Dalton wrestlers head to state

PHOTO BY MANDY GEISER

Bulldogs fans, coaches and family members pack the stands to show their support.

 

DGKN staff report

After some tough matches over the weekend at the district tournament at Garfield Heights, two Bulldogs wrestlers have qualified for the state competition along with one alternate.

Tate Geiser and Eric Miller are heading to compete at the state level. Sean Geiser is an alternate.

These are the first two state qualifiers at Dalton since 2013, according to Head Wrestling Coach Kenton Lemon.

“To go three for five was a great accomplishment for our team,” Lemon said. “Tate and Eric both had great weekends and wrestled in some really tough matches. Tate ended up second to projected state place Briar Marthey from Tuslaw. Eric took fourth place. He was defeated by Tyler Knight of Mogadore.

Sean Geiser wrestled back through the loser’s bracket winning 4 matches in a row to a 5th place finish, earning alternate status.”

Lemon said that overall he could not be happier with the result as the three student-athletes advance.

“They had some really tough matches and I think we grew up a lot this weekend,” Lemon said. “Now we are off to Columbus next weekend to take on the best of the best in the state. Our guys have battled all year and we are going to battle next weekend in Columbus. We have to have a great week of practice to prepare for the weekend and then we get to go wrestle on Friday afternoon. I’m really proud of our entire team and their dedication to getting better this year. It’s exciting to see our program growing not only in numbers but also in the caliber of wrestling.”