FRANKLIN, Ga. — Last weekend, the Social Circle wrestling team accomplished something it had not done since 2019.
The Redskins participated in the Georgia High School Association’s Class 1A state duals and came away with the championship trophy after defeating Mount Pigsah Christian in the title match.
For head coach Randy Prater, leaving with the trophy was special because of how state duals have gone the last couple of years.
“This was pretty special for us, because we had won other state titles when we were in Class 2A, but our first traditional state title in Class 1A came last year,” Prater said. “This was actually our first Class 1A dual state title that we’ve won. The environment and setup was great, and it was just a great atmosphere, in general.”
Social Circle began wrestling in the first round of the tournament on Jan. 19, and faced off against East Laurens. The Redskins completely blanked the Falcons, 81-0, to move onto the second round later that day.
The Redskins then wrestled against Dade County and outscored it 58-18. With the win, Social Circle moved onto the semifinals held on Jan. 20.
Prater’s squad had to battle a tough Commerce program and came away with the 57-24 victory.
The championship round came against Mount Pigsah later that afternoon, and Social Circle was crowned the victors after defeating the Patriots 55-12.
Prater acknowledged that the Patriots had given them problems in the past, so they came into this year hungry for different results.
“We’ve been matched up against them twice since moving to Class 1A,” Prater said. “Our first year at the state duals, we saw them in the semifinals, and they went on to win that matchup, and then last year, we lost to them by two in a close semifinal matchup. We were definitely out for blood and trying to make a statement, and I feel like our kids did that.”
Prater also admitted that they were able to rotate and rest some guys due to the team’s overall preparation.
“I think we lost four matches with our starters the entire tournament,” Prater said. “We did put some backups in and tried to show some love to some of the guys who deserved the opportunities. It helped us try and preserve and rest some of our other guys. Everything we did was calculated and with purpose.”
Mount Pigsah came into the final round attempting to avoid some of Social Circle’s best wrestlers, but that still wasn’t enough.
The Redskins had multiple guys that went on to defeat Patriots that had placed in past GHSA state tournaments.
Among those was Cohen Hargrove, who won his final match with a 9-4 decision over 2023 state-placer Tyler Prizno.
Prater was impressed after the win.
“Cohen Hargrove definitely impressed me. He beat the No. 1 kid in Class 1A for the 106 pound weight class,” Prater said. “He also was able to beat a kid that’s ranked at 113 pounds, so those were some big matches for him.”
Multiple other Redskins contributed to the 55-point total and the program’s first state duals title since joining Class 1A.
Looking ahead, Social Circle will host its own tournament, the Redskin Rumble, before sending wrestlers to the traditional state sectionals the first week of February.
Prater believes that the Redskin Rumble will help prepare his guys for the tough battles to come at the traditional state tournament.
“It’s always a tough event, because we don’t host our own tournament just to win one,” Prater said. “We invite teams that can beat us, like last year when Buford beat us in that tournament. We’ve invited them back, as well as Archer, Colquitt and some other competitive programs. It’s 16 teams total, so we expect to be challenged.”
The Redskin Rumble will take place this weekend, and ultimately, Prater is excited.
He told The Walton Tribune that he thinks there is no better place in the state of Georgia to be for a high school wrestler than at Social Circle High School.
“We have the best overall program, in my opinion,” Prater said. “The best parents, the best fans, the best coaches and the best wrestlers — we are a family.”
