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5 central Ohio boys wrestlers win OHSAA state titles; Watterson earns team championship
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- 5 central Ohio boys wrestlers win OHSAA state titles; Watterson earns team championship
In his seven seasons as Watterson boys wrestling coach , Felix Catheline has methodically built one of the top Division II programs in Ohio.
Catheline, who came on board after Watterson's two-season hiatus from the sport, saw his Eagles reach the pinnacle Sunday, winning their first state championship.
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Watterson had two individual state champions and finished the three-day tournament at Value City Arena with 108 points, besting CCL rival DeSales (74.5) for the first-place trophy. Not bad for a program that did not compete in 2016-17 and 2017-18 because of a lack of interest among athletes at the school.
"It's been a journey to bring the program back after a two-year hiatus, but it's been an intentional journey," Catheline said. "What people need to understand is this is not the middle or towards the end. This is year one. Our program has evolved to a point now where we're going to start racking up state titles, and I'm really proud of these kids, these families and this community because we are a community program and it's going to keep going."
Watterson qualified four wrestlers for Sunday night's finals, and Mitchell Younger (144 pounds) and Michael Boyle (215) won titles.
For Younger, it marked his third title after finishing first as a freshman and sophomore at 144 but settling for fourth last season at 150. Younger (36-0) defeated Steubenville's Cooper Smith 5-3 in the final.
Watterson's Michael Boyle won his second individual state championship, helping the Eagles win their first as a team.
Boyle (25-2), who helped the Watterson football team win the Division III state championship in the fall as a nose guard, edged Akron Hoban's Brayton Feister 2-1 for his second wrestling title. He won at 165 last season as a freshman.
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"It's been unbelievable," Boyle said. "Now I have time to look back, reflect on it. I'm so thankful for God, my coaches, my family, my teammates, my friends. Everyone that has helped me through this."
Watterson's Tommy Rowlands (138) and James Lindsay (150) lost their title bouts.
Hartley's Aiden King celebrates his 138-pound Division II state championship March 9 at Ohio State.
Hartley senior Aiden King (41-2) beat Rowlands by technical fall (18-0) for his second consecutive state title and fourth trip to the podium with a top-eight finish.
"I knew I was going to win no matter who my opponent was," King said. "A key is finding a group that wants to work hard. Find a group that has the same goals, find the coaches. This is 90% mental. If you have people on your side, it's going to be a lot easier."
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Dublin Coffman's Loc Webber (51-2) ended his freshman season by winning the Division I state title at 106, beating Lorain's D.J. Otero by technical fall (15-0).
"This is what I trained for," Webber said. "This is what I expect. I expect to win."
Dublin Coffman freshman Loc Webber celebrates is Division I state title at 106 pounds.
Webber's teammate, freshman Tommy Wurster (38-4), lost to Brecksville-Broadview Heights' Rylan Seacrist 4-3 in the final at 113.
Coffman was the top central Ohio team in Division I, placing fifth (85.5) behind champion Lakewood St. Edward (258).
Olentangy Liberty finished eighth (53) with senior Zade Archibald (31-7) placing second at 138.
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Olentangy finished ninth (40).
Watterson's Mitchell Younger celebrates after winning his third state championship.
Competing in his third state tournament, Mount Vernon junior Alex Taylor beat Massillon Perry's Mike Millin 10-5 in the Division I heavyweight final. Taylor finished third at 215 in 2023 and fifth at 215 last season.
Bexley senior Marius Garcia fell short of a second consecutive state title when he was pinned by Thornville Sheridan's Maddox Laymon (5:49) in the Division II final at 120. Garcia won at 106 last year.
Also in Division II, DeSales' Joel Welch (165) and Andrew Barford (175) lost their title matches, and Jonathan Alder's Rayce Watson finished second at 106.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: OHSAA wrestling tournament: Watterson wins first state championship
