Back-to-back: Hammond repeats as SCISA wrestling champions
By the time, Jamison Phillips hit the mats for his match against Price Medlin in the 195-pound weight class, Hammond had already clinched its second straight SCISA 3A state wrestling championship Saturday.
But Phillips drove up the energy level in the Fawcett Indoor Stadium when he went the distance with Ben Lippen’s Medlin. He outlasted the seasoned Falcons grappler in a 10-4 decision that brought the Skyhawks’ lead to 44-24.
“He’s a tough competitor, I’ve wrestled with him in years past,” Phillips said. “All I know is that when we wrestle, we grind it out, get all the points we can. I wanted to not let myself slip up and make a mistake.”
After Phillips’ decision, Hammond’s Jake Lalumondier made quick work of Nathaniel Cole, pinning him in the 220 match and the Skyhawks won their second straight state title, 50-30.
“Going back-to-back was hard,” Hammond coach Austin Hood said. “Hats off to Ben Lippen, Greenwood, Cardinal Newman, all the guys who were here today. It got really competitive, there’s a lot of parity.”
Hammond, 10-0 in SCISA competition this season, beat rival Cardinal Newman 48-33 on Jan. 29.to earn the top seed in the 8-team tournament. The Skyhawks advanced to the championship with a 60-18 win over Greenwood Christian. Ben Lippen defeated Cardinal Newman, 48-36, to advance to the title match.
“We were excited to be in the finals,” Hood said. “We have a very different team from last year, we had some young kids really step up. We had a sixth grader, seventh grader, freshman open the match and they really answered the bell.”
Hammond’s Parker Drake defeated Luke Martin at 113, then William Gaines (120), Leo Addeo (132), and Harper Meacham (138) gave the Skyhawks a 23-18 lead going into the 145 match. Ben Lippen got pins from D.J. Croteau at 106, Tanner Carson at 126, and Paul Copeland at 145 to get the Falcons within striking distance.
Ben Lippen got a thrilling win from Burton Brewer at 152. Brewer and Aiden Canzater battled through three falls, with Brewer behind 13-11 on the scoreboard. With 30 seconds to go, he worked a pin on Canzater to give the Falcons a 24-23 lead.
Brewer’s pin at 152 was the next-to-the last flare for the Falcons. Hammond’s Ryan Kane pinned Chandler Crooks at 160, Aiden Palisin had no Ben Lippen opponent at 170, and Owen Hales got a pin on Keith Marion at 182 to set up Phillips’ matchup with Medlin at 195.
“We felt like he gave us a good chance to close it out there with a score,” Hood said. “We knew he just needed to win. He did a good job not putting himself in jeopardy and grinding out a decision victory. That’s tough. He had to gut that one out after giving up a a lot of size.”