Fort Mill’s Leitten is area’s top wrestler, Rock Hill’s Beard, Fort Mill’s Brock share coaching honors

A.J. Leitten from Fort Mill was selected as The Herald’s 2016-17 Wrestler of the Year, while Rock Hill coach Cain Beard and Fort Mill coach Chris Brock share the honor of Coach of the Year.

Leitten capped an outstanding senior campaign by being named as the South Carolina State Wrestler of the Year. He won the Class 5A state championship in the 138-pound weight class.

He finished the season with a 48-0 record, while allowing only one earned point all year. He was 4-0 in Region 4-5A action, and won the region championship and the upper state championship. He was also the Southern Slam champion and the Beef O’ Brady champion.

“Wrestling is a highly technical sport,” Brock said. “ For a kid to be competitive on an elite level, he has to pay attention to detail. Like the gears in a watch, if everything is in place it delivers perfect performance. If something is off, then it sits on the shelf with the rest of them.”

Brock has been impressed with Leitten’s character and dedication.

“I've been doing this for a long time, and I have never seen a kid so willing to dedicate his life to something the way that he has,” Brock said. “More importantly, he realizes the relevance of being a good person and the influence he has on those around him.”

Brock guided the Fort Mill Yellow Jackets to the regular season title in Region 4-5A. The Yellow Jackets finished 4-0 in region action and were 21-4 overall.

Fort Mill advanced through the playoffs with wins over Spartanburg, Woodmont and Dorman before losing to Rock Hill in the upper state championship match.

Beard’s Rock Hill Bearcats were second in Region 4-5A during the regular season. They lost only to Fort Mill in region action. The Beacats finished with an overall record of 52-8, setting a school record for the most dual wins in a season.

The Bearcats advanced through the playoffs with wins over Boiling Springs, Westside and Hillcrest before defeating Fort Mill in the upper state championship. Rock Hill lost to River Bluff in the state championship match.

Wrestler of the year: A.J. Leitten, Fort Mill

Coach of the year: Cain Beard, Rock Hill and Chris Brock, Fort Mill

First team

(138) A.J. Leitten, Fort Mill – The senior was named as South Carolina State Wrestler of the Year. He was the Class 5A state champion and won the Region 4-5A championship. He has signed to wrestle at N.C. State.

(106) Austin Ross, Indian Land – The sophomore finished the year with 39-6 record. He won the state championship and finished third in the upper state. He also claimed the region championship.

(126) Chad Milasauskas, Indian Land – The junior finished the season with a 38-1 mark. He won the state championship and was second in the upper state. He also won the region championship.

(126) Bailey Wilkins, Rock Hill – The freshman finished the season with 50-14 record. He won the state championship and was fourth in the upper state. He was also named all-region.

(132) Jared Blake, Rock Hill –The senior completed the year with a mark of 52-9. He was the runner-up in the state and first in the upper state. He was tabbed for the North-South all-star event and was named all-region.

(145) Jake Hart, Fort Mill - The junior finished the year with a record of 44-5. He was the state runner-up and finished first in the upper state. He also won the region championship.

(145) Rodrick Whitlock, South Pointe - The senior finished with a 35-0 record. He won the state championship and the region championship. He was selected for the North-South all-star event and was nominated for state wrestler of the year.

(160) Mison Mickle, Northwestern – The junior posted a record of 20-5. He was the state runner-up and finished third in the upper state.

(170) Noah Reynolds, Rock Hill – The junior completed the campaign with a mark of 64-4. He was the state runner-up and finished first in the upper state. He also won the region championship.

(220) Jerry Howard, Northwestern - The senior completed the season with a record of 10-3. He was the state runner-up and finished third in the upper state.

(285) Xi Simpson, Chester - The senior was the state-runner-up and was second in the upper state. He won the region championship and won all three of his matches in the state duals. He was selected to participate in the North-South all-star event.

Second team

(106) Daiyan Heard, York –The freshman was third in the state championship and third in the upper state. He also won the region championship.

(106) Jose Mora, Rock Hill – The freshman completed the season with a record of 47-12. He was third in the state championship and third in the upper state. He was also named all-region.

(120) Justin Beck, Rock Hill – The junior completed the year with a record of 56-10. He was third in the state, fourth in the upper state, and was named all-region.

(120) Luke Brown, Clover – The junior finished fourth in the state championship and was second in the upper state.

(126) Brody Claassen, Fort Mill – The junior finished the season with 39-10 mark. He was fourth in the state championship and second in the upper state.

(132) Jaren Myrup, York – The senior finished fourth in the state championship and third in the upper state. He also won the region championship.

(145) Kyle Daley, Indian Land – The junior finished third in the state championship and was second in the upper state. He also won the region championship.

(145) Terrence Mills, Chester – The sophomore finished fourth in the state championship and third in the upper state. He won all three of his matches in the state duals.

(152) Wesley Johnson, Indian Land – The sophomore finished third in the state championship and was third in the upper state. He also won the region championship.

(152) Nathan Stroud, South Pointe – The senior finished the season with a record of 32-3. He was second in the state championship and won the region championship..

(182) Jake Gravely, Nation Ford – The senior finished third in the state championship and third in the upper state.

Honorable mention

Chauldray Evans and Ty Simpson, Chester; Ryan Jones and Andrew Dorrill, Clover; Jacob Sturgeon, Jordan Markowski and Nick Greek, Fort Mill; Erick Neil, Indian Land; Coleman Hoffman, Rock Hill; Joseph Blackman, Morgan Belk, Isaac Ekanem and Cody Cathey, South Pointe; Tanner Culbertson and Dalton Zurick, York.

This story was originally published March 31, 2017 at 5:40 PM with the headline "Fort Mill’s Leitten is area’s top wrestler, Rock Hill’s Beard, Fort Mill’s Brock share coaching honors."