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DEL.ICIO.USMacon duals drama-rich
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The AJC’s Kurt Aschermann Jr. talks H.S. wrestling each Thursday. Feel free to talk back.
Wow. What an exhilarating two days at the state duals in Macon. A 64-team field whittled down to 10 by nightfall Saturday. And of the five finals, three — Class AAAA, AAA and AA — were all-out battles. But some things stood out more than others. Here’s a sampling.
• The Cass-West Laurens quarterfinal match in Class AAA was a classic. Some of the highlights:
West Laurens’ 215-pounder Dondricus Anderson, hobbling around with a leg injury and facing obvious fatigue from a match that looked like it would never end, still managed to stick Cass’ Nick Cordell in 5:29. Plus, Anderson’s determination, and eventual claim of six points, kept the Raiders in the match (they trailed 12-0 coming in). If Cordell gets the pin, it’s a completely different story.
During the pivotal 112-to-130 stretch, Cass got lightning-quick pins from two-time defending state champion Justin Martin at 119 pounds and Damon Cadle at 130 pounds. West Laurens’ duo of Blaine Harvey (112) and Michael Slaughter (125) could only muster a tech fall and a major decision, respectively, and Cass led 27-21 with three weight classes left.
With West Laurens up 29-27, the dual came down to the 145-pound match between Michael Gordon of Cass and the Raiders’ Germany Coleman. Each wrestler was put on their back once late in the second period, then Gordon dropped Coleman again, completing the pin in 4:36 and clinching the dual for Cass. Amazing.
• In the first round of the Class AAAA bracket, Stockbridge manhandled Northside-Warner Robins, 82-0. The only Tiger not to collect a pin was 145-pound Corey Harper, who won a 14-0 major decision.
• Look out for T.J. Mitchell, Wesleyan’s 103-pounder. He’s tormented opponents all season, including a pin that clinched the AA title and Wolves coach Jeff Bedard called Mitchell the best wrestler in the state regardless of classification. That’s high praise from one of the sharper minds of the sport.
• Hats off to Jefferson, which won its seventh consecutive Class A duals title. Taking nothing away from the talented, well-coached Dragons, but it might be time to combine Class AA and A. Imagine a bracket with Jefferson, Lafayette, Wesleyan, Dublin and Lovett.
Wrestling writer Kurt Aschermann Jr. ranks the top wrestling teams in the state, regardless of class: Week of Jan. 25 (last week’s ranking in parenthesis)
1: McEachern (3)
2: Parkview (1)
3: Collins Hill (2)
4: Stockbridge (10)
5: Walton (4)
6: Gilmer (9)
7: Jefferson (11)
8: Cass (NR)
9: West Laurens (5)
10: Eastside (6)
11: Lafayette (7)
12: Harrison (12) / Union Grove (8) — tie
On the cusp: Wesleyan, Whitewater, Henry County, Columbus, Northwest Whitfield, Hardaway, Lovett, Cherokee
Pin it down and rank the rankings: Let us know who your Top 12 are and how they stack up against Kurt’s picks.
Permalink | Comments (11) | Post your comment | Categories: Pound For Pound
Comments
By Laura Maher
January 25, 2007 04:15 PM | Link to this
Kurt Aschermann Jr. is one of the best writers. Always enjoy his articles! He is so detailed and very aware of all the events he attends and writes great articles.
By richard
January 25, 2007 04:17 PM | Link to this
Murray county has beaten Lafayette,Gilmer,Northwest Whitfield,and Cherokee.
By pinmunnkey
January 25, 2007 07:01 PM | Link to this
how close was murray in 5-AAAAA duals? did they lose to harrison or mch?
By todd turpin
January 25, 2007 08:17 PM | Link to this
Murray Co lost to both McEachern and Harrison
By Jerry
January 25, 2007 10:00 PM | Link to this
Great to see wrestling getting some coverage here in Georgia. Thanks, Kurt. Good job. And if you want to see how popular the sport is becoming, check out a youth wrestling tournament. There is one almost every Saturday this time of the year all around the state. You can find the info at www.teamgeorgiawrstling.com
By bridgett
January 26, 2007 03:33 AM | Link to this
Tucker High School 171 Raymond Ellis is in a class of his own. Why don’t you mentioned this kid. He is undefeated in dekalb. He went to national and placed. He won all his individual matches in macon the state. Look at his stats. You only mention sudden individuals. Give credit to where credit due.
By Jim
January 26, 2007 03:20 PM | Link to this
There’s always been a strong belief that Kurt Aschermann was the infamous JTB.
By ashley
January 27, 2007 01:06 AM | Link to this
great article. Hey jim who or what is JTB?
By ashley
January 27, 2007 01:07 AM | Link to this
great article. Hey jim who or what is JTB?
By Harvey J
January 29, 2007 04:36 AM | Link to this
don’t forget about Lafayete and Lovett now, they’ll be back in 2A..I still like it to come down to those 2 teams at tradtitional.
and in 3A, Hardaway is for real; won Columbus City title over Columbus HS; might grab 5 or 6 placers in Gwinnett next month
By 3AAA Fan
January 29, 2007 11:45 AM | Link to this
Actually it wasn’t Germany Coleman that Michael Gordon beat. It was a JV Kid!