For the second year in a row, Brunswick High wrestling notched the best finish at the GHSA Team Dual Wrestling Championship.
The Pirates won three of their four duals in a bracket of the eight best teams in Class 6A to hoist the third-place trophy Saturday at Brunswick Square Garden.
Buford won the state duals, defeating Valdosta 48-23 in the championship match to complete a dominant run. Buford beat Lassiter 66-15 in the quarterfinal round before crushing Creekview 72-6 to advance to the finals.
Valdosta rolled past Cambridge 66-12 in its first match of the championships and held on to edge Brunswick 38-30 in the semifinals to set up the title bout against Buford.
“It felt good that we placed third,” said Pirates head coach Tommy Bartolotta. “It’s a good way to end our season, winning our last match by a point. It’s a great experience for those kids that they’ll remember for the rest of their life.”
Brunswick opened the quarterfinal round of the state duals as the No. 3 seed against No. 6 seed Alexander. The Pirates eventually advanced with a 40-21 victory, but only after their opponent staked themselves to an 18-12 through the first eight matches.
But Brunswick closed the dual with wins in five of the final six matches — four coming by pin fall, including a victory by River Creel at 285 that took just 19 seconds.
The Pirates got off to another slow start in the semifinals, dropping each of its first five matches to fall into a 21-0 deficit to No. 2 seed Valdosta before making another charge.
Sebastian Hutchinson (160), Leon Charlton (182) and Anthony Lowe (220) each won matches by pin fall around a couple of Valdosta victories to close Brunswick to within 32-18. Then, Creel (285), Clayton Hicks (106) and Stunnar Hutchinson (113) combined for 12 points, closing the gap to 32-30 with one more schedule match.
Unfortunately for the Pirates, the final bout would forfeit at 120 against the Wildcats’ reigning state champion, ceding the spot in the title match to Valdosta.
Brunswick’s day wasn’t done though. The Pirates still had the opportunity to top its fourth-place finish at the state duals last year as the best in program history over in the consolation bracket.
First, Brunswick had to top No. 8 seed Lassiter 46-21 in a dual capped off by Peter McKinney’s majority decision at 126. Then came a heavyweight bout against No. 4 seed Creekview.
Hicks got the Pirates off to a 3-0 lead with a decision victory before the Bears took the next match by pin fall. But after consecutive wins by Thomas Clay (120), McKinney, and Comari Cone (132), the last coming by pin, pushed Brunswick to a 15-6 advantage.
However, following pins by each team, Creekview rattled off 14 straight points over three matches to jump back on top 20-15 with four matches remaining.
The Pirates and Bears ended up splitting the final matches, but Brunswick won its by fall in Charlton and Lowe’s matches, while Creekview could only manage decisions, resulting in a historic triumph for BHS by the narrowest of margins, 33-32 in front of the home crowd.
“It was good for some of the people here to see wrestling at that level,” Bartolotta said. “There was a lot of energy, and it was very exciting. It was good for the people of Brunswick to come out and watch. It was a good experience.”
And wrestling season still isn’t over yet. The Pirates can continue to build on their run as the traditional season gets rolling in the coming weeks.
“We’re be around the next few weeks,” Bartolotta said. “We host region Friday in individuals, then sectionals the following weekend.”