Fisher, Fink capture 1A championships
Greensboro – The road to a state wrestling title is a long journey, filled with countless hours behind the wheel.
Plying your craft throughout the week – then applying what you’ve learned at a weekend tournament – becomes routine for those that crave the gold.
Two Robbinsville High School wrestlers reaped the benefits of the miles logged last weekend, etching their names in immortality by winning class 1A state individual championships in the two-day tournament, which was held at the historic Greensboro Coliseum.
Nathan Fisher (138 pounds) capped off his high school career with a state crown, while Kyle Fink (195) claimed the top prize in the game as a sophomore. The achievements added another angle to the longstanding reputation Robbinsville wrestling has at the state level.
Nathan Fisher
Familiarity is key.
After disposing of Uwharrie Charter’s Drew Shelton (14-8) in a 75-second pin, Fisher’s semifinal opponent Saturday was Mount Airy’s Connor Medvar (39-2), who defeated Fisher just two weeks ago in the Western Regional tournament 2-1.
However, Fisher (46-8) would not be denied in the rematch, picking up a 3-1 overtime victory to advance to the finals against an opponent from Swain County.
“I used that to my advantage,” Fisher explained. “I knew what kind of moves I needed to use, but I tried to focus on one thing: this was my last
match. My last six minutes that I could put into it. I knew I needed to go as hard as I could and do whatever it takes to win.”
Nathan Brock (50-12) and Fisher split their bouts against each other during the regular season, which would guarantee that the two would shine with a state title on the line. Fisher quickly seized control in the finals, leading 6-0 after two periods and going on to fan Brock in a dominating 8-0 performance.
“This feels almost unbelievable, but I’ve earned it,” Fisher said. “The Lord has given me the energy, focus and determination to pull through.”
Fisher took fourth in the state tournament as a sophomore and fell in the state finals last season, which made Saturday’s triumph all the more sweeter. His final career tally is 129-32.
Odom could not say enough nice things about the departing Black Knight.
“He’s an absolute success story for Robbinsville wrestling. He came through our kids program and our middle school team,” he said. “He’s a kid that proves that hard work pays off.
“He’s a great testament to the entire program.”
Kyle Fink
Every second counts. Just ask Fink.
A snafu with the time clock in the closing seconds of Saturday’s title bout against Mount Airy’s Jackson Tumbarello – who Fink bested to win the Western Regional title in a 2-1 battle – almost cost Fink a state crown, but in the end the right hand was raised.
“This feels awesome. It’s one of the craziest experiences I’ve ever had,” Fink said. “As a sophomore, I have a state championship. I wrestled at 220 pounds and made the state finals last year, but I fell short.”
With eight seconds remaining in regulation, Fink (47-7) and Tumbarello (40-5) fell out of bounds, which brought the action back to the middle of the mat. In the chaos, an extra second ticked off the clock. After conferring with the coaches, the clock was to be reset to eight seconds, but a table worker misheard the instructions and reset the clock to 11 seconds.
The two warriors fell outside the circle again at the 4-second mark. After the action resumed, Tumbarello seemingly recorded an escape at the buzzer. A lengthy discussion ensued, and officials eventually gave the nod to Fink.
“Sometimes, stuff like that happens. Your opponent wants it, and so do the coaches,” Fink said. “I don’t have any hard feelings against my opponent. He’s a great guy, and the coaches just wanted their kid to win. I totally respect them arguing their points.”
“Kudos to Coach Josh Winfrey; a big part of Kyle getting the state title was coach Winfrey looking at the clock and letting me know they had put the wrong time up,” Odom added. “We notified the assistant referee, and he acknowledged that they had the wrong time, but I guess he wanted to see how it played out.
“We questioned the call, and some folks at home got to hear us debate that. I hope that I chose my words carefully, and if I didn’t I want to apologize. But I will not apologize for taking up for one of ‘The Ville’s’ kids; that’s my job.”
To reach the finals, Fink knocked off Louisburg’s Stephen Faulkner (26-12) – via third-round pinfall – and South Stokes’ Jordan Mitchell (37-7) in a 5-1 decision.
“Kyle has obviously had the goal of making it back to the finals,” Odom said. “He’s another kid that has worked his tail off and probably a month ago, he starting working out with (middle school coach) Wren Millsaps at 6 a.m. every morning, in preparation for this tournament. If you go to the title match, it probably comes down to the work he put in with coach Millsaps. I’m super proud of him.”
Knights compete
Luke Wilson (106, 29-11) reached the state finals but ultimately fell to Uwharrie Charter’s Heaven Fitch (54-4) in an 11-3 majority decision.
A Fargo All-American, Fitch became the first women to win a men’s state wrestling title in North Carolina history. Wilson triumphed in two overtime victories to reach the championship bout.
“He has flourished over the last three years,” Odom said of Wilson. “He’s wrestled up to 120 for us before, and his record has suffered because of that. He’s taken personal losses, because of his willingness to not be selfish.”
Both Jayden Nowell (126) and Justin Stewart (160) made the consolation finals in their respective weight classes, but settled for fourth place in both instances.
For Nowell (34-7), his semifinal loss to Chatham Charter’s Chandler Steel was not without controversy. Down 6-0 in the third period, Nowell began to make a comeback. But on two separate pin attempts, Steel signaled for injury time, which negated Nowell’s efforts each time and proved costly.
“If we have a problem with his sport, it’s kids taking dives or flops,” Odom said. “He has a kid in a pinning combination and the kid ‘whirlybirds.’
“There are teams that whirlybird on purpose; the coaches will coach their kids to do that. I will never have any respect for those coaches or the kids that do it. I assure you that I would forfeit the match if I had a kid do that on purpose. People are taking advantage of that loophole, and it’s sickening.”
Steel (30-6) would lose to Swain County’s Jonas Trejo (38-8) after a first-round pin in the finals.
Meanwhile, Stewart – making his first state tournament appearance – finished off his career with a record of 59-22. He fell to eventual state champion Seth Blackledge (Avery County, 27-9) in the championship semifinals.
“Going in, we really liked Justin’s chances and the kid he drew in the semis is someone we had beaten before,” Odom said. “The great part about Justin Stewart is the compliments that I’ve gotten all year on how Justin acts. He is an elite wrestler, but in victory and defeat, he has been the most gracious soul that I’ve ever coached.
“Because of that, he’ll go on to do some big things. He understands that wrestling is a huge part of his life, but it’s not his whole life.”