Inspiring for coaches and wrestlers...

[Sommers]

Local Media Coverage in Johnson City...

 

http://www.johnsoncitypress.com/article/123567/science-hill-wrestlers-face-must-win-against-d-b

 

Science Hill wrestlers face must-win against D-B

 

January 14th, 2015 8:16 pm by JEFF BIRCHFIELD

 

 

Sky high after a strong showing in its own Fandetti-Richardson Brawl last Saturday, the Science Hill wrestling team crashed back to Earth on Tuesday night with a surprising loss to Tennessee High.

 

Now, the Hilltoppers face a must-win situation tonight at Dobyns-Bennett.

 

A loss to the Indians would mean Science Hill would fail to qualify for the Region duals and be left out of the state competition for the first time in 14 years.

 

If the ’Toppers win, then it leaves the region berth to be determined.

 

“We have to take care of business and find a way to win that match,†Science Hill coach Jimmy Miller said. “It could make things interesting. If D-B beats Tennessee High next week, there could be a three-way tie and I don’t know how that would come out. It could be a nasty mix-up to see how it comes out.â€

 

If the Hilltoppers win tonight and Tennessee High wins next week, then the region seeds are set. If Science Hill wins and then D-B beats Tennessee High, one would have to believe Science Hill would earn the berth based on an 8-1 record against Region 1 opponents, compared to 7-2 for the other two.

 

Again though, a loss tonight and none of that matters.

 

Miller was still upset on Wednesday about the previous night’s performance and the fact for the first time in a long time that Science Hill doesn’t fully control its destiny.

 

“They had kids wrestle better than our kids,†Miller said. “We weren’t able to do what we know wins dual meets. We didn’t get the bonus points when we could.â€

 

Most surprising was it came on the heels of a strong showing at the Fandetti-Richardson Brawl where the ’Toppers finished fourth behind Bradley Central, the highest-ranked public school in Tennessee, and other state powerhouses from Christian Brothers and Pigeon Forge.

 

Hunter Bagley led the Science Hill standouts with his victory in the 195-pound weight class.

 

Other top efforts included Cooper Williams finishing second at 106, Ben Rolston placing third at 170 and Anh Khoa Nguyen taking fourth at 182. Another strong performance came from Shane Jessee who reached the consolation bracket final.

 

In addition to the Fandetti-Richardson Brawl, Science Hill hosted the Moffat Duals where the team got an up-close and personal look at Bradley Central in a 53-12 loss.

 

“That’s a program with a wonderful feeder program and a great coaching staff,†Miller said. “But, it’s the out-of-season wrestling which makes them so good. When wrestling season ends at the high school state level, those kids wrestle 35 more matches at a very high level.â€

 

Bagley, a junior, is one athlete certainly performing at a high level for Science Hill.

 

He is the program’s first champion in the Fandetti Brawl since the event was moved to Freedom Hall and currently 42-5 on the season. In addtion, he’s a favorite to repeat as a Region 1 champion, a distinction he shared with older brother Austin last season.

 

“He has moments where he wrestles at a very high level and reaches his potential,†Miller said. “It’s part of growing up, but there are moments where he wrestles down to his competition or will have a flat moment. But if you’re in a dual match and you need a win, he’s one you can count on.â€

 

Bagley and others will be needed tonight in the crucial match at Kingsport. Miller certainly believes his team would be ready to lock up with Dobyns-Bennett tonight.

 

“Without a doubt, we’re going to show up and wrestle to win,†Miller said. “We believe we should and we believe we can. If we come in any less, then we’ll fail.â€

 

 

[Sommers]

More local Tri-Cities' recognition and many around the state takes notice of continued growth of wrestling success...

 

http://www.tricities.com/sports/article_44ca78da-9c48-11e4-a2ac-c71b93d11057.html

 

Prep Wrestling

Vikings' wrestling win over SHHS ‘a long time coming’

 

Posted: Wednesday, January 14, 2015 6:51 pm | Updated: 6:58 pm, Wed Jan 14, 2015.

