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Lake Gibson, Auburndale wrestlers win regional championships; Braves win title

robert magobet, the ledger
·6 min read
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Lake Gibson's Hayden Whidden competes hard in a match vs. Brandon's Tyler Smith. Whidden won a regional championship after a 19-3 technical fall.
Lake Gibson's Hayden Whidden competes hard in a match vs. Brandon's Tyler Smith. Whidden won a regional championship after a 19-3 technical fall.

BRANDON — For the third straight year Lake Gibson senior wrestler Hayden Whidden hasn’t been able to stay healthy. Yet Whidden for the second straight year was a Class 2A, Region 2 champion Saturday at Brandon High School.

Whidden (145, 28-4) the past three years endured a high ankle sprain, a fracture in the ankle, three knee surgeries and an elbow surgery, but all that didn’t matter as he was able to be healthy enough to eventually take down Brandon’s Tyler Smith (39-14) in a technical fall, 19-3, eventually helping Lake Gibson High School win its fifth individual bracket tournament regional championship since 2017 thanks to 256 points — well ahead of any school in the top five. Hayden’s win contributed to 11 of 14 Lake Gibson wrestlers qualifying for state next weekend, which is slated for March 2-4 at the Silvers Spurs Arena in Kissimmee.

Lake Gibson won its fifth IBT regional championship since 2017 on Saturday, Feb. 25, 2023, at Brandon High School.
Lake Gibson won its fifth IBT regional championship since 2017 on Saturday, Feb. 25, 2023, at Brandon High School.

“I just had a lot of faith in the Lord. Everything happens for a reason, and just go through, overcome — adapt and overcome,” Whidden said.

That was the mentality needed for Whidden to be able to focus on himself — and his teammates — in an effort to go through therapy four times a week and swim for about an hour each day to be the best wrestling version of himself ahead of the regional championship. Still, the senior wasn’t 100% while wrestling in his regional championship, but still came out on top.

Another Lake Gibson wrestler who came on top was sophomore Christian Fretwell (120, 32-4), who won his second regional championship. Fretwell said he needed to augment his bottom skills, and he attributes that success to fellow wrestlers Whidden, Tito Solorzano and the Lake Gibson coaching staff.

More:Lake Gibson's Elijah Lowe wins second county IBT title; Braves win championship

Lake Gibson's Chrisitan Fretwell competes in a match vs. Leesburg's Zavier Pennington. Fretwell won a regional title after a 21-6 technical fall Saturday, Feb. 25, at Brandon High School.
Lake Gibson's Chrisitan Fretwell competes in a match vs. Leesburg's Zavier Pennington. Fretwell won a regional title after a 21-6 technical fall Saturday, Feb. 25, at Brandon High School.

“It feels good ― it feels really good,” Fretwell said. “…It feels like my hard work is paying off.”

Hall of Fame Lake Gibson head wrestling coach Danny Walker said he thought his squad had a great chance of taking another regional championship.

“Coming in we knew we had the power to win the tournament. …There was going to be some tough brackets, and we knew we had to get as many as we could out of here because we have to matchup against teams that we are going to be going up against next week, Fleming Island, Charlotte,” Walker said. “As a coach, you bust your butt all year. (We) came in here 14 individuals, and we had three individuals that didn’t make it to the state tournament. And they worked so extremely hard.

“…Overall, I’m very excited. … It’s good. We’re not going out to celebrate tonight (Saturday night). We got a bigger trophy we’re trying to win next week. Staying focused — focused on the whole thing.”

Auburndale senior wrestler Nate Gabriel, who has numerous offers to play football at the next level, had that tunnel vision to do something he had never done before: Gabriel on Saturday defeated Land O’ Lakes’ Garry Gilbert in a 16-3 major decision, which cemented his first-ever regional championship.

Auburndale's Nate Gabriel, top, strong-arms Land O' Lakes wrestler Garry Gilbert. Gabriel won his first regional championship in his high school tenure.
Auburndale's Nate Gabriel, top, strong-arms Land O' Lakes wrestler Garry Gilbert. Gabriel won his first regional championship in his high school tenure.

“It means a lot man. Any championship means a lot to me to be honest — from the (smallest) to the biggest,” Gabriel said. "(I) just needed to work harder than I did last year. All it takes is hard work, try new things, (and) hard work.”

Gabriel said he needed to ramp up his workload compared to last year, including training, weights, and moves. This year Gabriel bolstered his skill set by adding on leg shots, a move he didn’t have last year. The multisport athlete also added some muscle weight.

“(I’d like to thank) my coaches, my brothers, and my family,” Gabriel said.

But Gabriel said he isn’t done, and his ultimate goal isn’t accomplished yet.

