A pair of Gilmer High School junior wrestlers have been named All-Americans.
Heavyweight Tony Olea and 220-pounder Dylan Galloway earned the distinction at the Nuway Nationals Winter Throne in Myrtle Beach, S.C., March 6.
A top-four placement was needed, and Olea finished second and posted a 2-1 record.
Galloway landed in third place and went 5-1 at the tournament. His five wins all came via pin in a total time of 8:43. Those victories accounted for the most pins in the least amount of time in the high school division, and Galloway received the Top Gun Award.
Before Olea lost to New York’s Sebastian Garibaldi in the championship match, he defeated Davide Alvarez of Georgia 2-0 in the semifinals. He secured a 6-0 win over Furquan Maynard from Tennessee in the quarterfinals.
Galloway won his first match in 21 seconds and his next match ended after 40. He pinned Nathan Carnes of North Carolina in 2:05 in the quarterfinals.
In the semifinals, Galloway lost to eventual champion Caleb VanBuskirk from California. Once in the consolation bracket, Galloway pinned his next opponent in 4:12.
In the third-place match, Galloway faced off against Shoshoni Williams, who was fresh off the GHSA 195-pound state championship in Class 4A. Galloway completed his tournament with another first-period pin in 1:38.
Next up for Olea and Galloway will be the National High School Coaches Association’s Junior Nationals in Virginia Beach, Va., April 23-25.