195 Pounds

#1 Manny Armour of Jesuit vs. #2 Yehia Riles of Brother Martin in the Division I finals.

Division I

Sixteen wrestlers competed in the 2013 Division I 195 lbs. state championships. 

Introduction

Manny Armour - Jesuit    Before the state championships Jesuit's Manny Armour had a record of 25-0 against Louisiana competition and was 41-2 overall, his two losses coming at the Mid-America Tournament in Tulsa, where he placed fifth.  Against Louisiana wrestlers, his closest match was a seven point victory over Division II's Daniel Relayson of Holy Cross.  He had defeated #2 Yehia Riles of Brother Martin 20-1.  He had pinned #3 Caleb Sutton of Catholic twice (3:11 and 1:46).  He scored a technical fall over #4 Matthew Perez of Sulphur (16-0), and pins over #5 Aaron Langlinais of Comeaux (3:07), #6 Daniel Priola of Fontainebleau (1:48), #7 Ryan Hanley of Rummel (3:55) and #8 Austin Guedry of East Ascension (1:56 and 1:01).  He also had a pin in 3:35 over returning Division II state champion Orlando Calhoun, Jr. of Northside. Armour won the Warrior Open with wins of 14-2, 15-0 and 1:56, and the Mandeville Open with scores of 15-0 and 16-0.  In winning his eight matches at the Trey Culotta he had four pins in the first or second periods and four technical falls (70-5 combined score).  At the Grapevine Duals in Texas he recorded seven pins, five of which were in the first period.  He won the Louisiana Classic via his toughest match in the state, a 6-5 win over Hoover, Alabama's Alec Shunnarah.  A week later he won the Ken Cole via two technical falls and two pins. It could be safe to say that after finding himself in a 195 lbs. bracket at the 2012 state championships with returning state champions Gerard Roman of Brother Martin and Scott Gibbons of Rummel, Armour was not going to be denied anything in 2013.

Round 1 and Quarterfinals

All of the top eight seeds advanced through the first round and into the quarterfinals. Armour, as he had on November 3rd, pinned #8 Austin Guedry of East Ascension, this time in 2:47.  #4 Matthew Perez of Sulphur did the same to #5 Aaron Langlinais of Comeaux in 2:30 (photo left), and had a much easier time with the Spartan than during his 3-1 victory at the Ken Cole. In a preview of things to come, #3 Caleb Sutton of Catholic had a tough match against Daniel Priola, the #6 seed from Fontainebleau.  Sutton had defeated Priola 11-1 at the Trey Culotta, but Priola proved much harder in this match, losing only 5-3. #2 Yehia Riles of Brother Martin also had a tougher than expected match against Rummel's Ryan Hanley.  Riles defeated Hanley 14-3 in a dual meet on January 6th but Hanley showed much more resolve in this match, which Riles only won by a score of 4-2.

Semifinals

Armour faced Perez in the first semifinals, and while he did not repeat the 16-0 victory he had at the Ken Cole, he still proved the dominant wrestler, winning easily with a 19-7 major decision to advance to Saturday night's finals (photo left). #2 Riles and #3 Sutton had a much closer semifinal match.  Sutton had a 2-1 season's edge over his Crusader counterpart.  He defeated Riles 5-3 to place third at the Trey Culotta on December 22nd, and he beat Riles at the January 9th dual meet between Catholic and Brother Martin, by a score of 8-3.  But Riles came back in the Louisiana Classic and defeated Sutton 3-2 in an "Ultimate Tie-breaker" to take third place. The seeding committee must have considered that victory more important than Sutton's two previous victories, which is why Riles was seeded second and Sutton third. But the match proved the seeders correct.  The sophomore Riles scraped out a 2-1 victory over Sutton to earn his first appearance in the state finals.

Consolation Rounds

The Fontainebleau junior Priola had the longest successful run in the consolation rounds.  After his quarterfinals loss to Sutton, Priola pinned Barbe sophomore Khoury Kraus in 2:21 to set-up a first meeting with Rummel's Hanley.  The two had not met before and spent longer than either wanted to get acquainted.  After the regulation five minutes Priola was able to score a takedown in the "Sudden Victory" period for a 9-7 win.  Priola then faced #4 Perez in the consolation semifinals and had a little easier time, winning 7-3 to advance to the consolation finals.  Sutton only had to win one match after his semifinals loss, but nothing came easy to Sutton during this tournament.  His opponent, #5 Langlinais of Comeaux, had taken Sutton almost to the limit at the Ken Cole, in which Sutton survived a 3-2 match.  Langlinais learned all one could from a one point loss and this time took Sutton to overtime, in which Sutton prevailed 3-2 in an "Ultimate Tie-breaker."

Langlinais' run ended in the next match when Perez pinned him in 3:56 to take fifth place.