Nate Hubbard | Bristol Herald Courier

 

Posted on Jan 14, 2015by Nate Hubbard

While Tennessee High basketball was suffering a pair of defeats to Science Hill at Viking Hall on Tuesday, a different scene was taking place at Fairmount Elementary School.

Behind a superlative team effort and a match-deciding major decision by sophomore Bryson Henley, the Vikings picked up a stunning 35-29 wrestling victory to deal perennial state qualifier Science Hill its first loss to a Region 1 opponent since 2008.

“That’s been a long time coming,†said first-year Tennessee High coach Tim Marshall.

Marshall said Wednesday afternoon that his phone had buzzing all day with congratulatory calls and messages from across the region and even as far away as Nashville.

“It’s not a state championship, but for someone to knock Science Hill off is a pretty big feat,†he said.

The undermanned Vikings normally give up three weight classes, but called up a JV wrestler and shifted the lineup Tuesday to forfeit only two matches.

Jeremy Spangler pulled off an upset wrestling up at 170 pounds to get the Vikings rolling early and Tennessee High went on to win nine of the 12 contested matches, including seven straight to close out the match.

Henley clinched the win with a 16-5 major decision over William Pridemore in the decisive 145-pound clash.

“I was pretty excited,†said Henley, who won an individual Region 1-AAA title at 126 pounds last winter. “It got down to the last couple matches and I knew I was the last one. I knew I was going to either win it and we were going to win or I was going to lose it and we were going to lose. I was pretty excited about it, but I couldn’t have had that opportunity without the six [consecutive wins] before me.â€

Along with Spangler and Henley, Harold Johnson, Austin Hagerman, Marquez Thompson, Trent Nelson, Judson McCray, Corbin Hurley and Dewey Pendley all earned victories for the Vikings.

“It seemed to be as close to a perfect match as we can wrestle,†Marshall said. “Kids just stepped up.â€

Science Hill has represented the region at state duals for 15 straight years. Marshall didn’t have a specific date for Tennessee High’s last win over the Hilltoppers, but said the drought for the Vikings in the series extended back to the mid-1990s.

“Leading up to the match, everybody had been really focused,†Marshall said. “Science Hill’s been the measuring stick in Region 1 for years. To be able to come up and beat them definitely lets us know we’re on the right track.â€

Tuesday’s win puts Tennessee High in the driver’s seat for a long-sought return to the Region 1 duals next week, but the Vikings haven’t clinched a spot yet with the region electing to stick with a policy of taking the top two teams from each district instead of the overall top four squads in the region as was considered prior to the season.

The Vikings though, can lock up a regional duals berth today if Dobyns-Bennett beats Science Hill or by beating the Indians themselves next Tuesday when the programs clash at Viking Hall.

“We’re doing well and doing good things we haven’t been doing in the past,†Henley said. “We’re ready to take a region championship and take it on to state duals.â€

 

nhubbard@bristolnews.com | Twitter: @Hubbard_BHCSprt | (276) 645-2543

Edited January 16, 2015 by Sommers

[Sommers]

What a story and a model for success right here in the SE...

 

http://www.gwinnettdailypost.com/news/2015/jan/14/national-ranking-long-winning-streak-makes-archer/

 

Two years ago when we first started going, nobody even knew who we were. … They’d all say, ‘You all have wrestling teams in Georgia?’ And they kind of laughed at us. Last year, we proved ourselves in those national tournaments. There was one in Kansas City, and really when we beat St. Paris Graham from Ohio, that’s when we started getting top 10 rankings.

 

“Our thing is to be the team no one wants to wrestle,†said Vinny Artigues, who is 39-3 in individual matches in the 120-pound weight class this season. “Since I’ve gotten to high school, we’ve progressed and now, I think we’re finally that team.

 

... Archer, which has built up its strong national reputation by sending a powerful and deep lineup that includes nationally-ranked individuals like twin brothers Daniel and Thomas Bullard against some of the best opposition in the nation to meets and tournaments like the Kansas City Stampede (where they placed third of 48 teams) and the Powerade Invitational in Pittsburgh (where they won in a field of 40 different teams from 11 states).

