Wrestling: Cony grapplers stand out at KVAC championships

BATH — Jonny Lettre is once again a Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference wrestling champion. But his work is far from over.

“It feels pretty good, but the job’s not done,” Lettre said. “Still have a lot to work on and a lot to improve on before I challenge for a New England title.”

Lettre pinned Riley Bryant of Mount View in the third period to repeat as the 285 pound KVAC champion on Saturday night at Morse High School. It was a standout day for the Rams, who had another individual champion in sophomore Kaiden Veilleux, who pinned Oceanside’s Aiden Sargent in the first period to win the title at 190.

Camden Hills (154 points) repeated its KVAC Class A team title. Lincoln Academy (105.5) edged defending champion Oceanside (105) for the KVAC B crown, when Adam St. Cyr beat Maine Central Institute’s Keith Cook 12-4 for the 138 title in the final match of the day.

Cony’s Kaiden Veilleux celebrates after winning the 190 pound title at the Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference championship meet Saturday in Bath.

Lettre’s win over Bryant did not come easy. Lettre — the defending Class A champion at 285 — had a 2-1 lead over Bryant entering the third period, and managed to use his speed and quickness to overcome Bryant’s power advantage.

“(Bryant) has put the work in and his improvement has been crazy,” Lettre said. “I never take matches like that lightly. No matter how good you get, you can always get caught. He’d be the one to catch you.”

Veilleux was surprised at the speed of his win, as he wrestled Sargent on multiple occasions during the regular season.

“I wrestled him earlier in the season, he was really tough,” Veilleux said. “I knew I had to focus in.

“This is my first high school title, the last (wrestling) title I had was in eighth grade, so this is pretty cool,” Veilleux said.

Mt. Blue freshman Dillon Gray made a splash in his first conference final, beating Ryker Evans of Belfast 5-3 for the 144 crown.

“I just wanted to stay aggressive (during the match),” Gray said.

Camden Hills’ Justin Batty attempts an ankle pick on MCI’s Isaac Keresey in the 157 pound championship match at the Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference championship meet Saturday in Bath.

The Cougars, a favorite entering the tournament for the Class A team title, were forced to sit several wrestlers due to injuries, in the hopes of their return for the regional and state championships.

“I’m really happy with how far our team has come,” Gray said.

One of the surprises of the day came at 106, as Belfast freshman Dominic Simpson beat Oceanside’s Maddie Ripley 15-4 in the final. Simpson managed to use a combination of speed and strength to gain the advantage over Ripley, the defending Class B champion at 106.

Oceanside’s Gavin Ripley — the defending KVAC and Class B champion at 132— beat Gardiner’s Elijah Farias by pin in the second period to repeat as a conference champion.

“(Farias) is an incredible wrestler,” Ripley said. “My first two matches, I wasn’t having great shots, at least at the level I wanted. I just wanted to get as much as possible. I didn’t care if I got the pin, I just wanted to score.”

Other champions include Mt. Ararat/Brunswick’s Evan Kowalski (113), Penobscot’s Nikko Lewis (120), Edward Little’s Evan Madigan (126), Camden Hills’ Michael Rollins (150), Justin Batty (157) and R.T. Watts (175), Lincoln Academy’s Jayden Lafrenaye (165) and Medomak Valley’s Marshall Addy (215).

Gavin Ripley was named the KVAC B Most Outstanding Wrestler, while Madigan received the award in KVAC A.

Mt. Blue’s Mike Hansen and Edward Little’s Ben Madigan were named KVAC A co-Head Coaches of the Year. Lincoln Academy’s Shawn St. Cyr was named KVAC B Coach of the Year.