Charlotte – There was an unnecessary delay before the inevitable.
Aynsley Fink paced the mat back-and-forth, simply awaiting the cue to jog to the middle of the circle, shake hands with her adversary and begin the finals of the 106-pound women’s bracket at the Holy Angels Invitational.
Minutes ticked by with no response, before confirmation on what was causing the pause came in: FloSports – who had contracted to stream the two-day tournament at the Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte – had lost its feed. Right before the finals were set to begin.
Alas, nearly 30 minutes after making her way onto the mat, Fink was finally given the go-ahead; it was time to lock horns with Cabell Midland’s Zoey Salmon, a top-20 ranked grappler from West Virginia. But once the whistle blew to begin the bout, it only took Fink 37 seconds to muscle Salmon to the mat, capping off a 5-0 run through the opposition across the showcase.
“There was some good competition throughout,” Fink noted.
After receiving a first-round bye, Fink mowed down Lumberton’s Grace Crawford in 23 seconds; Pinecrest’s Megan Rowland via 14-4 decision; Cabell Midland’s Ale Evans, via first-period pinfall; and Porter Ridge’s Zoey Green in 30 seconds, before advancing to the championship showdown.
Fink was also one of three wrestlers at the tournament selected to receive funds from the Kip Nininger Scholarship. Niniger is a former two-time state wrestling champion from Virginia. Fink was allotted $1,413.
More competition
Five other members of Robbinsville’s elite also competed at the Holy Angels. Jayden Nowell (132 pounds) advanced to the championship quarterfinals, before falling in a 5-1 decision to Cardinal Gibbons’ Luke Kunath. Kyle Fink (182) finished fifth at the event, reaching the championship semifinals before suffering a pinfall loss at the hands of Cabell Midland’s Nick Giompalo.
Kage Williams (195) reached the championship bout, but was forced to concede the finals. Ben Wachacha (220) also made it to the championship finals, but dropped a 16-1 technical fall to Lake Norman’s Carson Floyd. Carlos Wesley (285) worked his way to the championship quarterfinals, but was pinned by Southern Guilford’s Jamiere Ferere.