Kissimmee Osceola wrestling celebrates 3 state champions
Kissimmee Osceola tied a school record Saturday night at the FHSAA State Wrestling Tournament with three state champions and five finalists.
Cooper Haase, Jaekus Hines and Gunner Holland all won state titles for the Kowboys, with Anderson Heap and Nolin Eaddy finishing in second place to lead Osceola to a fourthplace team finish in Class 3A at Silver Spurs Arena.
Hines, a senior who has committed to Appalachian State, rolled through the tournament and majored South Dade’s Alex Couto 18-5 in their 138-pound final for his second state title.
“It really clicked for Jaekus after the Knockout Classic this season. He just dominated everybody the rest of the year,” Osceola coach Jim Bird said.
The sophomore Haase won his second title in two years for the Kowboys with a pin over Venice’s Bryce Taranto in the second period. Haase reached the final with a 7-6 win over SW Miami’s returning champion Daniel Martinez.
Holland busted a lot of brackets to win at 152 pounds. The Kowboy freshman won all four of his matches by just a single point in each one, beating Palm Harbor University’s top-ranked Alek Chitty with a 3-2 win in overtime.
“He just knows how to win,” Bird said of Holland.
“He just believed in his self and got the job done.”
Also in Class 3A, Winter Park’s Joe Gonzalez won the first state title for the Wildcats since 1993 with a 5-2 victory over returning state champion Jared Dinh (Riverdale) in the 145-pound final.
Dr. Phillips’ Gerald Greaves finished the night off by grabbing a state title in the 285-pound weight class with a 7-4 decision over SW Miami’s Adrian Sans. Greaves was the only wrestler in the tournament to win a state title after finishing fourth in his region.
Hagerty advanced two wrestlers to the finals with Ethan Lopez (182) and Bertilus Bornelus (220) reaching the Class 3A state final.
Winter Springs finished with two state champions in Class 2A. The Bears completed the night in fifth place in the team competition.
Dylan Deal toppled previously unbeaten Michael Moss (St. Thomas Aquinas) 7-3 in the final of the 182-pound weight class and then Marvin Collins ended the night and his high school wrestling career with a pin of Kathleen’s Jeremiah Jackson in the final seconds of their title bout.
“We know our kids can go all six minutes and we take pride in being able to wear opponents down,” Winter Springs head coach Rocky Ciero said.
Riley Chapdelaine also reached the finals for Winter Springs.
The Master’s Academy was the top local team in Class 1A, finishing in eighth place with Ryan Cody reaching the finals at 195 pounds.
South Dade won its 20th state title with a Class 3A title. Charlotte won the school’s first state title since 1997 in an exciting Class 2A race, and Somerset matched its state duals title with an IBT title in Class 1A.