William Byrd senior Darin Witcher won his 100th high school
match to lead the Big Orange wrestlers to an opening night win Tuesday.
The Terriers defeated Hidden Valley in a dual match in Vinton, 54-30.
Witcher, a two-time state champion in Class 3, wrestled at 132
Tuesday and had a first period pin for his 100th victory. Darin was the 106
pound state champ as a sophomore and the 120 pound champ last season.
“Darin is such a good leader on and off of the mat,” said Byrd
coach Thomas Kessler. “He is heavily involved in our youth program and
coaches a lot of those kids twice a week. I am very excited to see how this
season goes for him.”
Junior state runner up Lane Brunk started his year off with a pin
and sophomore state qualifier RJ Johnson also won by pin. Davion Wade,
a returning starter, won by pin Tuesday and juniors David Krawcyzk,
Brandon Hurley, Cam King and Nelson Escobar all picked up wins.
“They are all hoping to take a step up this year and be impactful on
the lineup,” said Kessler.
Junior state placer Zane Taylor was out of action on the opening
night, but his younger brother Zachery stepped into the lineup and got a
first period pin. Myles Preston, freestyle and Greco state champ, also did
not debut Tuesday and hopes to be back in the lineup soon.
“We have a lot of depth at a lot of weights and we should have a
very solid team this year,” said Kessler. “I’m excited to see how the
season unfolds.”
The Terriers competed in the Staunton River tournament Saturday. It was a one day affair in Moneta.