[Sommers]

More Heartwarming & Encouraging Tri-Cities Coverage from Johnson City Standard Banner...

 

http://www.standardbanner.com/sports/english-townsend-take-second-at-fandetti-richardson-brawls/article_b850df00-9cc6-11e4-8651-93e495fee389.html

 

English, Townsend take second at Fandetti-Richardson Brawls

 

 

Posted: Thursday, January 15, 2015 9:56 am

By Dave Gentry – Sports Editor

 

JOHNSON CITY – JCHS senior wrestlers Logan Townsend and Virgil English earned second placings at the Fandetti-Richardson Brawls last weekend.

 

Both wrestlers battled their way into the championship bracket and then earned shots at the title match in their respective weight classes.

At 195 pounds, English took on Science Hill’s Hunter Bagley. The two have quite a bit of history from the past couple of years. They last met a month ago when the Patriots and Hilltoppers wrestled on December 16. During that match, Bagley earned a major decision over English.

 

This time, English nearly got the best of Bagley, losing a close 9-6 decision in the championship bout.

Regardless, Jefferson County head coach Logan Hollingshead was proud of English, particularly in his improvement since the December 16 match.

 

“He had a good game plan going in and wrestled a great match,†Hollingshead said. “He just came up a bit short.â€

 

Likewise, Patriot heavyweight Townsend nearly earned a championship win in the tournament’s 285 pound title match, but like English, fell just short to Lake Norman’s Patrick Dabiero.

 

According to Hollingshead, Townsend gave up a point to an escape early in the match and was penalized a point for not taping his shoelaces. Down 2-0 in the third period, Townsend battled back, earning a point via escape to make it a 2-1 match.

 

With time expiring, Townsend took a shot at a takedown, which allowed Dabiero to earn two points for a takedown, ending the match 4-1.

 

“Both wrestlers had very similar styles,†Hollingshead said of the heavyweight bout. “They were looking for the big throws out of neutral. Townsend wrestled a great match. It really just came down to that penalty point.â€

 

Jefferson County had one other wrestler advance into the championship bracket in 113-pounder Kyle Burns, but Burns was eliminated in the semi-finals, finishing in fourth place overall.

Burns lost an 11-3 major decison to Bradley Central’s Toribio Navarro in the semifinals, before losing by fall to Pigeon Forge’s Gavin Hutchens in the consolation match.

 

Two other Patriot wrestlers placed in the top eight. At 126 pounds, Bryson Hux finished in eighth place after advancing into the semifinals before suffering a slight injury and forfeiting the remaining matches.

Also in eighth place was Patriot 170-pounder Thomas Carter.

Carter was pinned by T.C. Robertson’s Travis Miles in the semifinals and then lost by fall to Heritage’s Javier Salvador in the seventh place match.

 

Overall, the Patriots finished 11th in team points with 97. The only other area teams ahead of the Patriots were Pigeon Forge (3rd place, 155 points), host school Science Hill (4th place, 152 points) and Heritage (7th place).

 

Hollingshead was pleased with the overall team performance and believes his team saw the Region’s best competition to boot.

“That’s the reason we go. Of course it honors three kids that used to be Patriot wrestlers, but it’s also a very tough tournament and does a good job of preparing us for the Region and State tournaments,†he said.

 

Jefferson County returns to action tonight in the last home match of the year. It will also be the team’s senior night celebration. They host Morristown-East and Tennessee High at the Patriot Academy. Weigh-ins are scheduled to start at 5:30 p.m.

