Class 1A State Duals Preview
State Semifinals
Saturday, January 20, 2024 at 10:00 AM
at Kissimmee Osceola High School
NOTE: Team rankings are Kabra Wrestling’s team dual rankings for Class 1A.
FHSAA Schedules
Class 3A: IBT schedule | Dual results | State duals preview
Class 2A: IBT schedule | Dual results | State duals preview
Class 1A: IBT schedule | Dual results | State duals preview
Class G-1A: IBT schedule
Region Finals
Friday, January 19, 2024 at 11:00 AM
at Kissimmee Osceola High School
NOTE: Team rankings are Kabra Wrestling’s team dual rankings for Class 1A.
#8 Suwannee vs.
#13 Baker County
1A-1 Region Final
All-Time region finals record | How they got here
Suwannee: 1-0, defeated Episcopal 51-27 in 2023 region final.
The District 2 champions defeated Rocky Bayou Christian and Florida High to punch their return ticket to Kissimmee.
Baker County: 0-0, First appearance in region finals
Earned some “I proved Kabra wrong” stickers with a 50-30 win over Episcopal and a 42-29 defeat of Fernandina Beach.
Ranked wrestlers
Suwannee is no longer the newbie at the state duals tournament and instead come back this year with experience and depth. This is a better team than the one who won the region title last year. Baker County surprised us last Thursday and now they’ll look to surprise some more people as this growing power gets to experience a region duals final for the first time.
What they’re saying
Suwannee head coach John Wainwright: "Five years ago we started with nine kids and needed a complete rebuild of a program with great tradition. I'm very proud of how the kids have stuck together and built a solid team that is competing at back-to-back State Duals."
The Baker County story is great and they’ve been slowly building for this moment. The first time might be a little difficult but the experience will be worth it. Right now, Suwannee is just too loaded at the top - and along the bench.
Suwannee: 113: #2-Topher Pearson (34-5); 150: #2-Austin McKinney (39-4); 106: #3-Eli Jolicoeur (42-3); 157: #3-Marshall White (38-3); 120: #8-Justin Contreras (21-6); 215: #16-Sam Ballard; 165: #18-Benjamin Lewis (30-9).
Baker County: 165: #4-Benny Lewis; 126: #5-Jareb Lauramore; 190: #18-Kristian Chancey; 157: #19-Keith Ratliff.
Match to Watch
165: #4 Benny Lewis (Baker County) vs. #18 Benjamin Lewis (Suwannee): I mean, this has to happen right? Benny vs. Benjamin? Let it be known that we must now the best of the Bens.
Breaking down the dual
Kabra Says
#11 Hernando vs.
#7 Palm Bay
1A-2 Region Final
All-Time region finals record | How they got here
Hernando: 1-5, defeated Palm Bay 33-31 last season to win first-ever region duals title.
The District 5 champions defeated Weeki Wachee 39-34 last Thursday to secure a spot in the region final after beating Mount Dora 47-27 in the quarterfinal.
Palm Bay: 2-1, has reached three consecutive region finals.
The Pirates return to the region final for the fourth straight year after the District 8 champs beat Avon Park 54-18 and Cocoa Beach 51-18.
Ranked wrestlers
A young Hernando team showed some of its growth in the region quarters and semifinals as it defeated two district champions to get this far, including getting retribution for the loss in their own district final against Weeki Wachee. They’re still young and prone to growing pains as is Palm Bay, who is developing its younger wrestlers to go along some of its veteran talent.
Last year’s Hernando team finally broke through and won its first region duals title with a win over Palm Bay. Both of these teams are rebuilding after having some solid classes. This match likely will come down to one bout you aren’t thinking about before it starts, and we’ll take Palm Bay to win in a squeaker.
Hernando: 157: #5-Shaw Garrett (23-3); 126: #8-Kyle Pearson (19-9); 215: #9-Kian Blyss; 175: #12-Morgan Johnston (18-6); 138: #16-Cael Helm (17-7).
Palm Bay: 215: #4-Christopher Brunson; 285: #5-Leonard Christian; 157: #9-Zachary Emery-Foster; 126: #15-Raymen Jackson; 190: #15-Leonardo Murray.
Match to Watch
157: #5 Shaw Garrett (Hernando) vs. #9 Zachary Emery-Foster (Palm Bay): One of three potential Top 20 matchups in this dual, both wrestlers are capable of big wins and winning here could be a key one.
Breaking down the dual
Kabra Says
#3 Zephyrhills Christian
vs. #6 Lemon Bay
1A-3 Region Final
All-Time region finals record | How they got here
Zephyrhills Christian: 1-0, defeated First Baptist-Naples 42-35 in region final en route to state final appearance.
The Warriors won the District 10 title and then advanced to Kissimmee with a 64-18 win over Dunedin and a 73-6 blowout over Robinson.
