By Cort Reynolds
LIMA__Two Ada High School wrestlers advanced to the district meet in Troy with strong showings at the 14-team Lima Div. III sectionals on Saturday, February 24.
Dominating Ada senior Clayton McClain won the 150 lbs. crown to repeat as a sectional champion. The top-seeded Bulldog had a first round bye and won his first match 18-2 with a technical fall.
In the semifinals, he recorded an 18-4 majority decision win. In the title bout, McClain pinned junior Jacob Pinks of Allen East at 4:22 to grab the crown.
McClain posted a 3-0 record on the day to improve his record to a sparkling 42-7 this year.
Ada sophomore Silas Riblet captured third in the four-man 113 lbs. bracket to qualify for districts. He lost a 5-3 decision in the semifinals, then won the third-place match by pin at 2:18 to run his season record to 23-16.
Top-four finishers in a sectional weight class advance to the district tournament.
Bulldog junior Landon Simon took sixth in the 215 lbs. class. He finished 25-23 this season.
Allen East edged Columbus Grove by 1.5 points (189.5-188) to win the team title. Ada finished in 11th place with 40.5 points.
Ada sophomore Peyton Karsten competed in the 285 lbs. bracket. Other Bulldogs who wrestled at sectionals and gained valuable experience were freshman Kale Pedersen at 138; freshman Wyatt Fisher at 132; and sophomore Zaiden Denslow at 126.
The Div. III districts are at Troy’s Hobart Arena March 1-2. Top four finishers in a weight class at Troy advance to the state meet March 8-10 in Columbus.
Ada placer match results:
1st place match: 150: Clayton McClain (Ada) pin Jacob Pinks (Allen East) 4:22
3rd place match: 113: Silas Riblet (Ada) pin Trent Westgerdes (Coldwater) 2:18
5th place match: 215: Ty Meyer (Columbus Grove) pin Landon Simon (Ada) 1:45
Ada top six placers:
150 Pounds
1st Clayton McClain 12, Ada (42-7), Fall 4:22
2nd Jacob Pinks 11, Allen East (23-4)
113 Pounds
1st Owen Beam 9, Columbus Grove (14-18), Fall 5:59
2nd Colton Kimmel 9, Wayne Trace (19-8)
3rd Silas Riblet 10, Ada (23-16), Fall 2:18
215 Pounds
1st Brogan Paxson 12, Allen East (44-4), Fall 5:08
2nd Kobe Foor 12, Paulding (31-12)
3rd Evan Walls 12, Con. Crestview (30-11), Fall 2:47
4th Derrick Wagner 11, Parkway (20-12)
5th Ty Meyer 11, Columbus Grove (24-17), Fall 1:45
6th Landon Simon 11, Ada (25-23)
Lima D3 sectional team scores
1. Allen East 189.5 points
2. Columbus Grove 188
3. Coldwater 143.5
4. Parkway 129.
5. Paulding 127.
6. Wayne Trace 90
7. Convoy Crestview 88
8. Spencerville 71
9. Delphos St. John's 69
10. Antwerp 51
11. Ada 40.5
12. Lincolnview 35
13. LCC 11
14. Delphos Jefferson 9
