Wrestlers from Manning High School and East Clarendon High School will take the mat at the South Carolina High School League (SCHSL) state wrestling championship this weekend at the Florence Center. The two schools will be well represented, sending multiple qualifiers after strong performances at the lower state championships.
Manning Monarchs
Manning High School’s wrestling program had a successful showing at the Class 2A lower state championships, with two girls and three boys earning spots at the state meet. The girls competed at South Florence, while the boys wrestled at Timberland.
Breanna Corley led the Monarchs with a dominant performance, claiming the lower state title in the 127-pound division. After a first-round bye, she pinned Mackenzie Campbell of Cane Bay and secured a 17-0 technical fall win over Stratford’s Jaye McBath. In the championship match, Corley defeated North Charleston’s Trinity Halls by decision, 9-3.
Kymarielle Cleveland also earned a state berth with a third-place finish at 112 pounds. She won her first two matches by pin, defeating Sumter’s Talia Titus and Darlington’s Naidelyn Aviles. After a third-round loss to top-seeded Emma Shepphard of Conway, Cleveland rebounded with an 18-0 victory over Hartsville’s Anna Gandy and a pin against Wando’s Cassidy Warren to secure third place.
On the boys’ side, Jordan Hilton-Kelly and Ashton Palmer each finished third in their respective weight classes. Wrestling at 106 pounds, Hilton-Kelly won his first two matches by pin before falling to Timberland’s Wyatt Thames by major decision, 22-12. He responded with back-to-back pins against Woodland’s Walker Ulmer and Bamberg-Ehrhardt’s Brian Ford to secure third place.
At 190 pounds, Palmer won his opening match by forfeit but was pinned by Philip Simmons’ Brady Tonon. He battled through the consolation bracket, winning three straight matches by pin against Whale Branch’s Malachi Heyward, Edisto’s Paul Fillman, and Academic Magnet’s Daniel Harris.
Joshua White added a fifth-place finish at 126 pounds. After a first-round bye, he was pinned by Academic Magnet’s Nick Severance. White won his next two matches by pin before falling to Edisto’s Alejandro Axson. In a rematch against Severance, White secured fifth place with a pin.
Manning also had three additional wrestlers compete: Jesse Robinson (138), Benjamin White (215), and Bryce Kinard (144), who forfeited both of his matches due to injury.
East Clarendon Wolverines
East Clarendon also had a strong performance at Timberland, sending five wrestlers to the state championship.
Leading the Wolverines, Takoda Cornelius finished fourth at 150 pounds. After a first-round bye, Cornelius pinned Cheraw’s Cooper Lund before being pinned by Edisto’s Kalelhl McKenzie. He rebounded with a pin against Jackson Sharp of Woodland before falling to Bamberg-Ehrhardt’s Omarion Wilson in the third-place match.
At 175 pounds, Syrus Brown finished fifth. He won his first match by technical fall (25-10) and his second by medical forfeit. After two losses, he faced Cheraw’s Tykeith Stacks in the fifth-place match, securing a pin to wrap up his weekend.
East Clarendon had two sixth-place finishers: Jarvin Pineda-Ochoa at 165 pounds and Xavier Smith at 285 pounds. Pineda-Ochoa won his first match by pin before falling to Edisto’s Paul Fillman. He won two more matches before losing twice to end his tournament. Smith, a second seed, won his first two matches by pin before falling to Edisto’s Jamon Boatwright and Whale Branch’s L’veon Watson. He narrowly lost the fifth-place match by an 11-10 decision.
Rounding out East Clarendon’s qualifiers, Tristan Underwood placed eighth at 138 pounds. He opened with a 22-8 win over Cheraw’s Landon Goodwin before falling to top-seeded Derrick Graham. He recovered with an 18-3 tech fall win over North Central’s Nathan Goins but lost a close 16-15 match to Kamari Rivers of Edisto. Underwood was pinned in the seventh-place match to close out his weekend.
Four other Wolverines competed but did not advance: Benjamin Galloway (106), Braylon Brown (157), Cody Dunning (132), and Wyatt Pierce (215).
The SCHSL state wrestling championship will take place Friday and Saturday at the Florence Center, where Manning and East Clarendon wrestlers will compete for state titles.
