The Kings of Bi-Counties

Getting ready to rumble

On Saturday, the Southern Rams traveled to Northern High School to compete in the annual Bi-County wrestling tournament against the Huskies, Mt. Ridge, Fort Hill and Allegany.  This event is the final step in the qualification process for the regional tournament and eventually the state tournament.  After the successes of both the Rams and the Huskies during the regular season, this tournament looked like it would be a tight race for the championship trophy.

Southern had a slight advantage from the beginning as we filled all 14 weight classes while Northern had one empty slot (195).  The teams were evenly matched and had split dual meets during the season and both qualified for the regional duals last week. 

After a few preliminary matches, the semi-finals began.  There were some tight matches and some quick pins but when the round was completed, the Rams found themselves with a substantial lead in the race for the title.  Southern was able to win 11 out of 14 semi-final bouts to place 11 wrestlers in the tournament finals.  Additionally, Southern wrestlers won all 11 bouts by pin, scoring extra bonus points for their team.  Northern was able to place 10 wrestlers in the tournament finals with only 5 pins.  The Southern Rams led by nearly 30 points heading into the final placing rounds.

Brison Dixon become a 2X Bi-County Champ

The three Southern wrestlers who failed to make the finals excelled in the consolation bracket, winning all matches by pins to place third in their respective weight classes.  Freshmen Joey McComas and Jake W Sweitzer and senior Jimmy Schwab each scored big points for the team with their pins and third place finishes.  As the final round was set to begin, the Southern Rams held a comfortable 35 point lead over the Northern Huskies.

The finals began at the 106 pound weight class where senior Brison Dixon scored a first period pin to earn his second consecutive Bi-County championship.  Next up for the Rams was junior Jake E Sweitzer who lost a tight decision to Wilhelm from Northern.  Sophomore Nate Tasker also lost a close match in the finals to a Huskie grappler.  At 138, sophomore Jace Guy dominated Lowry from Northern with a major decision to win his second straight title.

Alec Horner with 2 quick pins

Next up for Southern was junior Alec Horner at 152 who spent only :36 seconds on the mat, scoring a first period fall to earn his first Bi-County championship.  Junior Joe Embleton won a decision at 160 to capture his first Bi-County title as well.  Senior Patrick Duggan lost by decision at 170 and junior Brad Davis lost a close match at 182 to place second.  Sophomore Hunter Park and junior Scotty Tichnell also lost their final matches to place second in the 2017 Bi-Counties.

Joe Embleton in control in the finals

The final match of the day was a re-match from earlier season meetings between Cole Sweitzer for the Rams and Brian Tiemersma for the Huskies.  The two heavyweight wrestlers split the regular season matches, each winning by pin in the dual meets back in January.  Saturday's match belonged to Sweitzer as he scored a pin midway through the first period to earn his first Bi-County championship.  The Rams finished the day with 244 team points, 32 points ahead of the Huskies and 64 points ahead of Mt. Ridge.

Our Champions!

Next up for Southern is the Regional tournament in Middletown, Maryland next Saturday.  All 14 Ram wrestlers have qualified for this post season event which marks the first time in history that Southern has been able to qualify wrestlers in all 14 weight classes.  The top four place winners at regionals qualify for the state tournament to be held in Upper Marlboro, MD the following week.

Bi-County Team Scores

244 - Southern Garrett

212 - Northern Garrett

180 - Mt. Ridge

  74 - Allegany

  72 - Fort Hill

Our Placewinners

1st - Brison Dixon (106)

1st - Jace Guy (138)

1st - Alec Horner (152)

1st - Joe Embleton (160)

1st - Cole Sweitzer (285)

2nd - Jake E Sweitzer (126)

2nd - Nate Tasker (132)

2nd - Patrick Duggan (170)

2nd - Brad Davis (182)

2nd - Hunter Park (195)

2nd - Scotty Tichnell (220)

3rd - Joey McComas (113)

3rd - Jake W Sweitzer (120)

3rd - Jimmy Schwab (145)

