Billy Reed-Bodey, left, of Fairbanks bear hugs Brodie Stevens of Swanton during the heavyweight consolation semifinals of the Division III Ohio High School Athletic Association State Wrestling Tournament at Marion Harding High School. (Journal-Tribune photo by Sam Dillon)
It ended how it all began for the wrestler from Fairbanks High School.
Billy Reed-Bodey took sixth place during the Division III Ohio High School Athletic Association wrestling tournament at Marion Harding High School.
He went into the state tournament with a perfect 43-0 record.
He kept that record sterling after his first bout against Seth Phillips of Western Reserve with an 8-0 major decision.
The senior wrestler wore down his opponent with hand fighting and continuous position in the opening period that saw neither wrestler put points on the board.
Reed-Bodey took the down position to open the second period and worked his way to a reversal for a score.
He was awarded a third point when Phillips was called for stalling in the closing seconds of the second period.
Working from behind, Phillips chose the neutral position to open the third period.
Reed-Bodey took the opportunity to stretch his lead to 5-0 with a takedown. He closed out scoring with a nearfall for three points in the final seconds of the match.
Reed-Bodey’s quest for a state title was cut short by Cadman Roose of Benjamin Logan. The pair met in the championship quarterfinals.
The score stood at 1-all the end of three periods.
Neither wrestler scored in overtime, forcing a sudden victory tie-breaker.
Roose picked up an escape point in the first round of sudden victory. Reed-Bodey couldn’t follow-up with an escape during his 30 seconds on the mat.
The FHS grappler met a familiar face in the second round of the wrestlebacks, T.J. Wehr of Caldwell.
The pair met in the championship round of the district meet, where Reed-Bodey won by a 3-2 decision.
He was able to repeat his one-point victory with a 1-0 win to move on to the consolation quarterfinal.
“It was a close, tough match and my mind set was just I have to place,” Reed-Bodey said. “I have worked too hard to not place at least in the top eight, so my mind set was I’m going to go out there and wrestle my best and give it my all.”
In the quarterfinals, the Fairbanks heavyweight met Victor Verba of Pymatuning Valley.
Reed-Bodey went on the offensive in the opening period with a takedown to take a 2-0 lead. He chose bottom to open the second period, which led to an escape and ultimately a 3-0 decision to move on to the consolation semifinals.
He suffered his second loss of the year in the consolation semifinals.
Reed-Bodey tangled with Brodie Stevens of Swanton.
Neither wrestler could move ahead at the end of three periods, which forced overtime.
Stevens tripped up Reed-Bodey for a takedown.
The loss put the FHS grappler in the fifth-place match where he faced Phillips for the second time.
Reed-Bodey could not repeat his earlier success against Phillips, losing by a 9-2 decision to end his tournament.
Reed-Bodey finished his season with a 46-3 record.
Triad’s Isiah Leasure opened his 182-pound D-III match with high energy,
He took an early 2-0 lead over Will Hash of Bidwell River Valley with a take down.
The bout took an unfavorable turn for Leasure as Hash went on a run of points with takedowns and near falls .
He ultimately pinned Leasure in the second round.
Leisure notched his only win in his consolation round bout against Hal Huber of Northwestern. The Triad grappler picked up a 12-6 decision using a takedown and release strategy that Leasure and his coach Mike Zizzo thought worked to his strengths.
“Sometimes when Isiah is on top riding the kid, he tends to stall,” said Aizzo. “We have to scream pretty loud for him to cut his opponent loose.
“He is better at taking down and letting him up and then going for another takedown.”
Leasure’s final appearance was against Adam Myers of Springfield Shawnee. Myers won the match by a 4-0 decision.
Jonathan Alder grapplers found themselves against tough competition in the opening round of the Division II state event at Highland High School.
Reese Chapman was the Pioneers’ first wrestler to the mats at 113 pounds.
He faced Colin Mellott of Wapakoneta.
The two seniors battled on the ground in the first period, with neither wanting to yield back points.
Mellott struck first in the waning seconds of the opening period to take a 2-0 lead.
Chapman chose a neutral start after the decision was deferred to him.
The choice didn’t go as planned as Mellott earned his second take down for a 4-0 lead that lasted until the end of the bout.
JA Tony Watson said Chapman needed to focus on his offense.
“He just has to come back and attack,” Watson said. “He needs to get a little more offensive and believe that we can attack guys offensively.”
Chapman then encountered Shelvin Anthony of Steubensville.
After an opening period 0-0 stalemate, Chapman did what his coach spoke of earlier and went on the attack.
He found an opening for a two-point take down.
Chapman decided to surrender a point to Anthony. moving the match to 2-1.
The tactic paid off as Chapman went in for another takedown for a 4-1 lead going into the final period.
The Pioneer wrestler chose to start the final two minutes in the neutral stance.
Anthony took advantage of the move for a takedown to move the match to 4-3.
Chapman earned a quick reversal to extend his lead to 6-3. He rode out the remaining time for the win.
Chapman’s final match of the tournament was an 8-2 loss to Dan Adams of Louisville.
With the senior’s career coming to a close, he was happy to return to the state meet.
“I have done a lot of work the past eight years, especially over this past summer since I didn’t get to finish my year last year (due to COVID-19),” he said. “It really motivated me to work hard to get here again,” Chapman said.
Josh Proper was next up for the Pioneers at 120 pounds. The two-time state qualifier wasn’t quite prepared for the early strike of Isaac Meese of Indian Valley.
Proper trailed 2-0, but responded with an escape near the end of the first period to cut the lead to 2-1.
Meese responded in the second period with a near fall that bumped the score to 5-1 before ultimately getting the pin at 2:50.
Proper’s time at the state meet was cut short by Sagaris Antwan of Aurora.
The pair met in the first round of the wrestle backs.
Antwan won the bout by a 13-8 decision.
Watson said the Proper did a good job, but it was one bad period that cost him his second match.
“We watched that match and we know he could have won that one,” Watson said. “He battled, but one bad period and that is what costs you here.
“You can win two (periods) and lose one and still lose the match and that’s what happened.”
After qualifying for the state tournament as a No. 3 seed out of Wilmington, Oliver Byerly, JA’s 138-pound sophomore, was unable to compete due to a hand injury.
Isiah Leasure, right, of Triad attempts to escape Hal Huber of West Salem Northwestern during the first round of the consolation matches at 182 pounds. Leasure won by a 12-6 decision. (Journal-Tribune photo by Sam Dillon)
Reese Chapman, left, of Jonathan Alder attempts to escape a single leg hold during the second round of consolation matches at 113 pounds during the Division II state tournament at Highland High School. (Journal-Tribune photo by Sam Dillon)