• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
The Leader

The Leader

Tipton County's Newspaper since 1886

  • Home
  • News
    • All
    • Business
    • Churches
    • Courts
    • Education
    • Election 2024
    • Events
    • Local Government
    • Local Politics
    • Military
    • Public Records
    • Public Safety
  • Sports
    • All
    • Baseball
    • Basketball
    • Cross Country
    • Fishing
    • Football
    • Golf
    • Soccer
    • Softball
    • Volleyball
    • Wrestling
  • E-Editions
  • Public Notices
  • Subscribe
  • About
  • Contact Us
    • Submit News
    • Advertise With Us
  • Where to Buy

Munford High wrestlers qualify for state duals for first time in 25 years

By Jeff Ireland on February 1, 2022

Munford High School wrestling coach David Cline does not mince words when he’s talking to his wrestlers.

“I get a lot of push back on how I am because I’m very honest,” Cline said. “It’s one of those sport where if you know the kids wrestling you can almost always tell who’s going to win. I’ll sit the kids down a lot and say you’re not good enough, you need to get better.”

So, when Cline sat down his wrestlers before their sectional match at home Saturday against Sycamore, which was ranked third in the state (Munford was 12th) in Class A, and told then he thought they could win by 30, they believed him.

Munford beat Sycamore 43-31, winning eight of 14 matches, to qualify for the state duals for the first time since 1997. The Cougars will take on Greeneville on Saturday at 9 a.m. in Franklin in a quarterfinal match.

Wemawamungu Moktani, the state’s No.1-ranked wrestler at 132 pounds, beat Sycamore’s Dylan Davenport (ranked No. 1 at 126) 9-0 in a key match. Munford’s Justin Cavanaugh won by pin to clinch the win with two matches to go.

“It was a giant adrenaline rush,” Moktani, who goes by Mo, said about the moment he knew his team was headed to state. “I still had to wrestle but I was thinking two more matches and we’re going to state. It was amazing.”

“I was really amped,” said Munford senior Jermyah Davis. “I was thinking it’s my senior year, we get to take the team state and we have a chance to win a state championship. I was hopping around, cheering my teammates.”

“I was really happy and excited,” said junior Carter Sisco. “My blood was pumping.”

Sycamore entered the sectional match with five state meet appearances since Munford’s last appearance and was probably a little surprised to get knocked off by Munford.

“They shouldn’t have been surprised,” said Davis. “You’re coming to our house, our territory. I told my teammates before we went out there, ‘This is our house, let’s protect it.'”

Munford earned the right to host the sectional match by beating Millington Thursday in the regionals. A win by Christian Perez over a higher-ranked Millington wrestler (Garrett Haley) was a big reason Munford won its first-ever region title.

“To be honest, I don’t really care about rankings,” Perez said. “It all comes down what happens when you get on the mat.”

It’s bean an impressive and quick rise to state relevance for the Munford wrestling program. After a few years without a team, the program was rebooted eight years ago. The program has gotten better and better each season under Cline, who was hired six years ago. Multiple wrestlers have qualified for the individual state meet the last few years.

The Munford wrestling team poses for a photo after beating Millington Thursday to earn the program’s first region championship.

A big reason for the program’s rise has been Matt Bunce. He moved here from New York six years ago and ran into a Munford wrestler while working out at Atoka Fitness. One thing led to another and Bunce became in assistant coach. He said the team has a lot of momentum heading into state duals.

“The kids that feel under the radar need to step up like they did against Mlllington and Sycamore,” Bunce said. “They got to another level and they’ll have another chance to do that.”

Greeneville, Munford’s quarterfinal opponent, is ranked first in the state in Class A. Fairview, a possible semifinal opponent, is the defending state champ.

Knowing that, what’s the Cougars’ mindset heading into Saturday?

“It’s about mentality,” Perez said. “We have a good chance to place at state as a team. We’re going to try and do the best we can. Hopefully we can get far.”

Per his nature, Cline is telling his wrestlers the truth concerning what they will be up against in Franklin.

“I know the teams we have to wrestle and they’re all tough. The biggest takeaway for me right now is that Sycamore was ranked third for a reason and we beat them by 12 and it could have been more. In my opinion, there’s no reason why, if we keep wrestling at the level we’re wrestling at, we can’t go up there and actually do something. Can we go up there and blow the whole bracket up and win the tournament? I would say that’s a long shot, but it’s possible.”

 

 

 

 

Related Articles:

Covington police station project gets new life – here are details on the new plan February 17, 2022 T-County Clay Busters bring home program’s first state title Schools, local government offices announce Tuesday snow closures

Posted Under: Sports, Wrestling Tags: david cline, Munford wrestling, Wemawamungu Moktani

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Search

Featured News

Straight out of Black Bottom: A Covington community hosts its inaugural reunion

June 6, 2025 By The Leader

Submitted by Dr. … [Continue Reading...] about Straight out of Black Bottom: A Covington community hosts its inaugural reunion

Brighton High fishing duo will compete for national title next month

May 28, 2025 By Jeff Ireland

Jaxon Sherfield, a … [Continue Reading...] about Brighton High fishing duo will compete for national title next month

Munford baseball finishes second at Class AAA state tournament

May 28, 2025 By Jeff Ireland

Saturday's Class 3A … [Continue Reading...] about Munford baseball finishes second at Class AAA state tournament

Brighton High grad Dalton Rushing now playing for reigning World Series champs

May 20, 2025 By Jeff Ireland

Making a Major … [Continue Reading...] about Brighton High grad Dalton Rushing now playing for reigning World Series champs

Tags

auvic white black history braxton sharp brighton baseball brighton basketball brighton football brighton high school city of covington City of Munford coronavirus covid-19 covington Covington Baseball covington basketball Covington football covington high school covington police covington police station Election 2020 events homicide J.R. Kirby Jalen Fayne Jamarion Dowell jeff huffman john edwards Jordan Bell JR Kirby munford baseball Munford basketball munford football munford high school murder ronnie gorton sex crimes shooting Slade Calhoun tcso Tipton-Rosemark Academy Tipton County Museum tipton county schools tipton county sheriff's office town of atoka town of mason TRA basketball

Footer

The Leader is a weekly newspaper, published on Thursdays, serving Tipton County, Tenn. since 1886.

Contact us: news@covingtonleader.com

Editor’s Choice

Here’s how Home Depot and a team of volunteers helped make over CIAA

December 5, 2019 By Echo Day

Black History Month: Mason’s John W. Boyd went from slavery to the statehouse

February 7, 2020 By The Leader

Search

Copyright © 2025 · The Leader | Legacy Media · Log in