Final Bouts

106 - Brison Dixon (SG) pins Jesse Fresh (MR) 1:36

113 - Teddy Baker (MR) dec Hunter Wilhelm (NG) 11-3

120 - Steven Yutzy (NG) pins Jacob Fresh (MR) 2:53

126 - Devin Wilhelm (NG) dec Jake E Sweitzer (SG) 5-1

132 - Tyler Thomas (NG) dec Nate Tasker (SG) 7-2

138 - Jace Guy (SG) dec Luke Lowry (NG) 9-0

145 - Jordan Day (NG) dec Camren Ritchey (MR) 3-1

152 - Alec Horner (SG) pins Randall Ganoe (NG) :36

160 - Joe Embleton (SG) dec Sam Beeman (NG) 6-4

170 - Marcus Folk (MR) dec Patrick Duggan (SG) 11-5

182 - Dustin MacDonald (MR) dec Brad Davis (SG) 6-5

195 - Karson Robinette (AL) dec Hunter Park (SG) 14-2

220 - Riley Brick (NG) pins Scotty Tichnell (SG) 3:36

285 - Cole Sweitzer (SG) pins Brian Tiemersma (NG) 1:06

Our Regional Qualifiers

106-Brison Dixon (3rd)
113-Joey McComas (7th)
120-Jake W Sweitzer (5th)
126-Jake E Sweitzer (5th)
132-Nate Tasker (3rd)
138-Jace Guy (3rd)
145-Jimmy Schwab (5th)
152-Alec Horner (5th)
160-Joe Embleton (2nd)
170-Patrick Duggan (7th)
182-Brad Davis (9th)
195-Hunter Park (7th)
220-Scotty Tichnell (6th)
285-Cole Sweitzer (3rd)

Cresting the Ridge

The Southern Ram wrestlers traveled to Frostburg on Thursday night for the annual clash with the Mountain Ridge Miners.  This would also be the final regular season match for the visiting team and the final opportunity to add a win for regional duals qualification.  The evening began with seven very competitive JV bouts.  The Southern wrestlers were able to win five out of seven and the other two were close matches as well.

Scotty Tichnell with a 1st period pin

Varsity wrestling between Mountain Ridge and Southern began at the 195 pound class.  Sophomore Hunter Park took the mat against one of the Miners' senior wrestlers.  Hunter quickly found himself fighting off his back after an impressive upper body throw.  He did not panic, he turn up the heat, recording a second period fall to get the scoring started for the Rams.  Junior Scotty Tichnell and sophomore Cole Sweitzer added first period pins to stretch the lead to 18-0.

Brison Dixon took the mat at 106 in search of his 100th career win and attempting to keep his undefeated season in tact.  Dixon went on the attack early and after his opponent fought off his first shot, Brison was able to score the takedown on his second shot.  Shortly after that, the pinning combination was locked in and with 30 seconds left in the first period, the fall was recorded and his 100th career win was secured.

Brison Dixon after his 100th win

Joey McComas picked up a fall at 113 and the Rams led 30-0.  Mountain Ridge was able to get on the scoreboard at 120 with a decision but Jake E Sweitzer, Nate Tasker and Jace Guy were able to win by pins at 126, 132 and 138 to extend Southern's lead to 48-3 heading into the big match up between Jimmy Schwab and Cameron Ritchey at 145.  Ritchey was able to earn the decision for the Miners on the strength of his effort in the neutral position.

Alec Horner scored a quick pin at 152 and Brad Davis received a forfeit at 160 and the match was all but over with the Rams leading 60-6.   Even though the eventual team winner had been decided, there was still plenty of action and excitement to come in the final two bouts.  At 170, Patrick Duggan took the mat against one of the Miners' top wrestlers.  The action was intense as the two fought off each others attacks throughout the scoreless first two periods.  In the third period, Duggan gave up a reversal and a takedown while scoring two escapes to drop a tight 4-2 decision.

Joe Embleton with a great performance

In the final match of the evening, junior Joe Embleton had to overcome an epic bloody nose and the near expiration of his allotted "blood time".  With no room for error, Embleton attacked his opponent with urgency knowing that if the match was stopped again, he would lose by default.  He fought through it all and turned the Mountain Ridge wrestler to his back, applied amazing pressure and scored the fall near the end of the second period.

With the final score of 66-9, the Rams concluded their regular season competition with an overall record of 34-5 and a record of 12-2 in the regional dual qualification matches.  The final standings will not be released until wrestling is completed on Saturday, but it does appear that the Southern Rams have qualified for the post season for the 12th time in the last 15 years.

