Garfield G-Men senior Keegan Sell has wrestled in a lot of matches in his varsity career. Very few could compare to the match where he edged Liberty Center senior Xander Myers 11-6 to become a two-time state wrestling champion at the Ohio High School Athletic Association Division III state tournament last weekend at The Ohio State University’s Jerome Schottenstein Center in Columbus.
“There are a lot of people from our school and community that came to watch me,” Sell said. “They really do not care about wrestling at all so it means a lot that they came down to watch me. I was just happy I could win it and hopefully make them proud.”
Having already made history last year, Sell now stands alone as the only two-time state champion in Garfield history.
On Sunday, Sell held a 6-4 lead against Myers, the reigning Division III 175-pound champion in the final 20 seconds but Myers scored a match-tying takedown with 11 seconds left in regulation.
Although he tied the match, he also forced Sell out of bounds and the two returned to the center of the mat. Sell assumed the bottom position and all he needed was to score an escape to regain the lead.
According to the Grand Valley State University commit, he was not interested in letting the match go to overtime.
Sell quickly scored an escape to go ahead 7-6 then overpowered Myers to score a pair of takedowns in the final seconds to seal the victory and repeat as the Division III state champion.
Coach Dan Andel said he did not know exactly what Sell had up his sleeve in the final seconds but was confident he could make something happen.
“The way that worked is that I was confident in his ability to escape on bottom but if he did not, I felt he would be able to score a takedown if it went into overtime,” said the eight-year coach.
In a match of returning state champions, Sell quickly realized he could not overpower Myers as he had done previously against several of his opponents this season.
“He was at 175 pounds last year and was probably a little bit bigger than I was,” he acknowledged. “It’s hard to hold onto kids who are strong like that.”
Sell controlled the match from the first period when he scored a takedown to go ahead 2-0. Although Myers recorded several escapes during the match, Sell continued to stay ahead by scoring on takedowns until Myers finally got a good grip on Sell to throw him to the mat for a takedown to even the score at 6-6 with only 11 seconds left on the clock.
Sell said he had not been in a lot of matches where he needed to score in the final seconds to win but he stayed patient and looked for his opportunity. When he got it, he ended his wrestling career in style.
His final appearance in the OHSAA state meet saw him go 4-0 to finish his season with a 54-1 record.
On Thursday, Sell advanced to the quarterfinals when he overpowered Pleasant senior Landon O’Donnell and pinned him with 54 seconds remaining in the first period.
On Friday, he displayed his endurance by wrestling the full six minutes in each of his matches to return to the championship round. First, he dominated senior Grant Richardson from Evergreen 9-2 in the quarterfinal bout then won a decisive 3-0 bout against Mechanicsburg Ronnie Thomas in the semifinal match.
After earning a championship berth, Sell said that Saturday’s matches were a good test of his endurance.
“It was definitely a big test,” he added. “A lot of my matches this year have not gone that long. This last match, as close as it was, tested me so I am glad I got those matches in before the finals.”
Sell’s final match of his high school career turned out to be one of the most exciting bouts he has ever competed in, and he prevailed in the clutch to etch his name into Garfield’s record books.
Not only will he finish as a two-time state champion but also will end his high school career as a member of the 150-win club, becoming only the third wrestler to do so and leaves behind a legacy.
“It has meant a lot,” he said. “Coach Andel has done a great job with us. His son, Hunter, was my drill partner for a long time so I would not be where I am without him, and it just means a lot. The support from the community that we get is unlike anything else.”
