The Stone Memorial High School Panther wrestling team placed seven wrestlers and finished third out of 15 teams in the Gibbs Invitational last Saturday.

“I can’t say enough about how proud I am with the efforts of this year’s team. We finished ninth in this tournament last year. The improvements just keep coming. We had eleven guys wrestling in the tournament and every one of them contributed to our top three finish,” said Coach Brian Parker

The medal winners were Zach Heavilon, champion at 112 pounds; Justin Horn, fourth at 135 pounds; BJ Carr, third at 140 pounds; Macaulay Brady second at 152 pounds; Luke Hively, fourth at 160 pounds; Jonathan Waldrup, fourth at 189 pounds; and Billy Sapp, third at 215 pounds. Rafael Soriano, Corbin Maddox, and Allen Poe were just out of the medals with fifth place finishes.

“Once again, Zach showed that he is in it to win it,” Parker noted.

Heavilon pinned his opponent in three straight matches to become tournament champion. The highlight of his tournament other than winning gold was his 30 second pin of the first seed in the semifinals.

“He made it look like the guy who was supposed to win the tournament had never wrestled before. I was very impressed,” the SMHS stressed.

Horn had to wrestle five matches again in this tournament. He won three matches on his way to fourth place with his losses coming at the hands of two fellow state qualifiers, one from Tennessee and one from Kentucky.

“Justin wrestled well but he has come across a lot of tough opponents this year. It’s good for him. He will be all the better for it when the region tournament comes around,” replied Parker.

Carr had a very good tournament with four wins including three pins to claim the third place medal.

“B.J. is really starting to come on strong. He is learning to use his strength along with new technique to become a strong wrestler.He has tremendous potential with more time on the mat,” said Parker.

Brady continues to improve in just his second year of wrestling with his second place finish. “Mac is a tough kid. Just when you think you have him pinned, he will reverse you to your back and pin you. He makes me a nervous wreck, but I can live with it if he keeps winning,” continued the coach.

Hively won three matches with two pins to claim fourth place.

“Luke is gettin much better on his feet and he will throw anybody to their back if they relax to much. I look for him to finish strong this year," added Parker

At 189, Waldrup continues to be an asset to the team even as a rookie. He finished fourth with three pins and was just seconds away from making it the finals with his tough loss in the semis.

“With some more work on his technique, it won’t be long until Jonathan starts winning those semifinals matches," added the veteran coach.

Sapp also had a tough two-point loss in the semifinals, but came back to claim third place in the tournament.

Said Parker, “If Billy can take you down, he will beat you. He had trouble getting the takedown in that match. We still have some work to do to get him quicker on his feet, but I am confident he will get there.”

Other wrestlers winning matches in the tournament include Soriano, Maddox, John Adams, and Poe.

Poe had two pins even though he consistantly gives up 40 to 50 pounds in every match at the heavyweight class which goes up to 285 pounds.

“Allen has a lot of potential in this sport. He just needs to keep learning how to out-smart his larger and stronger opponents,” noted Parker.

Ten junior varsity wrestlers participated in the Gibbs JV Tournament last Friday night.

Four Panthers placed in the top two in the tournament including Matt McCarty, Kelsey Walker, Zaine Idema, and Bob Sapp.

McCarty won three straight matches on his way to tournament champion.

“Matt is a tough wrestler who is stuck behind a couple of older varsity wrestlers. I wish we had a spot for him in the varsity line-up now,” said Parker.

Walker won two matched to place second.

“Kelsey is in much the same situation as Matt. He will be a great addition to the varsity line-up eventually.”

Idema placed second at 285 pounds.

“ Zaine is a rookie with a lot to learn, but he gives our starter all he can handle. I look forward to seeing him in a future varsity spot," stressed Parker.

Sapp placed second at 147 pounds in the middle school division. John Mcarty finished thrird with a pin in one of his matches.

The Panthers will face Kingston, Knox West and Rhea County at home tomorrow with wrestling starting at 5:30. They will travel to the William Blount Invitational on Saturday.