Medina High School places seventh at state wrestling tournament

 Teddy Hammer, right, lifts up St. Edward's Mark Martin in the 152-pound Division I state championship wrestling match.

COLUMBUS The Medina wrestling team just keeps climbing the ladder.
The Battling Bees qualified four individuals to the state wrestling tournament, all of whom placed in the top eight and earned spots on the podium. As a team, Medina finished seventh in the Division I standings, an impressive and steady improvement from its 15th-place finish in 2010 and 74th finish in ’09 at the state meet.
It’s the first Medina team to finish in the top 10.
“We have always talked about potential and something has always happened where we don’t quite make it, whether it just be a mad match or we come up a little short. To make this step and make the board, it’s just a good feeling, it’s hard to describe,” said Medina coach Chad Gilmore following a match over the weekend at the Jerome Schottenstein Center at Ohio State University in Columbus.
Senior Teddy Hammer placed second after losing to St. Edward’s Mark Martin, 8-4, in the 152-pound finals. Junior Ryan Hornack was fourth after falling to Mason’s Ruben Victoria, 8-4, in the 103-pound third place match, and junior Matt Hammer and senior Mike Griffith finish seventh. Hammer pinned Cincinnati Moeller’s Dean Meyer in 3:13 in the 140 match and Griffith beat Fairfield’s Adam Sams, 4-0, in 135 pounds.
Hornack was making his first trip to Columbus. With help and advice from teammates, Hornack said he wasn’t that nervous in the environment.
“My teammates, Matt Hammer, Teddy Hammer and Mike Griffith, all came down here last year and they were kind of coaching me through it and saying it’s not that much pressure,” said Hornack. “I thought at districts there’s a lot more pressure. I thought it was easy to adjust to. I just had fun.”
Hornack said the key to his performance in Columbus was the first two matches. He defeated Liberty Township Lakota East’s Austin Daly, 12-2, in the first round and Lancaster’s Jacob Spearman, 8-6, before falling to eventual state champion Brandon Thompson of Solon in the championship semifinals.
Getting off to a good start gave Hornack a lot of confidence.
“Heading into the semis, it made me feel that I do belong here and I could place really high,” said Hornack, adding he wasn’t completely satisfied with his fourth-place finish. “I know I definitely should have been in the finals. Not taking anything away from Brandon Thompson, but if we would have had better draws and been on different sides of the bracket, I think I could have seen him in the finals.”
Matt Hammer, who placed fourth in 130 pounds last year at the state meet, beat Middletown’s LaTrell Davis, 4-2, in the first round before battling his way back in the consolation bracket.
“I expected better for myself but I just had a rough tournament,” said Matt. “I’m going to work hard this summer to be where my brother is, and see what happens.”
The 140-pounder said the key to his seventh-place match was just following through on his shots.
“Most of the day I was stopping short but I kept going and stayed tough on top, controlled his wrist,” said Matt.
Leading up to that match in the consolations, Hammer defeated Brecksville’s Mitch Baran, 7-2, and lost to Ashville Teays Valley’s Travis Luft, 3-2.
Older brother Teddy pinned Maple Heights’ Richard Robertson in 1:55 in the first round, beat Olentangy Liberty’s Craig Thomas, 18-9, in the quarterfinals and Beavercreek’s Nick Corba, 9-0, in the championship semifinals. In the finals, he fell behind, 6-2, in the match and couldn’t recover.
Griffith placed eighth last year in the 112-pound weight class. In this year’s tournament, the senior pinned Cincinnati Anderson’s Patrick Campbell in 3:24 in the first round, lost to Mentor’s Alex Sweeney, 3-2, in the quarterfinals, and beat Cuyahoga Falls’ Colin Taylor, 9-3, and lost to Lakewood’s Nick Ramsey, 6-5, in the consolations.
Matt Hammer is glad that the Medina wrestlers are starting to get recognition.
“It’s great because usually we don’t get much credit at all for wrestling but to make it on the top 8 would be huge,” he said following his seventh place match.
In other area action, Brunswick’s Caleb Curtis went 1-2 on the tournament, beating Marysville’s Morgan Miller, 5-2, in the first round, losing to Massillon Perry’s Jo Jo Tayse, 3-2, in the quarterfinals, and falling to Cincinnati Moeller’s Jerry Thornberry, 3-2, in the consolations.