No one really gave them a chance, and they “took it personally.”
The Gilmer High Bobcats had a chip on their shoulder and were in tip-top form for the Region 7-3A duals last Thursday at Heritage. GHS entered the event seeded No. 4 out of seven teams, but this latest group of Bobcats left as champions and showed everyone in attendance they are not to be underestimated.
Gilmer defeated three opponents at the event, and the host and top-seeded Generals awaited the Bobcats in the finals. The match included multiple-bout winning streaks by both teams. In the end, it was the Bobcats who won the last three to secure a 37-33 victory.
“There have been times in the past where we’ve gone into region tournaments and run through them,” said head coach Josh Ghobadpoor. “Even though they’ve been good competitive regions, and we’ve had some close ones here and there, but this was one where we were truly the underdogs. We beat the five, the two and the one seeds.
“These guys really had to believe in the hard work we’ve put in. Aside from one maybe two, these guys haven’t been on the big stage. I’m just so proud. I’ve been blessed to be a part of 13 area/region titles since I’ve been here (as head coach). It was the most exciting one because it was a group of kids who had to come together and be bigger than the sum of its parts.”
Heritage was picked by online publication Georgia Grappler to win the region and Gilmer was slotted to finish fourth.
“Heritage is coached well and always a tough team,” Ghobadpoor said. “They have a lot of guys who go to Grindhouse (wrestling center) and get extra training. Matchup-wise, I figured they’d be the toughest matchup for us. We knew we needed to win some in the middle, win a couple up top and have our smaller guys do what they need to do.”
Gilmer’s starting lineup is predominantly made up of underclassmen. The match got underway at 150 pounds where Gilmer’s lone returning state qualifier took the mat. Senior Harrison Chester’s pin was the first of four straight Gilmer wins.
Sophomore Dawson Richard (157) pinned his opponent and junior Bo Cronic (165) got a decision. Senior Jovani Raymundo’s decision at 175 moved GHS ahead, 18-0.
While Bobcat junior heavyweight Denny Ramirez earned six more team points with his pin, the Generals claimed five of six bouts.
HHS won via fall at 190, 215, 106, 113 and 120. The Generals’ decision at 126 put Gilmer at a 33-24 disadvantage with three bouts remaining.
Gilmer sophomores Adolfo Bautista and Braelyn Nelson were up next at 132 and 138 pounds, respectively. Bautista pinned his General foe. Nelson’s opponent managed to avoid getting pinned, and his major gave GHS a 34-33 lead.
Next up was senior Domingo Velasquez, and the match was foreshadowed earlier in the day.
“I was sitting next to him before the match and there really wasn’t anyone else around,” Ghobadpoor said. “I asked him how he was feeling and he said, ‘Coach, I’m a little nervous. What if it comes down to me? What if I lose?’ And I said, ‘Stop. What if you win? What if you’re the last guy and you go out there and get it done for us?’
“Right before we won those last three, I went back there and said, ‘Hey this is just like we talked about. It’s gonna come down to you, and you’re gonna get it done for us. You win; we win.’”
Velasquez’s 6-5 victory gave Gilmer the region championship, which marked the Bobcats’ 12th in 13 seasons.
“We said in the summer, our goal is to work as hard as we possibly can to make ourselves a tough competitive team,” said Ghobadpoor. “We talked about going to state and having the ability to win a region title. I didn’t care where they put us in the bracket because we can beat anyone in the bracket if we show up and do what we’re supposed to do. We didn’t have to be anything but the best versions of ourselves.
“If we wrestle solid, be ourselves and have belief in it, we can go do it and that’s exactly what we did.”
Ghobadpoor made some scheduling adjustments this season, and it paid off when it was needed.
“This is the best lineup we’ve had all year,” he said. “This is when you want to be your best, when it’s the postseason and it matters most. We went into this event healthy and excited and with the best lineup we could put together.
“I was just really proud of our guys. We made five weight class changes and it was over time. We purposely didn’t schedule events after Dec. 22. A lot of that had to do with getting down to the right weights, getting healthy and getting good practice time.”
In the semifinals versus No. 2 seeded Northwest Whitfield, Gilmer won, 45-24. Illegal holds and slams by both teams marred the match. Northwest coaches were docked three teams because of misconduct following a Bobcat slam.
A GHS wrestler also had his arm torqued and bent in a manner which Ghobadpoor believed was “dislocated, popped out and popped back in.” This prompted Ghobadpoor to disrupt the bout to alert the referee so he could stop the action.
“I had to run out there and say, ‘Stop.’ I didn’t care about winning or losing. It was tough to watch for both sets of coaches. Our kids are getting hurt because these matches weren’t being handled properly,” Ghobadpoor said.
GHS pins versus Northwest were earned by Domingo Velasquez, Ramirez, Manny Velasquez (120) and Bautista. Senior Kevin Gonzalez (126) won by decision, and the Bruins forfeited to Richard, junior Deyson Lopez (106) and Nelson.
GHS lost just two bouts versus Ridgeland in the first round and won, 64-10.
Gilmer was able to hold nonmandatory practices Monday and Tuesday as weather led to the cancellation of classes. Conditioning was the focus for the team.
Gilmer has a 15-5 dual record and will make its way to Troup County for the Class 3A state duals Friday and Saturday. Tournament seeding was not available at press deadline.