Team building: Pirates have four district champs, qualify 11 for wrestling regionals

Runner-up Dylan Parkinson, a transfer from California, has thrived since joining the team.

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Dylan Parkinson likes being part of a team.

Parkinson, whose family moved to Palm Coast from Oceanside, California in July, will continue to have a big team around him. He is one of 11 Matanzas wrestlers who qualified for regionals.

The Pirates’ three returning state qualifiers — Carter Wilder, Tyson Mills and Jordan Mills — all defended their district championships, and Christian Borgmann also won his weight class at the District 4-2A district tournament Feb. 16 at the Matanzas gym.

Matanzas finished second in the team standings to New Smyrna Beach, 230-212.

Parkinson (138 pounds) was one of three Pirates to finish second in his weight class. Bradyn Cox (160) and Adyn Cox (182) were also runners-up. Kyler Corley (120), Braden Hawley (126) and Landon Wright (195) all finished third, while Joel Douglass (220) finished fourth and also qualified for the regional championships Feb. 25-26 at Tallahassee Chiles.

The top four wrestlers in each weight class moved on.

Wilder pinned both of his opponents in the 113-pound class to improve to 31-5 on the season. Tyson Mills pinned his three opponents at 152 pounds to improve to 39-5. And Jordan Mills pinned his two opponents at 170 pounds to improve to 44-4.

Borgmann, a sophomore who started wrestling just this season, had one opponent in the 106-pound class — New Smyrna’s Richard Crunkilton, who had defeated him twice this season.

This time, Borgmann won a 1-0 decision to improve to 13-14.

“It shows what we’re doing in practice works,” Pirates coach T.J. Gillin said. “Christian is a first-year kid who’s going to region as a No. 1 seed. Adyn Cox was fifth last year at district, and (this year) he punched his ticket to the finals.”

Perhaps no one has improved more on the Pirates than Parkinson, whose team at his charter school in California, had about five wrestlers, he said.

“Everything’s better here — better coaching and a better team atmosphere,” Parkinson said.

The junior will take a 35-16 record into regionals.

“Day in and day out, this kid has gotten better and better and better. You can’t get this kid tired. I’ve tried.”

MIKE FRIES, Matanzas assistant coach on Dylan Parkinson

“Day in and day out, this kid has gotten better and better and better,” assistant coach Mike Fries said. “You can’t get this kid tired. I’ve tried. He just smiles. His takedowns have exploded. He’s able to get in with his setups. His top game is almost unstoppable. He grinds kids into the mat. He's one of the kids we'll plan next year's team around.”

Parkinson has been surfing and competing in jiujitsu since he was 6 years old. But those are solitary sports. He said he never really felt like he was part of a team until he joined the Pirates.

“I like the friendship. It’s been amazing,” he said. “I haven’t surfed or done jiujitsu in months. Wrestling is all or nothing now. I’m committed to the sport.”

 

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