SHOWING THEIR MEDAL(S)

McAtee, Trump And Johnson Bring Home State Medals For Trenton

For years, the wrestling program at Trenton High School was the standard bearer for Bulldog athletics. After the Class 1 MSHSAA Wrestling Championships in Columbia over the weekend, things may be trending back in that direction.
Trenton took five wrestlers to state and returned with three medals and an 11th-place spot in the final team standings. The finish represented a return to what Trenton expects its program to do and could very well be looked back on one day as the jumping off point for the next great wave of wrestling success for the Bulldogs.
Trenton’s Hunter McAtee, a 106-pound freshman, paced the Bulldogs at state with a third-place medal. Senior 182-pounder Mark Trump and sophomore 220-pounder Caleb Johnson backed that medal, each netting fifth-place hardware in their respective brackets. Gavin Chambers a freshman at 113, and Coleman Griffin a freshman at 138, also competed for the Bulldogs at the event.
“Our goal for this state tournament was to place in the top 10 and we were there until Father Tolton won a couple of finals matches to bump us to 11th,” Trenton coach Charlie Bacon said. “Our kids showed so much heart on the wrestling mat. I’m just so proud of the effort our boys put into this tournament and am very excited for the future.”
McAtee dominated his third-place match with Lexington’s Josh Payne on Saturday. After securing a takedown and a nearfall in the first period, the Trenton freshman opened the second period on the bottom, where he quickly gained a reversal and another nearfall. After allowing an escape, McAtee picked up another takedown to go ahead 11-1. This time, however, McAtee was able to convert the takedown into a pin with 10 seconds left in the period to lay claim to the third-place medal.
McAtee reached farther into the championship bracket than any other Trenton wrestler, reaching the semifinals with a pair of wins by fall to guarantee himself a medal. Eventual state champion Alexander Rallo of Whitfield handed McAtee his first tournament loss, doing so with a 12-0 major decision in the semifinals.
McAtee bounced back by pinning Albany’s Gavin Shoush in the first period to place himself in the third-place match against Payne. The 4-1 showing at the tournament gave McAtee a final record of 44-5 for his freshman season.
“Hunter came in with his sights on a medal and he never lost track of that goal,” Bacon said.
Trump (182) lost just two matches at the state tournament and they both came on decisions by a combined four points. The lone senior Bulldog at the tournament was dealt an 8-5 decision loss by Lawson’s Cade Kilingsworth in the opening round on Thursday. That forced Trump into needing three wins in the consolation bracket to earn a medal.
With his back against the wall Trump delivered. He scored a win by fall in the consolation bracket’s opening round and then outdueled Christian’s Blake Heuer for a 5-3 decision win. That put Trump in the bubble round, where he scored a win by fall to clench a state medal – the first of his career.
Trump was defeated by a 3-2 decision against Holden’s Travis Stout in the consolation semifinals, but he ended his wrestling career at Trenton on a high note, defeating Lathrop’s Brendon Arthur in sudden victory overtime, 7-3. Trump used a takedown and nearfall in the bonus period to secure the win.
“Mark knew it was his last year to get a medal after falling short the previous two years,” Bacon said. “He went down and really put together some great matches. After losing his very first match, he showed tons of heart coming all the way back through the backside to the medal rounds. Mark was a three-time state qualifier and a fifth-place medalist. We will miss Mark next year.”
The victory in the fifth-place match gave Trump a final record of 41-9 for the season and a 123-73 record for his career at Trenton.
Like Trump, Johnson (220) lost just two matches at state and both were via close decisions. In the two losses combined, Johnson was outscored by just three points. He got a thrilling 11-9 decision win in the opening round on Thursday over Central New Madrid’s Quazavion Jackson – a match Johnson won with a takedown with just 12 seconds left in a tied match. After that, however, Johnson lost in the quarterfinals to Lathrop’s Quinton Wolfe by a 4-3 decision.
Johnson battled back, though, getting a takedown and pin with two seconds left in the consolation second round to advance to the bubble round. There, he guaranteed himself a medal with a pin of Marceline’s Nathan Cupp. After losing by a 3-1 decision to Lawson’s Wyatt Becker, Johnson went out with a win, scoring a 6-3 decision over Lathrop’s Wolfe to avenge his quarterfinal loss. Johnson got an escape in the second period and a takedown. He picked up another takedown in the third period to ice the win.
“Caleb had a tournament of a lifetime with lots of last period wins and avenged losses from earlier in the season,” Bacon said. “He just wrestled so smart throughout the tournament and really found his style.”
With his 4-2 showing, Johnson finished the season with a 32-14 record.
Gavin Chambers (113) got a taste of state tournament success, scoring a third-period pin in the opening round. Eventual state champion Evan Binder of Whitfield would send Chambers to the consolation bracket with a quick pin in the quarterfinals, however. There, Chambers advanced to the bubble round with a win by a second-period pin. His hopes of a state medal ended in the consolation quarterfinals, however, as he was pinned by Mid-Buchanan’s Wyatt Cunningham in the first period. Chambers finished the year with a 24-22 overall record.
“Gavin is a kid who just started peaking like crazy at the district tournament and just kept it rolling all the way through the state tournament,” Bacon said. “To make it to the bubble match as a freshman is a huge accomplishment and I’m super proud of him.”
Coleman Griffin went 0-2 at state, getting pinned by Xavier Smith of Hancock in the opening round and losing by fall to Draven Wright of Gallatin in the consolation bracket. The two losses eliminated Griffin, who finished the season with a 27-18 record.
“Coleman lost his first two matches which eliminated him from the tournament,” Bacon said. “I think he was one of the better wrestlers in the bracket but was maybe overwhelmed by the atmosphere.”
Much more important than the Bulldogs’ standing after the tournament was how they got there. Trenton just missed a top-10 finish at state, doing so with just five wrestlers and only four scoring points. The make-up of the team Trenton took to Columbia represents a lot to look forward to. With three freshmen and a sophomore returning next season, Trump is the lone state qualifier whose career closed this weekend.
Going back to districts, Trenton had five wrestlers just miss a trip to state with losses in the bubble round. Only one of those five, Noah Lewis, was a senior. Kaden Owen (145), Brice Gibler (132), Sam Gibson (170) and Allen Airey (195) will all return next season, finishing one win short of going to state this year.