Olmsted Falls, led by a resounding nine champions, won its first outright Southwestern Conference championship since 2003 (272 points) on Feb. 13 at Avon. The nine champions is a school record and ties the conference record.
Avon finished second (161), followed by Amherst (110.5), Midview (103.5), Westlake (100), North Ridgeville (94), Berea-Midpark (92.5), North Olmsted (91.5), Lakewood (72) and Avon Lake (66).
The Bulldogs didn’t want to just win, they wanted to do so convincingly.
“We definitely wanted to set ourselves apart from the field,” Olmsted Falls coach Bryce Burkhard said. “It just shows a great team effort and we’re not leaning on just one guy or two guys. It’s not just the 12 guys there, it’s the other guys pushing them in the room. It just shows the whole program and the strength where it is now.”
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The nine champs were Michael Shaw (106), Jihad Salti (113), Brendan Jones (126), Josh Jaeckin (138), Brice Locklear (160), Tony Caraffi (170), Michael Iler (195), Noel Caraballo (220) and Patrick Simon (285).
“All those guys showed they got good guts and we’re getting them where we need them to be,” Burkhard added. “They’re starting to peak and we know we’ve got three big weeks left. It keeps us motivated in the room and I know they’re going to get back at it and grind on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. So this is just great momentum.”
Salti got a big win over top-seeded Tate Zeman (Avon) in a 8-7 decision that came down to the wire.
“I really wanted to win the SWC this year, because I didn’t wrestle in SWC last year,” Salti said. “I feel like I made a statement because I was like third- or fourth-seeded. It feels good to be on top.
“We came here to dominate and that’s what we did.”
Caraballo, with a major decision (13-3) win over Todd Hastings (Amherst), became a three-time champion.
“It’s great,” Caraballo said. “Not many people from Olmsted Falls have done it, so I’m glad I can be put up there as one of the best wrestlers to ever do it.”
Heading down the stretch of the season, there has been a lot of speculation as to whether Caraballo would wrestle at 195 or 220, but he said he’s still not sure which weight to go with.
“There’s still a decision to be made,” he added. “I’m not too sure where I’m going to go. Whatever weight class I do go, I’m going to give it my all and going to be expected to go in the finals, so I’m getting ready for it. Definitely pumped no matter what weight class I go, so I’m excited.”
Avon’s Jack Gothier (145) earned a 2-1 decision over Olmsted Falls’ Alec Kirby, and was a part of three Avon champions (Frank Rizzo, Tommy Sear). Gothier previously beat Kirby at the Bill Dies Tournament and went to St. Edward’s his sophomore year with him before transferring.
“It’s definitely fun,” Gothier said. “It’s a friendly rivalry. Will probably see him next week too. And just as a whole team together finishing out strong, it feels good. I think we held second place pretty well and that was our goal coming in here. I think we satisfied that goal.”
North Olmsted junior Kevin Kelly (132) also had a great showing, pinning Lakewood’s Andrew Nicholson in 1:19 and picked up his 100th career win. North Olmsted hasn’t had a conference champion since 2011.
“Getting that conference championship is big,” Kelly said. “That’s a long time without a conference champ. Also getting my 100th win as a junior is crazy, I’m just so excited. This is just getting me one step closer to my goal and that’s obviously states. I want to be on the podium no matter what, so I’ll do whatever it takes to get there.”
