Inspiring for coaches and wrestlers...

[Sommers]

Who is we? I know Ryan, Baylor, Cleveland, McCallie, Soddy Daisy and even Christian Bros have wrestled ranked teams year in and year out; however, when did WC?

 

My question for you again. Of the teams ranked that you keep posting, who in Tennessee is wrestling them?

We? We is Tennessee Edited November 21, 2014 by Sommers

[Sommers]

Bradley will wrestle Archer for the fourth year in a row next weekend at the Archer Super Duals. All three years, the Bears were defeated by them in the finals. Not to mention, they've had two summers worth of Summer Duals and combo practices w/ them. The Bears will spend two weekends in ATL this season, same as last. And, in 2001 (Elite div.) and in 2004 (American division) the Bears wrestled in the VA Duals...5th in 2001 and 2nd in 2004. As far as wrestling true nationally ranked teams year in and year out (other than Archer, which is conveniently close), not many TN and/or SE teams have the budget to travel and actually accomplish this feat.

 

Congrats, Coach! Iron sharpening Iron,,, cream rises to the top with the mindset - anywhere, any time, Anyone!

[Sommers]

Nice Plug for a fine athlete from Mr Gossett...

 

http://m.timesfreepress.com/news/2014/nov/21/throwback-ryan-parker-key-cog-baylor-defense/

[Sommers]

Mr Ramsey gets it going...

 

Siegel 57, Warren Co. 18: Siegel won eight matches by pin, including two wins in less than a minute. Christian Salter (145 pounds) won his match by pin in 20 seconds.

 

Jeremy Price (220 pounds) won his match in 37 seconds.

Also winning by pin for Siegel included Faris Abuzahra (120 pounds) in 1:20, Daniel Bradford (126 pounds) in 3:26, Colton Williams (152 pounds) in 2:48, Dustin Holmes (170 pounds) in 3:15, John Williams (195 pounds) in 2:17 and Landen Patterson (285 pounds) in 3:04.

[Sommers]

Wrestling update from Chattannogan...

 

http://www.chattanoogan.com/2014/11/21/289056/St.-Andrew-s-Opens-Wrestling-Season.aspx

[Sommers]

Memphis based Not-for-profit Benifits From Some of The Worlds Finest Wrestlers...

 

Colorado Springs, Colo., Nov. 20, 2014 – U.S. World Team members Adeline Gray (2014 World Champion Gold Medalist) and Andrew Bisek (2014 World Bronze Medalist), both of Colorado Springs, are featured in a national wrestling calendar that’s doing a lot of good in the wrestling community.

The calendar features wrestlers from across the country, ranging from first time wrestlers, private club and high school athletes to World Team members and Olympic medalists, but they all have something in common—they’ve come together for a good cause.

On June 12, Jacob Calhoun, 29, traveled to Fla. to compete in the Wrestling World Team Trials. He was a strong, healthy man, who not only competed, but was also the head wrestling coach at Muhlenberg College in Pa.

After an outdoor workout, he became extremely dehydrated, suffered a heat stroke and lost consciousness. These issues led to liver failure, acute encephalopathy and a kidney injury. Doctors said a liver transplant was crucial to Calhoun’s survival. Thankfully, Calhoun received the lifesaving transplant on June 23, 2014.

This sudden, unexpected health crisis has completely jarred the stability and normalcy of his life. The average liver transplant costs approximately $575,000. Even with health insurance, he still faces significant medical expenses related to the surgery. He will need a lifetime of follow-up care and costly anti-rejection medications.

To help alleviate the financial burden, Calhoun and his family turned to the National Foundation for Transplants for assistance with some of these financial burdens. NFT is a nonprofit organization that helps patients raise funds to pay for transplant-related expenses.

Family, friends and supporters held a nationwide contest for photo submissions, and Gray and Bisek were two of the 24 athletes chosen to appear in the calendar.

“It’s amazing to see what all Jake’s loved ones are doing for him,†said Samantha Palazolo, NFT fundraising consultant. “This calendar looks great, and I know it’s a huge honor for the wrestlers to have been chosen. I’m thrilled that Jake is recuperating, and the funds his volunteers are raising will lift a huge financial burden off his family’s shoulders. â€

Calendars can be purchased at www.jakecalhoun.org. For more information, please contact Teri Jakob at 717-304-3746 or terijakob@me.com. Calendars ordered after Thanksgiving are $20 plus $5 for shipping & handling. Orders placed before Thanksgiving are $15, plus shipping and handling.

Calendar sponsors include Modern Day Gladiators (Dover, Pa.), World Surgical Foundation (Camp Hill, Pa.) and WrestlersAreWarriors.com.

