Oxford reminded everyone why it was a wrestling powerhouse in Oakland County as they finished the 51st annual Oakland County Tournament with four winners.
The two day tournament, held on Friday, Dec. 17 and Saturday, Dec. 18 was won by Novi Detroit Catholic Central with 343.5 points, but the Wildcats were nipping at their heels, finishing second with 329 points.
‘We almost had DCC,? head coach Brandon Rank said. ‘We made a couple of mistakes here or there, but for the most part the kids wrestled fantastic.?
When the final round was finished, Oxford had four wrestlers, Matt Frisch (145 lbs.), Dakota Peasley (152 lbs.), Ben Ralston (160 lbs.) and Prescott Line (215 lbs.) standing on top of the award platform.
‘All four kids wrestled amazing the entire tournament. I’ve seen a lot of improvement from them since the beginning of the year,? Rank said.
Frisch defeated Nick Mason of Novi Detroit Catholic Central 2-1 in the championship match.
‘He is a hard working kid…Matt Frisch wins so much because Matt Frisch works so hard,? Rank said.
Peasley knocked out West Bloomfield’s Avery Hasenauer 3-2.
‘It was a good win for Dakota (Peasley) because it kind of solidifies how good of a wrestler he is and giving him confidence for this year,? Rank said.
Ralston defeated Cody Devoe of Rochester 10-2. According to Rank, Ralston either pinned or had major technical falls all the way to his finals match.
In what could be the match of the tournament, Line defeated Rochester Stoney Creek’s Nick Grajdzik, the third ranked wrestler in the state, 4-3 in triple overtime.
‘Prescott has come out of his shell this year and he is opening up more and he is a lot more confident and it is paying off,? Rank said.
Overall, 13 out of 14 wrestlers placed in Oakland County.
Other tournament placers include Dylan Smith (103 lbs.) third place, Keegan Cantara (112 lbs.) in third, Rocco Borg (119 lbs.) second, Noah Cantara (125 lbs.) in fifth, Kyle Hill (130 lbs.) in sixth, Mike Thomas (135 lbs.) in fourth, Jacob Peasley (140 lbs.) in third, Liam Logan (171 lbs.) in eighth and Matt Anger (189 lbs.) in third.
‘When you have 13 placers out of 14 kids wrestling, they did something special,? Rank said. ‘This team is something special. They are really solidifying themselves as a family, and they are doing everything they need to do.?
Up next for the Wildcats is the Oxford Invitational on Wednesday, Dec. 29 beginning at 9 a.m. at Oxford High School.