money Oklahoma high school wrestling: Cael Hughes wins fourth title, finishes Stillwater career unbeaten
Stillwater’s Cael Hughes had a bittersweet feeling as he won the Class 6A 132-pound state title Saturday night.
After getting his hand raised, he was proud to have claimed another championship. It also set in that this would be the last time he’d be able to do that at the high school level.
After jogging around the mat, he approached the center, turned to the crowd and took a bow before exiting as one of the most accomplished wrestlers in state history.
Hughes defeated Edmond North’s Hunter Hollingsworth 4-0 at State Fair Arena, becoming the 45th boys wrestler to claim four state championships. He also finished his high school career undefeated and untied, the fifth to accomplish that.
Hughes, an Oklahoma State signee, soaked it all in Saturday.
“I loved all four years I was at Stillwater,” Hughes said. “I loved coming here every year and competing. It was also a sense of relief. I capped off my career here as a Pioneer undefeated. A lot of excitement.”
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Stillwater 132-pounder Cael Hughes beats Edmond North’s Hunter Hollingsworth 4-0. Hughes, an Oklahoma State signee, finishes his high school career with an undefeated record and four titles. #OKPreps pic.twitter.com/UFsLqNgbBS
— Nick Sardis (@nick_sardis) February 26, 2023
Along with Hughes' individual accomplishments, he helped Stillwater claim its third straight state tournament crown.
The victory didn’t come easily though. The Pioneers edged Edmond North 191-190.
Stillwater had three champions other than Hughes — Aydan Thomas (106), LaDarion Lockett (157) and Landyn Sommer (165).
Edmond North had three champions — Layton Schneider (144), Talon McCollom (175) and Ricky Thomas (285).
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Choctaw’s Peyton Hand claims another title
The match wasn’t even over, but Peyton Hand already had tears in her eyes.
With the clock dwindling to less than 10 seconds remaining, the Choctaw 115-pounder had Coweta’s Aiyana Perkins locked down as she looked up and felt a stream of emotions.
When the final whistle sounded, Hand popped up, flexed and raised four fingers on each hand as she walked around the mat.
Hand defeated Perkins 11-3 as she ended her dominant high school career with the Yellowjackets.
Oklahoma has had three officially sanctioned girls state tournaments after holding an exhibition state tournament before that.
Hand claimed titles all four years, the only girl to do so.
The experiences she had during that time entered her mind in the final moments of her match Saturday.
“I was kind of remembering everything I’ve been through, being the only girl in the (wrestling) room,” Hand said. “Just growing up, people saying I didn’t belong. And just seeing the sport grow as well. It was just surreal, all of it coming together.”
Hand, who will continue her career at Ottawa University in Kansas, finished the season with a 28-0 record. All but three of her victories were decided by a pin.
She’ll go down as one of the pioneers of Oklahoma high school girls wrestling.
Moore’s Payton Thomas edges Stillwater’s AJ Heeg
Moore 190-pounder Payton Thomas capped a remarkable senior season, finishing undefeated.
The Navy signee beat Stillwater star and Oklahoma State signee AJ Heeg 3-2 for his first Class 6A state title.
“I really only got one thing to say, and it’s I’m thankful for the opportunity to wrestle,” said Thomas, who was 35-0 this season. “I never had a doubt in my mind going into the match or coming out of it. I knew my coaches believed in me, my family, everybody.”
Thomas was in control throughout the match. He jumped ahead 3-0 and stayed in the driver’s seat from there.
“It’s a great feeling,” Thomas said. “I love it. I haven’t stopped smiling for like an hour now.”
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Carl Albert pulls off surprising win in Class 5A
Carl Albert claimed its third state tournament title in school history, and the victory was definitely a surprise.
The Class 5A Titans didn’t qualify for dual state and placed fifth at the West Regional, but they showed up ready to compete this week.
They finished with 96½ points as they placed ahead of five-time defending champion Collinsville, which had 80.
Alex Sutterfield was Carl Albert’s lone individual champion as he claimed the title at 215 pounds. Kasen Miller (138), Grant Gober (150) and Isaiah Matanane (165) placed second, Raylyn Sherman (175) took third and Nathan Sutterfield (157) was fourth.
“I think we definitely did really good. … We never stopped battling,” Gober said.
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Kirk siblings of Guthrie repeat as champions
Guthrie seniors Eli and Khaleah Kirk each won their second straight state title.
Eli topped Collinsville’s Clay Gates 3-1 in the Class 5A 126-pound championship match, while Khaleah pinned Blanchard’s Lynn Horn in the 125-pound girls finals.
Both finished with great records. Eli was 33-1, and Khaleah was 19-0.
“I’m glad I got the job done with my sister,” Eli said.
Khaleah had clear goals heading into her senior year. She often trained twice a day and saw it pay off Saturday.
“Probably the best feeling I’ve ever had,” she said. “My goal was to come out senior year with the best year I’ve ever had, and that’s what I did.”
The Kirk siblings’ mom is from Puerto Rico, and they plan on wrestling with the Puerto Rican national team later this year.
Khaleah will wrestle at the college level with Oklahoma City University, while Eli is undecided.
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Tuttle wins 15th straight crown
Tuttle won its 20th state tournament title and extended its state-record streak of consecutive championships to 15.
The Class 4A Tigers tallied 197½ points, and Tulsa Cascia Hall was the runner-up with 106.
Tuttle had 10 wrestlers who reached the finals, and four won titles.
The winners were Beau Hickman (138), Ethan Teague (157), Tucker Waitman (165) and Sam Schmidt (175).
“On paper, we had a lot of tough matches tonight,” Tuttle coach Bobby Williams III said. “Of course personally, I wanted to do better. I feel like we could have had more. It was a good night. It was a good tournament.”
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Other championship winners
● Blackwell won the Class 3A title. The Maroons had 158 points as they placed ahead of two-time defending champion Marlow, which had 109½.
● The girls state tournament included a tight battle. Defending champion Tulsa Union won with 63½ points. Bixby and Edmond North finished in a tie for second with 63.
Reporter Nick Sardis covers high school sports across the Oklahoma City metro and state. Have a story idea for Nick? He can be reached at nsardis@oklahoman.com or on Twitter at @nick_sardis. Support Nick’s work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at oklahoman.com/subscribe or by using the link at the top of this page.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Stillwater's Cael Hughes ends Oklahoma HS wrestling career undefeated
