GREENSBORO — While the Lumberton wrestling program has had tremendous success in recent years, one thing was missing from the team’s stable: a state champion.

Entering the weekend, the Pirates — and Robeson County as a whole — claimed just one state titlist, Mario McDuffie, who won the 215-pound title in 2003. By Saturday evening, Lumberton had added three more wrestlers to that most exclusive club.

Jackson Buck and Travelian Hall each won 4A titles at the North Carolina High School Athletic Association’s State Championships for the Pirates boys team, while Wyntergale Oxendine also claimed a crown in the first officially-sanctioned girls state tournament.

“It feels amazing,” Oxendine said. “I’ve been working so hard for that title this year, it just means so much to me to finally get it.”

Building on Oxendine’s success along with state runner-up Teresa Canady and third-place finisher Janya Rolland, the Pirates girls team won the team state championship.

The Pirates boys also had two third-place finishers, Matthew Foil and James Ellison, in addition to the titles of Buck and Hall, and finished second in the team standings. For more on the Pirates’ team results, see the related story here.

Lifetime of hard work leads to Buck’s title

Every wrestler to win a state championship does so after years of hard work through their high school career. But Buck’s path to the title goes even deeper, with wrestling experience throughout his entire life leading to a gold medal in his senior season.

“He’s been wrestling his whole life, and there’s no better way to end your high school career,” Lumberton coach James Bell said. “That’s a testament to all the hard work he’s put in. Three-time state placer, four-time state qualifier, it’s huge. Being one of our first state champs in 20 years, that’s huge for the program, NC Pride, all the effort they’ve put in in being a part of our success.”

Buck (53-0), who finishes his high school career with a program-record 174 wins, pinned Athens Drive’s Zaid Marjan with a pin late in the first round of the championship match.

“I know he was tough, I wrestled him two times this year,” Buck said. “I just went out there, and my goal was to dominate this entire season. I did just that, went out there, scored my points, got him on his back, held him there and won the match.”

Buck, a four-time state qualifier, finished third at states as a sophomore and second as a junior, becoming the first three-time state placer in Lumberton program history. His championship run finished off an undefeated season.

“It was always a goal of mine to go through the season undefeated, and it finally happened this year. Every other year I fell short of that goal, so this year it’s an amazing feeling to get that goal.”

A workout group of Buck, Foil and Ellison produced terrific results, with each member of the trio finishing in the top three in their respective divisions Saturday.

“It’s a testament to my workout partners, Matthew Foil and James Ellison, who are in the room every day, just scrapping, doing our best to make each other better,” Buck said. “And that shows up on the mat; Matthew Foil third place, James third, and me, I brought it home with a championship.”

Buck made one takedown earlier in the first round and led the championship match against Marjan 2-0 at the time of his pin.

Buck pinned Olympic’s Devin Evans and Hoggard’s Pierce White in the first two rounds of the championship before a 14-3 major decision win over Mooresville’s Brady Raab in the semifinals on Friday.

Hall wins in unusual way

Hall woke up Saturday morning preparing to wrestle in a state championship match in the early evening. But by the 8 o’clock hour, he was already a 106-pound state champion.

Hall (42-10) won the championship match by forfeit when his finals opponent, Hoke County’s Jakai Sedgwick, failed to make weight at Saturday’s morning weigh-in.

“I was just feeling weird; I was kind of a little mad because I wasn’t going to get the finals experience that I’ve wanted for almost my whole high school career. But to be honest I still felt happy because I became a state champion right at that moment,” Hall said. “I proved that I beat the scale, which was my first opponent, I proved that I can make weight any time I want to, and I can choose how to beat anyone.”

While Hall didn’t get the chance to win the title on the mat in front of the big Greensboro Coliseum crowd, he did still get the rest of the championship experience, including the Parade of Champions when all of the finalists are marched around the Coliseum floor.

“I felt nervous, anxious even; I didn’t feel like I was supposed to be there just because of how much the crowd was going crazy, how many lights were just shining on us,” Hall said. “It was amazing; spectacular, even. It was beyond my expectations of what I can say — beautiful, to be honest. … There was a whole lot of spirit going right into me, and I just felt energetic; wonderful, even.”

When the time came that the championship bout would have been wrestled, Hall was brought out to have his hand raised by the referee as the champion.

“That’s not the way we wanted to win it, but we’re still going to be thankful and be grateful to have the opportunity,” Bell said. “Hopefully he’ll get the chance next year to really do it on the floor for real.”

Hall, a sophomore, still has two years of high-school wrestling remaining. He finished fourth at states in 2023, and is one of four Pirates — alongside Foil, Buck, Yakemiean Johnson and Landry McDuffie — to place multiple times at states.

