tmarshall7 Posted January 10, 2016 Report Share Posted January 10, 2016 (edited) As THS wins Cressel Classic, East's Hicks gets some redemption Allen Gregory | Bristol Herald Courier | Updated 8 hours ago BRISTOL, Va. – Sullivan East senior wrestler Luke Hicks took time for a quick celebration Saturday after winning in the finals of the Ed Cressel Classic. Considering his early season gauntlet, Hicks deserved a party. “I actually cut about 15 pounds in two weeks so I could wrestle in the 145-pound weight class,†Hicks said. In addition to intensive training and steam room sessions, the Hicks method to weight loss featured a diet of egg whites, broccoli, water and tuna. “Yes, I ate a lot of tuna from packages,†Hicks said. “It was a tough experience that I don’t want to go through again, but I definitely feel that I have a better shot wrestling at 145 than I did in the 152-pound class.†Hicks, who made his 145-pound tournament debut last weekend, posted a 6-3 decision over Tennessee High’s Harold Johnson in Saturday’s finals. Hicks fended off repeated takedown attempts in the final period. After losing to Ty Boyd (Rural Retreat) and Corbin Hurley of THS in the finals of the Cressel Classic the past two years, Hicks felt a sense of redemption Saturday. “It’s great to finally be at the top here,†he said. The heroics of Hicks were not enough to keep Tennessee High from the team title. The Vikings won six weight classes en route to a total of 298 points. Sullivan East (183.5 points), Galax (181.5) and Virginia High (175) were next in line. As usual, junior Trent Nelson ignited THS by grabbing the 106-pound crown and improving his record to 28-1. Surviving an early takedown from Elijah Hicks of Sullivan East, Nelson went to work with a reversal before recording a pin at the 45-second mark. “I always try for a pin to set the tone for the guys ahead of me,†Nelson said. “That [takedown] made me a little mad and helped with my motivation.†Nelson is a two-time regional champion who has over 100 career wins and is currently ranked second in the state. His story of sacrifice and success is illustrative of the THS program. “I’ve been wrestling for a long time, and the experience helps,†Nelson said. Nelson learned the basics of wrestling with the Viking Wrestling Club which later morphed into the Bristol Wrestling Club. “Our program is really strong and we push each other every day in practice,†Nelson said. Tennessee High freshman Dillon Pendley recorded a 6-4 win at 113 pounds, and then the spotlight turned to the 132-pound Battle of Bristol clash between Tennessee High senior Corbin Hurley and junior Roger Miller of Virginia High. Miller paced up and down the adjoining mats with a mask of intensity and displayed all sorts of quickness, but Hurley relied on his flawless technique and conditioning to record a 6-1 decision. “It’s always nice to wrestle skilled guys and Roger is one of the toughest guys I’ve faced this season,†Hurley said. With his flexibility and strength, Hurley countered every move from Miller and finished strong. “Our team approach is to wrestle hard for all six minutes,†Hurley said. “By the third period, we feel that we’re in better condition and that’s usually where we win our matches.†Hurley has a 30-1 record, including a 6-2 decision over Miller last week at THS. After compiling 135 career wins and grabbing a second-place finish in the state tournament last year, Hurley hopes to become the first four-time regional champion in school history this season. “I’ve been wrestling since the third grade and a lot of guys on our team started around the same time,†he said. “We learn the fundamentals early and go from there.†Miller briefly trained with the Bristol Wrestling Club after moving with his family from the Chicago area in the fifth grade. “It was a tough adjustment to a new area, but wrestling has really helped,†said Miller, who finished fourth in the state meet last year and has a 20-3 record this season. Hurley and Miller wished each other good luck before Saturday’s match, then Hurley excited the fans in the opening seconds when he executed a deft single-leg move and then slammed Miller to the mat. “[Hurley] pushed the pace a lot more in this match,†Miller said. “I tried to use my quickness and strength, but he’s such a smart kid. You have to keep your composure, and I didn’t do a good job of that.