At this year’s Florida High School Athletic Association’s state wrestling championships at the Silver Spurs Arena in Kissimmee, Wellington High School was well-represented on the mat by both boys and girls.
According to WHS head coach Travis Gray, nine boys and four girls qualified for Class 3A state wrestling championships. The nine boys were Cameron Gibson (113-pound division), Mark Bonfante (120-pound division), Sam Marvel (132-pound division), Russell Crum (138-pound division), James Kosza (144-pound division), Franco Rivas (157-pound division), Mac Andrews (165-pound division), Dwayne Shaw (175-pound division) and Liam Higgins (heavyweight division).
The four girls were Alyssa Garcia (100-pound division), Aurora Guadiana (115-pound division), Lana Loucks (120-pound division) and Vivianna Caullett (125-pound division).
The 13 wrestlers from WHS were among the 896 wrestlers in Class 1A, Class 2A and Class 3A who traveled to Kissimmee to compete in late February and early March.
Of those 13 Wellington wrestlers, four boys and one girl placed in the top eight in their respective weight classes. Marvel was third, Gibson finished sixth, Kosza ended up sixth, Shaw took eighth place and Caullett was seventh.
Gray had words of praise for each of his high finishers.
“Cameron Gibson finished his career as a three-time state qualifier and a three-time state placer,” Gray said. “Sam Marvel finished his career as a four-time state qualifier and a three-time state placer. James Kosza and Dwayne Shaw were state qualifiers for the second-straight year. This was Vivianna Caullett’s first trip to the state tournament, after falling one match short of qualifying last year.”
This year’s state wrestling championship was a fitting end to the season for the Wolverines’ wrestling program.
“It was great to bring all five of our seniors to the state tournament this season and finish the season on a positive note,” Gray said.
Wrestling action photos by Marcus Andrews