Edited January 16, 2015 by Sommers

[Sommers]

Fantastic Local Coverage

 

http://www.tullahomanews.com/?p=28823

Wildcats win on senior night

Posted on Thursday, January 15, 2015 at 4:37 pm

 

 

Before Tuesday’s matchup against Riverdale, 13 THS seniors were recognized as part of the senior night ceremonies. Front row, from left: Jovahnny Sanchez, Dante Battles, Devan Cyree, Bryce Triplett, Andy Shahan, Adam Rogers and coach Jeff Lester. Top row: Head Coach Al Morris, Tristan Scott, TJ Tankersly, Chris Howse, Mikey Lett, Christian Kazmark, Jared Bonee, Hayden Eggleston and coach Steve Britton.

—Staff Photo by Zach Birdsong

TULLAHOMA NEWS

 

staff report

 

Tullahoma’s wrestlers didn’t let the emotions of senior night get the best of them on Tuesday night when the Wildcats defeated Riverdale 60-24 at Old West Middle School in the final home matchup of the year.

 

Before Tuesday’s matchup, the Wildcats honored their 13 senior members. Those seniors included: Jovahnny Sanchez, Dante Battles, Devan Cyree, Bryce Triplett, Andy Shahan, Adam Rogers, Tristan Scott, TJ Tankersly, Chris Howse, Mikey Lett, Christian Kazmark, Jared Bonee and Hayden Eggleston.

 

After the victory, Tullahoma Head Coach Al Morris praised the performance of his seniors.

 

“I think a lot of the kids realized that this was the last time that they are going to wrestle at home,†Morris said. “We wrestled as many seniors as we could because we didn’t have our whole starting lineup in, some of the guys that were seniors were JV for us. They stepped in and did what they were asked and took care of business.

 

“It was a good night and a good night for the parents to come and see their kids,†he added. “We had a good crowd, and I appreciate the crowd get-ting out there and supporting what this senior class has done.â€

 

Tankersly opened the match with a victory in the 132-pound class. He defeated Kyle Scotern with a second-round fall (2:21) to give Tullahoma a 6-0 advantage.

 

The Patriots answered with a pinfall victory. Caleb Gentry defeated Triplett in the third round (4:47) of the 138-pound class to tie the match at 6.

 

The Wildcats followed with three-straight pinfall wins to grab a 24-6 lead. Andrew Shahan defeated Justin Bleeks in the first round (1:15) of the 145-pound division. Howse followed by beating Seth Mathis in the second round (2:25) of the 152-pound matchup. Scott defeated Kurt Scothern in the first round (1:41) of the 160-pound class.

 

Riverdale answered with a win. Sean Kennedy defeated Bonee in the 170-pound division with a first-round fall (1:06) to make it a 24-12 matchup.

 

Dylan Pearson and Lett followed with back-to-back wins for Tullahoma. Pearson defeated Joshua Cruz in the second round (2:22) of the 182-pound matchup. Lett beat Timo-thy Martin in the first round (1:31) in the 195-pound division, to up the Wildcats’ lead to 36-12.

 

Riverdale then scored its final points of the match. Desmond Bollentine defeated Eggleston in the first round (1:54) in the 220-pound class. Nick Boykin beat Kazmark in the first round (1:55) of the 285-pound division, to cut it to a 36-24 matchup.

 

The Wildcats closed out the contest with four-straight wins, including two by forfeit. Will Moran won his matchup in the 106-pound class by forfeit, as did Battles in the 120-pound class.

 

Rogers defeated Ethan Patterson by a first-round fall (0:57) of the 113-pound class. Devan Cyree closed out the match with a first-round fall (1:28) over Clay Scotern in the 126-pound class.

 

After the match, Morris was elated with his team’s performance and was proud to have knocked off a solid Riverdale program.

 

“They’ve got two or three guys who are ranked No. 1 in the state or No. 1 and No. 2 in the state,†Morris said. “It’s a good wrestling program. They’ve always had a good wrestling program. To be able to knock off anybody in Murfreesboro, and knock off one of the bigger schools in Murfreesboro, is always a good thing.

 

“Like I said, this is a great group of kids and we continue to keep fighting and finish the year out,†he added. “That’s kind of been our motto this year is finish. Hopefully, we continue on that track as we finish out the regular season.â€

 

Tullahoma was scheduled to face Oakland in Murfreesboro on Thurs-day. As of press time, the result of that match was unavailable.

