Grove juniors Colby Layman and Garrett Sisco qualified for the 5A state wrestling championships on Saturday, finishing in the top-four at the East regional held at Tahlequah High School.
Layman finished fourth at 220 pounds while Sisco finished third at 160. The top four finishers in each weight class qualified for this week’s state tournament, which will be held at the Fairgrounds Arena in Oklahoma City.
Four other wrestlers finished one win away from the state tournament, losing in the consolation semifinals. Pedro Lara (113 pounds) and Drew Hardy (170) both finished fifth, while Josh Perez (138) and Dylan Johnson (182) finished sixth.
Both Layman and Sisco made quick work of their opponents in the consolation semifinals, taking any potential drama out of their matches. Sisco pinned Billy Beyen of Skiatook with a headlock in the second period, while Layman needed just 39 seconds to pin Cody Evens and clinch a state berth.
Sisco nearly ended up in the championship finals. In Friday’s semifinals, Sisco nearly pinned Tahlequah’s Reece Davis in his second crack at the Tigers’ junior, eventually falling by a 4-3 decision. Davis pinned Sisco in the first period during a dual earlier this month. Sisco wasted little time in his third place match against Jacob Schimmels of Edmond Deer Creek, wrapping things up with a first period fall.
Layman fell to top-seeded Keenan Priddy 3-0 in Friday’s semifinals after downing Tristan Cain of Shawnee 11-4 in the quarterfinals. After dispatching Evens to clinch a state berth, Layman lost with a first period fall to McAlester’s Riley Smith to finish fourth.
Grove finished ninth out of 15 teams with 79 points. Collinsville qualified 13 wrestlers for state and won the team title with 292 points.
The state wrestling championships will begin Friday at 10:30 a.m. and continue through Saturday evening. Log on to www.grandlakenews.com; for updates from the tournament.
