Robbinsville – Known regionally as one of the toughest tournaments of the season, Saturday’s James Orr Invitational certainly lived up to the hype.
The annual showcase – hosted by Robbinsville – brought 15 teams into Graham County, including schools from Georgia and Tennessee.
When the dust settled on the mat, Black Knights’ Micah Smith (106 pounds) and Justin Stewart (160) walked away with first-place bragging rights.
Smith pinned Alcoa (Tenn.)’s Gordon McCall, defeated Rabun Gap, Ga.’s Calvin Spivey via 15-2 majority decision and downed Tuscola’s Taylor Boger to capture the crown.
“He wrestled his tail off in the finals, beating a kid that he’s lost to twice this year,” Knights head coach Todd Odom said of Smith’s performance. “He’s really worked hard and for him to come out and win in front of his home crowd is something he or the fans will never forget.”
Stewart grinded his way through Smoky Mountain’s Dustin Stephens (pinfall), Swain County’s Damian Lossiah (9-6 decision) and Rabun Gap’s Aidan Loring (3-0 decision) to stake his claim.
“He took a couple of years off, so to see him win Saturday was huge,” Odom said. “He’s doing a great job and I’m impressed with his work.”
Also placing in the tournament was Nathan Fisher (second place, 138 pounds); Kyle Fink (third place, 195); Carlos Lopez (fourth place, 220) and Drake Hill (fourth place, heavyweight).
“This is really his first year wrestling; he last wrestled for us on our youth team,” Odom said of Lopez. “For him to come out and win some battles is impressive.”
Collectively, Robbinsville finished fourth, with 128 team points. Swain County won the event, scoring 145 points.
Duals action resumed Tuesday at North Henderson, with Robbinsville picking up a 40-30 victory.
“We wrestled the best as a team that we have all year,” Odom said of the win at North Henderson.
Middle school
Robbinsville’s middle school team is mowing through the opposition this season.
The Black Knights currently possess a 60-10 individual record against Smoky Mountain Conference foes this season, knocking off Cherokee, Hayesville, Murphy, Rosman and most recently toppling Andrews 90-12.