Bullis senior Sepanta Ahanj-Elias regularly competes at 190 pounds, where he is top-ranked by Legacy Wrestling and honorable mention nationally by SB Live.
But at last weekend’s Damascus Holiday Invitational Tournament, Ahanj-Elias dominated a 215-pound class featuring a pair of state champions, leading the 26th-ranked Bulldogs (124 points) over the host and runner-up Swarmin’ Hornets (117.5) for the team title.
Ahanj-Elias is a two-time Interstate Athletic Conference champion who placed second twice and fifth once at the Maryland Private Schools State tournament. Previously undefeated senior Isaac Ogunlade of Einstein is a second-ranked defending Class 4A-3A state champion at 215 pounds, while third-ranked senior Adin Hastings was a Class 2A-1A state runner-up last season after winning states as a sophomore. It's also important to note that Ogunlade beat Hastings in overtime during the first day of dual meet matches.
“I don’t really look at records, but I’ve drilled with those guys before,” Ahanj-Elias said. “I knew how they wrestled. I knew I was better than them. I just had to go out and wrestle.”
The tournament’s structure calls for dual meets on the first day to determine seedings for an individual format on the second day, which on occasion leads to wrestlers facing one another twice.
That was the case for Ahanj-Elias, who handled Ogulande by 20-5 technical fall and 7-0 decision, Hastings by fall and 9-0 major decision, raised his record to 17-3 for the season and 142-20 for his career, and was named Outstanding Upper Weight wrestler.
“First time I wrestled Hastings, he was backing up and I was able to catch him. The second time, Hastings had more of a game-plan, and I couldn’t turn him,” Ahanj-Elias said. “Against Ogunlade the first time, I was able to light him up. The second time, he was a little more prepared, plus, he’s really strong. Overall, I’m fine with this performance.”
Ahanj-Elias was joined on the victory podium by third-ranked senior RJ Bucknor (138), fourth-ranked sophomore Noah Tucker (165), 19th-ranked sophomore Stephan Mason (215) and his 20th-ranked freshman sibling, Soshiant Ahanj-Elias (144). Junior Jacob Buxton (190) finished third for the Bulldogs, improving his record on the year to 10-5 and 45-30 for his career.
The Bulldogs excelled without injured 165-pound sophomore Salah Tsarni, who is top-ranked by Legacy Wrestling and 13th-ranked nationally by SB Live. A returning IAC and private schools champion, Tsarni had placed second at each of the difficult McDonogh and Beast Of The East Tournaments.
“We were without Salah, who is a big scorer for us, but Sepanta was really on fire after placing eighth at Beast,” Bulldogs’ coach Drew Robertson said. “Sepanta did a great job, beating two state champs twice each as our senior leader. We want to get better and better during our tougher tournaments, so for these guys to catch a loss or two to get ready for the IACs, the states and the preps will help to better prepare us as a team.”
After placing third at McDonogh and going 2-2 at Beast Of The East, Bucknor reached the Damascus finals on falls in 54 seconds and 3:02. Bucknor won his championship match, 16-3, over Ethan Bluesteen of Lake Braddock, Va.
“I was in the pigtails at Beast and had to wrestle my way into the tournament,” said Bucknor, who has a record of 20-3 this season and 83-12 for his career. “That pushed me to my limits and helped me to determine what I need to do to build up my stamina, improve on my technique and to wrestle all the way through until the match is over.”
A third-place finisher at McDonogh, Tucker earned falls in 78 seconds, 1:47 and four minutes, the latter against ninth-ranked sophomore Logan Brown of Northwest.
“Starting with me, without Salah, we bumped everyone up,” said Tucker, who is 18-3 on the year and 58-10 in two seasons. “Taking losses at Ray Oliver and Beast just meant that we had to come back and work harder in the rooms every day. We were able to raise the intensity, come together as a team and win this tournament.”
Mason used an 18-3 technical fall and pin in 3:20 to reach his title match, where he overcame a 6-5 third-period deficit for an 11-7 decision over Frederick Douglass junior Jeremiah Reynolds. A seventh-place finisher at McDonogh, Mason scored a takedown and two nearfall points in the final period against Reynolds, a Prince George’s County tournament runner-up who placed third at regions.
“I only weigh 200 pounds, and I normally give up weight at 215, so this weekend, I was giving up even more weight at 285 pounds,” said Mason, who is 15-4 this season with a two-year record of 33-10. “My strategy was to stay outside, so I looked at my coaches for directions. Their game plan for me was to use angles, get in on their shins, ankles and their knees. I’ve placed in tournaments, but this is my first time winning a high school tournament. It feels good.”
An eighth-place finisher at McDonogh, Soshiant Ahanj-Elias used a fall in 24 seconds followed by a 16-0 technical fall to reach the finals. Soshiant won his title match, 8-4, over 13th-ranked senior Gabe Hernandez of Damascus. Hernandez was a Montgomery County runner-up who placed fourth at regions last season.
