FLAGLER PALM COAST – Seven individual champions fueled a dominant team performance by the Fleming Island High wrestling team as they cruised to a 293 point total and a near-50 point spread on runnerup Flagler Palm Coast in the District 1-3A wrestling championships held Saturday at Flagler Palm Coast High School. Champions crowned were Briar Jackson, Albie Snedaker, Paul Detwiler, Ben Sann, Jason Davis, Ryan Smenda and Brandyne Mackey.

“We’ve been working our butts off all season,” said Fleming Island coach P.J. Cobbert. “We’re in good shape, but we just have to clean up some technique.”

Wrestling action continues on Sat., Feb. 25 with the Region 1-3A championships to be held again at Flagler Palm Coast High School. Top four finishers at regions advance to the state championship meet a week later at Kissimmee’s Silver Spurs Arena.

Fleming Island scored their win with a state-leading 293 team points with Flagler second at 237.5. The top teams from districts 1-3, which encompasses the region 1-3A lineup, include Winter Springs, in district 3-3A with 238.5 points over Hagerty’s 175.5; Apopka, in district 2-3A with 211 points ahead of Orlando Evans’ 161.5 points for second place, and Freedom winning district 4-3A with 225 points with Timber Creek second at 151.5. Fleming Island, with Ryan Smenda and Jason Davis region champs, won last year’s region 1-3A championship with 187.5 points over Winter Springs’ 156 and Flagler’s 150.5. Winter Springs, with nine district championship from last week, returns with three defending region champions.

In last year’s Class 3A state meet, South Dade won with 140 points with Fleming Island sixth at 72, Winter Springs seventh at 68 and Flagler eighth at 66 to set up this year’s region championship as a precursor to next week’s state championship meet.

“We’ve been primed up to have a great run here,” said Fleming Island senior Jason Davis, a two-time third place winner at 195 pounds. “We had a two week period after our last meet that has gotten us recharged, recovered, injury free and primed to go. We are a solid nine on a 10 scale on readiness.”

Fleming Island has won the district title the past three years over Flagler with both teams tying for the title three years ago.

“I think we are coming together as a unit,” said Davis. “If you watch our guys compete, the entire team is usually on the corner watching and coaching up. That’s a big deal to know your team has your back if you get lost out there. It’s a whole new dynamic this year that has kept us close as a team.”

In matches featuring Fleming Island battling Flagler Palm Coast wrestlers, at 106, Jackson stopped Flagler’s Christian Sheppard 14-5; at 113, Flagler’s Michael DeAugustino, a state runnerup last year, beat Fleming Island’s Deandre Demus a third time this year 3-2 in what may be also a region final clash; at 120, Flagler’s Avery Holder, fifth in 3A last year, beat Fleming Island’s Jacob Sandoval; at 138, Flagler’s Michael Martins beat Fleming Island’s Vince Hauser 7-1; at 153, Fleming Island’s Paul Detwiler beat Flagler’s Curtis Brock by pin; at 160; at 170, Flagler’s Steve Candidate beat Fleming Island’s Jalyn Robinson 4-3; at 182, Fleming Island’s Jason Davis pinned Flagler’s Eddie Bryant; at 220, Fleming Island’s Brandyne Macket beat Flagler’s Tyler Irigoyen 3-1 and, at 285, Flagler’s Vincent Eubanks beat Fleming Island’s Jose Concepcion in overtime 3-2.

“Jose has had a lot of overtimes for the season,” said Cobbert. “He’s got to learn to close out. It’s all about the coin flip too.”

Also in district 1-3A action, Oakleaf High finished sixth with 56 points with five wrestlers in the top four to advance to regions; Cam’Ron Dove, Ryan Rosano, Ethan Gustillo, Vince Karl and Dexter Moore.

Dove, a freshman, faced off against Buchholz’ Bryan Perkins and lost in the consolation final 20-2 to finish fourth; Rosano, took third in 113 over Sandalwood’s Leon Cruz 5-0; Gustillo, took third with a 13-4 win over Mandarin’s Gunner Stier at 126; Karl lost to Fleming Island’s Trace Insalaco at 132 by pin and Moore, at 195, finished fourth with a 12-5 loss to Robert E. Lee’s David Johnson.

“Cam’Ron got thrown in there from junior varsity after a kid quit and has fought his battles well,” said Oakleaf coach Wes Champs. “Dexter is a strong athlete that has worked hard to learn to wrestle in his first year and Ethan has been one of the faster learners on the team. We just have to get him to slow down a bit and finish. Ryan is a returning state qualifier in a very tough bracket.”

Rosano, 1-2 at states last year, lost to eventual district runnerup Rayquan Piper of Fletcher who was beaten in the final by Snedaker of Fleming Island. Gustillo lost in the 126 semifinal to Sandoval of Fleming Island. Karl got pinned in the 132 semifinal by Buchholz Gant Moore, a state qualifier last year. Dexter Moore lost his first match to Fletcher’s Stepanyan, the district runnerup to Smenda.