Southern Wayne senior Gabe Carmack (top) works against Goldsboro’s Joseph Hux during their consolation-round match at 175 pounds during the USAF Eagle Invitational on Saturday. Carmack pinned Hux in 57 seconds. (Rudy Coggins|mountolivetribune.com)
GOLDSBORO — Tori King must feel like he’s sitting at a poker table. The Southern Wayne wrestling coach just can’t draw good cards.
Riddled with injuries, saddled with illness and “outside distractions,” the Saints carried five wrestlers to the Joe Nassaf Memorial Girls Invitational and USAF Eagle Invitational this past weekend.
“We have to remain diligent and optimistic, and remember we are young, but at the same time hold ourselves accountable,” King said. “We have to realize that the work won’t do it itself and if we aren’t showing up every day putting the work in, we can’t expect positive results. Missing days due to injuries and sickness surely doesn’t help, especially in a sport as demanding as wrestling.”
Three grapplers — Oswaldo Quiroz, Gabe Carmack and Chris Melvin — represented Southern Wayne during the grueling, day-long USAF Eagle Invitational that included talented individuals from 20 high schools.
Quiroz dropped two matches in the 138-pound class.
Carmack, a senior 175-pounder, concluded the day 1-2. He secured a 57-second pin over Goldsboro’s Joseph Hux in consolation-round action. Outweighed by every competitor in his division, Melvin logged a 1-2 worksheet at heavyweight. His lone victory was a second-period fall over Hunt’s Isaiah Jenkins.
“Gabe works really hard in practice and has [a] good work ethic,” King said. “He struggles with being technical since it’s only his second year wrestling. When we can use his athletic ability and strength in his favor, he does well. It’s when he has to face a more experienced wrestler that he has a tough time.
“Oswaldo and Chris have to become tougher mentally and get out of their own heads, as do the majority of the team. Chris has to utilize his speed when wrestling against bigger opponents and try not to get stuck underneath the bigger guys at heavyweight.”
Wilmington Laney claimed its fifth consecutive team crown with 250.5 points. The Buccaneers had 10 medalists (four individual champions) and recorded an Invitational-high 24 pins as a team.
Three individual champions — Brayden Holmes, Jason Kennedy and Ryan Deloatch — helped Invitational host Rosewood finish a distant second with 144.5 points. Deloach (175 pounds) remained unbeaten in 22 outings this season, while 132-pounder Jason Kennedy climbed to 24-1.
North East Carolina Prep School wound up third with 142 points, followed by Raleigh Millbrook (124.5) and North Pitt (107). A total of 14 schools had at least one medalist on the day.
Including Deloach, six other wrestlers kept their unbeaten records intact – Clayton’s tandem of heavyweight Deondre Johnson (10-0) and 157-pounder Pete Winterstein; NECP’s duo of 138-pounder Ryan Mann (21-0) and 113-pounder Holden Quincy (21-0); and Laney’s twosome of 215-pounder Mason Blue (14-0) and 144-pounder Isaiah Wysong (14-0).
Nearly 150 wrestlers vied for 42 medals in 14 weight classes.
Joe Nassaf Memorial
Though disappointment shrouded King’s face after the Eagle Invitational, he managed a smile and lauded the effort of his two female grapplers — Olivia Ruiz and Edith Arteaga.
“Edith and Olivia are a bright spot for me when I’m mentally in a bad place,” King said. “They come work every day with a smile on their face even though I know it’s tough wrestling guys all the time. Yet, they never complain and they get better every day.
“I constantly tell them that when they wrestle other females, it will be easier for them because they are wrestling guys every day in practice and in [dual] matches.”
Ruiz ran up against two staunch competitors at 107 pounds.
Arteaga wound up fourth at 114 pounds. She started the day with a second-round loss to North Lenoir’s Angel Lee. A feisty competitor, Arteaga pinned Northeastern’s Taliana Sanders in 92 seconds and received a medical forfeit against Southwest Onslow’ Adriana Miller.
Lee defeated Arteaga in the third-place match.
“Edith is a very tough competitor and I wish I had 15 more wrestlers like her,” King said. “[She] listens very well to instructions during her matches. It’s not unusual for her to look over at the corner when one of the coaches tells her something to do and she immediately tries to implement the move. She and Olivia both just have to be more aggressive and confident, and that comes with repetition and time.”
Ruiz and Arteaga were among 91 wrestlers from 21 schools who vied for top-three finishes in 12 weight classes. Cary earned the team championship with 109 points, followed by Rosewood (90), Manteo (87.5), Virginia powerhouse Dinwiddie (79) and Heide Trask (79).
Southern Wayne returns home Wednesday for its Quad County 3A dual-team opener against South Johnston and Fike. Match time is 6 p.m.
2023 USAF Eagle Invitational
(at Rosewood HS)
Team Scores
Wilmington Laney (WL) 250.5, Rosewood (RHS) 144.5, North East Carolina Prep School (NECP) 142, Raleigh Millbrook (RM) 124.5, North Pitt (NP) 107, Garner Magnet (GM) 96, Clayton (C) 92, South Johnston (SJ) 90.5, Southwest Onslow (SWO) 78.5, North Johnston (NJ) 73, Wilson Fike (WF) 66.5, Raleigh Broughton (RB) 55, North Lenoir (NL) 51, Manteo (MAN) 48, West Craven (WC) 28, East Carteret (EC) 21, Neuse Charter School (NCS) 17.5, Wilson Hunt (WH) 16, Goldsboro (GHS) 13, Southern Wayne (SW) 9.
Individual Champions
106 — Brady Sullivan (GM); 113 — Holton Quincy (NECP); 120 — Colton Lewis (NECP), 126 — Brayden Holmes (RHS); 132 — Jason Kennedy (RHS); 138 — Ryan Mann (NECP); 144 — Isaiah Wysong (WL); 150 — Tyler Buonocore (WL); 157 — Pete Winterstein (C); 165 — Mac Kopelman (WL); 175 — Ryan Deloach (RHS); 190 — Jordin Moore (NJ); 215 — Mason Blue (WL); HWT — Deondre Johnson (C).
