Prep Roundup (1/23)

For a third-straight season the Niceville wrestling team captured the Panhandle Championship, but even Eagles coach Morrie Geselter admitted his team's latest conquest felt entirely different from its previous wins.

By advancing eight to the semifinals – and having all eight wrestlers win their respective matches – the latest Panhandle Championships meet quickly turned into a one-team show, with Niceville simply overpowering the rest of the field on its way to a three-peat.

“I’ve never had that happen before,” Geselter said of Niceville’s dominance in the semifinals. “I was feeling guilty.”

David Jones (140-pound weight class), Taylor Nixon (130), Hayden Meyer (152), Brett Lamb (160) and Nate Hartley (171) gave Niceville five first-place finishers as the Eagles collected 225 team points to run away with this year’s title.

Arnold, with 179 team points, was the next closest. Fort Walton Beach (132.5) finished fourth while South Walton (77) placed seventh and Crestview (65) placed 11th.

Sam Jenkins (189), Corey Garland (215) and Charles Phillips (Heavyweight) earned second-place finishes for Niceville while Matt Bonham (fourth, 125), Joey Forgione (fifth, 112) and Jacob Bagnall (fifth, 135) rounded out the Eagles’ top finishers.

Jones turned in one of the more awe-inspiring efforts in handing Milton’s Ben Willard, who entered the meet ranked No.1 in the state in the 130-pound weight class, his first loss of the season with a 3-2 decision in the semifinals. Jones then pinned Mosley’s Jimmy Kahle, who in two previous meetings had handed Jones two of his four losses on the season.

Fort Walton Beach was paced by 125-pound champion Dan Lengyel. Matt Lengyel (112) and Brett Matlaga (152) each earned second-place finishes in their respective weight classes while Gunner Lee (145) and Matt Frank (171) each took third. Matt Winkler (160) finished fourth for the Vikings.

South Walton’s Justin Dunwald, who finished third in the 140-pound division, became the first wrestler this year to defeat Willard by pinfall. Dan Dunwald (second, 135) and Greg Felt (third, 112) also placed high for the Seahawks while Robert Felt (2-2, 145) and Sam Wiscomb (3-2, 215) were cited for having strong meets.

Boys basketball

l Fort Walton Beach 58, West Florida Tech 39: Darin Webster and Robert Willis each finished with 13 points as the Vikings erased a first-quarter deficit and ran away with a win at West Florida Tech.

Sedric Rudolph had 11 points for the Vikings (12-7), which next plays Pensacola at home on Monday.

FWB               7 18 8 25 - 58

WFT                13 9 4 13 - 39

F: Davonte Gee 3, Trey Fields 2, Tanner Armstrong 3, Darin Webster 13, Sedric Rudoph 11, Anthony Hawthorn 7, Rece Drake 6, Robert Willis 13. Totals: 13 3 23-41 58

l Niceville 60, Washington 57: A fourth-quarter run spelled the difference for Niceville as the Eagles traveled to Washington and came home with a win. Kirk Perry led the Eagles (19-3) with 23 points while Kyle Koszuta poured in 11 as Niceville outscored Washington 20-9 over the final eight minutes.

Niceville returns to District 2-5A play on Tuesday when the Eagles travel to Mosley.

N                     16 9 15 20 – 60

W                        9 16 21 9 – 57

N: AJ Tillman 8, Hunter Curtis 3, Kyle Koszuta 11, Kyle McDorman 2, Steve Dyson 7, Kirk Perry 23, Nate Terry 6. Totals: 10 7 19-23 60

l Bethlehem 59, Rocky Bayou Christian 52: Ryan Burns registered a double-double - 33 points and 11 rebounds - but it wasn’t enough to prevent the Knights from remaining winless (0-12) in District 1-A.

RB                  15   9 10 18 – 52

B                     13 12 21 13 – 59

RB: Ryan Burns 33, Cooper Eaves 2, Tim Sung 2, Shawn Maxwell 3, Victor Johns 4, Ben Lusk 8. Totals: 20 2 6-14 52

l Pensacola Catholic 67, Walton 66: Tray Williams led the Braves with 18 points but a big fourth quarter helped propel Pensacola Catholic past Walton on Friday night.

Walton (7-13, 3-5 District 1-3A) travels to Marianna on Tuesday.

W                     14 20 14 18 – 66

PC                   13 13 14 25 – 67

W: Eddie Howard 2, Eddie Pamonte 7, James Towery 9, Paul McClure 3, Tray Williams 18, Vann Thomas 3, Luke Andrews 2, Caleb Steadman 4, Keevis Jackson 2, Spencer Knoll 2, Angus Anderson 8, Deon Lee 6. Totals: 13 10 10-24 66

l Graceville 66, South Walton 54: Shane Seeger had 22 points and Dylan Smith added 15 but South Walton made just 16-of-35 free throw attempts in a District 2-2A loss on Friday.

Shafer Martin added six points for South Walton (9-11, 4-7).

G                     16 22 11 17 – 66

SW                  11 17 12 14 – 54

SW: Trey Parris 2, Dylan Smith 15, Shane Seeger 22, Shafer Martin 6, Quinston Morris 2, Darrian Moore 2, Bryant Adams 2, Chadd Bryant 3. Totals: 17 1 16-35 54

Girls basketball

l Niceville 52, Tate 51: Emily Dutton drove to the basket with two seconds remaining and scored on a layup to give Niceville a buzzer-beating win over Tate.

Dutton finished with nine points while Lauren Day (12 points) and Sharome Strutchen (10) each finished in double figures for the Eagles. Niceville (8-14) travels to Pine Forest on Tuesday.

T                      11 12   9 19 – 51

N                     15 10 13 14 – 52

N: Emily Dutton 9, Ashley Levesque 3, Casandra Crews 2, Kaylee Marinan 4, Sharome Strutchen 10, Holly Osborne 2, Michelle Smith 7, Lauren Day 12, Ranika Rone 3. Totals: 12 4 10-20 52