[Sommers]

Cookeville Shines, but not quite as Bright Against Roberts' Beech Bucs...

 

http://herald-citizen.com/sports/item/5780-houston-pin-lifts-cavs-over-pats

 

Houston pin lifts Cavs over PatsFeatured

 

14 Jan 2015 Written by H-C staff Published in Sports font size decrease font size increase font size Print Email

 

Cookeville’s David Pierce takes down Oakland’s Glenn Scrivens during the Cavaliers’ 37-36 win over the Patriots on Tuesday at CHS. Tony Marable | Herald-CitizenCOOKEVILLE — When Cookeville needed a pin the most, Darren Houston got it on Tuesday night.

 

The senior pinned Tyler Hill in 2:09 for six points, and that was just enough to help the Cavaliers rally past Oakland for a 37-36 win at CHS.

 

The victory kept the Cavaliers (15-5 overall, 3-0 District 10-0) undefeated in district play with two more matches to go.

 

“The guys wrestled about as hard as I could have expected them to wrestle last night,†Cookeville head coach Scott Cook said. “They got after it, they got the wins we needed and they stayed off their backs. They kept from getting pinned as much as they could, and Houston stepped out there and really stepped up. We had to have that pin in that last match to win.â€

 

Cookeville also took on Beech in the nightcap, and with several different wrestlers in the lineup the Cavs lost 52-20.

 

The opener turned out to be a barn-burner, during which the Patriots kept rallying against the Cavaliers.

 

Starting at 285, Jake Partain lost an 8-2 decision to Teijuan Henderson, but Hunter Harcum (106) won a 17-3 major decision over Charles Mejias, and Justin Rogers (113, in 1:43 over Tyler Khothsymuong) and Bradley Houmard (120, in 1:22 over Semaj Burton) both pinned their foes for a 16-3 Cookeville lead.

 

However, the Patriots bounced back as Cookeville forfeited at 126, Austin Hall (132) was pinned by Robert Barrett, and Jesse Saunders (138) lost a 7-2 decision to Ryder Gebhardt to give Oakland an 18-16 lead.

 

David Pierce (145) got the Cavs back on track, pinning Glenn Scrivens in 1:51, and Dalton Underwood (152) won a 9-3 decision over Casey Dibble for a 25-18 lead.

 

The Patriots got a pin by Scott Tilley over John Chea at 160 to close the gap, but Ty Hammons (170) made it 31-24 when he pinned Daniel Williams in 2:02.

 

Once again Oakland rallied, as Zack Tyner pinned Daniel Chea (182), and the Cavs had to forfeit at 195 to trail 36-31 and set up Houston’s victory.

 

“They’ve wrestled each other three times, and all three times it’s been an overtime match,†Cook said of Houston and Hill. “So to come out against a kid you’ve wrestled three times to overtime and pin him when you need to, it was huge.â€

 

In the nightcap against the Buccaneers, Cook turned to several different wrestlers, as Underwood had suffered an ankle injury in his match against Oakland and Cook wanted to get a look as some other faces in a non-district match.

 

“In a match like that and with the way this season has gone with the injuries and the adversity that we’ve had to deal with, right now we’re looking at the postseason and getting everybody that’s ready to make that strong push in the postseason,†Cook explained. “If that means we’ve gotta wrestle some different guys here and there, that’s what we’re gonna do.â€

 

Harcum (106), Rogers (113), Hammons (170) and Houston (220) all got wins against Beech.

 

Harcum won a 14-0 major decision over Bryan Kirkland, Rogers pinned Heath Uhles in 5:37, Hammons pinned Kyle Smith in 3:14, and Houston won a 13-0 major decision over Peyton Reinert.

 

The Cavaliers are scheduled to travel to Siegel on Thursday for another big District 10-AAA match that also includes Hendersonville.

 

“We’re still sitting in a good position in the district,†Cook said, “so we’ve gotta get everything lined up and ready to give Siegel our best shot on Thursday.â€

Edited January 16, 2015 by Sommers

[Sommers]

Historic Local Coverage...

