Oxford wrestling claims two state championships in first year of competition

Published 4:00 pm Tuesday, March 21, 2023

Oxford wrestling completed an exemplary first season of competition as they secured a pair of state championships at the Mississippi State Individual Finals Tournament at St. Andrew’s Episcopal School in Jackson.

Sophomore Kamar Houston secured a pindown in the final to win the boys’ 182-pound class, while 8th grader Nhari Jones took home the top spot in the girls’ 235-pound class.

Bel Montieth, Jaiden Gipson and Zadd Alowdi also made it the final in their respective weight classes but ended with second-place finishes.

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Head coach Konrad Ernst said the experience was extremely valuable for his team and will provide a strong foundation for next season as he continues to build a strong program along with assistant coach Brandon Beckerdite.

“We ended up putting five in the finals and we were really happy about that,” said Ernst. “It was good for us to just go and make some noise at the state tournament in our first year… I think a lot of our kids saw this state tournament and got really hungry and excited about what they can do for next year.”