“I watched him before and knew he was good because he had teched everyone on his side,” said Soshiant, who improved to 17-3. “I knew what I had to focus on and used that intensity and kept moving so that he wouldn’t be able to score when he wanted to.”
Robertson is a 1999 graduate of DeMatha, where he was a four-time Washington Catholic Athletic Conference champion, winner of three state titles in four final appearances, and two National Preps crowns after having placed fifth and third.
Among Robertson’s assistants is Tony Howard, who earned three Class 4A-3A state titles at 140, 152 and 160 pounds before graduating from Magruder in 2000. Another assistant is David Tillman, who “grew up overseas wrestling freestyle and Greco-Roman primarily,” Robertson said.
“Work brought David to the D.C. area. It’s all about building toward the end of the year where we hope to reach a crescendo,” Robertson said. “For us to be down one of our best guys and to have our guys and to persevere just shows what our tough tournament schedule at the beginning of the year is doing for us at the winter break.”
Winning for Einstein were fifth-ranked senior Stone Yuen (132) and 11th-ranked senior Josh Ogunlade (175), with Yuen being named Outstanding Lower Weight Wrestler. Bound for Bloomsburg University, Yuen registered a 50-second fall and a 15-0 technical fall to reach his title bout against 14th-ranked senior Theo Shockey of Landon, whom he pinned in 56 seconds.
“I was able to get pins and technical falls against everybody,” said Yuen, who improved his record to 21-0 in pursuit of his second consecutive Class 4A-3A state title in three championship berths. “This feels good. I don’t think anyone really out-works me in my weight class. But I’ll be at 132 all year, so anyone can catch the smoke.”
Josh Ogunlade used a fall in 4:27, a 10-9 decision over Damascus’ Tanner Harman to reach the finals, where he scored a 91-second fall over Ben Kaetzel of William Monroe High of Virginia.
“I pinned myself while I was using a tilt earlier in the tournament, but that lit a fire under me,” said Ogunlade, who is 22-3 on the season. “I was able to bounce back and show them who I really am. I’m on course, but I need to work on some things.”
Runner-up Damascus crowned 16th-ranked sophomore Cooper Spoales (120), a returning Montgomery County and regional champion who placed third at Class 2A-1A states. Spoales used falls in 39 and 51 seconds to reach the finals, where he decked Northwest’s Auggie Dandenault in 2:57.
“This is my second time winning this tournament. I thought I did a good job,” said Spoales, whose record is 23-2. “There are certainly some things I can improve on, but it’s still early in the year. I’m looking forward to getting back into the room and I’m very excited to see what the future holds for me and for our team.”
Urbana crowned fourth-ranked senior Vince Corso (190) along with freshman Damian DuChez (106) and sophomore Gabe Helman (113). DuChez and Helman are each 11th-ranked and improved their records to 15-0.
Corso used a 74-second fall and consecutive technical falls of 16-0 and 17-0 to earn his crown, the latter in his championship match with third-place county finisher Owen Jaramillo of Damascus. Corso is in pursuit of his fourth straight Frederick County title and has placed fourth at both regions and Class 4A-3A states.
“I really wanted to work on some things. I feel like I was able to do that,” said Corso, who is 22-0 with 14 pins. “My goals are to win my fourth county title and to win states, and I think I can bring it all home.”
DuChez used a fall in 1:51 to reach the finals, where he handled Michael Patton of Damascus, 13-2. Helman earned pins in 26-seconds and 3:11 before handling Reuben Hale of Brentsville, Va., by a score of 9-0.
“I felt like I almost had a technical fall,” said DuChez of his title match. “It is what it is, but I felt like I did well today. My goal is to win states.”
Helman was third at both the county and regional tournaments last season, yet believes that his workouts with DuChez will help him to improve on those performances.
“Damian makes a good workout partner, particularly with my neutral position,” Helman said. “I had seven pins and the major decision in this tournament, so I feel alright about my performance.”
Northwest’s 11th-ranked senior Fernando Mejia (157) used a 60-second fall and consecutive technical falls of 18-2 and 15-0 to earn his crown, the latter in his championship match with Oakdale’s Marty Sandy for his 100th career victory.
“I don’t feel as if I did enough,” said Mejia, who is 19-2 on the year. “I still need to improve my stamina for the hard, six-minute matches.”
Oakdale crowned sophomore Jacob Mostowski (150), who used falls in 68 seconds and 1:50 to reach the finals. There, Mostowki scored a fall in 4:32 over Gerald Carter of Frederick Douglass High to avenge an earlier loss by pin.
“First match, I was a little bit nervous. I had him on his back once, but I ran out of time,” Mostowski said. “I got back up and he ended up pinning me. But I was able to get back in stride and was able to come back and pin him. This feels great.”
