The name McDougald will forever be enshrined in the halls of both Niagara Falls and Niagara Wheatfield high schools after this past weekends NYSPHSAA wrestling championships in Albany. Senior Willie McDougald from Niagara Falls high school claimed his second Div I State title with a 8-2 win over Lee Mauras of Hempstead at 145 lbs. Willie won his first title in 2018 at 138 lbs and was a finalist last year at 145 lbs.
Justin McDougald, also a senior, from Niagara Wheatfield won his first Div I title with a hard fought 3-1 win over returning State champion Ryan Burgos of Hilton at 138 lbs. Burgos handed Justin his lone loss this season in the semi-finals of the Eastern States tournament in January. Justin broke a 1-1 tie with a little over thirty seconds left in the match with a takedown and held on for the victory. Justin McDougald had twice been a finalist in 2017 and 2018 before taking fifth last season at 132 lbs. The two cousins have won almost 500 matches combined over their high school careers.
The night ended with Newfane’s Jaden Heers taking the Division II 285-pound championship, topping Mike Leibl of Canastota, 5-4. Heers, a senior, was seeded fourth at the weight class and upset top seed George Leberres in the semi-finals.
Teammate Andy Lucinski dropped a 4-1 decision to Jace Schafer of
Palmyra-Macedon in the Div II 106 lb finals.
Also in Division II second-seeded Giovanni Schifano of Eden lost the Division II, 160-pound final to top-seeded Jacob Null of Dolgeville, 7-3.
Filed under: High School Wrestling
Tagged with: high school wrestling, Jaden Heers, Justin McDougald, Willie McDougald
Sorry, comments are closed on this post.