To make a tax-deductible donation in honor of Calhoun, please send a contribution to the NFT Florida Transplant Fund, 5350 Poplar Ave., Suite 430, Memphis, TN 38119. Please be sure to write “in honor of Jacob Calhoun†on the memo line. Secure donations also can be made online at www.transplants.org--select “Find an NFT Patient†to locate Calhoun.

About NFT

NFT is a nonprofit 501©(3) organization based in Memphis, Tenn. that has been helping transplant patients overcome financial obstacles since 1983. NFT provides fundraising expertise to transplant patients by organizing fundraising campaigns in the patients’ own communities. NFT’s fundraising campaigns have generated nearly $70 million to assist patients. NFT assists more than 2,500 transplant candidates and recipients nationwide. For more information about NFT, please call 800-489-3863 or visit www.transplants.org

 

 

http://www.kktv.com/sports/headlines/Local-athletes-featured-in-national-wrestling-calendar-283449901.html

[Sommers]

Blackman takes third in the Collins Hill duals!

[Sommers]

Mr Gossett Covering The Most Mentally, Emotional and Physically Challenging Sports on earth and of course three icons in Tennessee Wrestling & One in Ga...

 

Cleveland, Baylor, Hixson aim to defend state titles

share email print font size by Ward Gossett

 

http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2014/nov/23/cleveland-baylor-hixson-aim-to-defend-state-titles/

 

Bradley Central wrestler Toribio Navarro, left, grapples with Cleveland wrestler Tristian Blansit during their bout at the Region 4-AAA wrestling tournament finals. Navarro posted a 48-3 record at 113 pounds last year.

Photo by Doug Strickland.

Five teams to watch

 

Baylor: Once they get some football players into the wrestling room, the Red Raiders will be as strong as they've been in a few years, and they're defending state duals champs.

 

Cleveland: The Blue Raiders have dominated Class AAA the last two seasons, winning both state titles each year.

 

Gordon Lee: Brent Raby's Trojans get to taste the waters in Georgia Class AA after finishing no worse than third in Class A competition in the last 10 years.

 

Hixson: Although their numbers are down slightly, the Wildcats won last year's Tennessee A/AA state with a fairly young group, and coach Garrick Hall has 10 returnees.

 

McCallie: The Blue Tornado actually finished ahead of Baylor in last year's traditional tournament and return a lot of strength in the middle and upper weights.

 

Five wrestlers to watch

 

Chris Dbien, Cleveland: A three-time state champion, most recently at 126 with a 42-2 record, he could show up anywhere from 126 to 138 depending on team needs.

 

Caleb Mariakis, Ridgeland: The senior West Virginia University signee has battled injury the past two seasons but has his sights set squarely on winning a state title this year.

 

Packy Mullin, Notre Dame: Wrestling at 132 last year, Mullin went through the season undefeated, finishing 27-0 and winning his first state title.

 

Toribio Navarro, Bradley Central: He posted a 48-3 record at 113 pounds last year on his way to his second state championship.

 

Johnny Ragsdale, Gordon Lee: The senior, who has signed with West Virginia, went undefeated a year ago, finishing 54-0 on his way to his third GHSA individual state title.

 

While Cleveland is looking forward to defending its Class AAA high school state wrestling championships, the approach for Hixson and Baylor is to complete 2013-2014 missions that came up short.

 

"That's a long way away and we have a long way to go," Cleveland coach Jake Yost said. "When you graduate three guys that were in the state finals, that's a lot of points."

 

Hixson and Baylor took half of their respective divisions' championship hardware, Baylor winning the Division II duals and Hixson winning the state's first A/AA traditional tournament.

 

"I hate to think of it as unfinished business," Baylor coach Ben Nelson said. "This year's guys have goals, and winning both state tournaments is one of them. We'll keep plugging away at it till we get to the end of the year."

 

Hixson finished third in the duals but then displayed an amazing comeback to win the A/AA crown.

 

"You can't write a Cinderella script much better than that with us scoring 60 points in two rounds of consolations," Wildcats coach Garrick Hall said. "Since they won the duals I guess most people thought Pigeon Forge was the favorite, and then we lost so many guys in the (championship) semis. For us to come back and beat them and Alcoa is unbelievable."

 

For the second year in a row, Cleveland won both the dual and traditional championships. In displacing Bradley Central and Soddy-Daisy as the area's dominant Class AAA teams, the Blue Raiders have finished first or second six of the last seven seasons.

 

How they will stack up this year is a question Yost is still mulling over.