 

Rallying from a disastrous start, Dobyns-Bennett defeated Science Hill to Tarnish The Topper's Record Dominance...

 

http://tricitiessports.com/dobynsbennett-rallies-from-horrid-start-claims-much-awaited-win-over-top-p74048-73.htm

 

Pigeon Forge wins fifth straight county wrestling title...

 

http://www.themountainpress.com/sports/x761904053/Pigeon-Forge-wins-fifth-straight-county-wrestling-title

Edited January 16, 2015 by Sommers

[Sommers]

Region 7 Final Stretch Coverage...

 

http://www.clarksvilleonline.com/2015/01/16/clarksville-high-wildcats-wrestling-adds-district-win-loss-northwest-vikings-meet/

 

Clarksville High Wildcats Wrestling adds District Win and Loss at Northwest Vikings Meet

January 16, 2015 |

 

Clarksville, TN – The local high school wrestling season comes to a close this week, adding significance to the last district duals. Thursday, the Northwest Vikings hosted what was scheduled to be a quad meet, but ended up being a short triangular meet with the Beech Buccaneers and the Clarksville High Wildcats.

 

At the end of the night, it was the Buccaneers and the Wildcats who picked up important wins. The Wildcats split the night, losing to the Buccaneers, then finishing with a win over the Vikings.

 

Clarksville High Wrestling gets win against Northwest but losses to Beech, Thursday night.

 

The Mt. Juliet Golden Bears did not make it to the quad meet and the Buccaneers competed in only one dual. The Wildcats were the only team to compete twice Thursday night.

 

They opened against the Buccaneers. With wins in six weight classes, including four pins, the Wildcats competed well against the Buccaneers. However, they were unable to overcome the Buccaneers depth and lost 40-26.

“The matches wrestled against Beech, we won 29-10, of the matches actually wrestled,†Wildcats head coach Tommy Badon said. “I was very pleased with how we wrestled. We wrestled really well, really tough tonight. We gave up five forfeits to Beech. It’s very tough to overcome that. I was very pleased with our effort.â€

 

Dalton Halliday and Kiel Russell were two of the Wildcats who won with pins against the Buccaneers. At 106, Halliday pinned Bryan Kirkland and at 195, Russell pinned David Dowell.

 

The Wildcats gave up four forfeits against the Vikings in their second dual, but overcame the deficit to get a 42-30 win. Russell picked up his second win of the night by pinning Matthew Choate. Halliday, Will Baker and Bryan Reynolds also finished the night with two wins.

The Wildcats generated five pins against the Vikings and won in 10 weight classes. Dylan Carney got the only pin for the Vikings. At 195, Carney pinned Caleb York.

 

“Against Northwest, Ben is doing a great job with them, I told the guys coming in that they were going to be ready. He was going to have his guys up and gunning for us and that was the case,“ coach Badon said. “Mentally, our guys were ready to go. There were a couple of matches that we won by points, I thought we were going to get larger victories out of. It was a testament to them. I thought they wrestled well and our kids wrestled well also. I was happy with our guys tonight.â€

[Sommers]

More Local Sevier Co Coverage...

 

http://www.themountainpress.com/sports/x761904053/Pigeon-Forge-wins-fifth-straight-county-wrestling-title

 

Pigeon Forge wins fifth straight county wrestling title

Jan. 15, 2015 @ 11:06 PM

Christopher James

 

 

Christopher James

Pigeon Forge's Franklin Darnell wrestles against Seymour's Grant Gallaspy on Thursday. Darnell won in the second extra period.

SEVIERVILLE —

 Pigeon Forge delivered a lesson in closing on Thursday night.

 

The Tigers, burdened so long by near misses in the dual state championship match, showed they learned how to finish off tough matches in last year’s run to the A/AA title. In a dual for the Sevier County title against Seymour, Pigeon Forge was best when the matches got grueling.

