FLAGLER PALM COAST - After a dramatic, final match win for their district 1-3A wrestling title last week, Oakleaf High was kind of expecting to storm the castle at Flagler Palm Coast in their region 1-3A championship and first year coach Rory Roderick got out of the fort with three state qualifiers in his rookie campaign.

“I appreciate the energy and support of everyone around this program to get us this far,” said Roderick. “We got 10 guys to the regions and three to the state meet.”

Oakleaf’s three qualifiers; third place finishers Marcus McGee at 132; Jordan Mitchell at 285 and Keon Barrientos at 126 will have some company with two girls’ team wrestlers; Adrienna Barrientos and Jazzmine Moore joining the squad’s trip to Lakeland. McGee is a returning state qualifier, going 0-2 last year.

Barrientos had one of the more formidable paths to the third place match with a pin over Kellen Chapman of Deland (40-18) and an 8-3 win over Creekside’s Conner Wright, a state qualifier last year, in the consolation semifinal in a repeat of the district championship.

McGee, who faced off with Mandarin’s Jameel Smith in the consolation semifinal also in a repeat of the district final at 132 won by McGee, kept Smith, a sixth place finisher in 3A last year, from a repeat trip to Lakeland with a 5-0 win. McGee later won 8-1 over Ryan Culbertson of Seminole High.

At 285, where Mitchell sealed the district title last week with an 11 second pin lost by pin to Timber Creek’s Peter Nesheiwat (42-10) before battling back to win via pin over Ocala Forest’s Cane Fernandez for third place.

Also for Oakleaf, freshman Angel Rodriguez, at 106, lost in the consolation semifinal to be one match from a state meet invitation; Ion Hortinela, at 113, in a surprise pin for the district title, got one match away with a win over Nease Jason Choi, the district final lineup won by pin by Hortinela; Lincoln Morales at 120, won one match, Ronan Polinsky, a state qualifier who was one match from a state medal last year at 152, now at 160, finished 2-2 with a loss to Apopka in the second round; Mason Ganion at 170 who won one match, Onjel Caraballo at 182, who lost in his semifinal then lost in consolations to Deland’s Gavin Rodriguez-Cayro, whom Caraballo beat in his first round match, and Ben Gaddis at 220, who finished 2-2.

Also in 3A, Bartram Trail, coached by former Orange Park High coach Chad Parker and former Fleming Island High second place medalist Evan McCall, got three wrestlers to state with 120 region champion Ethan Vugman, fourth at 106 last year, leading the trio.