CANNONSBURG Given the prestige of Johnson Central’s wrestling program, it’s difficult to have a season stand out as historic.
But the Golden Eagles lived up to, and exceeded, the standards set within the program this year, capturing unequaled success en route to what will be remembered as a special season.
“It was an awesome season,” Johnson Central coach Blake Gamble said. “I talk all the time in our room about finishing the year at the best we can possibly be. It’s tricky finding ways to peak at the right time. But I thought our guys did a phenomenal job of withstanding the storm of the long wrestling season and bought in at the right time.”
The Golden Eagles captured the first-ever Kentucky 2A championship this season. The team recorded nine Region 8 titles. They finished runner-up at the KHSAA state meet for the second year in a row, placed a school-record-tying nine wrestlers at the state podium, along with three state finalists, and had one wrestler claim a state title.
The list of accomplishments led to Johnson Central doing a clean sweep in this year’s The Daily Independent’s All-Area honors. Gamble was named Coach of the Year. Ryan Smith grabbed Wrestler of the Year honors for the 106-150 pound weight class, and Dalton Matney was tabbed Wrestler of the Year for the 157-285 pound divisions.
Matney (47-3) capped off the Golden Eagles’ special season by capturing the state championship in the 165-pound division.
“I’m just trying to come back down to earth from it,” Matney said. “It was an amazing experience. But I’m already looking to get back to work. We have a lot of improvements to make so I can get to a level where I can compete all around the country, not just the state.”
It’s not surprising that Matney is already looking to improve. It’s in his DNA. Matney’s father is the late Jim Matney, who built the wrestling program. This state title is just a new chapter in his family’s legacy at Johnson Central.
“There’s a lot of weight on his shoulders,” Gamble said. “When I first got this job, my biggest worry was letting coach Matney’s boys down. So, knowing the pressure that I felt, and understanding how much he wanted this for Dalton, I can’t even imagine how much that weighs on Dalton throughout, not just this season, but his career.”
For Matney, it’s a childhood dream come true to claim a state title..
“I’ve always dreamed of being on top of that podium since I was a kid,” Matney said. “That came to fruition and now I have people in the community coming up to me and congratulating me. It just feels great. It really sank in when I went back to school. It’s just been a great experience.”
Matney won the championship by defeating Oldham County’s Miller Brown, who entered the match undefeated, by pinfall. It was the culmination of a long season, where Matney said getting over mental roadblocks was the biggest obstacle throughout the year.
“It was a mental battle,” Matney said of the season. “I wrestled terribly in the region, wrestled terribly in the weekend before, so I had to fix my mental state and my mindset. Once I did that, I felt like there was nothing that could have stopped me.”
Ryan Smith (43-5) said he also had overcome some obstacles from within this season as he helped add to Johnson Central’s accomplishments.
“My biggest roadblock was my mentality,” Smith said. “Last year and the year before, I felt like I got into my own head, and it caused me to wrestle pretty badly. But this year, I changed my mindset and started enjoying wrestling a lot more. It definitely helped me improve.”
Those improvements led Smith to the championship match against Woodford County’s Isaac Johnson (48-2), but he fell one match short of the ultimate prize by decision.
“We sat Ryan down and really evaluated his wrestling,” Gamble said. “The tools were there. He’s got a great shot. He’s good on the bottom, good on the top. We just decided we were going to fix some things in his head, and he stated treating these matches like they were a game and not life or death.”
Smith is proud of his accomplishments this season and how far he battled this year, and was glad to be able to add to the Golden Eagles’ legacy.
“I enjoyed the whole season, but making it to the finals was pretty special,” Smith said. “It feels great to be part of Johnson Central and this program… It was a great season.”
Gamble credits Smith’s work ethic and attitude with getting him where he is this season.
“Ryan works so hard,” Gamble said. “If there’s ever a wrestler that deserves to experience success, it’s Ryan. It was a great year for him, just a phenomenal year. He had five losses this year, and all five were against guys that placed at Virginia Beach, which is a monster national tournament.”
For Gamble, he sees the accomplishments as being part of what Johnson Central has fostered with the program. He’s honored to be part of it, but says he’s just one part of something bigger.
“Our program is bigger than any name,” Gable said. “We’re just a small part of it. Our program has been able to sustain success. I think we’ve built something here at Johnson Central that, if I stepped away from the program today, I think the next man up steps in and the program keeps being successful.”
Gamble said another special mark on this team was that it was made up of kids who grew up through the program.
“We didn’t have one kid wrestling in the state tournament that didn’t come through our youth program,” Gamble said. “This team was 100% homegrown. It was really special to see a group of kids that’s been with us for as long as they have, and in some cases, cap their careers off the way they did.”
“We just have to be bought in,” Gamble added. “Already in the offseason, we’ve been back on the mats and the kids have done a great job of doing what we ask them to do. But you have to buy in now because wrestling isn’t a sport where you can show up in December, wrestle for three months, and be ready for State by February or March. Our guys have done a great job of buying in.”
The Golden Eagles swarmed this year’s All-Area team with 13 wrestlers on the squad and all competed in the state championships.
Johnson Central’s other 11 wrestlers are Brady Adkins (42-8, 4th place 285lbs), Caleb Barnes (29-13), Christian Barnes (33-7), Seth Davis (36-8, 4th 190lbs), Hunter Fields (23-17), Dakota Ferguson (30-10), Landon Howard (27-17), Payton Lyons (39-6, 5th place 215lbs), Zack Mccoart (38-6, 2nd place 175lbs), James Morris (42-4, 2nd place 138lbs), and Zac Scott (43-4, 3rd place 126lbs).
Boyd County had the second most wrestlers on the team, including Tony Leader, who placed 4th at State in the 157-pound class.
The other members are Chase Gillum (45-7), Nate Manning (60-6), Kaiden Nottingham (42-9), Zander Nottingham (45-13), and John Walters (53-9).
Manning (285-pound division) and Leader also captured Region 8 titles on their home mat in February.
Ashland and Rowan County round out the team with two wrestlers each.
Ashland’s pair is Branden McGee (39-11) and Nathaniel Williams (48-8).
Rowan County’s duo caps off the All-Area team with Liam Skinner (31-9) and Taner Woodman (45-9).
The team roster is comprised by season success and region meet placement. The Daily Independent sports staff selected the Wrestler and Coach of the Year.
