Colonels finish as state runner-up; Woodland 4th, Adairsville 14th at GHSA Traditional Championship

Lee Camp was one of four Cass wrestlers to win 2023 Class 5A state titles. Those championships give the Colonels' program 24 individual state champions since 2003.

The Cass wrestling team finished second at the 2023 Class 5A GHSA State Traditional Championships in Macon Thursday and Friday.

The Colonels were edged by Jefferson for the title. The same team that beat them in the State Duals Championship finals match earlier in the season.

Jefferson finished with 213.5 points. Cass scored 208. Ola (153.5), Woodland (96.5), and Harris County (82) completed the top five in the standings. Greenbrier, Flowery Branch, Locust Grove, Dalton, and Calhoun rounded out the top ten teams. Cartersville was 21st with 18 team points.

Cass had eleven individuals to advance to the final weekend in Macon and all eleven placed fifth or better. The Colonels had five to reach the finals in their respective weight classes and four of those wrestlers won individual state championships.

Lee Camp (106-pounds), Jake Crapps (126), Tyler McKnight (144), and Zach McKnight (165) were all crowned state champions. Camp was 4-0 in his state championship bracket. Crapps and the McKnight brothers were all 3-0.

Rowdy Duck (132) of Cass was a state runner-up with a 2-1 record. Hunter Barrett (113) and Kriecg Roe (157) both finished third with 3-1 marks in their championship brackets.

Tanner Toups (138) went 2-2 and earned fourth place. Caden Alford (120), Mason Tompkins (150), and Parker Dunn (190) each finished fifth for the Colonels.

Leading Woodland to its fourth-place finish in Class 5A, Champ Higdon won an individual state championship in the 215-pound division going 3-0.

Hayden Santora (138) went 3-1 to earn a third-place finish for the Wildcats. Paul Lanier (126, 4-2), Zachary Wallace (144, 3-2), and Kwadrus Wilson (Heavyweight, 4-2) finished fourth and Heath Tatum (165, 1-2) tied for fifth.

Talan Nix (138, 3-2) of Cartersville tied for fifth to collect the Hurricanes’ top finish.

Adairsville, competing on Friday and Saturday, finished 14th in Class AAA where Gilmer County captured another state title ahead of Pickens, Bremen, and Ringgold.

Jett Johnson (Heavyweight, 3-1) led the Tigers by reaching the championship bout before losing to finish state runner-up. Jacob Pasley (144, 1-2) and Jamori Speights (138, 3-2) both tied for fifth place.

In the Girls State Championship Tournament, Cartersville’s Anetra Witherspoon (190) finished in fourth place after going 3-2 in her bouts.