Spain Park High School senior wrestler Kyle Oliveira and sophomore Bradley Williams continued on their unbeaten streaks Thursday – two streaks that have been nothing short of amazing as the first day of the AHSAA’s 69th State Wrestling Championships got underway at the Von Braun Center in Huntsville.

Oliveira (52-0) won his Class 7A state tournament-opening 215-pound match 9-0 with a major decision over Oak Mountain freshman Peyton Gamble and moved into the semifinals Friday with a pin over Enterprise’s Jace Hymes at 2:35 to keep his unbeaten streak alive.

Oliveira has yielded only 2 points all season – giving up point to Hymes but was leading 2-1 when he got the fall at 2:35 mark of his quarterfinal bout.

Williams (52-0), the top seed in the 144-pound division, had a first-round bye and then won his quarterfinal match with a pin in just 32 seconds to keep his perfect year alive. The pin was the 99th of his high school career and the win was his 182nd victory overall.

Oliveira’s opening win of the championships set the pace for what is expected to be a fierce battle for the state championship – especially in Class 7A where Spain Park, coached by Kyle Thompson, is competing.

Williams posted the 99th pin of his career with a quick fall at 0:32 in his quarterfinal bout. He finished runner-up at last year’s state meet at 138 pounds, losing an 8-7 decision to Jake Ciccolella of Huntsville. Ciccolella, a senior, won his only match with a pin at 3:23 in the 138-pound quarterfinals Thursday.

Oliveira, who finished sixth in the state as a freshman at 160 pounds, said he changed his style in the middle of his high school career – moving from a passive reactive style to becoming the attacker. It changed everything for him – on and off the mat.

“My style now is to take the attack to my opponent first,” he said. “Being proactive has not only helped my wrestling but also has made me a better student, really better at everything I try to do.”

The Jags’ senior finished 34-10 last season, losing to Hewitt-Trussville senior Hunter Jones (33-2) in the finals 5-0. Oliveira injured his elbow early in the match and never recovered. Jones went on to earn Class 7A Most Outstanding Wrestler at the 2023 state tourney.

The Jaguars only qualified three wrestlers this year, but still ranked 11th after Day 1 with 23.5 points. Huntsville posted 86.5 points to lead the 7A points standings. Thompson is second with 62.5 points and Hewitt-Trussville (59), Bob Jones (58.5) and defending state champion Vestavia Hills (40.5) rounded out the top five in 7A.

In Class 6A, Mountain Brook totaled 90 points with Mortimer Jordan gathering 65, Homewood, 57.5, Athens, 46, and Hartselle, 39.5. In Class 1A/4A, defending state champion Weaver (53) leads after the opening day, but is facing a strong challenge from Ashville (42), Saint James (38), St. John Paul II Catholic (37.5) and Dora (37) close behind.

Wrestling resumes Friday at 9:30 a.m. with consolation rounds for Classes 1A/4A, 6A and 7A. Class 5A will begin its competition following that round, and the championship round semifinals for all four classes will begin at 1 p.m. The afternoon session will conclude with two more consolation rounds.

On Saturday, consolation place matches will begin at 9 a.m. and the championship matches will begin at noon. All matches are being live streamed over the NFHS Network.

Ashville’s Tyler Ebner (43-4) was a 1A/4A highlight after winning his only match at 165 pounds with a pin in just 17 seconds. Reeltown’s Devin Bragg (33-1) posted a pin at 0:42 in the 215-pound weight class.

In Class 6A, Wetumpka 285-pounder Willie Cox (45-1) won his only bout with a pin at 57 seconds. McAdory senior Christion Griggs improved to 83-1 with a 15-0 technical fall in the 175-pound division,  Athens’ Will Anderson (8-0) had two pins in the 144-pound weight class at 2:33 and 0:23. Daishun Powe (41-4) posted a pin in 17 seconds in his only match at 165 pounds and Mortimer Jordan’s Caleb Wright (38-3) had two pins at 120 pounds.

Other 7A standouts were Huntsville’s brother duo Yanik Simon (50-0) and Kiyan Simon (48-0) at 150 and 113 pounds, respectively. Yanik, had two wins by pin and Kiyan had a win with a pin.

Thompson 138-pounder Kiona Vines (23-1) had the fastest win by fall all day – pinning his opponent  in just 11 seconds. Huntsville’s John McKinney had a win by fall in 22 seconds at 175 pounds, and 157-pounder Bradley Campbell of Opelika had two wins by pin in 47 and 40 seconds, respectively.

Complete first-day results can be found at www.trackwrestling.com.