Hall reached the championship match with a first-round forfeit, a quarterfinal pin of Cardinal Gibbons’ Spencer Sterling and a semifinal pin of Ragsdale’s Ayden Sumners.

Oxendine completes dominant season with title

Every opponent Wyntergale Oxendine faced all season ended up on their back, with the referee tapping the mat to signify a pin — all the way to the state championship.

Oxendine (38-0) pinned Havelock’s Nyema George in the second round of the 235-pound girls championship match, becoming one of 12 titlists in the first officially-sanctioned girls state tournament.

“It’s been amazing,” Oxendine said. “Very smooth for me. I hate it’s my last year, but I’ve made it my best year.”

Oxendine completed the season at 38-0, including pins in all 31 contested matches she competed in, with three pins of state runner-up George.

“I didn’t even realize I was undefeated until one of my coaches was like ‘you’re undefeated,’ and I was like ‘oh yeah, I haven’t lost this year,’” Oxendine said. “So it feels amazing to do that too.”

Oxendine finished second at last year’s NCHSAA Women’s Invitational, the precursor to the new state tourament, using that result as motiviation this season.

“Her whole demeanor was different; she was more determined, knowing that she could get there and she could do it,” Bell said. “It’s one thing to be a first-year wrestler, and it’s another to know that you can get there and that being your goal. That’s just how her mindset was the whole year.

Oxendine made a first-period takedown to lead the match 2-0; after George made an escape, Oxendine had another takedown in the second round, leading to the eventual pin.

“It just was a little bit scrambling, you know,” Oxendine said. “I don’t always get her in the first period, but normally she gets tired a little bit later in the other periods.”

Oxendine pinned first-round opponent Abbi Stout of East Wilkes and quarterfinals opponent Alijah Christiansen of Ashley, both within the first 33 seconds of the match, before a first-round pin of Rosewood’s Sophia Marshall in the semifinals.

Canady, Connor earn runner-up finishes

Lumberton’s three state champions came from a group of five finalists from Robeson County, which also included the Pirates’ Canady and Purnell Swett’s Devon Connor, both of whom lost their championship match to wrestlers awarded as the Most Outstanding Wrestler at the tournament’s conclusion.

Canady (43-4) lost to East Rowan’s Leah Edwards in the 114-pound final for the second straight year.

Canady led 2-0 at the end of the first round after a takedown and the match was tied 2-2 before Edwards pinned Canady.

“I knew she was tough, she was going to come right out of the gate wanting to hammer. Which she used the hammer, so I was ready for it, and I had to stay in good position, which I think I did really well,” Canady said. “She shot and I went to defend, and I got the cradle locked up, which then I received my two (points) and I just worked from there, but then we ended up running out of time, which I wrestled a pretty good first round. When we went to the second period, I chose neutral and she took me down.”

The respect between the familiar wrestlers was clear, with the pair hugging after the match’s completion.

“Even though the matches that we’ve wrestled against each other didn’t pan out for me, I have no hate towards her; she’s a tough opponent,” Canady said. “Iron sharpens iron so I love that I get to go against her.”

Canady finishes her high school career as the Lumberton girls program’s all-time wins leader with 106, with two state runner-up finishes.

“She put in a lot of time and effort and this is the reward she gets,” Bell said. “She had a great high school career, she’s known everywhere across the state, she left her mark and left her legacy for Lumberton wrestling — both (Canady and Oxendine), all those girls, left their mark for Lumberton wrestling and that’s something these girls coming into the program, these younger girls can look up to.”

Connor (59-7) was pinned in the 126-pound final by Mallard Creek’s Cameron Stinson, who completed an undefeated four-year high school career with his fourth state championship.

“I went out there thinking it was a defensive mindset, that was really it,” Connor said. “And then I just didn’t capitalize the way I wanted to.”

Stinson scored eight first-round points on a takedown and two nearfalls, and had an additional second-round takedown to lead 10-0. It was 12-0 in the third round at the time of Stinson’s pin.

But taking such a tough opponent to the third round was impressive in itself for Connor.

“He was able to go out there and just wrestle, to put it all on the mat and try to win, that was it,” Purnell Swett coach Rashaad Saunders said. “I was proud of him for just going out there and wrestling and not giving up every second he was about to lose.”

Connor reached states for the first time after failing to qualify for even the regional tournament as a sophomore, and not reaching states in his junior-year regionals.

“The tournament was a big jump,” Connor said. “Last year I didn’t make it (to states), to placing second. That obviously shows I put hard work in; I’m proud of myself.”

Connor is the third second-place finisher at states in Purnell Swett history, joining Rommie McNeill and Kenwin Cummings as the highest placers in program history.