Kaitlin Wood takes 3rd at Sectional, lone Knight to State
By Ray Popkess
Of the seven wrestlers from Triad to qualify for the Sectional tournaments, only Kaitlin Wood made it out the other side. Her performance at the Virden (North Mac) Girls Sectional this past weekend punched her ticket to the Girls’ IHSA State Tournament during the weekend of Feb. 27-28. She is the second girl in Triad Wrestling history to earn a spot on the mat at the state tournament.
Wood went 4-1 at the Sectional, with her only loss coming from the eventual second place finisher in the 155-pound bracket. She pinned her first opponent from Decatur (Unity Christian) in the second period after trailing in the first period 9-2. Her next opponent from Civic Memorial also got pinned, this time within the first minute of the match.
Grace Stratton from Freeburg got the best of Wood in the semifinal, but wrestlebacks proved favorable for the Lady Knight. A rematch with her first round opponent in the consolation semis ended quicker than their first bout when Wood stuck her opponent on her back in the first period.
Wood’s third place match victory was also a come-from-behind pin. She was down 3-0 after the first period but hit a reversal early in the second after her opponent chose to cover. The reversal was all Wood needed to find a way to put her St. Joseph Ogden opponent on her shoulders and claim victory.
Beckah Burrelsman, Addie Roth and Makena Steele also wrestled for the Lady Knights at the Sectional, but unfortunately, neither of the three placed high enough to make it to the State tournament.
Steele came close, finishing in sixth place in the 135-pound bracket. Only the top four placers in each weight division move on Grossinger Motors Arena in Bloomington.
On the gentleman’s side, three Triad Knights competed at the Granite City Sectional over the weekend as well.
Glen Henry, Brody Smith and Gavin Woolverton all took on tough draws in each of their weight classes.
Smith was the only Knight that found victory, going 2-2 on the weekend.
