Boling wins twice as Charleston wrestling splits trimeet vs. Olney, Effingham

Story and photos by Chet Piotrowski Jr.

To an outsider, Charleston’s Marcellx Boling was in a tough spot.

The sophomore, who an hour prior had breezed through his match in pinning his opponent from Olney, was giving up a 25-pound weight advantage to Effingham’s Jeremiah Lorton.

But Boling knew what to do.

The Charleston wrestler first pinned Olney’s Johnathan Inskip at 195 pounds – his normal weight class – in 53 seconds, then went up a weight class to 220 to face his Effingham opponent.

Trailing 5-2 late in the second period, Boling escaped from Lorton’s clutches and made a takedown, earning three points that tied the match as the period expired.

“Definitely a weight difference,” Boling said. “You just got to do your stuff out there. I didn’t go out there with the mindset he had thirty pounds on me when my mindset was ‘I’m going to beat this guy.’ I went out there and got the dub.”

Boling opened the third period with nothing to lose.

He took down Lorton again for another two points. The Effingham wrestler escaped from the move only to find himself beneath Boling again. Lorton tried to escape to the outer boundary, but Boling refused to let him get away, pinning him 38 seconds into the third period.

No sweat.

“I was just thinking about: ‘I’m back in it. It’s my match to win,’” he said. “Going into the second period, I was thinking” ‘You have to get it back,’ I was mad. He got those points on me. I had to get it back. It was a pressure point of the match, bringing that fire to beat him.”

Stanley said Boling’s not going to be intimidated by someone heavier.

“He had been wrestling 220 a lot last year and the beginning this year,” he said. “He’s used to that weight, and battling Stormy (Hughes) in practice. He’s not intimidated with the weight. That’s a good thing that he’s got that mindset. He wrestled fine with that kid. He keeps that pressure. He really dominated him.”

Olney’s Chas Ackman pins Charleston’s Morgan Smallhorn during a tri-meet with Effingham at Charleston High School Tuesday evening.
Charleston’s Alayna Bryant wrestles Olney’s Tuff Toyer during a tri-meet with Effingham at Charleston High School Tuesday evening.
Olney’s Carson Bissey pins Charleston’s Dylan Lowell during a tri-meet with Effingham at Charleston High School Tuesday evening.
Charleston’s Mackensie Williams wrestles Olney’s Cooper Farenbacher during a tri-meet with Effingham at Charleston High School Tuesday evening.
Charleston’s Bona Kabasele tries to pin Olney’s Shamus Shick during a tri-meet with Effingham at Charleston High School Tuesday evening.
Charleston’s Marcellx Boling wrestles Olney’s Johnathan Inskip during a tri-meet with Effingham at Charleston High School Tuesday evening.
Charleston head varsity wrestling coach Mike Stanley gives direction to Marcellx Boling during a tri-meet with Effingham at Charleston High School Tuesday evening.
Charleston’s Stormy Hughes wrestles Olney’s Evan Gilrenth during a tri-meet with Effingham at Charleston High School Tuesday evening.
Charleston’s Lucas Ross tries to escape being pinned by Olney’s Lucas Ochs during a tri-meet with Effingham at Charleston High School Tuesday evening.
Charleston’s Alec Sellers tries to pin Olney’s Brandon Wengul during a tri-meet with Effingham at Charleston High School Tuesday evening.

Charleston lost the team match to Olney, 48-30 and beat Effingham 60-18.

Boling said Olney was a tough opponent that taught them to stay off their backs and to keep working every day. Even though Charleston acquired several forfeits against Effingham, he said they wrestled really well.

Charleston junior Bona Kabasele may have had the most exciting match of the day at 170 pounds. He outmuscled Olney’s Shamus Shick for two periods but didn’t have much to show for it due to his inexperience. Kabasele had Shick in position for a throw, but Shick shifted his weight, which pulled the Trojan down and nearly pinned him. Kabasele escaped to see the third period only to mirror the same move, this time pinning the Tiger wrestler.

“That’s pretty much a typical Bona match,” Stanley said, chuckling. “They’re exciting. He’s so strong and he doesn’t have the experience yet to keep himself out of some bad positions. He works himself out of them with his strength, which makes for some wild matches when you mix that together. Once he does get that experience with his hips and pinning combinations, he’s got some potential. He just has to find the practice room a little more and have that mindset.”

Boling enjoyed watching Kabasele take control of the match.

“Bona wrestled really well,” Boling said of his teammate. “He’s got a few technique issues, but he’s that guy that’s going to give it his all. He’s hard to get on his back. He fights to the end. I love watching that.”

Overall, Stanley enjoyed watching the team come together, especially at the lower weights.

“It was looking shaky there in the beginning,” he said. “But they’re always battling each other in practice and they’re making each other better every day. That’s what you need. You need a few good wrestlers in the room making each other better. When you have it at the same weight, that’s where you’ll see it strong. You’ll see teams strong in areas of their lineup because they have kids battling each other, and that’s how we are heavy right now.”

Olney 48, Charleston 30

106 – (Olney) Lucas Ochs wins by fall 2:54 over (Charleston) Lucas Ross

113 – (Olney) Chas Ackman wins by fall 3:00 over (Charleston Morgan Smallhorn

120 – FF/FF

126 – (Olney)Tuff Toyer wins by fall 2:55 (Charleston) Alayna Bryant

132 – (Olney) Carson Bissey wins by fall 2:44 (Charleston) Dylan Lowell

138 – (Olney) Mason Riggs wins by forfeit

145 – (Olney) Cooper Farenbacher wins by fall 1:09 (Charleston) Mackensie Williams

152 – (Charleston) Alec Sellers wins by fall :54 (Olney) Brandon Wengul

160 – (Olney) Logan McDonald wins by forfeit

170 – (Charleston) Bona Kabasele wins by fall 4:39 (Olney) Shamus Shick

182 – (Charleston) Kolten Dare wins by forfeit