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Spain Park’s Bradley Williams finished out a second-straight unbeaten season with a state title while Oak Mountain’s Trey Denny and Chelsea’s Porter Schott won state titles and Helena and Pelham wrestlers placed. (For the Reporter/Dawn Harrison)

By ANDREW SIMONSON | Sports Editor

HUNTSVILLE – After a trio of dominant seasons, Spain Park’s Bradley Williams, Chelsea’s Porter Schott and Oak Mountain’s Trey Denny can officially claim the title of state champions.

The three wrestlers emerged victorious at the AHSAA Wrestling State Championships at the Propst Arena at the Von Braun Center in Huntsville on Saturday, Feb. 15, headlining a strong field of local finishers in Class 7A and Class 6A.

In addition to the trio, multiple wrestlers from the Spain Park Jaguars, Chelsea Hornets, Oak Mountain Eagles, Helena Huskies and Pelham Panthers placed in the top six of their respective divisions at the boys and girls state tournaments.

Williams cruised through the Class 6A boys 157-pound division to cap his perfect 54-0 season. He defeated Minor’s Demond Robinson in just 16 seconds to reach the semifinals where he got past Hartselle’s Garrett Willingham in 1:19.

Williams then matched up with Gulf Shores’ Charles Knight in the finals, and while the match lasted into the second period this time, he secured the win at the 2:23-mark to claim his second-straight state title.

The Jags junior went undefeated for the second-straight season after winning the Class 7A state championship with a 45-0 record in the 2023-24 season. He has won 108 straight matches and hasn’t lost since the 2022 state championship match.

Schott finished off a 43-1 record with a state championship in the Class 6A boys 215-pound division. He dominated his first-round matchup and got a pin 34 seconds in to advance to the quarterfinals.

From there though, he needed to win on points. He secured a 7-3 decision to reach the semifinals and advanced to the finals with a 9-4 win over Mortimer Jordan’s Weston Tossie. After that, he outlasted Hartselle’s Jameson Falciani in a tight 5-4 decision to win the title.

With the win, Schott becomes just the second Hornet to win a wrestling state championship in school history.

Denny emerged victorious from the Class 7A boys 126-pound division, ending the season with a 53-5 record and a state title. He won his first two matches of the week by pinfall, taking a second-period pin in the first-round match and a first-period fall in the quarterfinals.

He beat out Thompson’s Will Atkinson in the semifinals by a 9-4 decision to set up a championship showdown with Vestavia Hills’ Stone Phillips. The two battled it out in a match that went down to the wire before Denny secured a 7-4 win in sudden victory to win the title.

Oak Mountain’s Quinn Ivey earned a runner-up finish in the Class 7A boys 144-pound division. He started the tournament with back-to-back technical falls before defeating Thompson’s Turner Hutson with a 15-4 major decision.

Ivey gave Enterprise’s Grier Hunt a run for the state title but fell in a tight 10-9 decision in the state championship match.

Oak Mountain also had another runner-up finish from Griffin Gardner in the Class 7A boys 120-pound division. He earned a second-period fall in the first round of the tournament before reaching the finals off a 4-0 decision and a 5-4 decision, the latter of which came in a tight match against Enterprise’s Karter Stiffler.

Chelsea’s Heather Butler finished in third place in the Class 6A/7A girls 165-pound division. She secured a technical fall in her first-round matchup but lost to the eventual state champion, Daphne’s Taliah Wade, by a third-period pin in the semifinals.

She brushed off the loss in the semifinal war with a pair first-period pins in the consolation bracket, including a pin at the 1:12-mark of her third-place match against Mortimer Jordan’s Savannah Bowie.

Pelham’s Maddox McDaniel came in third place in the Class 6A boys 106-pound division. He reached the semifinals thanks to a second-period pin in the first round and a technical fall in the quarterfinals.

While his state title quest ended in the semifinals, he secured a 6-0 decision to reach the third-place match, where he eked out a 2-1 decision against Mountain Brook’s Bobby Rutkoff to secure his place on the podium steps.

Helena’s Kenyon Clements earned third in the Class 6A boys 120-pound division. After receiving a first-round bye thanks to his success at sectionals, he took an 11-0 major decision win to reach the semifinals.

He lost in the semifinals but came back in the consolation bracket and survived in sudden victory to reach the third-place match. From there, he defeated Gulf Shores’ Rhys Coulter by a 6-3 decision to earn third place.

Oak Mountain’s Jameson Thomas finished in third in the Class 7A boys 113-pound division. He reached the semifinals of the main bracket with a technical fall and second-period pin, but he lost to the eventual state champion, Smiths Station’s Eli Sanders.

From there, the sophomore bounced back and took an 11-1 major decision against Thompson’s Brady Walsh to reach the third-place match. He won the last match over Central-Phenix City’s Phoenix Ayers by a 14-3 major decision.

Spain Park’s Sawyer Hardy finished in fourth place in the Class 6A boys 144-pound division. He reached the semifinals off a pair of major decisions before falling to Athens’ Will Anderson, the eventual state champion. From there, he defeated Pell City’s Braydon Tray by a 7-1 decision to secure a top-four finish.

Pelham’s Sam Powell came in sixth place in the Class 6A boys 138-pound division thanks to his run to the semifinals. He earned a 45-second pin in the first round and a technical fall in the semifinals before falling to the eventual state champion, Athens’ Jaxon Unger.

Oak Mountain’s James Franklin finished sixth in the Class 7A boys 132-pound division. He bounced back from a first-round loss to win back-to-back matches in the consolation bracket by a first-period pin and a 15-10 decision to guarantee a top-six finish.

Oak Mountain’s Brady Coggin came in sixth in the Class 7A boys 150-pound division after he reached the semifinals off a third-period pin and a 4-3 decision in his first two matches.

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