Lemon Bay: 4-0, last appeared in the region finals in 2022.
The District 12 champions toppled First Baptist-Naples 42-37 and then knocked off then Aubrey Rogers 48-26.
Ranked wrestlers
Last year Zephyrhills Christian stunned everyone but themselves with a win in the region final over then-No. 2 First Baptist Naples. The Warriors advanced to the state title dual and haven’t looked back. With a mix of veteran hammers and talented youngsters, this team has bought into the program and is one of the best in Class 1A. Lemon Bay has a new coach and lots of new faces since the last time they advanced to the region finals, but there is still talent in the Manta Rays room and they’ll look to use this meeting to test where they’re at before the stretch run.
What they’re saying
Lemon Bay head coach Jeff Ragan: “The LBHS wrestlers have continued to exceed expectations this season. I know our wrestlers will continue to out perform as they take on this latest challenge at the state dual Elite 8 matchup.”
Zephyrhills Christian is loaded and also has a year’s experience under their belt at this level. Lemon Bay should make a few bouts interesting but they’re likely a year away from being deep enough to win a region title.
Zephyrhills Christian: 144: #1-Talon Maple (41-3); 190: #2-Jeremiah Chavis (41-4); 150: #4-Aiden Hutchins (44-7); 175: #5-Javier Lopez (39-5); 120: #6-Uy'Kwon Zion Wimberly (36-6); 132: #6-Kyle Gallo (44-6); 106: #7-RJ Phelan; 126: #7-Nevin Hayes (37-11); 113: #8-Izak Rodriguez (40-10); 106: #9-Alzider Ortiz; 285: #10-Elijah Austin (38-11); 138: #12-Noah Leota (30-10); 165: #12-Curtis Tyler (26-9).
Lemon Bay: 126: #3-Jack Oliver (37-4); 285: #7-Miguel Diaz (30-6); 120: #11-Logan Kelly (29-4); 106: #12-Logan Dean (25-6); 165: #15-Gavin Vasbinder (28-6).
Match to Watch
126: #3 Jack Oliver (Lemon Bay) vs. #7 Nevin Hayes (Zephyrhills Christian): There were a few potential bouts that stood out in this one, but we know these two can wrestle close with Oliver owning a 6-3 win this season.
Breaking down the dual
Kabra Says
#4 Jensen Beach vs.
#1 Somerset
1A-4 Region Final
All-Time region finals record | How they got here
Jensen Beach: 2-1, won second-straight duals title in 2023 after beating Mater Lakes in the region final.
The two-time defending state champions blasted Coral Springs Charter 65-9 before besting Cardinal Gibbons 60-18.
Somerset: 3-1, won last region final appearance in 2021 on the way to winning state title.
The Panthers came-from-behind to beat #2 Mater Lakes 30-29 in the region semifinals after beating Florida Christian 77-6 in quarterfinals.
Ranked wrestlers
Jensen Beach’s vaunted group of back-to-back senior classes produced two state duals titles along with success at the IBT level too. The Falcons still have some big-time hammers that will win and compete for state titles, but as a whole it’s a younger group. Somerset is built for success this season and even without a top-ranked wrestler in the team, they knocked off the Number 2 team in the state by a single point in the region semifinals.
I’ll admit, Jensen Beach surprised me with how they dismantled Cardinal Gibbons last Thursday and it certainly shows that you can doubt the two-time champs at your own risk, but they might not have enough for this one. Somerset comes in the solid favorite for a second state duals title and should get the weekend started right here.
Jensen Beach: 126: #1-Sebastian Degennaro (25-5); 120: #2-Gian Ortiz (24-4); 138: #3-Mikel Pierce-Walker (28-4); 132: #5-Ben Norris (27-7); 165: #6-Brayden Hogg (17-8); 190: #7-Toby Rooney (28-8); 150: #11-Bradyn Peters (23-10); 144: #13-Blake Walker (18-6); 215: #15-Teagen Nelson (14-6).
Somerset: 132: #1-Jovani Solis (40-0); 138: #1-Tristan Sainz (0-0); 165: #1-Kendrick Hodge (38-3); 157: #2-Michael Sainz (1-0); 175: #2-Noah Perez (37-3); 113: #3-Jake Austin (35-2); 144: #3-Eric Hodge (32-4); 215: #3-Adrian Tejada (31-8); 106: #4-Carlos Sainz (14-2); 190: #4-Rafael Lopez (4-0); 120: #5-Matteo Gonzalez (32-6); 150: #5-Luis Bellon (16-1); 126: #9-Dylan Fernandez (23-9); 106: #17-Cano Austin (19-8); 120: #17-Gavin Calcines (22-3).
Match to Watch
120: #2 Gian Ortiz (Jensen Beach) vs. #5 Matteo Gonzalez/#18 Gavin Calcines (Somerset): The Panthers have a couple options here with the returning state placer for the Falcons.