 

"We have a bunch of young guys doing a great job right now. We have six returning state place-winners and several other state qualifiers," he said. "We're in a good spot. but there are some other good teams out there, I'm sure. Soddy-Daisy and Bradley are strong and Wilson Central has been strong the last few years, and I'm sure there are a few teams we don't know about that will be good."

 

The Division I tournaments were somewhat diluted with the long-awaited A/AA tournament finally entering the arena.

 

"It definitely caused everybody to have more state placers that they might have had," Yost said. "There are some really good kids in A/AA, and their champions would have been at least placers in AAA and some could probably have won. Notre Dame always has a couple of good guys.

 

"People think it's going to grow the sport, and I haven't done enough research to differ."

 

Chattanooga dominated the A/AA event. In addition to Hixson winning the title, Notre Dame was fourth, East Ridge fifth, Central sixth and Red Bank and Signal Mountain tied for seventh.

 

"Look at the quality kids that placed in the tournament," Hixson's Hall said. "Some of the A/AA medalists beat kids that medaled in AAA. I definitely think (adding A/AA) brought more (competitors and spectators) to the tournament."

 

Division II is most often a four- or five-team race whether it's the duals or the traditional tournament. The top four are expected to be Baylor, Father Ryan, Montgomery Bell Academy and McCallie.

 

Baylor returns three state champions in Michael Murphy (113), Blake Sutherland (160) and Ryan Parker (182).

 

"Ryan is so well coached and will always be a challenger, and McCallie too," Nelson said. "They have a whole group of studs in the middle of their lineup and at the top. I wouldn't be surprised to see MBA in that group. Frank (Simpson, MBA's coach) has a lot of good young wrestlers that performed well last year."

 

Dbien out a while

 

Cleveland's Chris Dbien, a University of Tennessee at Chattanooga signee, will be out until late December or early January as he finishes recuperation from knee surgery performed in June.

 

Vandergriff Duals moved

 

Hixson has shifted the dates on its Roger Vandergriff Duals tournament, and it will be held Saturday. A strong field has been bolstered with the addition of perennial state power Soddy-Daisy.

 

The first local invitational tournament takes place on Dec. 6 at Ooltewah.

 

Contact Ward Gossett at wgossett@timesfreepress.com or 423-886-4765. Follow him at Twitter.com/wardgossett.

[Sommers]

Chattannogan again...

 

Wrestling Mocs Win Navy Classic

Sunday, November 23, 2014

 

The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga wrestling team had an outstanding day at the Navy Classic in Annapolis, Md.  The Mocs won the 13-team event behind six individual placers. 

 

23rd-ranked Chattanooga’s 108.5 points edged Princeton’s 106.5.  No. 24 Ohio was third (105.5) followed by No. 19 Wisconsin (105.0) and West Virginia (84.5). 

 

Seniors Sean Boyle and Shawn Greevy led the way with runner-up showings at 125 and 149, respectively.  Senior Nick Soto and sophomores Michael Pongracz (141) and Sean Mappes (174) placed third in their brackets.  Sophomore McCoy Newberg was fourth at 174, while junior John Lampe finished fifth at 184.

 

Boyle brought in a No. 16 ranking at 125 and went 3-1.  He defeated Cleveland State’s 19th-ranked Ben Willeford in a major decision (12-4) in the semifinals before falling to No. 17 Paul Petrov of Bucknell in the championship match (11-8).

 

Greevy went 4-1 on his way to the finals at 149.  He scored a 10-5 decision over The Citadel’s Matt Frisch in the semifinals, but lost to No. 12 Tywan Claxton (Ohio) in the finals.

 

Soto took his No. 17 ranking at 133 to a third place trophy.  He was knocked out of the main draw in the quarterfinals by Wisconsin’s Ryan Taylor (15-2).  Taylor is currently No. 7 at 125, but moved up for the Navy Classic.  Soto won two more matches in the backdraw to make the podium. 

 

Pongracz had a busy day after falling in the round of 16 in the 141 main draw.  He posted four wins in the consolations to place third.  Mappes and Newberg were set to meet in the third place match, but Newberg forfeited.  Lampe went 5-2 at 184 on his way to a fifth place showing.  

[Sommers]

From tricities.com

 

MEN’S WRESTLING: King’s Lutterloh wins Open

 

Posted: Sunday, November 23, 2014 5:00 pm

BHC Sports Desk

King University’s Andrew Lutterloh took first in the 285-pound class in the King University Open on Sunday.

 

Lutterloh took a 4-2 win over Cody Davis (unattached) in overtime for the title.

 

King had 12 wrestlers place including Frank Yattoni who was second at 141 pounds.

