DULUTH, Ga. — The LaFayette Ramblers and Gordon Lee Trojans may have come up short for team titles at the GHSA traditional state wrestling tournament Saturday, but each team left its mark on the Gwinnett Center Arena with three individual champions apiece.
While favorite Gilmer County held the Ramblers off for the team championship in Class AAA, three LaFayette wrestlers — junior Preston McCalmon, seniors Seth Taylor and Justin Ownby — successfully defended their 2009 individual titles.
McCalmon had maybe the toughest path, having to defeat Heritage rival Cody Goins for the third time this year. The LaFayette junior held a one-point lead through two periods but never let Goins be the aggressor, then recorded a near-fall in the final period in a 8-3 win.
“It’s very difficult to wrestle somebody so often, especially when they’re a wrestler like Cody Goins,” McCalmon said. “As strong as he is, I had to fight the whole time. It was hard holding him down, especially in the first period when he got ahead. I just stayed with the game plan and wore him down.”
Taylor followed with a hard-earned 7-1 win over West Forsyth’s Evan Burchette. Ownby, overcoming a slight knee injury suffered at the area tournament, dominated Woodward Academy’s Ross Agararkisian, 19-8. Ownby was the last of the Ramblers to compete in the tournament’s staggered-class format, and his teammates’ success motivated him.