Banks County’s wrestling team had a rough go of things over the weekend as the Leopard grapplers competed in the East Metro Tournament at Walnut Grove.
Missing eight wrestlers from the line-up, head coach Kasey Hanley and coach Tyson Baxter were eager to see how the younger Leopard grapplers would stack up against tough varsity matches.
Out of brackets full of mostly AAAA schools; Banks’ young guns wrestled well, with the majority of the guys adding at least one feather to their cap.
Commerce came away with the tournament trophy, beating out Eastside. Dacula took third place.
Banks will now look to heal up and work to get grapplers back in the line-up before the Area Tournament Feb. 5-6 at Riverside.
Hanley is expecting four starters back before the tournament, while another five starters have already been benched for the season.
“We will proceed with caution these next few days and not try to rush guys back in the line-up too soon,” said Hanley.
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Middle School State Duals
While the varsity team catches its breath in preparation for the Area Tournament, coach Hanley can count on a bright future ahead for the program as wrestlers begin to advance from the youth league.
Banks County Middle School’s wrestling team finished fifth in the Traditional Division of the State Duals for middle schools this past weekend.
The BCMS Leopards defeated Habersham in the first round, 54-21. Banks advanced over Rockmart, 52-18, before falling to Gilmer, 18-62 in the semifinals.
In the consolation bracket, Banks faced Cass and was bumped in a four point match 33-37. In the match for fifth place, Banks defeated Social Circle 46-36.
In the Traditional Division, Jefferson won out defeating Gilmer 41-31. Commerce defeated Cass for third, 48-24.
For the USA Club division, Pope took first over Apalachee and South Paulding.
For the overall bracket the top four teams from each division wrestle each other. Overall, Jefferson defeated Pope for first place. Gilmer defeated Apalachee for third. Commerce defeated South Paulding for fifth and Roswell defeated Cass for seventh.
For more Banks County wrestling, see the Jan. 27 edition of The Banks County News.