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Coach Gerry Anthony and the Clay wrestling team have pinpointed several goals they want to attain this season.
• Win a third straight City League championship. Anthony said the Eagles will have to hold off Central Catholic if they want to repeat.
• Capture a fourth straight sectional tournament title.
• Qualify all 14 weight classes to the district tournament (Clay had 13 district qualifiers last year).
• Qualify a school-record seven individuals to the Division I state tournament. The Eagles sent six wrestlers to Columbus two years ago.
“I'm excited about the season,” Anthony said, “and things are going very well.”
On Dec. 3-4, Clay opened the season at a 24-team tournament in Solon, Ohio, and finished second behind Bedford Chanel. The Eagles took second despite missing one of their top wrestlers.
“In that caliber of tournament, I was very, very happy,” Anthony said. “I was shooting for third.”
The Eagles, who finished in a four-way tie for 21st place (21 points) at last year's state tournament, will once again field an A and B varsity squads. Anthony said Clay has 68 wrestlers in the program.
“That's about what we have every year, around 70,” Anthony said. “We started with around 80 and right now we're pretty stable. We have 47 returning upperclassmen and we are absolutely proud of it. Troy McLaughlin runs the Lake Erie Wrestling program and he keeps them involved in the offseason.”
The Eagles graduated two state placers in Nick Garcia (fourth at 103 pounds) and Mark Orth (sixth at 135), but plenty of talent returns.
Garcia's spot at 103 will be replaced by either sophomore Nick McNutt, junior Carlos Hernandez or freshman Jared Davis.
“All three of them are top-notch 103-pounders,” Anthony said.
Senior Nico Castilleja moves down to the 135-pound division. Castilleja went 24-12 and was a sectional runner-up at 140 last season.
“Nico is working real hard,” Anthony said. “He is dedicated this season and he's focused on winning a championship.”
Angelo Amenta, a junior, had a 44-10 record at 130 last year and earned CL and sectional titles en route to qualifying to the state tournament. Amenta will compete at 130 again this season.
“He's very aggressive and he refuses to lose,” Anthony said. “I expect him to be a state placer. His expectation is to be Clay High School's first state champion.”
Junior Mike Screptock returns at 112 after posting a 42-9 record and coming one win from qualifying to the state tournament. Screptock, a defending CL and sectional champ, won a title at Solon.
“He was in one of the toughest weight classes and he was dominating,” Anthony said. “He beat a kid 7-0 in the semifinals who was fifth in the state. In the finals, he beat a state qualifier 13-0. He was unscored upon in the tournament. He's just a beast.”
Sophomore Brian Henneman, a transfer from Bowsher, went 35-8 last season and was a CL and sectional runner-up at 119.
“He's young and eager to learn,” Anthony said, “and he's a great kid to coach. Very coachable.”
Senior Matt Kohler went 33-12 and won league and sectional titles at 145 last season. Kohler, a champion at the Solon tournament, will compete at 140 this year.
“He dropped down a weight class and his focus is to be a state placer,” Anthony said. “He had an outstanding tournament at Solon (4-0).”
Sophomore Damon Dominique (16-4 last year) returns at 145 pounds while senior Tyler Rowland (18-12) and sophomore Eddie Silva (12-10) return at 152 and 160, respectively.
Chico Cloyne, a senior who qualified to state at 160 last year, is starting this season at 171 but could drop down to 160, Anthony said. Cloyne was 31-12 and won a sectional title as a junior.
Brandon Veler, who did not wrestle last year, will compete at 189 while fellow senior Shane Gaghen is at 215. Gaghen (21-9) took third at last year's sectional and placed third at the Solon tourney.
“He had a great tournament,” Anthony said. “He looks much improved from last year.”
The Eagles' heavyweight will be either senior Garrett Gray, who was sixth at Solon, or senior Rex Carlo. Gray was 22-4 last season and Carlo was 24-8.
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