†The highlight for Virginia High came when Adam Lauman won at 195 pounds. After nearly pinning Sam McCoy of Sullivan East early in the match with a cradle, Lauman executed a screw pin at the 3:03 mark. “Those have been my two favorite moves since eighth grade,†Lauman said. “You have to be aggressive and show them your strength.†Lauman can relate to the travails of Hicks after he failed to meet weight Saturday morning. “I normally wrestle in the 182-pound weight class, but I weighed in at 184 pounds and four ounces and I just decided to wrestle at 195,†Lauman said. “Each opponent today probably had six or seven pounds on me, but it’s a mental thing and you just have to wrestle your best. I finished second in the regional last year, and I’ve improved a lot since last year.†VHS coach Josh Shuler was pleased with how Lauman responded to the challenge Saturday. “He adjusted well to the weight change and we knew he would,†Shuler said. “We plan to move Adam back to 182 pounds because that’s where he’s most comfortable.†The Bearcats will compete in the Southwest District Duals Tuesday at Abingdon before hosting the Best of Bristol on Wednesday. Wise County Central freshman Casey Bush was named outstanding wrestler after capturing the 170-pound title with a 6-1 decision. Bush is the son of Lee Bush, who coached Castlewood to a state championship after a record-setting wrestling career at the same school. “I was surprised to win the award today,†Casey Bush said. “I just wrestled hard.†Casey Bush earned his victory the hard way Saturday, battling through shoulder pain for more than half the match. “My shoulder got jerked around,†he said. “It didn’t come all the way out of the socket, but I could feel it moving around. It hurt a little.†Senior Caleb Spurlin, who played a key role in the Division 1 state football title for Galax, displayed his other talent Saturday by storming to the 220-pound title. A two-time state champion, Spurlin needed only 1:10 to win by pin in the finals. The list of Saturday’s champions also included Bryson Henley, Jeremy Spangler and Dewey Pendley of THS along with Logan Chase and John Stiltner of Sullivan East. No wrestler was happier than Hicks of East. “I don’t want to see any more tuna until after the season,†he said. “I feel a lot better in my current weight class.†agregory@bristolnews.com | Twitter: @Greg_BHCSports | (276) 645-2544 http://www.heraldcourier.com/sports/as-ths-wins-cressel-classic-east-s-hicks-gets-some/article_4a95bef8-b751-11e5-a1f2-9b142a5c10fd.html?mode=jqm Edited January 10, 2016 by tmarshall7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmarshall7 Posted January 10, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 10, 2016 Tournament Results 106 Results Guaranteed Places 1st Place - Trent Nelson of Tennessee High 2nd Place - Elijah Hicks of Sullivan East 3rd Place - Ta Strother of Robert E. Lee 4th Place - Nate Bemis of Galax 5th Place - Ben Maxwell of Rockbridge 6th Place - Andrew Robinette of Virginia High 113 Results Guaranteed Places 1st Place - Dillon Pendley of Tennessee High 2nd Place - Will Anders of Grayson County 3rd Place - Auden Cook of Tennessee High B 4th Place - James Akers of Galax 5th Place - Austin Yeary of Central 6th Place - Asa Smith of Rockbridge 7th Place - Alyssa Shamay of George Wythe 8th Place - Jamin Richardson of Elizabethton 120 Results Guaranteed Places 1st Place - Brant Cummins of Grayson County 2nd Place - Dominic Fields of Tennessee High 3rd Place - Judson McCray of Tennessee High B 4th Place - Dalton Jessee of Virginia High 5th Place - Grayson Mullins of Central 6th Place - Kaden Wagner of Rockbridge 7th Place - Jacob Stearns of Rockbridge B 8th Place - Christian Vance of Blacksburg 1st Place Match 126 Results Guaranteed Places 1st Place - Logan Chase of Sullivan East 2nd Place - Alex Williams of Robert E. Lee 3rd Place - Joshua Spurlin of Galax 4th Place - Ryan