1) Bullis 124
2) Damascus 117.5
3) Urbana 92
4) Northwest 82
5) Einstein 70.5
6) Oakdale 66
7) Lake Braddock, Va. 55
8) Frederick Douglas 47
9) Williamsport 46.5
10) Brentsville, Va. 40
11) Landon 36.5
12) Gilford Park 24
13) Good Counsel 13
14) William Monroe, Va. 9
15) Gaithersburg 0
106
1st Place Match
Damian DuChez (Urbana High School) 2-0, over Michael Patton (Damascus High School) 1-1, . (MD 13-2)
3rd Place Match
Cooper Bunting (Northwest) 2-1, over Chase Timmerman (Oakdale High School) 1-2, . (Fall 1:36)
113
1st Place Match
Gabe Helmen (Urbana High School) 3-0, over Reuben Hale (Brentsville High School) 2-1, . (MD 9-0)
3rd Place Match
Conner Rafferty (Lake Braddock) 2-1, over Kyle Osborn (Northwest) 1-2, . (Dec 7-5)
120
1st Place Match
Cooper Spoales (Damascus High School) 3-0, So. over Auggie Dandenault (Northwest) 2-1, . (Fall 2:57)
3rd Place Match
Alex Nalda (Urbana High School) 1-1, over John Dempsey (Lake Braddock) 1-2, . (MD 14-1)
126
1st Place Match
Leland Cline (Brentsville High School) 3-0, over Leo Saravia (Gilford Park) 2-1, . (MD 14-4)
3rd Place Match
William Eastin (Lake Braddock) 2-1, over Kyle Courchaine (Urbana High School) 1-2, . (Fall 2:44)
132
1st Place Match
Stone Yuen (Einstein High School) 3-0, over Theo Shockey (Landon) 2-1, . (Fall 0:56)
3rd Place Match
Noah Walker (Frederick Douglas High School) 2-1, over Mj Sandy (Oakdale High School) 1-2, . (Dec 8-1)
138
1st Place Match
Rj Buckner (Bullis) 3-0, over Ethan Bluesteen (Lake Braddock) 2-1, . (MD 16-3)
3rd Place Match
Joe Papalia (Landon) 2-1, over JJ Hathaway (Oakdale High School) 1-2, . (Dec 11-6)
144
1st Place Match
Soshiant Ahanj-elias (Bullis) 3-0, over Gabe Hernandez (Damascus High School) 2-1, . (Dec 8-4)
3rd Place Match
George Hearn (William Monroe) 2-1, over Logan Burker (Williamsport) 1-2, . (Dec 16-15)
150
1st Place Match
Jacob Mostowski (Oakdale High School) 3-0, over Gerald Carter (Frederick Douglas High School) 2-1, . (Fall 4:32)
3rd Place Match
Logan Durham (Williamsport) 2-1, over Max Murray (Landon) 1-2, . (TF-1.5 4:23 (17-0))
157
1st Place Match
Fernando Mejia (Northwest) 3-0, over Marty Sandy (Oakdale High School) 2-1, . (TF-1.5 5:25 (15-0))
3rd Place Match
Evan Willis (Damascus High School) 2-1, over Camryn Miketta (Lake Braddock) 1-2, . (Fall 3:15)
165
1st Place Match
Noah Tucker (Bullis) 3-0, over Logan Brown (Northwest) 2-1, . (Fall 4:00)
3rd Place Match
Porter Gruner (Damascus High School) 2-1, over Omid Shirizoi (Einstein High School) 1-2, . (Fall 4:45)
175
1st Place Match
Joshua Ogunlade (Einstein High School) 3-0, over Ben Kaetzel (Williamsport) 2-1, . (Fall 1:31)
3rd Place Match
Carter Kuhar (Urbana High School) 2-1, over Tanner Harman (Damascus High School) 1-2, . (Dec 17-14)
190
1st Place Match
Vince Corso (Urbana High School) 3-0, over Owen Jaramillo (Damascus High School) 2-1, . (TF-1.5 2:44 (16-0))
3rd Place Match
Jacob Buxton (Bullis) 2-1, over Devonte Lynn (Northwest) 1-2, . (Fall 0:39)
215
1st Place Match
Sepanta Ahanj-Elias (Bullis) 3-0, over Isaac Ogunlade (Einstein High School) 2-1, . (Dec 7-0)
3rd Place Match
Aiden Hastings (Williamsport) 2-1, over Mark Martin (Damascus High School) 1-2, . (Fall 1:20)
285
1st Place Match
Stephan Mason (Bullis) 3-0, over Jeremiah Reynolds (Frederick Douglas High School) 2-1, . (Dec 11-7)
3rd Place Match
Bryton Brown (Good Counsel) 2-1, over Elijah Fields (Gilford Park) 1-2, . (Fall 3:09)
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