Whether winning or losing in the tournament, nothing came easy for Sutton.  His second match with Priola resulted in a 3-2 win..  If his round 1 pin is not counted, Sutton wrestled four matches which had combined scores of Sutton 13-Opponents 10.  He left little margin for error en route to his third-place finish.  The Catholic senior finished 24-7 (30-11).

Finals: #1 Manny Armour (Jesuit) versus #2 Yehia Riles (Brother Martin)

Armour defeated Riles in their only match of the season, during the Trey Culotta Invitational, 20-1.  In his last match of his high school career he was not going to risk a mistake, though, by scoring another technical fall.  Armour tripped Riles for an initial takedown and turned him almost at will.  After 2:42 had elapsed it was over by a fall, and Armour had won Jesuit's second championship of the evening.  Armour finished the season 29-0 (45-2).  Riles, only a sophomore, fished 29-9 (39-12).  In doing so he also won the Greater New Orleans Championships and placed third at the Louisiana Classic.

Armour trips Riles for a takedown.	Armour defends against a Riles single-leg attack.	Armour looks to the official to call a pin.	Armour and Riles offer congratulations after the match.

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Division II

Seventeen wrestlers competed in the 2013 Division II 195 lbs. state championships.

Introduction

The 195 lbs. weight class was noteworthy for the presence of #1 seed Orlando Calhoun, Jr. of Northside.  Calhoun was the returning Division II state champion at 195 lbs. and his only two losses, complimented by 21 wins, came as the result of a disqualification to Division III Rayne's Billy Marcantel and a pin by Jesuit's Manny Armour in the finals of the Ken Cole.   The week after that tournament he won the Lafayette Metro Tournament.  #2 seed Logan Thompson of Belle Chasse was also 21-2 with his losses coming to Holy Cross's Porter Dazet and Daniel Relayson (December 5th).  Dazet, however, dropped to 182 lbs.  On January 26th Thompson avenged his loss to Relayson 10-4 at the Live Oak Duals.  Also on that day Live Oak's Blake Brock defeated Relayson 5-2 whereas Thompson pinned Brock in 1:38.  Thus the seeding for the state tournament was set as follows: 1) Calhoun; 2) Thompson; 3) Brock and 4) Relayson.

Rounds 1, 2 and Quarterfinals

The first round only consisted of one match between Teurlings Catholic's Jarrod Berkenmeir and Tara's Rashon Coudy.  Berkenmeir reward for his 1:07 pin was a quarterfinals match with #1 Orlando Calhoun, Jr., the returning Division II state champion. None of the top-eight seeds were eliminated from the winners' bracket during round 2.   #8 David Quiring of St. Thomas More and #3 Brock received forfeits into the quarterfinals.  Relayson, #5 Brent Bourgeois of Pearl River and Thompson pinned their opponents in the first period.  #7 Ian Harter of St. Michael scored a technical fall while #6 Andrew Courville of St. Louis scored a 14-0 major decision.  Calhoun had the toughest time with a 10-3 victory over Berkenmeir. In the quarterfinals Calhoun had the toughest match again, getting by Quiring 12-4 (photo left).  Relayson pinned Bourgeois in 2:44, Brock pinned Courville in 3:09 and Thompson pinned Harter in 1:17.

Semifinals

Calhoun did have a 7-4 win over Relayson from a January 4th tri-meet between Northside, Holy Cross and Teurlings Catholic.  This match was every bit as close, aside from Calhoun only ceding one point to Relayson to earn a 4-1 decision (photo bottom-left) and a second trip to the state finals (Calhoun placed third in 2011 at 189 lbs.).  #3 Brock proved a much more difficult opponent that he did on January 26th, taking Thompson the full six minutes in a 4-0 loss (photo bottom-right).  Thompson, a junior, earned his first trip to the finals.

Consolation Rounds

Brock's loss placed him in the consolation semifinals against Quiring, who advanced to that point via pins over Parkway's Nathan Ponder in 2:16 and over Bourgeois in 4:08.  Quiring was on a roll and defeated the #5 seed 1-0 to make it to the consolation finals.  Meeting him there was Relayson who earned a tough 3-0 victory over Courville.  Courville got that far by beating Berkenmeir 7-3and Harter 9-2.  Brock had lost his last two matches whereas Courville had won his previous two, and he used that momentum to upset Brock 4-3 for fifth place.  Quiring's run was over though when Relayson pinned him in 2:18 to take third place for the Tigers.

Finals: #1 Orlando Calhoun, Jr. versus #2 Logan Thompson (Belle Chasse)

Having wrestled three matches that went the full six minutes each, Calhoun was ready for some kind of a break, and he found it in his opponent from Belle Chasse.   Calhoun took the Cardinal down and worked him to his back with chicken wings, scoring a fall in 3:35 and repeating as the Division II state champion.  Calhoun, a senior, finished the year with a 24-2 record.  The junior Thompson still has next year and finished the 2012-13 season at 25-3.