Edited November 24, 2014 by Sommers

[TC56]

Here is the whole King Open article for King U. Several TN wrestlers mentioned.:

 

Lutterloh wins King Open, 12 Tornado place

Nov 23, 2014

 

BRISTOL, Tenn. – Competing in the third fourth open tournament in as many weeks, and their final open before having a couple weeks off, the King University men's wrestling team turned in a stellar performance at their own King University Open. The Tornado had 12 wrestlers place, and were led by Andrew Lutterloh who won his weight class and Frank Yattoni IV who took second.

 

At 285 pounds, Lutterloh started his day with a win on a fall over Cody Vandeline of Limestone College in 1:08 before topping Daniel Adkins of Newberry College 8-4 in the semifinals. In the finals he faced teammate Cody Davis who was wrestling unattached, and Lutterloh took a narrow 4-2 victory in overtime to take the title. At the same weight class, Josh Mackey won his first two bouts of the day on falls before dropping a 4-0 decision to Davis. Mackey won his consolation semifinal bout on a fall in 4:20 over Patton Gossett (unattached) of Newberry. However, he fell to Matt Colter of Newberry on a tough 4-3 decision in the third place bout.

 

Yattoni earned a 6-2 decision over Ike Podell of Liberty University to start his day at 141 pounds. He then topped Limestone's Henry Majano 2-1 to advance to the semifinals before defeating Nick Lankford of Newberry 5-4 to reach the finals. In the finals he faced Ryan Skonieczny who took an 8-4 decision to give Yattoni a runner-up finish. Jesse Masters had a solid performance at 184 pounds, taking third place. He fell in his first bout of the day before rolling off four straight wins to take third. He started the roll with a win by fall in 1:48 over David Kieta of Limestone before taking a major decision, 10-0 over Liberty's Patrick Good. He capped the day with back-to-back wins by fall, first defeating Alex Cox of Liberty in 2:33 before Oklahoma City's Jacob King in 2:51.

 

At 174 pounds, Trevor Wentt faced some adversity, dropping his first bout of the day, but battled back to take fourth place. He earned a 3-2 decision over Joey Cable before defeating Samuel Kysor (unattached) of USC Upstate 12-5, and he advanced to the third place match with a 3-2 decision over Liberty's Josh Sturgill. However, Jared Bass of Oklahoma City University defeated Wentt 3-2, giving the senior a fourth place finish.

 

Just as Wentt and Masters did, Jon Boatman fell in his first match of the day, but fought his way back through the consolation bracket. The freshman started his run with a win by fall in 1:18 over Coulton Parker of Oklahoma City before topping Kyle Lowe of Limestone 2-0. After falling in the semifinals on a 2-0 decision to Josh Epperson (unattached) of Newberry, he defeated Michael Bedard (unattached) of Belmont Abbey College 6-3 to take fifth place.

 

Wrestling at 165 pounds, Travis Edwards started his day with wins over Belmont Abbey's Octavia Rivera (7-4) and Cody Richmond of Liberty on a fall in 4:27. However, he then fell to teammate JA Jones, who was wrestling unattached in the semifinals. Edwards then fell to Limestone's Jimmy Sandlin in the consolation semifinals before bouncing back to defeat Ricky McCarty of Oklahoma City on a 16-0 technical fall to take fifth place. Jones finished runner-up as he dropped a 7-2 decision to Newberry's Gilmore in the finals.

 

Wrestling as unattached, Jeremy Miller and Landon Reed had good days at 149 pounds. Reed won his first two bouts to advance to the semifinals where he fell to Seiji Borja of Newberry. He rebounded to win his two consolation bracket bouts, on a fall in 1:25 over Codi Roghermel of Newberry and a 6-5 decision over Melchiseda LaVerne to take third place. Miller dropped his first bout of the day, and won three straight matches before falling to LaVergne in the consolation semifinals. He then topped Rothermel 3-1 to take fifth place.

 

Also wrestling unattached, Eldon Valery finished third at 197 pounds. He defeated Brad Hebb-Sankey of Newberry 8-1 in the consolation semifinals before defeating Belmont Abbey's Matthew Perez 8-1 in the third place bout.

 

King will be in action again on December 13-14 when they travel to the Midwest Classic in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Edited November 24, 2014 by TC56

[Sommers]

Never be a Quitter...

 

Wrestling tournament honors coach who embodied the best of wrestling

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By Amy Donaldson, Deseret News

 

Published: Sunday, Nov. 23 2014 8:55 p.m. MST

Updated: 14 hours ago

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Friends and fellow wrestling coaches hosted the Wrestling Against Cancer duals at Provo High, a tournament featuring some of the state’s best wrestlers in a setting meant to honor Ric Thompson.

