DIVISION II Tigers' Alexander remains unbeaten

He pinned two opponents for Howland in the district wrestling meet.
VINDICATOR STAFF REPORT
AKRON -- Howland senior Brandon Alexander won two matches by pin to stay unbeaten, running his record to 35-0 after the first day of the Division II district wrestling tournament at Akron Firestone High School.
Alexander defeated Chagrin Falls senior Ryan Brule in 3 minutes, 3 seconds in the first round of the 189-pound weight class, then dropped Lake Catholic sophomore Joe Tymoszczuk in 2:35 in the quarterfinal round.
Howland heavyweight Rob Holbert also won two matches by pin, defeating Warrensville Heights' Brandon Sharp (1:05) and Northwest's Dough White (2:39).
Both wrestlers moved on to today's semifinal round and have a chance to qualify for berths in next week's state meet in Columbus. The top four wrestlers in each weight class advance. The fifth-place finisher will be an alternate at the state meet.
Wrestlers with one loss can still earn state berths, but must advance to the consolation final to earn either the third or fourth spot.
The Tigers were tied with Aurora for 10th place with 25 points.
Cuyahoga Falls Walsh Jesuit was first with 69 1/2 points, followed by Kenston (68) and Akron St. Vincent St. Mary (57).
Southeast's Brian Dye (103), Jacob Bartley (125) and Brad Lanham (215) also won two matches as the Pirates pulled into seventh place after the first round with 30 1/2 points.
Dye pinned Beachwood's Jordan Friedman in 1:24 and then earned a 13-4 decision over Revere's Matt Humenick.
Bartley defeated Beachwood's Matt Marmaros by technical fall, 16-0, then earned a close decision over Copley's Josh Hahn, 3-1.
Lanham won by technical fall over University School's Brendan Lucas and Orrville's Caleb Currier. Both scores were 16-0.
West Branch's Eric Morrow (119) and Nathan Sharp (275) also won their two matches as the Warriors were tied with Lake Catholic for eighth place with 29 points.
Morrow defeated Trinity's Billy Brenick, 12-7, and Lake Catholic's Matt Connelly, 6-4.
Sharp pinned University School's Greg Sparks in 1:28 in the first round, then won an 8-5 decision over Kenston senior Bob Fenner.
Hubbard's Joe Horton was the only other area wrestler to advance to the semifinals, defeating Marlington freshman Milton Hershberger, 8-0, in the first round and then defeating Edgewood senior Jack Stills, 12-9, in the second round.
Today's preliminary matches will begin at 10 a.m. Finals will start at 6 p.m.