Campus News

November 3rd, 2026

GC wrestlers rout Penn Highlands, 41-12

Wilkins Era starts off with win over first-year Black Bears

Johnstown, PA – Sampson Wilkins kind of missed the boat on his first-ever college coaching win.

Kollin Sullivan pinned Pennsylvania Highlands Community College’s Omar Parker in last Saturday’s 174-pound bout, giving Garrett College an insurmountable 32-6 lead. Wilkins, however, was otherwise occupied.

“I was so locked in to the individual matches that were left that I didn’t take into account we had won the dual,” admitted Wilkins after his squad’s 41-12 victory.

Bradly Hamilton (133 pounds) and Keon Gavin (141) also recorded Laker pins while Cameron Cannaday (165) and Sundiata Chavis (197) earned technical falls as Garrett opened defense of its Gulf Atlantic District championship against the first-year Black Bears. Filippos Kakos (184) notched a major decision and Dekhi Church (149) also claimed a win for the Lakers, while Peyton Miller picked up a 157-pound forfeit.

“We kind of established we haven’t changed very much, and we’re ready to roll,” Wilkins said of the victory’s impact. “We still have a lot of improvement to make, but I think we’re on a great trajectory for the season.”

The first-year Black Bears won the first and last matches as Layton Munyon pinned GC’s Logan Johnson at 125 pounds, and Connor Ward pinned Laker 285-pounder Blake Ratcliffe. Garrett, however, sandwiched eight straight wins between those Black Bear successes.

“Some of our guys are still learning the ropes in college wrestling, but for the most part we did really great,” said Wilkins, who was a 2024 NCAA Division III All-American and regional champion at Vermont State University at Castleton. He was MVP of the 2024 Spartans and qualified for the national tournament three times in five years.

While Miller picked up a forfeit at 157 when Penn Highlands’ Devin Barrett didn’t make weight, the pair ended up participating in an exhibition match that Miller won.

“He [Miller] came out with intent and established himself as a Laker – he put the kid away pretty quick,” said Wilkins. “The excitement on his face after that match was pretty special.”

Sampson also praised the exhibition win achieved by Ramon Espin – currently making progressions to qualify for the 157-pound weight class – who also defeated Barrett.

“Based on weight certification, the lowest Ramon could be this week was 157.3, but we still got him a match against their starter,” said Sampson. “He [Espin] will be there [at 157 pounds] this week for the James Madison University Invitational.”

Including exhibitions, Garrett won 12 of 18 matches against Penn Highlands.

“It was exciting to see us do so well, but we still have lots of work to do,” said Wilkins. “The JMU Invitational [November 7] will be a good test to see where we’re at as a team.”