Tomlin of Rockbridge 5th Place - Logan Ferguson of Tennessee High 6th Place - Brandon Talley of Morristown East 7th Place - Alex Adkins of Virginia High 8th Place - Noah Maxfield of Castlewood 132 Results Guaranteed Places 1st Place - Corbin Hurley of Tennessee High 2nd Place - Roger Miller of Virginia High 3rd Place - Dylan Chase of Sullivan East 4th Place - Smith Hintry of Rockbridge 5th Place - Dominick Plumley of Castlewood 6th Place - Richard Owens of Central 7th Place - Will Poore of Tennessee High B 8th Place - Andrew Owens of Ridgeview 138 Results Guaranteed Places 1st Place - Dewey Pendley of Tennessee High 2nd Place - Logan Mills of George Wythe 3rd Place - Brandon Combs of Virginia High 4th Place - Kilroy Hill of Elizabethton 5th Place - Sage Duncan of Blacksburg 6th Place - Christian Grimes of Grayson County 7th Place - Matt Ferguson of Robert E. Lee 8th Place - Trevor Shupe of Central 145 Results Guaranteed Places 1st Place - Luke Hicks of Sullivan East 2nd Place - Harold Johnson of Tennessee High 3rd Place - Kage Tomlin of Rockbridge 4th Place - Matthew Dean of Virginia High 5th Place - Ethan Jackson of Grayson County 6th Place - Teion Brown of George Wythe 7th Place - Iain Wiseman of Robert E. Lee 8th Place - Brandon Kern of Central 152 Results Guaranteed Places 1st Place - Bryson Henley of Tennessee High 2nd Place - Anderson Huger of Rockbridge 3rd Place - Brandon Davis of Castlewood 4th Place - Caspian Driscoll of Blacksburg 5th Place - Elijah Harrison of Galax 6th Place - Ethan Eaton of Virginia High B 7th Place - Jordan Anderson of Morristown East C 8th Place - Jacob Fayler of Virginia High 160 Results Guaranteed Places 1st Place - Banner Robson of Robert E. Lee 2nd Place - Jason Frederick of Blacksburg 3rd Place - Daryal Glover of Galax 4th Place - Logan Fields of Tennessee High 5th Place - Jake Snyder of Galax B 6th Place - Finn Stewart of Rockbridge 7th Place - Alex Fayler of Virginia High 170 Results Guaranteed Places 1st Place - Casey Bush of Central 2nd Place - Jack Vaughan of Galax 3rd Place - Taylor Fix of Robert E. Lee 4th Place - Josh Fugate of Blacksburg 5th Place - Dougie Peoples of Galax B 6th Place - Any Yancey of George Wythe 7th Place - Tony McCracken of Virginia High 8th Place - Tommy Kostelni of Rockbridge B 182 Results Guaranteed Places 1st Place - Jeremy Spangler of Tennessee High 2nd Place - Tyler Moore of Rockbridge 3rd Place - Mark Jones of Blacksburg 4th Place - Acie McCoy of Sullivan East 5th Place - Angel Solis of Galax 6th Place - Terrance Adams of Central 7th Place - Dallas Ingle of Castlewood 8th Place - Paul Alba of Galax B 195 Results Guaranteed Places 1st Place - Adam Lauman of Virginia High 2nd Place - Sam McCoy of Sullivan East 3rd Place - Gunnar Jessee of Castlewood 4th Place - Jacob Torrens of Blacksburg B 5th Place - Daniel Keith of Blacksburg 6th Place - Josh Rice of Elizabethton 7th Place - Quynton Brakens of Galax 8th Place - Tyler Lopez of Sullivan East B 220 Results Guaranteed Places 1st Place - Caleb Spurlin of Galax 2nd Place - Austin Hagerman of Tennessee High 3rd Place - Mark Frank of Virginia High 4th Place - Matthew Elliott of Blacksburg 5th Place - Casey Turner of Ridgeview 6th Place - Jordan Hearl of Robert E. Lee 7th Place - Adam Puckett of Castlewood 8th Place - Donovan Kintner of George Wythe 285 Results Guaranteed Places 1st Place - John Stiltner of Sullivan East 2nd Place - Jake Davis of Blacksburg 3rd Place - Kyler Pulliam of Robert E. Lee 4th Place - Corey Parsons of Castlewood 5th Place - Wyatt Short of Morristown East 6th Place - Jesse Parsons of Blacksburg B 7th Place - Giovanni Bahena of Robert E Lee B 8th Place - Matt Criner of Galax Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoroRef Posted January 12, 2016 Report Share Posted January 12, 2016 (edited) nice article Edited January 12, 2016 by BoroRef Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
humorwrestling Posted January 12, 2016 Report Share Posted January 12, 2016 What happened to your original post BoroRef? Why edit? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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