Cougar Wrestlers Compete For State Tournament Berths!

Ada — EDMOND — Ada finished fourth in a field of 16, and qualified three wrestlers for this weekend’s Class 5A state tournament at the west regional tournament this past weekend at Deer Creek High School.

The Cougars, who finished in the bottom half of their regional in 2009 but qualified four for the state tournament, were no threat to the top three at the regional — Altus (210), Carl Albert (164) and host Deer Creek (133) — in the team standings, but their 100 points put them just ahead of Ardmore and Southeast, who finished tied for fifth with 99.

Two of Ada’s state qualifiers, seniors Eddie Brown (at 140 pounds) and Justin Todd (152), also competed at last year’s state tournament, and the third, Jamie Copeland (103), has been the team’s most consistent wrestler during a breakout sophomore campaign.

Jake Todd, who reached the state tournament as a freshman in 2009, and the squad’s third senior, Josh Nail, just missed in their bids for a state-tournament berth, finishing fifth at 112 and 215 pounds, respectively. The top four wrestlers in each class advanced.

“The guys who made the finals all had a great tournament,” Ada coach Kyle Bohannon said of Brown, Todd and Copeland, who were all second in their weight classes. “We had a great first day with five guys making it to the semifinals, and the kids wrestled hard and wrestled tough both days. The good thing is that a lot of the guys who didn’t make it this year will be back next year.”

The 5A state tournament will be held Friday and Saturday at State Fair Arena, with each session beginning at 10:30 a.m.