Southern 66 - Mountain Ridge 9
106 - Brison Dixon (SG) pins Jessie Fresh (MR) 1:33
113 - Joey McComas (SG) pins Anthony Harrison (MR) 2:48
120 - Teddy Baker (MR) dec Jake W Sweitzer (SG) 5-3
126 - Jake E Sweitzer (SG) pins Jacob Fresh (MR) 5:24
132 - Nate Tasker (SG) pins Damon Harold (MR) 3:59
138 - Jace Guy (SG) pins Brian Kirby (MR) 1:55
145 - Cameron Ritchey (MR) dec Jimmy Schwab (SG) 11-5
152 - Alec Horner (SG) pins Michael Warnick (MR) :41
160 - Brad Davis (SG) via forfeit
170 - Marcus Folk (MR) dec Patrick Duggan (SG) 4-2
182 - Joe Embleton (SG) pins Dustin MacDonald (MR) 3:31
195 - Hunter Park (SG) pins Conner Baker (MR) 3:09
220 - Scotty Tichnell (SG) pins Luke Vinci (MR) 1:44
285 - Cole Sweitzer (SG) pins Kenneth Muir (MR) 1:49

Dixon and his coaches, celebrating #100

Senior Saturday

On Saturday afternoon, the Southern Rams hosted the Williamsport Wildcats and the Hyndman Hornets in the final home match of the season.  The Rams also honored five senior wrestlers and there was a special presentation to Jimmy Schwab who had earned his 100th career win earlier this season.

Patrick Duggan gets 2 pins on Saturday

The afternoon began with our annual senior celebration.  Jimmy Schwab, Brison Dixon, Patrick Duggan, Erik Fike and Gunnar Ward were presented framed pictures and flowers for their mothers in honor of their commitment to Southern Wrestling throughout the years.  The complete senior celebration scripts and photos are listed in their entirety below.

"Come back here" says Brison Dixon

After Jimmy Schwab received his plaque commemorating his 100th win, it was time for wrestling to begin.  The first match of the day was against the Williamsport Wildcats who made the snowy trip to Oakland from the Hagerstown area.  Wrestling began at the 138 pound weight class where sophomore Jace Guy took the mat for the Rams.  Jace took an early 5-0 lead and scored a fall in the second period to give Southern a 6-0 lead.  Senior Jimmy Schwab followed up with a second period pin of his own at 145.  Alec Horner scored a fall in under a minute at 152 and the Rams were in control early at 18-0.

Erik Fike with an early takedown

After Brad Davis won by fall at 160, Joe Embleton was awarded a forfeit at 170 and Patrick Duggan pinned his opponent, the rout was on.  The Rams led 36-0 and 25 seconds into Hunter Park's match at 195, the score was quickly 42-0 after a quick pin.  The Rams and Wildcats traded pins at 220 and 285 and the team score was 48-6 heading into the lower weight classes.

Jimmy Schwab continues his winning ways

Brison Dixon continued his winning ways with a 13-0 major decision at 106 and Williamsport won by decision at 113 to make it 52-9 in the Rams favor.  Freshman Jake W Sweitzer won by fall at 120 and Junior Jake E Sweitzer lost by fall in a close match at 126 before Nate Tasker closed it out with a wild 14-8 win in the final bout of the match.  The Rams ended victorious by the score of 61-15 in the day's first match.

Next up was the rematch with the Hyndman Hornets.  Jace Guy started this match as well, but this this time he took the mat in the 145 pound class.  The result was the same, a second period fall.  Jimmy Schwab was awarded a forfeit and Alec Horner pinned again to give Southern an early 18-0 lead.  After Patrick Duggan scored his second pin of the day and Joe Embleton also won by fall, the Rams were well in control.  Hunter Park received a forfeit at 195 to bring the score to 36-0 with a rematch at 220 up next.  In the earlier meeting this season, Scotty Tichnell lost a decision to the Hyndman wrestler, but this day was different.  It was a close match throughout with Tichnell locking up a cradle and scoring the fall in the third period.  Cole Sweitzer added a pin at 285 and the team's lead was 48-0 heading into the low weights.

Brison Dixon and Joey McComas were awarded forfeits at 106 and 113.  Hyndman was able to get a win at 120 and another big rematch was up next at 126.  Jake E Sweitzer lost a decision earlier in the season to Hyndman, but on this day, he was dominate with a 4-0 win.  Nate Tasker was given a forfeit at 132 and Hyndman won by fall at 138 to close out the match.  The final score was 69-12 in Southern's favor and the dream of qualifying for regional duals is still alive.