 

“It’s tough,†said Tigers junior Franklin Darnell. “You’ve got to stay in it mentally. You start out and you’ve just got to stay focused on your partner and who you’re wrestling. As you get more and more into it, you’ve just got to get the mentality of it to come out and let the psychological aspect take over. 

 

“Especially going into the extra periods like that, it’s got to be a mental thing.â€

 

Darnell didn’t pin the Eagles’ Grant Gallaspy until the second overtime period in perhaps the best match of Pigeon Forge’s 68-9 victory at Sevier County High School. The lopsided score earned the Tigers their fifth straight county crown but Seymour put together a string of competitive matches, none more so than Gallaspy’s defeat. The Eagles lost another match 1-0 and were pinned after the three-minute mark two more times. They were often competitive but just couldn’t get the points at the end to make the final score more respectable.

 

“I don’t think we had bad effort tonight,†said Seymour coach Alex Cate. “I felt like we went after it. Our effort just wasn’t enough to get the win. They’re a good team. You can’t just show up on Thursday night to beat a good team. You have to work hard for weeks and weeks and put the effort in to beat these good guys.â€

 

Both schools swept earlier matches against Sevier County and Northview Academy to wrestle for the championship. The Smoky Bears wrestled Seymour tough, tying the match at 15 before a handful of forfeits powered the Eagles to a 49-15 win. Sevier County was without both Luke Ellis (illness) and Eugene Hennigan (injury). The Bears lost to Pigeon Forge 84-0 and beat Northview, 36-12.

 

Joel Larraga, Ethan Shultz and Zach Sauls all earned victories over the Eagles. Garret Gay almost gave the Bears’ a fourth win, taking a one-point lead into the third period against Dakota Liedel. Like the Tigers later in the night, Liedel was just a little better at finishing in his 10-8 victory.

 

“I just started losing my cardio and getting a little bit dizzy,†Gay said. “That’s what lost it for me right there. … The regionals are coming up. I want to start getting my cardio up. There’s going to be a lot better wrestlers out there. They’ll get at me because they have way more than me in cardio.â€

 

Northview Academy is also working to build on Thursday’s results, which included a 64-6 loss to Seymour The Cougars just got a wrestling mat shortly before Christmas. Before that, Northview was practicing on the school’s turf field. 

 

“That’s helped us out tremendously,†said Cougars coach Brad Justus. “We get the feel for stuff and we can work drills and moves that put us in a better position to be successful on the mat. … We were a lot more competitive now than we were at the beginning of the season.â€

 

Everyone was left looking up at Pigeon Forge, as they have for the past five years. The Tigers appear poised to make a run at a second state title beginning with next week’s region duals. If Pigeon Forge finishes off opponents the way it did Thursday, another trip to Franklin seems likely.

 

“It’s a process,†said Tigers coach Greg Foreman. “Until you’ve been there, done that, seen what works, what doesn’t. I’m by no means any genius at this but I feel like we’ve got a good formula of what we do with the program. It’s not just me. It’s the coaches, the parents, the kids, the administration, it’s the students behavior in the classroom and interaction with other coaches. It’s all of it together. I think we’ve got a good formula.â€

[Sommers]

+More Local Shelbyville Press...

 

http://www.t-g.com/story/2156995.html

[Sommers]

Knox Halls Invitational Update via Track...

 

Team Scores

1.  Bradley Central  93.5

2.  Beech  78.5

2.  Wilson Central  78.5

4.  McCallie  64.5

5.  Knoxville Halls  57.5

6.  Blackman  48.5

7.  Red Bank  40.5

8.  Abingdon  36.0

8.  William Blount  36.0

10.  East Hamilton  28.0

11.  Alcoa  24.5

12.  Seymour  21.0

13.  Page  19.0

14.  Pisgah  14.0

15.  Maryville  13.0

16.  Powell  9.0

17.  Cane Ridge  7.0

[Sommers]

Out of state coverage for King College...

 

http://athletics.svu.edu/sports/wrest/2014-15/releases/201501170xt5z6