Note: Top four wrestlers advance to state:

Team scores (Class 2A, Region 2): 1. Lake Gibson (LG) 256, 2. Brandon (B) 176, 3. Winter Springs (WS) 147.6, 4. River Ridge (RR) 78. 5. Land O’Lakes (LO) 76. 6. Springstead (S) 71 11. Auburndale (A) 49.5 14. Lakeland (L) 44.5 28. Lake Wales (LW) 10 29. Kathleen (K) 9

Individuals

First-place match

106: Roberto Rodrigues (B, 41-4) major decision over Francesco Alagna (Cypress Creek, 38-6), 14-3; (O, 19-14) def Giovanni Hiel-Hage (GJ, 12-14), 6-3; 113: Elijah Lowe (LG, 41-10) def Pedro Sifuentes (East River, 40-2), 6-1; 120: Christian Fretwell (LG, 32-4) technical fall over Zavier Pennington (Leesburg, 5-1), 21-6; 126: Colt Brown (LG, 44-7) def Gabriel Jones (B, 34-7), 9-3; 132: Ryan Phillips (WS, 6-0) def Kevin Kerns (Deltona, 35-9), 6-0; 138: Austin Chung (Tampa, 35-2) def Thomas Gernhart (B, 42-7), 8-5; 145: Hayden Whidden (LG, 28-4) technical fall over Tyler Smith (B, 39-14), 19-3 152: Gianni Maldonado (LG, 51-4) pins Evan Martinez (L, 38-13), 1:11; Bradley Torres (M, 32-9) def Antonio Christian (LR, 21-13), 7-2; 160: Ty Rodriguez (B, 49-3) def Ransom Randolph (WS, 31-4), 7-4; 170: Elijah Penton (WS, 45-0) sudden victory over Jace Brownlow (LG, 36-10), 3-1; 182: Frank Solorzano (LG, 46-2) inj Bruno Ingalls (Pasco, 30-5), 0.00; 195: Aiden Gatton (WS, 36-17) def Brody Switzer (Zephyrhlls, 37-16), 2-1; 220: Athan Kent (RR, 6-1) pins Donnell McCray (Jones, 17-2), 1:25; 285: Nate Gabriel (A, 31-4) major decision over Garry Gilbert (LO, 42-5), 16-3

Third-place match

106: Jeffrey Messner (LG, 33-16) def Lorenzo Macatol (Lecanto, 25-5), 6-1; 113:Erick Vargas (L, 46-14) pins Vincenzo Lee (S, 34-13), 3:28; 120: Luke Williams (B, 45-5) pins Zachary Kotsubka (RR, 5-3), 1:00; 126: Dominick Smith (RR, 7-1) def Jet Griffis (LO, 45-14), 7-2; 132: Gaetano Tedesco (LG, 44-11) def Brandon Austin (LO, 42-13), 9-5; 138: Josh Gallo (S, 49-6) pins Ny’Travious Walker (LG, 29-7), 5:47; 145: Jonathan Adams (WS, 30-13) sudden victory over Wyatt Green (LO, 40-13), 9-7 152: Meison Broche (Gateway, 32-9) def Gustavo Osorio (Gaither, 34-8), 6-4; Carlos Fuentes (AP, 21-12) inj. Nehimiah Hooper (T, 19-15); 160: Nicholas Iserino (Wesley Chapel, 43-4) pins Vincent Coneras (Pasco, 29-10) 45 seconds; 170: Austin Williams (B, 34-6) pins Colin James Killon (Sebring, 22-13), 1:35; 182: John Fernandez (St. Cloud, 35-13), def Landon Daugherty (East River, 22-11), 9-6; 195: Tristan Vann (LG, 40-10) inj Aidan Cooper (Gateway, 15-11), 0.00; 220: Cassidy Grubbs (Pasco, 32-3) pins Bo Kenney (Horizon, 24-9), 2:51 285: Jared Apple (Zephyrhills, 46-7) pins J’Shon Scott (Tampa Bay Tech, 34-8), 2:30

Lake Gibson's Gianni Maldonado wrestles in a match vs. Lakeland's Evan Martinez. Maldonado won the regional title after a pin in 1:11.
Lake Gibson's Gianni Maldonado wrestles in a match vs. Lakeland's Evan Martinez. Maldonado won the regional title after a pin in 1:11.
Lake Gibson's Colt Brown competes in a match vs. Brandon's Gabriel Jones. Brown won a regional championship thanks to a 9-3 decision.
Lake Gibson's Colt Brown competes in a match vs. Brandon's Gabriel Jones. Brown won a regional championship thanks to a 9-3 decision.
Lake Gibson's Jace Brownlow, right, competes in a match vs. Winter Springs' Elijah Penton. Brownlow took second place after falling in a sudden victory, 3-1.
Lake Gibson's Jace Brownlow, right, competes in a match vs. Winter Springs' Elijah Penton. Brownlow took second place after falling in a sudden victory, 3-1.
Lake Gibson's Elijah Lowe takes the fight to East River's Pedro Sifuentes. Lowe won a regional championship after a 6-1 decision.
Lake Gibson's Elijah Lowe takes the fight to East River's Pedro Sifuentes. Lowe won a regional championship after a 6-1 decision.

This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Lake Gibson, Auburndale wrestlers win regional championships; Braves win title