HILLIARD — Projected state champ Alex Taylor looked the part.
A 285-pound junior, Taylor pinned his way to the district title at Hilliard Darby High School.
Taylor was one of five Yellow Jackets to earn bids to next week’s Division I state tournament at Ohio State’s Schottenstein Center. He will be joined by fellow district champ Luke Mullins (190) and district runners-up Caleb Snyder (106), Mavrik Gregory (157) and Jake Taylor (165).
Alex Taylor has pinned all seven of his postseason opponents and only one of those matches, Saturday district championship bout, has gone more than one period. He is 36-1 on the season.
Mullins improved to 27-13 with a 9-0 major decision over Worthington Kilbourne’s Jacob Granick in the finals.
The fourth-ranked Snyder fell to projected state champ Loc Webber of Dublin Coffman in the finals. Snyder is 31-5 on the season.
Gregory thundered into the finals with three straight tech falls before falling to Olentangy’s Jake Piontkowski. Gregory is 31-6.
Jake Taylor fell to Olentangy Liberty’s Lincoln Gardner in the finals. He is 37-6 on the year.
Mount Vernon finished fourth in the team standings with 138.5 points. Coffman (240) won the district title.
Division III
Centerburg’s Chris Marshall and East Knox’s Blake Elliott are both headed back to the state meet after finishing third in their respective weight classes at the Troy district.
Marshall won by default in the 144-pound consolation finals. He is 31-4 on the season.
Elliott earned a 9-5 win over Lima Central Catholic’s Carter Lester in the 190-pound consolation finals. He is 39-10.