 

Photo via Wrestling Against Cancer Duals

Enlarge photo»

 

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865616283/Wrestling-tournament-honors-coach-who-embodied-the-best-of-wrestling.html?s_cid=Email-5

 

Amy Donaldson

Deseret News

Summary

The Wrestling Against Cancer duals at Provo High kick off the 2014 wrestling season by honoring a coach who embodied the toughness and never-quit attitude of wrestling.

“(Ric) dealt with a lot of tragedy and he was just a true example of goodness.â€

Provo assistant wrestling coach Brian Preece

PROVO — Just a few weeks before friends could honor Ric Thompson for his life-long contributions to the sport he loved, the father of five lost his life to the ravages of cancer.

 

But if the two-time state champion from Brighton High taught those who loved him most anything, he taught them not to quit.

 

So a few weeks later, friends and fellow wrestling coaches hosted the Wrestling Against Cancer duals at Provo High, a tournament featuring some of the state’s best wrestlers in a setting meant to honor the man who dedicated his life to the sport.

 

Like a lot of things in life, that inaugural event did not go as planned.

 

“The first one was kind of a flop to tell you the truth,†said Provo assistant wrestling coach Brian Preece, who was one of those responsible for the tournament’s creation and survival. “We had some kind of blizzard come through, there were a bunch of school closures, and of the eight teams committed, only three were able to come.â€

 

If there is one thing a wrestler knows how to deal with, it’s a little adversity. In fact, the tournament has become as much a tribute to the sport as it is a tribute to Thompson and the battle his family has waged against cancer.

 

Preece said the tournament, held on the first day the Utah High School Activities Association allows competition for wrestlers, is a celebration of the season to come. It’s meant to showcase the best athletes in a sport that’s had to fight just for its own survival — especially at the collegiate level.

 

“I like to think in wrestling, we’re a little more tight-knit than other sports,†Preece said. “We’re kind of a fraternity, always fighting for the sport's survival, for publicity.â€

 

Tuesday’s Wrestling Against Cancer tournament starts at 6 p.m. with Davis taking on Westlake, Murray facing Provo, and Mountain View squaring off against Layton. Once those teams work through all 14 weight divisions, around 8 p.m., Timpanogos will face Timpview, Orem will battle Maple Mountain, and West will battle Lone Peak.

 

“We’re going to see some great wrestling,†Preece said. “Maple Mountain has become a powerhouse and Layton is a powerhouse. Last year we had 13 state champions and about 17 or 18 who ended up being state finalists.â€

 

Preece said last year the proceeds of the tournament went to benefit Ric’s brother, Bryce Thompson, who eventually passed away at the Huntsman Cancer Institute after a battle with acute myeloid leukemia.

 

“Basically, Ric and Angie Thompson are the inspiration for the event,†Preece said. But he was also motivated to do something with a charity component because what writer Neil Warner started with the Second Chance Foundation and the annual Pink Games between Lehi and Lone Peak, which raise money for Swing For Life.

 

“I just looked at (those efforts) and said, ‘What a cool way to promote wrestling, have a kick-off event, and honor my friend,†Preece said. “Ric is kind of an extraordinary guy. He’s in the Utah Wrestling Hall of Fame, was a two-time state champion at Brighton, and was part of the dynasty at Brighton in the 80s. ... He means a lot to us in the wrestling fraternity.â€

 

Thompson, who led Payson to its first wrestling team state title in 1998, knew how to wrestle.

 

“I think he knew technique like very few coaches knew technique,†Preece said. “For me, he just kind of always cared about me as a coach.â€

 

He knew how to teach, and he’d teach anyone willing to learn. He helped coach his own son, Tyson, who was a three-time state champion at Lehi High. Payson High created its own wrestling hall of fame and at its first banquet last week, Thompson was one of the first three members inducted.

 

Thompson was a mentor to his own wrestlers, but often helped athletes from other teams, offering them tips or pointers.

 

“He was just always kind of giving of his wisdom,†Preece said. He was a friend to other coaches and a tireless advocate of the sport of wrestling.

 

But there was more to Thompson than a man who knew how to win a wrestling match. He lost two daughters to cancer and a brother in a tragic boating accident, and it was how he handled these heartbreaking tragedies that inspired others.

 

“He dealt with a lot of tragedy,†Preece said, “and he was just a true example of goodness.â€

 

Twitter: adonsports EMAIL: adonaldson@deseretnews.com

Edited November 24, 2014 by Sommers