A trio of Glenelg seniors made the final matches in their home gym memorable. Kyle Hansberger and Jaegon Hibbitts were two of four Gladiators to win county titles on Saturday and help lift Glenelg to the team crown at the Howard County wrestling tournament.
Glenelg entered as one of the most complete teams in the county and displayed that depth, winning the county tournament with 258.5 points. Hammond finished second with 166 points, while Oakland Mills finished third with 160.
It’s the Gladiators’ fifth county tournament title in the last six seasons and second straight.
Hansberger and Hibbitts closed their careers at home with style. Hansberger, the No. 2 seed at 126 pounds, built an early 11-3 advantage before finishing off top-seeded Sebastian Meza of Reservoir with a pin.
“Sebastian Meza, who I wrestled earlier in the season, he caught me and pinned me,” Hansberger said. “There’s a little revenge and it was something that I wanted to capitalize on. It was good to get him back and it was very motivating for me. This is the last time I’m ever going to wrestle in high school at my home gym, so it’s almost a bit nostalgic. You look around, there’s a big crowd, I loved it and it got me fired up and ready to go.”
Hibbitts, the top seed at 138, notched several early takedowns, defeating No. 2 seed Joey Munyaneza of Hammond by decision, 7-1.
“Us being seniors, I just wanted to recall upon what we did freshman and sophomore year and learn off of that,” Hibbitts said. “Being a senior now, we can realize this is our last chance, so we just put our heart out there. That’s how we’ve gotten so far and we’re champs here today. We finished saying who Glenelg was.”
Fellow senior Kian Payne (195) was also crowned a county champ. Payne immediately established strong positioning and pinned top-seeded Brighton Barker of Oakland Mills 42 seconds into the match. Glenelg junior Ethan Sotka (152) was the Gladiators’ fourth and final champion, as the No. 1 seed showcased his aggressiveness with multiple takedowns before scoring a third-period pin.
“They just came to wrestle, having a county tournament after not having it last year,” Glenelg coach Matt Bichner said. “We did real well, we were actually close to beating the county record for points. Our team competed, worked hard. I think we won the matches we were supposed to win and just wrestled tough, so I’m happy about that.”
Centennial and Hammond crown a pair of county champions
Centennial and Hammond showcased impressive performances as well. The Golden Bears crowned two individual champions in Jinan Khan (195) and Austin Stewart (285).
The No. 1 seed, Khan’s match was the first bout of the finals and the most decisive. Both Khan and his opponent, Dylan Wiegert of Reservoir, tallied two takedowns and an escape, leaving the score tied at 5 with under 30 seconds left in the match. However, Khan quickly erased the tie by executing a late takedown, clinching the 7-5 decision.
“I knew that it was going to be a tight match coming in, me and [Wiegert] were friends,” Khan said. “I knew that eventually whoever worked harder would get the ‘W,’ and I came through.”
In the third match of the day, Stewart earned his individual county championship. After a tight opening period, Stewart began building separation against No. 2 seed Dominic Magnolia of Glenelg as the match progressed and pulled away with a 7-2 victory.
“Just to take him down, just to get points,” Stewart said. “That’s all I did, that was the only thing I needed to do.”
Centennial showcased a pair of their strong middleweights. Freshman Calvin Kraisser (132) continued to add the storied Kraisser family legacy, securing an individual county championship in his first varsity season. The No. 1 seed in his weight class wrestled like a veteran and pinned Mason Cowell of Oakland Mills.
Feeding on the momentum of his teammate, Nicholas Shapiro (145) also tallied an individual county championship. With a sizable lead after the opening round over Long Reach’s PJ Waddy, Shapiro tallied a victory by fall with 1:08 remaining in the second period.
Marriotts Ridge, Mt. Hebron, River Hill, Oakland Mills, Atholton and Wilde Lake each have an individual champion
For the Vikings, their only participant in the finals showcased his dominance. Lucas Lopez (106) notched the quickest victory of the day pinning Hammond’s Jeffrey Achempang in 33 seconds.
