COLUMBUS — He may have come up short in the state championship match, but Christopher Marshall put Centerburg wrestling on the map over the weekend.
A junior 138-pounder, Marshall came out of nowhere to finish as state runner-up. He fell to Norwood’s Wyatt Hinton 8-1 inside Ohio State’s Schottenstein Center on Sunday evening.
“This could create a lot of attention around Centerburg now,” said Marshall, the school’s first-ever state runner-up. “That’s what I was looking to do and I think I was able to accomplish it.”
Marshall created a buzz from his opening match of the weekend. He survived for a 7-6 ultimate tie-breaker victory over Delphos St. John’s Edward Kessen to reach Saturday’s quarterfinals.
He picked up a pair of convincing wins Saturday, beating Gibsonburg’s Antonio Salazar 10-1 in the quarters before dispatching Defiance Tinora’s Anden Ankney 8-3 in the semifinals.
That set up a championship date with Hinton, a senior who entered the tournament with a 45-1 record. Marshall had a hard time generating offense against the physical senior.
“I really need to work on my neutral. I’m going to hit that hard this summer,” Marshall said. “This will motivate me to work even harder this summer.
“I’m going to try to get to the top of the podium next year.”
For now, family bragging rights will have to suffice. Marshall’s older brother, Donnell, placed sixth at 145 at the 2021 Division III state tournament. Donnell had been Centerburg’s highest placer until Sunday.
“He just congratulated me,” Christopher said. “He said I might be the best wrestler in Centerburg history now.”
Even the most astute Ohio high school wrestling prognosticators didn’t have Marshall on their radars as the state tournament kicked off. He was ranked 18th by analyst Billy Schaefer ahead of the start of the postseason.
“I think I had something like a 25 percent chance to place,” Marshall said. “I had to go out there and prove everyone wrong and put Centerburg on the map and I think I did that.
“I’ll have a target on my back now. There will be a lot more pressure, but I think I can live up to it.”
Highland sophomore Cael Gilmore also earned state runner-up honors.
Competing in the 144-pound Division II draw, Gilmore lost 8-3 to Graham’s Brogan Tucker in the state championship match.
A year ago Gilmore was eighth at 138 pounds. But the Scots’ standout showed steady improvement this year.
He fell behind 8-0 to Tucker, the two-time state champ, yet hung in there competing to the end.
It marked a fantastic weekend for Gilmore and he’s made himself into a wrestler of statewide note heading into his junior season.