Niceville's Hartley wins wrestling crown; South Walton has three place

One year after finishing third in the state, Niceville senior Nate Hartley took a major step forward in 2010.

Make that, two major steps forward.

Hartley, Niceville’s senior wrestler that had spent much of the year ranked No.1 in his class, captured the 171-pound state title on the final day of the FHSAA Class 2A Wrestling Finals on Saturday in Lakeland. Hartley defeated Lincoln’s Josh Coleman 12-3 in the finals.

Brock Lamb, in just his second season on the varsity team, finished as the state runner-up in the 152-pound weight class while both Hayden Meyer (160) and David Jones (135) placed sixth to give Niceville a school-record four state placers for the year. By advancing to their respective finals matches, Lamb and Hartley became the first Niceville duo to do so in program history.

“We brought five kids and placed four,” Niceville coach Morrie Geselter said. “It was just phenomenal performances. They got what they came for, they’re all state wrestlers.”

As of the Daily News’ press time, Niceville was listed in sixth place according to the FHSAA website.

South Walton authored a storybook ending of its own in the Class 1A finals by having a school-record three wrestlers place.

Justin Dunwald (145) finished third while Jay Gatto (152) and Dan Dunwald (140) each placed fifth.

Collectively, South Walton earned a 10th-place team finish, the highest ever for a Seahawks wrestling team.

In all, South Walton broke 19 school records in 2010.

“I felt it was going to be a special year coming into the season,” South Walton coach Carey Nick said. “We did nothing but shatter records left and right. It’s a testament to the guys that work with me and the way these kids have worked. I couldn’t be prouder.”