Wrestling: Hall Co. Championships wide open in 2014

OAKWOOD -- The only thing certain about the 2014 Hall County wrestling championships set for Friday and Saturday at West Hall High School is its uncertainty.<br /> <br /> At least, that's how most of the coaches of the two-day event are looking at things coming into the first major tournament of the season.<br /> <br /> Three programs -- North Hall, Chestatee, and Johnson -- are sporting new coaches and youth is abundant after many teams graduated some of the best talent in recent years.<br /> <br /> Defending Hall County champ North Hall may have been hit the hardest losing 12 seniors to graduation and having just two juniors on the roster this year.<br /> <br /> "We lost a lot of good wrestlers and our team is very young and inexperienced," new North Hall coach Stuart Cunningham said. "This tournament will be a huge challenge for our team but we're hoping we can surprise some people."<br /> <br /> Chestatee, which finished in the top three last year, has shown some early promise beating both East Hall and West Hall in the early part of the season. However, the War Eagles feature just two seniors, Austin Donaldson (138-pounds) and Tyler Holman (120). But junior Marvin Cunnigham, the defending 145 Hall County champ, and sophomore Matthew McLellen (152) give new coach Kyle Barr some strength in the middle weights.<br /> <br /> "I hope we're reloading and not rebuilding," Barr said. "We've been up-and-down so far but I think we have a chance to be in the hunt if we wrestle to our potential."<br /> <br /> Host West Hall, despite coming off a loss to Chestatee on Tuesday, should be in the mix this year. The Spartans are led by senior Elliott Raiford at 160, who was a Class AAA state-runner at 152 last year. Raiford is undefeated so far this season. Junior Nakai Hunter (138) and Tiann Vlok (145) give West Hall a solid middle weight lineup.<br /> <br /> "We were disappointed on Tuesday but we feel good about our team and I think we have a shot if we can get some other guys to step up," Spartans coach Eric Radich said.<br /> <br /> Johnson is coming off an impressive sweep of East Hall and White County on Tuesday and also won the Hoya Invitational at Harrison High School earlier in the season against mainly Class AAAAAA teams.<br /> <br /> The Knights are led by a trio of seniors. Pedro Estrada (285) is 19-1 on the season and was a state qualifier last year. Fredis Velasquez (160) is 20-1 on the season, and Tony Cao (132) was a state qualifier last year and is expected to make his first appearance of the season after battling injuries to start the year.<br /> <br /> "I think we have a chance to be good by the time the (Area) tournament comes around," new Knights' coach John Petty said. "Our goal this weekend is to compete and improve."<br /> <br /> Riverside Military may have one of the more solid teams but could be hampered this weekend with several starters on a school trip to Hawaii. Coach Gary Papka said who they have available for the tournament will depend on when they return.<br /> <br /> "We're just going to try to do the best we can with who we have," Papka said. "We'll still have some good wrestlers with us but just not our entire starting group."<br /> <br /> Senior Josh Sheek (152) is undefeated so far at 5-0 and junior Nick Fernandez (160) is a perfect 9-0 on the season so far to give the Eagles a solid middle weight tandem. Senior Carl Williams (195) is 4-1 and senior Taylor Hardin (220) provide a tough upper weight group.<br /> <br /> The tournament will feature three rounds of action on Friday beginning at 5:30 p.m. at the West Hall gym. Saturday's action will feature four rounds beginning at 9 a.m. at West Hall.

http://accesswdun.com/article/2014/12/282834