Day 1 of the 2025 Bradley Invitational wrapped up Friday night, and Blackman made a strong statement in a 33-team field, sitting 4th overall with 85.5 team points. A clutch final-match pin by Kyngston Russell at heavyweight capped the night and vaulted the Blaze into fourth place heading into Day 2.
This is a double-elimination tournament, meaning wrestlers are eliminated after two losses. Anyone with one or zero losses remains alive, either in the championship bracket or battling back through consolations.
Semifinalists: Workman & McLean Lead the Way
Blackman advanced two wrestlers to the semifinals, both doing so in emphatic fashion with bonus-point wins.
Andrew Workman (126) – 20-1, 6th place secured
Workman was dominant from the opening whistle. After receiving a first-round bye, he needed less than three minutes total mat time to reach the semifinals:
- Pinned Justin Baizabal (Bremen) in 0:52
- Pinned Brylynn Brite (Athens) in 1:25
Workman’s pair of falls powered him into the semifinals and accounted for a big chunk of his 13 team points on the day.
Landon McLean (144) – 19-0, 6th place secured
McLean was nothing short of spectacular, pinning all three opponents he faced:
- Pinned Parker Suffridge (Knoxville Halls) in 1:33
- Pinned Andy Owens (Bradley Central) in 3:19
- Pinned Avery Rutland (Tift County) in 1:46
McLean remains undefeated and has been one of the most productive wrestlers in the tournament, scoring 15 team points and knocking off quality competition from multiple top-10 teams.
Battling Back Through Consolations
Several Blaze wrestlers took one loss but responded with wins to stay alive and keep scoring:
- Mason Davison (106) – early pin, still alive (6.0 pts)
- Germaia Ewida (113) – tech fall and decision before falling in quarters (5.5 pts)
- Connor Rose (132) – rebounded with a tech fall
- Carter Hughes (132) – two opening-round pins before quarterfinal loss (8.0 pts)
- Douglas Barksdale (138) – opening pin, alive (6.0 pts)
- Luke Fisher (144) – pin and tech fall in consolations
- Eli Goodin (150) – pin in the front side and another in consolations (8.0 pts)
- Peyton Pickens (157) – two pins, still alive
- Trevor Steffy (165) – tight one-point loss, then two consolation wins (6.0 pts)
- Ethan Clark (175) – decision win, then consolation pin (6.0 pts)
- Jerison Daniel (190) – consolation pin in under a minute (4.0 pts)
- Aiden Pascoe (215) – still alive
- Kyngston Russell (285) – late-night pin that pushed Blackman into 4th place
Completed Their Runs on Day 1
While their tournament paths ended Friday, these Blaze wrestlers competed hard against deep, high-level brackets and gained valuable experience on a big stage:
- Ryker Gower (120) – A freshman who drew tough early-round competition and continued to battle through the consolations. Day 1 provided important mat time and a glimpse of what it takes at this level.
- Karson McCrary (157) – McCrary opened the tournament with a first-round pin and showed flashes of his upside before running into strong opposition. Valuable lessons and growth came out of every match. Mark these words, McCrary is going to be a problem for a lot of folks.
- Whit Whitaker (285) – Whitaker is new to wrestling and embraced the challenge of one of the toughest heavyweight brackets in the field. He picked up a win and represented the Blaze with toughness and persistence against experienced competition.
Each of these guys gained experience that will pay dividends moving forward, and their efforts contributed to the team’s overall push in a highly competitive tournament.
Middle Tennessee Snapshot
Blackman leads the pack among Rutherford County programs, currently ahead of:
- Riverdale (11th – 64.0)
- Oakland (13th – 61.5)
- Eagleville (18th – 46.0)
- Stewarts Creek (22nd – 38.0)
- Siegel (22nd – 38.0)
No real analysis here except to point out that Blackman is 4th. 🙂
Current Top 10 Team Scores (After Day 1)
- Huntsville – 128.5
- Bradley Central – 101.5
- Athens – 90.5
- Blackman – 85.5
- Science Hill – 84.0
- Warren County – 81.5
- McCallie – 70.0
- Samuel Everett – 69.0
- Soddy Daisy – 67.5
- Tift County – 65.0
With multiple wrestlers still alive and two chasing finals appearances, Blackman will look to build on today and continue to improve into day 2.
Great set of Photos shot by Mrs. McLean can be found HERE.
Go Blaze!