Oakland Mills knew going into its match against visiting River Hill on Tuesday that they could make a splash. With seven returning state qualifiers, the Scorpions knew they could be the ones to knock the three-time defending county champions off their perch.
Oakland Mills came out firing on all cylinders and with something to prove. They won the first six matches and jumped out to a 28-0 lead en route to a dominating 41-21 win over the Hawks.
"The guys felt pretty confident coming out of the locker room," said Oakland Mills coach Brad Howell. "I felt pretty good about them."
The win ended River Hill’s run of 43 consecutive county dual victories and put the Scorpions in a prime spot to win the county race.
"It was a big match for us, and we knew that," said 195 pound senior Jaron Smith. "We knew we could take this ... Our guys were ready for this."
Daquan Anderson started off the dual with a pin for the Scorpions at 106 pounds, but it was another freshman that set the tone for what was to come.
Freshman 113-pounder Kyle Farace, the younger brother of three-time state champion Tony Farace, put his name on the map by pinning defending 106-pound county champion junior Matt Shealy in the first period.
Shealy earned the first takedown within seconds, but Farace got a reversal and locked up a move that his brother used often – a cradle – and pinned Shealy in 1 minutes, 44 seconds.
"Kyle Farace coming out getting that stick was crucial for the team, and he knew that and knew what he needed to do," Smith said.
"He's got a lot of talent, and I love his approach. He really has fun with wrestling," Howell said.
Johnny Rynn followed Farace with a comeback 7-5 win after trailing 4-2 going into the final period at 120 pounds, and Julian Capino and Justin Gatewood each won to build the lead to 28-0.
"You're not going to beat a good team when you're down 28-0," said River Hill coach Brandon Lauer. "They wrestled well out of the gate ... and they put us in a hole big time."
Tyler Bond, Ryan Erskine and Sean Guthier won three straight matches for the Hawks from 145 to 160, but only Bond was able to secure bonus points.
"They did a great job of not giving up bonus points, and getting it, and that's the difference," Lauer said.
With four matches left, Howell finally looked up at the score and did the math. The Scorpions only needed one more win to seal the team victory, and with defending state champion Jaron Smith still waiting for his turn, Howell felt good about his chances.
"You got a couple matches left and you need one win and there's a guy behind you – Jaron Smith – you feel good," Howell said. "Jaron went out there was all fired up ... as soon as he started controlling the match everybody was like, all right, this is pretty much in the bag,"
But even with two of River Hill's best wrestlers left at 220 and heavyweight, the Scorpions continued to battle.
The Scorpion's Zach Vincent fell in a close match to Brian Kirby, a 2013 county champion, and senior Antonio Rozier, a second year wrestler who is in his first varsity season, upset defending county champion Tyler Smith, 6-2, at heavyweight.
Despite the dominating win, Howell knows his team has a lot of work left ahead. They will face a tough county opponent in Reservoir on Thursday and still have the majority of the county teams left on the schedule.
As for the Hawks, Lauer hopes his team can learn from the defeat and bounce back this weekend at the Warrior Duals at LaPlata High School.
"Hopefully we respond," he said. "It's a good wake-up call for them ... I think Oakland Mills was prepared, bottom line. Our guys hope they can learn from this experience as we move forward this season and into March and the postseason."
Oakland Mills 41, River Hill 21
106: Anderson (OM) pinned Vinyard (RH) 3:38; 6-0
113: Farace (OM) pinned Shealy (RH) 1:44; 12-0
120: Rynn (OM) dec. Potts (RH) 7-5; 15-0
126: Capino (OM) pinned Dustin (RH) 1:54; 21-0
