South Lakes' Forrest Finishes Third in State

Junior wrestler Ryan Forrest finished third in the 145-lb. weight class at the Virginia High School League state wrestling tournament at Robinson High School.

Forrest, a junior and the Northern Region's  top-ranked wrestler going into the meet,  

Forrest, who pinned his way to through the region this season, opened the meet with a pin of Battlefield's Mosiah Mitchell; in the second round on Friday night he won a 4-1 decision over Great Bridge's Brandon Smith.

He lost a 7-1 decision to eventual state runner-up Kevin Johnson of Forest Park in Saturday's semifinal, and was relegated to the consolation bracket.

Forrest recovered to win his two matches in the lower bracket (16-0 over Zakeel Muhammad over Henrico and 4-2 over Alex Turley of Thomas Dale) to earn All-State honors.

"[Ryan's] third-place finish in a tough weight class says everything about his season," said South Lakes coach Bruce Hall. "Next year I’m sure he’ll be back in search of his state title, which I feel very confident he will win."