Youthful Granville wrestling showcases growth, talent in title triumph

On Dec 4, 2022

GRANVILLE ― Corbin Bell couldn’t stop smiling Saturday on his home mats, and neither could his Granville teammates.

One of three sophomores placers for the Blue Aces in their Steve Stahl Memorial Tournament, along with a pair of freshmen, Bell had earlier lost an overtime heartbreaker in pool competition and settled for second at 150 pounds. Then, in the deciding dual match between first-place Granville and runnerup Circleville, he fell behind Mark Brunner of the Tigers 7-2 in the second period.

Not to be denied, he battled back to tie it 8-8, then pinned Brunner late in the third period for an emotional victory that helped the Blue Aces break open a close match. Leading just 20-18, after freshman Luke Sanchez scored an 18-3 technical fall at 144, Bell’s big win sparked momentum. An 11-3 major decision for junior Carson Carr at 157, and pins by seniors Keagan Finley (165) and A.J. Jones (175) helped Granville pull away for a 48-30 triumph that wrapped up its second consecutive Stahl title.

“I knew my team really needed it. They (Circleville) had two pins a row,” Bell said. “My coach (Kyle Bergeron) told me I needed to get the ball rolling. I slipped up at the beginning, but fought back.”

“He’s a real hard worker. He grinds it out in practice and doesn’t complain,” said junior Peyton Costa, a returning state qualifier who also won by pin, along with freshman Nash Finley (106), and went unbeaten in dominating the 113-pound class. “He definitely stepped up, and I’m extremely proud of him. I’m proud of all of our young guys,” Costa said.

Granville piled up 192 points, easily outdistancing Circleville’s 159 in the 11-team field. Big Walnut was a close third at 152 and Westerville Central fourth with 134. Licking Heights finished ninth with 46. Others competing included Gahanna, Westerville South, Liberty Union, Marion-Franklin, Whetstone and Northland.

In addition to Costa, also winning first-place gold were sophomores Andy Sanchez (126) and Nic Ramirez (132), Carr (157), Keagan Finley (165) and Jones (175). Nash Finley (106) and Bell (150) took second, while also getting on the podium in third were Luke Sanchez (144) and heavyweight Ian Rutherford.

Bergeron told Costa he needed a pin in an expected tight match with Circleville.

“I was really good on top today. I outscored my opponents by like 60, but he told to not mess around,” Costa said. “I had knee surgery like seven or eight weeks ago. I thought I wasn’t going to get to wrestle right away, but I recovered really fast.”

The Blue Aces were without senior Carson Miller, a returning All-Ohioan at 190, on Saturday, but his presence was still felt. “Even when he’s not on the mat, he still has a huge role on our team,” Keagan Finley said. “We won a lot of matches today, but there’s still a lot to improve on. Positioning is my thing, and my conditioning needs to build up.”

Granville has a good combination of upperclassmen and youth.

“We’re a very young team, but we’re also an extremely talented team, and coach knows that,” Bell said. “He has high expectations, that we’re going to be able to do what we did today.”

Sophomore Ethan Dickey-Viveralli won the B division at 157 for the Blue Aces.

Juniors Michael Landry and Richard Storts both stood out for Licking Heights. Landry placed second at 144, while Storts won the B division at 126.

Landry dropped a close 7-5 decision to a returning state qualifier, but didn’t get discouraged. He later rallied for a 2-1 win against Gahanna’s Charlie Foster, scoring a reversal with a minute left.

“My confidence has been growing stronger these past three years,” Landry said. “I lost that tough match, but I never lost confidence. For me, it’s about controlling the pace of the match, and not letting him slow it down on me. I’ve really improved on that. My number one goal is to make the district. Every wrestler’s goal is to make state, but I have to get to the district first, and take it from there.”