Dec 19, 2014 3 min read

CLAYSVILLE – High school wrestling fans from both Trinity and McGuffey packed the Highlanders’ gymnasium Friday night for what was a non-section dual meet between the two rivals.

They got a real treat.

The outcome wasn’t decided until the final bout, when McGuffey’s Ryan Stienstraw pinned Austin Fife in 55 seconds to give the Highlanders a 35-27 victory.

Stienstraw was able to gain a measure of revenge as Fife beat the McGuffey heavyweight a year ago to give the Hillers a victory.

“We talked about the revenge factor,” McGuffey head coach Mark Caffrey said. “He pinned Ryan in the final bout last year to give Trinity the match. We feel Ryan is the superior wrestler and he showed it tonight. He’s a hulk. I call him Little Watt, like J.J. Watt, the football player. He’s that strong.”

It was a big victory for Stienstraw, who is coming back from an injury that caused him to miss last year’s postseason. With the emotion from the boisterous crowd filling the building, Stienstraw was able to continue his strong start to the season.

“I needed some revenge, that’s for sure,” said Stienstraw. “The injury last year got me in a lot better shape this season and I’m more confident. I knew my leg wasn’t going to give me trouble this year. The crowd was great. We have a wonderful crowd and it was nice to come out on top.”

Trinity took an early edge, when Ryan Yocum pinned Aaron Harris at 132 pounds. The Trinity bench and the Hillers exploded with emotion when Devin Kelley (138) followed by getting two late points to pull out a 3-2 victory over Luke Desmond.

The Hillers made it three wins in a row when Cameron Reynolds (145) won a convincing decision over Jeffrey McConn to give Trinity an 18-11 lead.

“We had a lot of guys come through for us,” said Trinity head coach Mark Powell. “We expect big things from Ryan, and Devin wrestled a good match. Justin (Ritter) and Robert (West) came through for us. We just fell a little short.”

The Highlanders put a stop to Trinity’s momentum with victories from Luke Shingle (152) and Dillon Richey (160) – both by decision – to pull to within one point, but Trinity’s Ritter (170) pinned Connor Thompson to regain the momentum for Trinity.

Back-to-back forfeits at 182 and 195 proved costly to the Hillers, as they gave the Highlanders gain a 29-24 edge.

“We are a little banged up right now,” Powell said. “When you have broken bones, what are you going to do? I thought we would have done well at 182 and 195, if we were healthy, but give them credit. They got the better of us.”

Trinity pulled to within 29-27 when West (220) won a 1-0 decision over Liam McElhoes, which set the stage for the final bout.

The McGuffey crowd erupted as the referee’s hand hit the mat and Stienstraw secured the victory for the Highlanders. It was the only pin of the night for McGuffey.

“It was a good night,” Caffrey said. “Again, we kept our composure and we came back. A couple guys didn’t wrestle well, but we hung in there.”