Calhoun and Logan work for the first takedown.	Calhoun works "chicken wings" on Thompson to turn him to his back.	Calhoun puts pressure Thompson to score a fall in 3:35.

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Division III

Twelve wrestlers competed in the 2013 Division III 195 lbs. state championships. 

Introduction

Defending Division III state champion Billy Marcantel had almost as impressive a record as Jesuit's Manny Armour.   Entering the 2013 state championships Marcantel was 34-2.  He won the Jacob McMillan, the Rebel Open, The Brusly Invitational, the Ken Cole and the Lafayette Metro tournaments.  His only two losses occurred at the Louisiana Classic, at which he wrestled at 182 lbs.  Both were close: 13-10 to Brother Martin's Kyle Delaune and 4-2 to Jesuit's Gage Grush.  He had already pinned the #2 seed Tyler Sullivan of Calvary Baptist and the #4 seed Jameson Picou of Grand Lake.  He defeated the 2012 Division II state champion Nick Schneider of Teurlings Catholic, Holy Cross' Porter Dazet and pinned Lafayette's Michael Daiy twice.  Marcantel often started matches off in a little bit of trouble, though, and it remained to be seen if someone could take advantage of that.  Sullivan placed third in 2012 at 195 lbs. and had four wins over #3 seed Jerald Amaya of Evangel.

Round 1 and Quarterfinals

No upsets were recorded in Round 1 as John Curtis senior Patrick Martin, North Vermillion freshman Jonathan Thompson and Bossier sophomore Isaiah McKinsey all advanced to the quarterfinals via pins. The quarterfinals went as expected also.  Marcantel pinned North Desoto's Justin Gaskin in 0:40.  Grand Lake's Picou pinned Martin in 0:30.  Jerald Amaya of Evangel scored a major 15-5 decision over Thompson and Sullivan pinned McKinsey in 1:35 (photo left).

Semifinal # 1

#1 seed Marcantel pinned Jameson Picou in 0:50 on December 13th. Picou surprised Marcantel in his semifinal match by picking him up and then putting him down and onto his back.  But Marcantel, who is used to such situations, reversed Picou and put him on his back with a reverse-nelson.  Marcantel kept Picou down and scored a fall in 1:42 to advance to his second straight Division III 195 lbs. final.

Picou shoots a double-leg that takes Marcantel off of the mat.	Picou prepares to lower Marcantel back onto the mat.	Picou exposes Marcantel's back after taking him down.

Marcantel reverses Picou and inserts a reverse-nelson.	Marcantel traps Picou's arm as Picou resists.	Marcantel traps both arms and scores a fall in 1:42.

Semifinal # 2

Second-seeded Tyler Sullivan and third-seeded Jerald Amaya previously met on February 1st at the Northwest Louisiana Regionals, a match won by Sullivan 10-2.  The semifinals match between the Calvary Baptist and Evangel wrestlers was similar, except that this time Sullivan did not allow Amaya to score, advancing to his first Division III finals with a 7-0 victory.

Consolation Rounds

North Vermillion's Thompson's first consolation match against Brusly freshman Mitchell Callais went the distance in regulation, but Thompson owned the "Sudden Victory" round, scoring a takedown and two nearfall points as time ran out in a 7-3 win.  He then won a 6-2 match over Bossier's McKinsey before falling to Picou in 4:27 in the consolation semifinals.  Curtis' Martin also advanced to the consolation semifinals via a pin in 3:35 over De la Salle freshman Lee Schwartzenbach and a 15-5 major decision over Jude Johnson of Basile.  But Martin fell to Amaya in 2:57 setting up a fifth place match with Thompson, which Martin won 10-3.  Amaya and Picou met for third place, with Picou winning via a pin in 3:40.

Finals: #1 Billy Marcantel (Rayne) versus #2 Tyler Sullivan (Calvary Baptist)

Marcantel and Sullivan had met each other once during the season, but Sullivan did not give up another pin in 0:58 as he did on January 12th in the semifinals of the Brusly Invitational.  Sullivan "locked-up" with Marcantel at the start and tried a head-and-arm throw, but Marcantel slipped out his head, got behind Sullivan, and took him down.  As Sullivan tried to escape, Marcantel injured his knee which was eerily similar to what happened to his teammate, 2012 220 lbs. state champion Brennan McKnight, in McKnight's semifinals match.  Marcantel was able to resume the match, though, and was able to score three nearfall points to take a 5-0 lead after the first period.  Marcantel started on top in the second and was able to turn Sullivan to his back, this time pinning him at 3:31.  Marcantel finished his senior season with a 37-2 record.  Sullivan, a junior, finished with a 23-5 (24-5) record.

Sullivan "locks-up" with Marcantel at the beginning of their finals match.	Marcantel turns Sullivan in the second period prior to his 3:31 fall.	Marcantel celebrates his second Division III state title.	Marcantel hugs Coach Chevalier after his win.

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