Baylor and Cleveland look to ride to TSSAA wrestling duals championships again

Baylor's David Harper, top, maneuvers McCallie's Harrison Millirons for a pin to win the 220-pound match during Friday night's dual hosted by McCAllie. / Staff photo by Robin Rudd
Baylor's David Harper, top, maneuvers McCallie's Harrison Millirons for a pin to win the 220-pound match during Friday night's dual hosted by McCAllie. / Staff photo by Robin Rudd

Baylor and Cleveland took home the top hardware last season on the wrestling mats and look to do so again.

The Red Raiders and Blue Raiders are alive in the TSSAA Division II and Class AAA state duals championship hunts heading into the final day of competition in Franklin.

Sophomore David Harper and senior Barrett Chambers were full-blast for Baylor, as they registered the two quickest pins of a tournament consisting of three classifications and 24 matches on Friday.

Harper, who is ranked 17th in the country at 195 pounds by InterMat, stuck his Montgomery Bell Academy opponent in just 14 seconds to help lead a dominant 63-7 semifinals victory. Chambers flattened his opponent in 17 seconds to fuel a 75-6 win over Battle Ground Academy in the quarterfinals.

Baylor (15-3) will take on Christian Brothers (21-1) in the Division II finals at 6:30 EST Saturday inside the Williamson County Ag Expo Center. It was nearly a local championship showdown as McCallie fell 34-33 in the semifinals to Christian Brothers, the Memphis school winning on a match-ending pin.

Cleveland (22-1) will take on Dobyns-Bennett (26-5) in the AAA semifinals at 2 EST, and the winner will face either Centennial (32-6) or Wilson Central in the 6:30 finals.

The Blue Raiders handled Clarksville, 48-27, in the first round and followed with a 40-30 victory over Blackman in the quarterfinals while forfeiting the final three matches. Trae McDaniel (132), Garrett Stevenson (145), Cael Laxton (152) and Ahston Davis (220) each won both of their matches on the day with pins.

Hixson and Signal Mountain saw their Class A/AA title hopes slip away.

Signal's Eagles (17-4) fell to Nolensville 35-32 in the opening quarterfinal round. The Wildcats (28-3) lost in the semifinals to reigning state champion Pigeon Forge, 38-32.

Hixson's Jeremiah Shackleford (132) was a bruiser as he won his quarterfinal match against Greenbrier in 25 seconds and won 20-5 in the semifinals. The Wildcats also received a pair of first-round pins from Devotis McCurdy (285).

Signal Mountain's Caleb Uhorchuk (106) and McCallie's Alex Whitworth (170) both had impressive shutouts, winning matches by 15 and 16 points, respectively.

Contact Patrick MacCoon at pmaccoon@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @PMacCoon.

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