Catholic Central Adds 3 Wrestling State Champions

The Shamrocks ended a phenomenal season on March 3 at the Palace of Auburn Hills by placing seven wrestlers in the top three spots while capturing three MHSAA Individual Championships. Winning titles for the Shamrocks were senior captain Kevin Beazley, junior Ken Bade and sophomore Drew Garcia.

Starting the finals competition on a high note at 189 lbs was captain Kevin Beazley. After pinning his way through the individual post-season through the quarter final matches, Beazley achieved a major decision over Kevin Miller of North Farmington 15-7 before taking the championship by a 6-0 decision over Brandon Sunday of Bedford in the finals. Beazley finishes his season with a 48-1 record and will look forward to taking his skills to Old Dominion this fall as he has signed to wrestle for Steve Martin and the Monarchs.

Earning his third All-State honors and winning his second straight title was junior Ken Bade. Bade dominated his way to a title as he defeated Austin Gulick of Portage Central in the quarters 18-3, Evan Richardson of Romeo by pin in 1:29, Dom Trevino of Holt in the Semis 20-5, and Mike Willits in the finals 6-1. Bade finishes his junior campaign with a 50-1 record.

Sophomore Drew Garcia ended the night in style as he won the third title for the Shamrocks. After achieving a runner-up position in his freshman year, Garcia was bound and determined to advance that final step this year. Garcia defeated Cody DeVoe of Rochester in the quarters 8-2 and Cody Moynihan of Grand Haven 13-6 in the semis to earn his second straight finals appearance. In the 171 lbs finals, Garcia had a controlling match and defeated Charlie Meyers of Utica Eisenhower 5-2. Garcia ends his sophomore campaign with a 46-3 record.

Senior captain Alec Mooradian became the first wrestler in CC wrestling history to reach four MHSAA finals. Mooradian fell short in the finals losing 3-2 to Brighton's Aaron Calderon. Coach Mitch Hancock captured it well, saying, "Alec Mooradian is an amazing young man and has had an incredible career here at CC. He will go down as one of the greatest competitors and wrestlers in the history of our school. I couldn't be more proud of him. His work ethic and commitment through the great sport of wrestling have given him the opportunity to attend one of the greatest academic institutions in the world. It's been an honor to work with him and be a part of his success and life." Mooradian will be attending Columbia in the fall.

Sophomore Malik Amine wrestled a great state tournament as he made it to the finals before dropping an exciting match to Alec Pantaleo of Canton in the finals 9-6. Amine finishes his second high school season with a 43-7 record. It was the third straight weekend Amine and Pantaleo would wrestle. "Malik is an amazing competitor, he loves to wrestle and believes that when he steps on the mat, he deserves to win. I'm proud of him," said Hancock.

Senior captain TJ Fagan put an exclamation point on his high school career as he led four Shamrocks through the consolation bracket. Fagan, who battled injuries all year, got healthy just in time for the team race and to make a run at an individual title. Fagan had two convincing wins in the tournament before dropping a close 5-4 decision to Mitch Hrnyak of Forest Hills Central in the semifinals. He then bounced back to defeat Kyle Hill of Oxford 9-3 in the consolation semis before defeating Manny Govantes of Farmington in the consolation finals 6-4 in overtime. Fagan finishes his Catholic Central career with four team titles (two in cross country and two in wrestling) and two individual All-State honors.

Freshman Trevor Zdebski also battled back to take third after suffering defeat in the semis. Zdebski lost to Colin Bertucci of Grand Haven in the semis, but put on impressive performances in the consolation semis and finals. Zdebski knocked off Kyle Gilles of John Glenn 9-1 and then Benny Gomez of Holt 6-0 to take third. Zdebski finished his freshman campaign with an impressive 38-6 record. Hancock said, "Trevor had a very impressive year and was a very big part of our success on all levels. His work ethic in the room is as impressive for a freshman as I have seen at this level."

Nick Mason showed character and determination during the tournament by working his way through the consolation bracket only to defeat the same wrestler who had beat him earlier in the tournament. Mason lost in the first round to John Bourcier of Anchor Bay 7-2 and then defeated Bourcier 11-2 to earn a fifth place finish at 160 lbs.  Mason earned his third All-State honor and finished his senior year with a 45-11 record. Mason will wrestle next year at Ashland University.

Perhaps the most improved wrestler on the Shamrock squad showed his toughness by placing seventh in the Heavy Weight class. Bob Coe, who finished his junior season with a 40-9 record, lost to the eventual champion Nick Gajdzik 5-4 in the quarters. He battled back to beat a familiar foe in Jimmi Keller of Novi 5-2 to finish his season with a win and All-State honors. Coe and West Ottawa junior Miguel Correa were the only two underclassmen on the podium in the Heavy Weight class this year.

Freshman Myles Amine finished his first season with a 34-14 record. Amine went 1-2 on the weekend falling to defending champ Shane Wireman and Hartland's Jacob Gorial. "Myles had an outstanding season and has learned a lot about overcoming adversity. There is no doubt in my mind that he will learn from his experiences and accomplish great things here at CC," said Hancock.

Scott Confer is a parent at Catholic Central High School and citizen contributor to Patch.