132: Thompson (OM) major dec. Mahoney (RH) 15-3; 25-0
138: Gatewood (OM) dec. Altman (RH) 9-4; 28-0
145: Bond (RH) pinned Gibson (OM) 4:59; 28-6
152: Erskine (RH) dec. Claxton (OM) 6-2; 28-9
160: Guthier (RH) dec. Asifo (OM) 4-2; 28-12
170: Furet (OM) major dec. Connolly (RH) 18-7; 32-12
182: Daniel (RH) pinned Tinsely (OM) 3:33; 32-18
195: Smith (OM) pinned Kum (RH) 2:59; 38-18
220: Kirby (RH) dec. Vincent (OM) 7-5; 38-21
285: Rozier (OM) dec. Smith (RH) 6-2; 41-21
River Hill 72, Long Reach 3
285: Water (LR) dec. Richards (RH) 1-0; 0-3
106: A. Wasilewskiw (RH) forfeit; 6-3
113: Shealy (RH) forfeit; 12-3
120: Potts (RH) pinned Epstein (LR) 1:50; 18-3
126: Dustin (RH) forfeit; 24-3
132: Mahoney (RH) pinned Chang (LR) :21; 30-3
138: Altman (RH) pinned Lancaster (LR) 3:26; 36-3
145: Bond (RH) dec. Stanley (LR) 4-0; 39-3
152: Erskine (RH) fall Pruit (LR) 3:41; 45-3
160: Guthier (RH) dec. Gilbert (LR) 5-2; 48-3
170: Connolly (RH) forfeit; 54-3
182: Daniel (RH) forfeit; 60-3
195: Kum (RH) forfeit; 66-3
220: Kirby (RH) pinned Millsap (LR) :34; 72-3
Oakland Mills 69, Long Reach 3
Mt. Hebron 40, Marriotts Ridge 34
113: Spano (MR) pinned Scherr (MH)
120: Wiggins (MR) pinned Holbrook (MH)
126: Habibi (MR) pinned Nguyen (MH)
132: Jimmy Hayden (MH) pinned Parks (MR)
138: Jeff Hayden (MH) pinned Wyatt (MR)
145: Olsen (MR) dec. Johnson (MH)
152: Dietmeyer (MR) dec. Norton (MH)
160: Strunk (MH) pinned Delen (MR)
170: Murphy (MH) dec. Hurd (MR)
182: Switlick (MR) pinned Norton (MH)
195: Day (MH) pinned Akund (MR)
220: Manasterli (MH) pinned Leinett (MR)
285: Suri (MH) dec. DeSautelle (MR)
106: Hejeebu (MR) pinned Lemus (MH)
Marriotts Ridge 36, Reservoir 30
120: Connor Tayman (Re) dec. Wiggins (MR)
126: Habibi (MR) pinned Hayoung Park (Re)
132: Troy Kilcarr (Re) pinned Parks (MR)
138: Trent Kilcarr (Re) pinned Wyatt (MR)
145: Olsen (MR) pinned Max Reed (Re)
152: Jeremiah Branch (Re) major dec. Deitmeyer (MR)
160: Delen (MR) dec Matt Gonzales (Re)
170: Hurd (MR)pinned Nathan Rand (Re)
182: Switlick (MR) dec. Sims (Re)
195: Michael Malin (Re) pinned Akund (MR)
220: Shawn Hamilton (Re) pinned Leinett (MR)
285: Desautelle (MR) dec. Andrew Maleta (Re)
106: Hejeebu (MR) pinned Reese Kilcarr (Re)
113: Spano (MR) dec. Kleinhen (Re)
Mt. Hebron 42, Reservoir 24
126: Nguyen (MH) dec. Hayoung Park (Re)
132: Troy Kilcarr (Re) dec. Jimmy Hayden (MH)
138: Jeff Hayden (MH) dec. Trent Kilcarr (Re)
145: Johnson (MH) pinned Max Reed (Re)
152: Jeremiah Branch (Re) dec. Norton (MH)
160: Strunk (MH) pinned Johnny Folea (Re)
170: Murphy (MH) pinned Matt Gonzales (Re)
182: Sims (Re) pinned Norton (MH)
195: Day (MH) pinned Michael Malin (Re)
220: Shawn Hamilton (Re) pinned Manasterli (MH)
285: Suri (MH) dec. Andrew Maleta (Re)
106: Lemus (MH) pinned Reese Kilcarr (Re)
113: Dalton Kleinhen (Re) pinned Scherr (MH)
120: Holbert (MH) dec. Connor Tayman (Re)
Centennial 48, Wilde Lake 21
126: Castillo (WL) forfeit; 0-6
132: Narmouq (C) pinned Kazi (WL) 1:00; 6-6
138: Narmouq (C) forfeit; 12-6
145: Kazi (WL) forfeit; 12-12
152: McGrudgen (WL) forfeit; 12-18
160: Kraisser (C) pinned Fermin (WL) 4:58; 18-18
170: Horton (C) pinned Rolon (WL) 0:46; 24-18
182: Musonda (C) forfeit; 30-18
195: Wysocki (C) forfeit; 36-18
220: Brosher (WL) dec. Thurmond (C) 13-10; 36-21
285: Double forfeit
106: Blyukher (C) forfeit; 42-21
113: Neilon (C) forfeit; 48-21
120: Double forfeit
Glenelg 46, Centennial 31
120: Silk (G) forfeit; 6-0
126: Gwin (G) forfeit; 12-0
132: Kraus (G) major dec. Narmouq (C) 15-4; 16-0
138: Narmouq (C) major dec. Peterman (G) 12-3; 16-4
145: Schineburg (G) forfeit; 22-4
152: Griffie (G) forfeit; 28-4
160: Kraisser (C) pinned Satka (G) 2:43; 28-10
170: Budock (G) pinned Horton (C) 4:19; 34-10
182: Musonda (C) pinned Witschen (G) 2:23; 34-16
195: Wysocki (C) forfeit; 34-22
220: Twigg (G) pinned Thurmond (C) 1:35; 40-22
285: Coach (G) forfeit; 46-22
106: Blyukher (C) pinned Gwin (G) 1:08; 46-28
113: Neilon (C) dec. Reese (G) 11-4; 46-31