Marriotts Ridge’s Arya Habibi showed off his speed and precision in the 113-pound championship match, establishing an early advantage and pinning Reservoir’s Andrew Dolezel in the first period.
Oakland Mills’ Alex Tamai (120), a county champion in 2020, entered his match with an aggressive mentality. That proved to be successful as Tamai notched seven takedowns in a 14-6 victory over Marriotts Ridge’s Atley Turner.
The only finals participant for Atholton, Ricco Goss (160), demonstrated why he was the No. 1 seed in his weight class. Showcasing his strength, Goss found great positioning early in the bout and never let up with a 14-2 major decision victory over Hammond’s Jonathan Neypes.
River Hill’s only participant in the county finals, No. 1 seed Dylan McCullough (170) faced a challenge from Glenelg’s Daniel Vaysman. McCullough set the tone early, not allowing Vaysman to gain traction with a decision victory.
In one of the most impressive performances of the afternoon, 220-pound Hakim Antoine from Wilde Lake, the No. 8 seed, won an unlikely county title by pinning Hammond’s Kyle Jeffers, the seventh seed. After battling his way to the finals match, Antoine looked in control from the start of the bout, winning by fall in just 53 seconds.
Team scores:
1. Glenelg, 258.5; 2. Hammond, 166; 3. Oakland Mills, 160; 4. Reservoir, 146; 5. Marriotts Ridge, 133; 6. Mt. Hebron, 113; 7. Centennial, 112; 8. Atholton, 111; 9. River Hill, 56.5; 10. Long Reach, 51; 11. Howard, 37; 12. Wilde Lake, 32
Championship finals:
106: Lucas Lopez (MH) pinned Jeffrey Acheampong (Ha), 0:34; 113: Arya Habibi (MR) pinned Andrew Dolezel (Re), 4:42; 120: Alex Tamai (OM) major dec. Atley Turner (MR), 14-6; 126: Kyle Hansberger (G) pinned Sebastian Meza (Re), 4:36; 132: Calvin Kraisser (C) pinned Mason Cowell (OM), 4:41; 138: Jaegon Hibbitts (G) dec. Joey Munyaneza (Ha), 7-1; 145: Nicholas Shapiro (C) pinned PJ Waddy (LR), 2:58; 152: Ethan Sotka (G) pinned Tyler Bury (MR), 4:12; 160: Ricco Goss (A) major dec. Jonathan Neypes (Ha), 14-2; 170: Dylan McCullough (RH) major dec. Daniel Vaysman (G), 15-6; 182: Jinan Khan (Ha) dec. Dylan Wiegert (Re), 7-5; 195: Kian Payne (G) pinned Brighton Barker (OM), 0:42; 220: Hakim Antonie (WL) pinned Kyle Jeffers (Ha), 0:53; 285: Austin Stewart (Ha) dec. Dominic Magnolia (G), 7-2
Consolation finals
106: Sean Myers (Ho) pinned Jonathan Maslan (A), 1:51; 113: Jacob Cohen (RH) dec. Gerson Alvarado (OM), 10-3; 120: Nicholas Bakhtiar (RH) dec. Sam Vissers (Re), 10-6; 126: Kyle Sellman (OM) dec. Xavier Maccherone (Ho), 3-2; 132: Taegon Hibbitts (G) pinned Tripp Bennett (MR), 0:43; 138: Cameron Burt (A) inj. default Abdur-Razzaq Hassan (OM); 145: Lucca Sicalo (G) major dec. Noah Byrum (Re), 16-8; 152: Demetrius Battle (Re) dec. Zachary Bellamy (C), 4-3; 160: Deangelo Hobbs (LR) pinned Leo Conti (G), 0:57; 170: Bassem Quassem (MH) pinned Aiden Bellamy (C), 0:59; 182: Aidan Daniels (G) pinned Tori Smith (OM), 0:34; 195: Sahith Mada (MH) dec. Marquett (q) Pogue (MR), 10-4; 220: Samual Jordan (MH) dec. Max Dail (G), 4-0; 285: Alonzo Brooks (OM) dec. Runor Agarin (Re), 5-1
