Region 4-AAA first-round matches
Legend — Bradley Central (BC), Cleveland (C); East Hamilton (EH), McMinn County (MC), Ooltewah (O), Rhea County (RC), Soddy-Daisy (SD), Walker Valley (WV)106: Chandler Davis (WV) vs. Burns Meagher (C)-Jacon Allen (SD) winner; Te’Nario Thomas (EH) vs. Wes Devaney (BC).113: T.J. Hicks (BC) vs. Mario Acevedo (WV)-Jacob Pratt (SD) winner; Conner Thornburg (EH) vs. Garret Bowers (C).120: Trey Hicks (BC) vs. Seth Carpenter (EH)-Gage Boggess (MC) winner; James Jur (WV) vs. Jordan Wilson (SD), Gavin Carrol (O) vs. Bryce Pond (C).126: Landon Wheaton (SD) vs. Justice McClure (O); Cameron Dwyeer (WV) vs. Jayce Mullin (C); Ethan Anderson (BC) vs. Dylan Ricker (MC); Wyatt Stumbo (RC) vs. Cade Meeks (EH).132: Ryan McElhaney (BC) vs. Tucker Passons (O); Ethan West (WV) vs. Jacob Kilgore (SD); Grant Lundy (EH) vs. Josh Alonso (RC); Bryce Flynn (M) vs. Colton Landers (C).138: Cody Mathews (C) vs. Lewis Talbot (MC); Josh Chinsenall (EH) vs. Dillon Clark (WV); Slater Daniel (SD) vs. Jagger Hickman (RC); Mykel Banks (O) vs. Andy Robinson (BC).145: Knox Fuller (BC) vs. Christian Simon (RC)-Caleb Eachus (C) winner; Liam Golden (EH) vs. Zeth Haynie (WV); Marek Banks (O) vs. Tony Wilson (SD).152: Austin Mathews (BC) vs. Kevin Siniard (EH)-Robert Varner (WV) winner; Austin Sweeney (C) vs. Austin Crowe (SD); Tay Paris (O) vs. Jay Graham (RC).160: Mikel Gregory (WV) vs. Tyler Bayless (EH)-Cade Ghaffari (SD) winner; Zach Brezna (C) vs. Jordan Davis (O); Kaleb Blake (MC) vs. Caleb Adkins (BC).170: Dylan Jones (C) vs. Matthew Gossett (MC); Ben Gates (WV) vs. Tyler Green (EH); Hayden Manor (SD) vs. Andres Velasco (RC); Fransisco Gallard (O) vs. Henley Headrick (BC).182: Robert Hicks (C) vs. Kendall Scruggs (RC)-Caleb Addison (SD) winner; Mathew Sailors (EH) vs. Tyson Smith (O); Jacob LaBeau (MC) vs. James Elkins (BC).195: Kevin Gentry (BC) vs. Blake Wright (O)-Patric Williams (RC) winner; Curtis Settles (SD)-Mason Bales (WV) winner vs. Jason Strickland (C).220: Ty Boeck (SD) vs. Nick Anderson (MC); Kevin Chang (O) vs. Garrett Smith (RC); Devin Gibson (BC) vs. David Bohn (EH); Cody Duggan (WV) vs. Sammy Garcia (C).285: Victor Bednarski (O) vs. Colton Edwards (RC); Addison Roberts (SD) vs. Koby Hooker (WV); Tyler Varnadore (MC) vs. Jackson Moore (EH); Christopher Cash (BC) vs. Titus Swafford (C).
Photographed on Thursday, Feb. 25, 2016, in Chattanooga, Tenn., Victor Bednarski of Ooltewah High School is a member of the Chattanooga Times Free Press Best of Preps wrestling team. Bradley Central's wrestling team moved a step closer to evening the score with county rival Cleveland last weekend, besting the Blue Raiders for the Class AAA state duals championship.
If Wednesday's seeding meeting for the Region 4-AAA traditional tournament is a true indicator, Bradley might pull even with the Blue Raiders on the pair's seasonal scorecard.
"Everybody outside of Bradley probably views us as the favorite," Bradley coach Ben Smith said. "We prefer the underdog role, where you stay below the radar and fight from behind."
The region tournament is Saturday at East Hamilton and starts at 10 a.m., with championship and consolation finals set for 3 p.m. Admission for an all-day pass is $10.
The top four finishers in each weight class advance to state.
Cleveland won two dual meets versus Bradley this season, and both teams' coaches decided not to wrestle off for the region duals championship. Bradley then beat Cleveland in last weekend's state duals, and the Bears enter the region tournament as the favorite with six top-seeded wrestlers and 11 wrestlers expected to reach the finals.
The Blue Raiders have a trio of No. 1 seeds and six No. 2 seeds. Between them, Bradley and Cleveland are expected to fill 26 of the region's 56 allotted slots for the state traditional tournament Feb. 16-18 in Franklin.
Walker Valley and Soddy-Daisy each landed two top seeds, and the final No. 1 slot went to Ooltewah's Victor Bednarski, the 2015-2016 third-place medalist at 220 who has decided to bump up to heavyweight.
Soddy-Daisy, always in the hunt when the postseason rolls around, likely is sitting in third place snapping at the leaders' heels, but it's possible East Hamilton and Walker Valley could be right behind the Trojans.
"I wouldn't be shocked if any of the top three won it," Soddy-Daisy coach Jim Higgins said, "but common sense says Bradley and Cleveland, and off the top of my head I'd take Bradley if for no other reason than they have eight seniors who've been there and done that."
Said Cleveland coach Josh Bosken: "At the end of the day, I think we've wrestled the best and so I think we're going to be callused and ready to roll."
Bednarski, who hasn't wrestled since early January, was likely to return to state at 220 this year. His move shifted the balance at 285.
"Heavyweight is pretty even with the exception of Victor," Bosken said, "but I'm not sure how healthy he really is."
Heavyweight also is where Bradley went unseeded. Christopher Cash, who at least has to break a sweat to make weight, wrestled well at last week's state duals. His opener is against second-seeded Titus Swafford of Cleveland.
Other very competitive weight classes are 106, 138, 145 and 152.
"At 152 there are at least three guys that can place in the top three or four, so that's about as competitive a region weight class as you're going to find," Bosken said.
The top four seeds at 152 are No. 1 Austin Mathews of Bradley, No. 2 Jay Graham of Rhea County, No. 3 Austin Sweeney of Cleveland and No. 4 Robert Varner of Walker Valley.
Contact Ward Gossett at wgossett@timesfreepress.com or 423-886-4765. Follow him on Twitter @wardgossett.