BY GENE NARDI
Last weekend, the Seminole Ridge High School wrestling team traveled to Boca Raton and participated in the 30th annual Kuntz Dual Meet, where the team took third place overall.
The meet is coordinated to give teams a chance to compete at a high level before the district tournament. Teams from Broward and Palm Beach counties gathered at Boca Raton High School, host site for the meet.
The Hawks are ranked eighth in the county and are one of the most improved teams. The squad is led by new head coach Andrew Bradbury, who occupied the assistant position for the past two years. “We’re trying to make Seminole Ridge a local wrestling power,” he said.
The Hawks went 4-1 through the group stage, and earned a spot in the gold pool against Palm Beach County juggernaut Olympic Heights High School. The Hawks fell to the Lions but then battled South Broward and bested the Bulldogs for third place. Seminole Ridge finished the tournament with an impressive 5-3 overall meet record. The Hawks are a young squad with only five seniors.
Team results are as follows:
Seminole Ridge defeated Miami Jackson 49-21. In the Hawks’ second meet, they defeated Spanish River 66-12. The Hawks fell to Boca Raton 37-36 in their third, then had back-to-back wins over William T. Dwyer 60-16 and Atlantic 53-30. In the gold pool, they fell to unbeaten Olympic Heights 56-15, and then bested South Broward 51-30.
Individual results are as follows: 106 lb. Hilton Luciano, 7-1 with three pins; 112 lb. Hunter Claunch, 4-1 with three pins; 126 lb. John Arnold, 6-2 with two pins; 132 lb. Calvin Crumrine, 4-4 with two pins; 138 lb. Nico Pieroni, 4-4 with two pins; 152 lb. Jarrod Smiley, 8-0 with three pins; 160 lb. Liam LaPeter, 7-1 with four pins; 170 lb. Devon McMinn, 3-5 with one pin; 182 lb. Sean Edwards, 7-0 with four pins; 195 lb. Chandler Courson, 5-2 with two pins; 195 lb. Antoine Frantz, 1-1; 220 lb. Nelson Sutton, 1-6; and 285 lb. David Lyons, 7-1 with four pins.
ABOVE: Seminole Ridge 152 lb. Jarrod Smiley earns the pin-fall against an Atlantic wrestler.
