CLASS 6A CLASS 1A/4A CLASS 7A
at Birmingham CrossPlex, Bill Harris Arena, Friday, Jan. 19
CLASS 5A
Semifinals
Tallassee (31-0) 36, Gulf Shores (26-2) 31
Scottsboro (11-1) 49, Jasper (27-1) 20
5A Finals
Scottsboro (12-1) 51, Tallassee (31-1) 21
5A Consolation Finals
Jasper (28-1) 39, Gulf Shores (26-3) 31
Semifinals
Mortimer Jordan (13-4) 44, Athens (16-2) 30
6A Finals
Mountain Brook (12-0) 39, Mortimer Jordan (13-5) 31
6A Consolation Finals
Athens (17-2) 40, Pike Road (14-7) 37
Semifinals
Weaver (21-0) 66, St. John Paul II Catholic 16
1A/4A Finals
Weaver (22-0) 42, Saint James (16-4) 23
1A/4A Consolation Finals
St. John Paul II Catholic 41, Ranburne 40
Semifinals
Huntsville (32-1) 36, Hewitt-Trussville 30
7A Finals
Huntsville (33-1) 56, Enterprise 16
7A Consolation Finals
Hewitt-Trussville 54, Smiths Station 18
Cover Photo: Huntsville’s Jake Ciccolella battles Enterprise’s Grier Hunt in the 140-pound weight class. (AHSAA Photo | Josh Bean)
