HUNTINGTON, WV (WOAY) – On Thursday, four area wrestlers aimed to bring home state championships to Southern West Virginia.
Two did just that, with Independence’s Dillon Perdue winning at 106 pounds and Noah Brown capturing gold at 285.
Perdue, a freshman, secured his state title with a 10-1 major decision over Elkins’ Gavin Bolan.
“They had a lot of faith in me,” Perdue said. “I came in unranked and not a lot of people knew of me and my coaches told me, you’re gonna be on top of the podium if you keep on working like you are.”
Brown becomes a two-time state champion, having won at 220 in 2020. He overcame an early deficit to secure a 6-4 decision victory.
“I just had to overcome the adversity, and I got it done,” Brown said. “You know coming from 220 to heavyweight was definitely a big transformation that I got used to. I’m humbled to be a two-timer and join the Greenbrier West greats up on the wall.”
Two other Independence grapplers finished as runner-ups: Bryce Perdue at 126 and John Sanders at 113.
In addition to finalists, 6 area wrestlers placed in the top six of their respective classes:
120: Joshua Goode (Shady, 3rd)
145: Colton Caron (Indy, 5th)
170: Sam Adams (Indy, 3rd)
Dalton Hanshaw (Nicholas Co., 6th)
182: Connor Jones (Nicholas Co., 3rd)
220: Jeff Bowles (Liberty, 3rd)
