MACON - The Long County Blue Tide wrestling team made history on Friday, February 14 as Andre Mills became the first wrestler to place at the state traditional wrestling tournament.

Mills finished off his weekend 5-1 with a 10-7 decision victory over West Hall’s Amari Fagan to take third place in the AAA 132 pound weight class.

He advanced to the quarterfinals of the state tournament with a 14-8 decision over Fagan, his third place match opponent, in the first round. However, he lost by major decision to Jacoby Stanley of Pickens in the second round, bumping him to the consolation rounds. Stanley was the eventual state runner-up.

Mills then proceeded to win his next four matches en route to the bronze medal, defeating Elias Meijas of Chamblee by first round pin, Sandy Creek’s Reid Gay by second round pin, and North Hall’s Dylan Rivera by 11-9 decision to get into the third place match.

The win over Gay guaranteed him a spot on the podium, but the win over Rivera ensured he would be a top four finisher.

With the 10-7 win in the final match of the day, Mills came away with the bronze medal. He finished his senior season with a record of 46-8.

This is the second time Mills has made history for the Blue Tide as he is the first wrestler to qualify for the state traditional tournament, doing so during his sophomore year, the first wrestling season in Tide history.

Mills was joined by Zion Merrill, TJayden Vaughn, Mareon Montgomery, Tymiah Powell and Sala Tiapula-Savea at the state traditional tournament.