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Union City wrestling boasts three regional champions, sends seven to MHSAA State Finals

troy tennyson, coldwater daily reporter
·3 min read

BRANCH COUNTY – A total of 14 boys and one girl wrestler from Branch County will travel to Ford Field in two weeks to compete on the biggest stage of high school wrestling in the state of Michigan, the Michigan High School Athletic Association (MHSAA) Individual Wrestling State Finals.

Of the 15 total state qualifiers there are five regional champions, five silver medalists, three third place finishers, and two fourth place efforts.

Because of the sheer number of successful efforts at regionals from Branch County wrestling each team will be featured in their own recap, so that each wrestler gets the press they deserve. The following is a roundup of the Union City effort at the MHSAA Regional tournament.

The Union City Charger wrestling program will send seven wrestlers on to the MHSAA Individual State Finals, including three regional champions in Landyn Crance, Aidan Taylor, and Montana Connell
The Union City Charger wrestling program will send seven wrestlers on to the MHSAA Individual State Finals, including three regional champions in Landyn Crance, Aidan Taylor, and Montana Connell

The Union City Chargers will be sending seven wrestlers to the MHSAA Individual State Finals based on their performance at regionals on Saturday, a number that includes three regional champions, one runner-up finish, one third place finish, and two fourth place finishes.

Union City senior Landyn Crance (45-4) will head back to Ford Field chasing his third straight Division 4 state title as he took top honors at 138 pounds on Saturday. Crance opened his regional championship run with a first-round pin over Seth Toris of Martin in :39 seconds, followed by a 14-2 major decision win over Griffyn Harmon of Delton Kellogg in the semifinals. In the championship finale it was Crance taking down Concord’s Collin Thompson for the 5-0 decision, giving the Charger senior the regional title and a chance at defending his two state championships. Crance has previously won two Division 4 state titles, winning at 125-pounds two years ago and 132-pounds last season.

Union City junior Aidan Taylor (42-7) will advance to the individual state finals for the third time in three years after bringing home regional championship honors at 144 this season. Taylor started off his regional title run with a 15-0 technical fall over Rylin Mead of Decatur, followed by a semifinal win via a 6-1 decision over Jack Bagwell of Martin. In the championship match Taylor beat Trenton Mansfield of Gobles by a 9-6 decision, winning the regional title and advancing to his second straight state final.

Union City’s final regional title came at 150 where junior Montana Connell (37-8) fought his way through a tough field to secure his return trip to Ford Field and his first regional crown. Connell started his day off with a 13-3 major decision over Brody Mead of Decatur in the quarterfinals, setting up one of the more exciting matches of the day in the semifinals. There, Connell faced off with Springport’s Kaden Sizemore in a match that three full periods could not contain. Connell ended up taking the win 9-7 in sudden victory, setting up a championship match with Bronson’s Gabe Erwin. After Erwin scored early, Connell made his comeback, eventually battling his way to a 6-5 decision win and his first regional crown.

More: Wrestling Recap: Coldwater's Miller advances to state finals; Quincy sends 4 to regionals

More: Bronson wrestling qualifies seven for MHSAA State Finals

Also qualifying for the MHSAA Individual state finals will be junior Logan Mears, who will be making his third appearance after runner-up honors his freshman year and third place honors his sophomore year, qualifying in second place at 132 pounds after falling 1-0 to Haylen Buell of Martin in the finals.

Also representing Union City will be Mitchell Graham with a fourth-place finish at 113 pounds; Alex Boyer in fourth place at 132 pounds; and Blayne Crance with a third-place finish at 106 pounds. All three of these wrestlers will be making their first trip to Ford Field for the MHSAA Individual State Finals.

Also competing for Union City but coming up just short was Kelub Miller who finished 1-2 at 138 pounds and Maddox Miller who finished 0-2 at 165 pounds.

Union City’s seven state finals qualifiers will head to Ford Field in Detroit for the MHSAA State Finals March 1-2.

This article originally appeared on Coldwater Daily Reporter: Union City wrestling advances seven on to individual state finals