AJC > Sports > Highschools > Blog > Archives > 2008 > December > 10 > Entry
DEL.ICIO.USPound for Pound: News from the Panther Invitational
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Pound for Pound spent last weekend at the 15th Panther Invitational. Former Class A kingpin Jefferson opened its first season in Class AA with the team title because of 11 finalists and six individual champions. There were other stars in this great early December tournament. Here’s a recap:
PFP Most Outstanding Wrestler
Daniel Barber, Jefferson: Before you knew it, the 119-pound title match was over. Barber pinned a good wrestler, Gilmer’s Danyuhl Becker, in 35 seconds to cap a two-pin, 15-0 tech fall weekend for last year’s 119-pound runner-up.
Look out for Gilmer
Still unranked, but possibly not for long, the Bobcats looked strong at the Panther, finishing second without starters Hunter Barnes (torn ligament in thumb), Cody Bollinger (broken hand) and Nathan Nestor. Gilmer graduated four state finalists from its Class AAA Traditional championship team, but coach Sam Snider has reloaded, and something tells us we’ll know all about the new men in purple by February.
“We’ve got one senior and he may not get in the lineup, so we are rebuilding in that sense,” said Snider. “But these kids wrestled state placers [in the practice room] for the last few years, so now it’s their turn.”
Ware County will be fun to watch this season
The Gators have a new coach, Scott Konicki, who plans to build a winning program down in the swamp. Having a potential state placer like Maurice Taylor (160-pound runner-up to Jefferson’s Jay Fowler this past weekend) helps the building process for Konicki. Ware County, which hasn’t finished better than 39th in the past three Class AAAA Traditional tournaments, placed 10th at the Panther.
“This is real big,” Konicki said of the Gators’ top-10 finish. “No one paid attention to us; now they’re saying, ‘Who are these guys?’”
A wrestling wish
Here’s hoping Fowler and Henry County’s Anthony Fretwell (defending champion, still unbeaten this season for the No. 7 Warhawks) reach the Class AA 160-pound title match in February. That could end up being one of the most entertaining bouts of the entire Traditional tournament, especially with Fowler’s fourth state championship on the line.
The national spotlight
— We start at the Knoxville Invitational, where Sprayberry’s Colby Rinehart defeated Tennessee state champion Trey Stavrum (Baylor High School) to win the 135-pound title, and Lassiter wrestlers Zach Walker (215) and Connor Griffin (171) both walked away with titles. Marietta had eight placers (two finalists) and finished third, while Blessed Trinity finished fifth and had five placers (three finalists).
— McEachern’s Brandon Westerman had a tough weekend, going 1-2 at Walsh Ironman. Westerman, the four-seed at 125 pounds, opened the tournament with a 6-2 loss to Brent Fickel of Padua Franciscan (Ohio), a Tulsa national champion in his pre-high school days. Westerman dropped to the loser’s bracket and defeated unseeded Tom Collum of Glenbard North (Ill.), 18-3, before dropping a 10-1 major decision to nine-seed Stephen Robertson (Montini Catholic, Ill.).
— Parkview won the Southern Slam in South Carolina, getting individual titles from Robbie Kane (112) and Matt Johnson (215). Wesleyan finished fifth, led by 160-pound champion and Outstanding Wrestler Colin Genthert, who handed two-time South Carolina state champion Zane Newton his third high school loss.
AJC Top 10 (Last week)
1. Collins Hill (1): Eagles dominant in five-match sweep at Walton Duals.
2. Union Grove (2): Wolverines pick up easy wins over Eastside, Lithonia.
3. Pope (3): Second at Walton Duals.
4. Jefferson (4): First at Panther; six champs, 11 finalists. Not in top shape yet, but it’s only a matter of time with Dragons.
5. Lafayette (5): Defeated four Tennessee teams on way to first-place finish at UTC Duals; whipped Ringgold on Tuesday.
6. Kennesaw Mountain (6): Champions of Carpet Classic, despite missing four wrestlers.
7. Henry County (7): Three individual champions help Warhawks win Starr’s Mill Invitational title.
8. Cass (8): Only loss at Walton Duals to No. 3 Pope; finish third.
9. Dacula (9): Falcons finish first at Falcon Duals.
10. Centennial (10): After hectic first two weeks, Knights took the week off. Host Kell tonight.
Coaches Poll Week 4
Collins Hill (8), 89 points. Last week: 1
Union Grove, 68. Last week: 2
Jefferson (1), 67. Last week: 4
Pope, 59. Last week: 3
Lafayette, 37. Last week: 6
Henry County, 31. Last week: T-7
T-7 Whitewater, 24. Last week: NR
T-7 Centennial, 24. Last week: 5
Cass, 22. Last week: 9
Kennesaw Mountain, 20. Last week: T-7
Others receiving votes: Eastside, 16; Parkview, 11; Camden County, 7; Dacula, 6; Grayson, 6; Walton, 4; Gilmer, 2; Wesleyan, 1; Fayette County, 1
Takedowns
— It’s safe to say No. 1 Collins Hill exacted a bit of revenge from its early season dual loss to Pope. The Eagles drubbed the No. 3 Greyhounds, 54-9, in the championship match to seal a near-perfect day at the Walton Duals. Here’s what domination looks like: Including forfeits, Eagle wrestlers went a combined 63-7 in five dual victories.
— You might not have heard of Hephzibah wrestlers Bobby Liggins and Cory Campbell, but you probably will soon. At South Effingham High School’s Mustang Invitational, Liggins (third last year) won the 215-pound title and Campbell took home the 189-pound crown. In a wide-open Class AAAA where several weight classes appear up for grabs, look out for this duo.
On the record
“We beat McCallie for the first time … it was a great day for us.” — Lafayette coach Sam Forester on the Ramblers first-ever victory against the Tennessee school and a first-place finish at the UTC Duals.
Where we’ll be
It’ll be a light week for the Pound for Pound, but we’ll be catching as much of Friday night’s action at the Sawnee Mountain Duals as we can. Next Monday we head to Bartow County, where No. 6 Kennesaw Mountain visits No. 8 Cass.
Permalink | Comments (2) | Post your comment | Categories: Pound For Pound
Comments
By cnsmuck
December 11, 2008 12:31 PM | Link to this
We saw Peachtree RIdge last night and they are pretty tough. They have enough studs for a high finish at the state individual tournament.
By Rocky
December 14, 2008 10:30 AM | Link to this
Centennial, Kennesaw Mountain, and Parkview have wins over Henry Co. Not sure why they aren’t ranked over Henry. Peachtree Ridge should be receiving votes too. Big win over South Dade for Collins Hill. They look unstoppable.
5A – Collins Hill, 4A – Cass, 3A – Eastside, 2A – Jefferson, 1A - Wesleyan