~ PVN staff report
STRASBURG, Feb. 3 — Page County placed five medal winners — the most in school history — during the Bull Run District Wrestling Tournament held at Strasburg High School on Saturday, Feb. 3. Three Panthers surpassed 20 wins for the season.
Sophomore Nick Moore, wrestling at 190 pounds, went 4-1 during the district tournament and claimed second place to advance to the Region 2B Wrestling Tournament at Riverheads High School on Feb. 10. Moore upset Central’s Tyler Forbes, who was 30-4 on the season, by a score of 12-4. Last season Forbes finished third in the state in the 215-pound class.
Also advancing were two female wrestlers, junior Kaylee Campbell (106-pound class) and freshman Kayla Pence (113lb class) — both finishing in third place with identical 3-2 marks. The remaining two regional qualifiers were sophomore Cameron Deneal, who went 3-2 in the 126-pound class for third place; and sophomore Michael Shifflett in the 144-pound class took third with a 3-2 mark as well.
“I was so impressed with the Panthers performance, it was unreal,” Coach Greg Martin said. “I watch both of my female wrestlers finish with medals… Cameron Deneal in his first year of competing, coming out and medaling was priceless… Nick Moore at the 290-pound class upset Tyler Forbes from Central… Then Michael Shifflett at 144lb class, only a sophomore, take a third place medal.
“The team wrestled tough, the new wrestlers like Jamie Nunez, and Chris Jenkins wrestled their tails off,” Coach Martin continued. “This team is peaking at the right time, and I’m so excited for them. I have three wrestlers who hit the 20-win column.”
Reaching that milestone were Campbell (22-7), Shifflett (20-8), and junior Jordan Hedrick (20-11). Hedrick was one win from advancing to region after going 2-3 in the 185-pound class and finishing in fourth place. Other fourth place finishers at the Bull Run Tournament include:
- Junior Mason Bennett, 138lb class, 2-3
- Freshman Jamie Nunez, 157lb class, 2-3
- Senior Alex Perez, 285lb class, 2-2
- Sophomore Gunner Stanley, 132lb class, 1-4
As a team, Page County struggled, dropping the opener to two-time defending state champion Strasburg, 71-6. The Panthers went on to defeat Clarke, 42-30, in a dual matchup, and then tie Mt. View, 36-36. Page’s final two matches would come up short against Central, 42-40, and Madison, 42-24.
Page County came into the district tournament with some momentum after winning all three matches at a quad meet at Randolph-Macon Acdemy in Front Royal two days earlier on Feb. 1. The Panthers defeated King Abdullah Academy 66-0, Evergreen Christian 47-21 and RMA 42-39.
“Kaylee Campbell, Kayla Pence , Michael Shifflett, Jordan Hedrick, Jamie Nunez and Nick Moore would all go 3-0; [while] Cameron Deneal, Chris Jenkins, and Elizabeth Ramos would win two matches,” Coach Martin said. “It was a great night, everyone [on the team] got [at least one] victory, and we go undefeated on the night as a team.”
On Jan. 24, Page County was tested by tough competition during a tri-meet at Harrisonburg High School. As a team, the Panthers fell to Class 4 William Fleming, 55-6, and Class 5 Harrisonburg, 45-18. The Panthers would pick up wins from Campbell, Shifflett, Moore and Logan Richards.
The top three wrestlers at the Region 2B tournament on Feb. 10 will qualify for the Class 2 state wrestling tournament on Feb. 16-17 at the Salem Civic Center.
For schedules, rosters and results, check the Bull Run District website.
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