Colonels outlast Woodward Academy to win Class 5A State Team Duals Championship

The Cass Colonels defeated Woodward Academy Saturday to capture the 2022 GHSA Class 5A State Team Duals Championship at McDonough High School.

Cass freshman Kriecg Roe may have lost his bout 8-2 in the Colonels' Class 5A State Championship match against Woodward Academy Saturday afternoon at McDonough High School but he was celebrated as a hero immediately following the loss.

Roe's bout at 160-pounds was the final bout of a tightly contested match and the freshman went into his bout knowing he only needed to avoid getting pinned for the Colonels to capture the state title. His task was made even more difficult because he was facing Woodward Academy's Michale Kilic -- a three-time national champion signed to continue his career at Arizona State.

Roe held on through three, grueling two-minute periods and avoided the pin fall enabling Cass to secure a 36-34 win and the program's third state championship.

Woodward Academy reached the state finals by knocking off three-time state champion Woodland in the semifinals.

Cass reached the finals Saturday with wins over Coffee County and Ola. Bout results for the Colonels are listed below.

"I knew what I needed to do," Roe told NIck Sullivan of The Daily Tribune News. "I've been in so many of those types of situations, where I had to win or I had to lose but not by pin. I had to fight for every inch and get every point I could to help my team win."

An ecstatic Koontz praised the efforts of Roe in that final bout.

"That's a 14-year-old freshman in a man's weight class. He has been through hell and back. He has not had good draws in tournaments. I'm sure, at this point in time, it was all worth it for him."

With the championship match starting with the 170-pound weight class, Woodward Academy reeled off four bout wins in the first five. Only William Buttram (220) was able to win in that opening stretch for the Colonels.

Cole Hunt, who will continue his wrestling career at the University of North Carolina, battles his opponent in Saturday's championship match. Hunt won by pin in the second period.

Cass followed that stretch at 106 pounds and took six of the next seven bouts.

Lee Camp (106), AJ Piatt (120), Cole Hunt (126), Jake Crapps (132), Bryce Kresho (138), and Tyler McKnight (145) were each Cass winners in that stretch including four pins and a disqualification victory. Those points set up the dramatics in the final two bouts.

"This one is definitely real special," Colonels head coach D.L. Koontz added. "When I say this group is special, there's probably not a better group of kids character-wise or based on the amount of work that they put in. ... They are a solid team. They care about each other, genuinely, and they are always right behind each other."

"You just want the best for these kids, because they are just such great kids and they push so hard," Koontz concluded.

CLASS 5A STATE QUARTERFINALS

Cass defeated Coffee 59-24