Scottsboro seniors Staton, Stewart join four-time state champion club
Wildcats post state runner-up finish in Class 5A
Story By Jason Bowen
The four-time state champion club in AHSAA wrestling history is an elite group, and Saturday, three more wrestlers joined the club.
Two of them were a pair of Scottsboro seniors and all-time SHS greats.
Stone Staton and John Stewart put a bow on their Scottsboro wrestling careers by dominating their way to their fourth straight weight class state titles during the 2026 AHSAA Wrestling Championships Saturday at the Von Braun Center’s Propst Arena in Huntsville.
“Those guys are special,” said Scottsboro head coach Chris Staton. “Both of those kids have traveled with me (to wrestling) since they were little. It’s been great having them (in the program).”
Stewart’s state-title win allowed him to close out his high school career on a 137-match winning streak, the seventh-longest in AHSAA wrestling history according to its online record book. The UT-Chattanooga signee finished undefeated the past three seasons, and his last loss while wearing a Scottsboro singlet came during the 2022-23 season. Stewart, a four-time state champion who was a state runner-up his eighth-grade year and a fifth-place finisher his seventh-grade season, finished his six-year varsity career with a record of 210-9.
“Starting out, I didn’t know what I could accomplish,” Stewart said. “But I got great coaching, put in the training and it just happened. I never thought about the (winning) streak. It hasn’t been all about winning, it’s been about the experience, going through all this with my team — my friends. It’s been an amazing experience wrestling for Scottsboro.”
Stewart (31-0) won all three of his state-tournament matches via pin and was on the mat for a total of only 3:12. He opened the tournament with a quarterfinal-round pin of Holtville’s Chance Dean in 44 seconds, then pinned Elmore County’s Hayden Fochtmann in 1:13. Stewart pinned Corner’s Brodie Hale in 1:15 of their state-title match.
“When I was walking on the mat right before my (state finals) match, I was just taking it in. I’ve been in this program for six years. It’s awesome to see how far I’ve come,” said Stewart, who won state titles in the 126-, 138-, 144- and 150-pound weight classes during his career. “It’s hard to believe it’s over.”
Stone Staton (26-0) won his third consecutive Class 5A 126-pound weight class state crown after winning the 113-title his freshman senior. He capped his first undefeated season by winning all three of his state matches by technical fall, outscoring his opponents 49-0. After a 17-0 win in the opening round vs. Brewer’s Evan Haynes and a 16-0 win over Moody’s Nathan Poe, Stone Staton defeated Corner’s Ethan Estrada 16-0 in 2:58 in the 126 state-championship match.
“I had wrestled that kid twice and teched him both times doing what I normally do,” Stone Staton said. “I just wanted to get to my offense and I felt like I could get another tech or pin.”
Staton, who wrestled varsity for five seasons, finished with a 185-13 career record, four state championships and five state-placer finishes.
“It flew by. It feels like I was just here in eighth grade wrestling in my first state tournament,” said Stone Staton, who will wrestle collegiately at the University of Montevallo. “I wouldn’t have wanted to wrestle these five years with any other team. These guys are my friends outside of wrestling. Wrestling for (his father Chris), he’s been my coach my whole life. To get coached by him (in high school), it’s been special. He’s done a lot for me. It was a special moment, having my last match with him (being a state championship match).”
Stewart and Stone Staton have been training partners for years despite the weight difference — along with their individual weight class state championships they were part of two traditional state-title teams and two duals state-championship teams — and both credited the other for helping them achieve what they did during their high school careers.
“We always have good scraps at practice. We push ourselves, push each other and it got us to where we needed to be,” Stewart said.
“That made us better. I wouldn’t be the wrestler I am without him as my practice partner,” Stone Staton said.
In all, Scottsboro had two state champions, five total state finalists and seven total state placers (top-four weight class finish) while posting a state runner-up finish in Class 5A. The Wildcats, who were chasing a third consecutive team state championship, posted a team score of 125, finishing 21 points back of state champion Arab.
Scottsboro senior Ayden Mashburn, sophomore Isaac Ferguson and freshman Gage Staton turned in state runner-up finishes for the Wildcats.
Gage Staton (29-3) opened the 120-pound weight class with a 16-0 technical fall win over Holtville’s Hudson Mann and got an 18-3 technical fall win over St. Clair County’s Adien Ballance in the semifinals before dropping a 10-6 decision to Corner’s Roman Coker in the 120 finals.
“We’d beaten the kid two times earlier in the season. He made some adjustments and we didn’t,” Chris Staton said.
Meanwhile, Ferguson (23-8) lost a heartbreaker in the 144 final, falling 11-8 in sudden victory.
“Felt like it could’ve gone the other way,” Chris Staton said, “but just came up short.”
Mashburn (18-11) dropped an 8-1 decision to Brewer’s Wayne Horton in the heavyweight championship match, but his head coach was pleased with the effort of the senior in his first year to wrestle. Mashburn pinned Hayden’s Jacob Baker in the opening round before winning 1-0 in overtime in the semifinals against top-seeded Holtville’s AJ Reeves.
“(Mashburn) put together a really great tournament,” Chris Staton said. He’s a great kid, very coachable. I’ve enjoyed having him out this year.”
Scottsboro eighth-grader Landry Campbell (20-12) earned his first state-placer finish, finishing third in the 132-pound weight class. Campbell won his opening match against Montevallo’s Nathan Haynie via pin, then rebounded from a semifinal loss via 15-3 major decision to East Limestone’s Duran Clark to post wins via pin in the consolation semifinals and the third-place match.
Junior Tavin Leonard (20-11) also reached the medal stand for Scottsboro after finishing fourth at 106. Leonard pinned Charles Henderson’s Ethan Allison in the opening round, then rebounded from a 7-3 semifinal loss to Montevallo’s Jaxon Lewis to post a 15-0 technical fall victory over Moody’s Wade Stinson to reach the third-place match.
Also for the Wildcats, senior Connall Moore (17-10) went 1-2 at 165 while freshman Jackson Dupree finished 0-2 at 138.