Southern 61 - Williamsport 15
106 - Brison Dixon (SG) m dec Zayden Meyers (W) 13-0
113 - Bryce Palamar (W) dec Joey McComas (SG) 8-1
120 - Jake W Sweitzer (SG) pins Simone Auguayo (W) 1:04
126 - Cody Crawford (W) pins Jake E Sweitzer (SG) 5:12
132 - Nate Tasker (SG) dec Todd Feuerstein (W) 14-8
138 - Jace Guy (SG) pins Trenton Gross (W) 2:50
145 - Jimmy Schwab (SG) pins Tyler Crain (W) 2:29
152 - Alec Horner (SG) pins Alex McCray (W) :50
160 - Brad Davis (SG) pins Josh Gerber (W) :46
170 - Joe Embleton (SG) via forfeit
182 - Patrick Duggan (SG) pins Belron Ruqi (W) 2:37
195 - Hunter Park (SG) pins Zach Alliger (W) :25
220 - Brandon Oyster (W) pins Scotty Tichnell (SG) 1:12
285 - Cole Sweitzer (SG) pins Janari Carro (W) :52

Southern 69 - Hyndman 12
106 - Brison Dixon (SG) via forfeit
113 - Joey McComas (SG) via forfeit
120 - Brian Dawson (H) pins Jake W Sweitzer (SG) 3:34
126 - Jake E Sweitzer (SG) dec Cameron Gibbner (H) 4-0
132 - Nate Tasker (SG) via forfeit
138 - Cole Pensyl (H) pins Erik Fike (SG) 3:39
145 - Jace Guy (SG) pins Tristan Graeff (H) 3:34
152 - Jimmy Schwab (SG) via forfeit
160 - Alec Horner (SG) pins Gavin Brick (H) :57
170 - Patrick Duggan (SG) pins Owen Leydig (H) 1:27
182 - Joe Embleton (SG) pins Lee Moskey (H) 3:38
195 - Hunter Park (SG) via forfeit
220 - Scotty Tichnell (SG) pins Shawn Fazenbaker (H) 5:08
285 - Cole Sweitzer (SG) pins Hunter Burkett (H) :23

Senior Celebrations

Brison Dixon is the son of Tina Reese and Mikey Dixon and is the grandson of Robert Reese.  Brison has been a three year starter on the wrestling team.  He currently has 97 career wins and has a perfect 34-0 record this season.  Brison also leads the team with 20 pins.  After graduation, Brison plans to attend Garrett College and study to become a welder.  Ladies and gentlemen, Senior Brison Dixon.

Erik Fike is the son of Terry and Janette Fike of Oakland.  Erik is in his second year on the wrestling team and currently has 15 career wins and has nine pins this season.  After graduation, Erik plans to attend Garrett College then transfer to Frostburg State University to pursue a degree in Exercise and Sports Science.  Ladies and gentlemen, senior Erik Fike.

Gunnar Ward is the son of Tracie and Kevin Greene of Oakland.  This is Gunnar's second year on the wrestling team.  He is also very involved in theater, journalism and photography.  During his two years on the wrestling team, Gunnar has lost 50 pounds.  After graduation, Gunnar plans to attend Garrett College then transfer to Frostburg State University to study communications with the dream of becoming a broadcast journalist.  Ladies and gentlemen, senior Gunnar Ward.

Jimmy Schwab is the son of Perry and Sue Schwab of Oakland.  Jimmy has been a starter on the varsity wrestling team for all four years and currently has 116 career wins.  Jimmy is also a four year letterman on the soccer and track teams.  Jimmy was a state qualifier in both wrestling and track last season.  After graduation, Jimmy plans to attend Frostburg State University to pursue a degree in education.  Ladies and gentlemen, senior Jimmy Schwab.

Patrick Duggan is the son of Dan and Susan Duggan of Swanton.  Patrick has been a member of the wrestling team for three seasons.  Patrick has earned 29 wins in his career at Southern.  Patrick is also a letterman in soccer, track and cross-country.  After graduation, Patrick plans to attend college and study business administration with the hopes of opening his own business.  Ladies and gentlemen, senior Patrick Duggan.

On December 16, 2016, senior Jimmy Schwab joined an elite group when he earned his 100th career win.  He became only the 16th wrestler in Southern's history to reach that plateau.  With 116 wins as of today, Jimmy currently ranks 8th in all time wins at Southern.  Coach Taylor is presenting Jimmy with a plaque commemorating this achievement.