Fill out this form to email this article to a friend
Hurricanes appear to be class of county
By DEREK LaRIVIERE
Published February 8, 2007
Wrestling Regionals Class A When/where: Friday-Saturday. South Florida Community College, Avon Park Admission: $6 per session. Schedule: Friday - Weigh-ins, 10 a.m.; first round, noon. Saturday - Weigh-ins, 8 a.m.; semifinals, 10 a.m.; consolation finals, 6 p.m.; championship finals, 7:30 p.m. Top contenders: Citrus, Crystal River, Hernando, Gulf, Pasco, Cocoa Beach, Astronaut, Lake Wales, Avon Park Outlook: After advancing 12 wrestlers out of the 14 weight classes and winning the Class A, District 5 title, Citrus is a serious contender to take the region crown. Standing in its way is a rejuvenated program from Gulf (District 6). Cocoa Beach (District 7) and Lake Wales (District 8) also won their first-round tournaments, but neither is expected to put up as much of a fight as the stacked teams from Gulf and Citrus. The focus for Crystal River is the improvement of its individual wrestlers. Brandon Jones (112 pounds) lost his finals match to Citrus' Craig Barker, a matchup of lightweights who had seen each other a few times this season. Familiarity might have been the reason for the close loss, but the decision has to be eating at Jones, a preseason favorite to place at state this season. Team by team Citrus Coach Mike Porcelli said at midseason that once the team's injuries subsided, the Hurricanes would be a force in the postseason. So far, the Hurricanes have proven him correct. The biggest threats this weekend and beyond come from the program's lightweights. Citrus swept the first three weight classes last weekend with wins from Dylan Mullins (103), Barker (112) and Bryant Fisher (119). Fisher picked up a relatively easy pin (2:39) over Crystal River's John Koney during the district finals in what was supposed to be one of his biggest tests. Crystal River The Pirates came into this season with a little more of a reputation and expectations than their county and district rivals at Citrus. A couple injuries and stumbles cost Crystal River a spot in the state poll, but the program is capable of shocking some people and delivering this weekend with six grapplers qualifying for the region tournament. Jones will be looking to bounce back, but there are heavy expectations on district champion Corey Neal (135). Kevin Drawdy (152) notched a district win despite lower back pain. Look for him to tough out his way to a state-qualifying bid. Lecanto Five region qualifiers from Lecanto was a shock to most watching the brackets last weekend. The Panthers were considered somewhat of a wild card with their young lineup and lack of individual-bracket tournament experience. Even with that inexperience working against them, coach Richard Slack had his lineup prepared, and the results were obvious. Steven Struble (130) had the best performance with a district runnerup bid, losing to Nature Coast's Taequan Griffin in the finals. Wrestling Regionals Class A When/where: Friday-Saturday. South Florida Community College, Avon Park Admission: $6 per session. Schedule: Friday - Weigh-ins, 10 a.m.; first round, noon. Saturday - Weigh-ins, 8 a.m.; semifinals, 10 a.m.; consolation finals, 6 p.m.; championship finals, 7:30 p.m. Top contenders: Citrus, Crystal River, Hernando, Gulf, Pasco, Cocoa Beach, Astronaut, Lake Wales, Avon Park Outlook: After advancing 12 wrestlers out of the 14 weight classes and winning the Class A, District 5 title, Citrus is a serious contender to take the region crown. Standing in its way is a rejuvenated program from Gulf (District 6). Cocoa Beach (District 7) and Lake Wales (District 8) also won their first-round tournaments, but neither is expected to put up as much of a fight as the stacked teams from Gulf and Citrus. The focus for Crystal River is improvement of its individual wrestlers. Brandon Jones (112 pounds) lost his finals match to Citrus' Craig Barker in a match between lightweights who had seen each other a few times this season. Familiarity might have been the reason for the close loss, but the decision has to be eating away at Jones, a preseason favorite to place at state this season. Team by team Citrus Coach Mike Porcelli said at midseason that once the team's injuries subsided, the Hurricanes would be a force in the postseason. So far, the Hurricanes have proven him correct. The biggest threats this weekend and beyond come from the program's lightweights. Citrus swept the first three weight classes last weekend with wins from Dylan Mullins (103), Craig Barker (112) and Bryant Fisher (119). Fisher picked up a relatively easy pin (2:39) over Crystal River's John Koney during the district finals in what was supposed to be one of his biggest tests. Crystal River The Pirates came into this season with a little more of reputation and expectations than their county and district rivals at Citrus. A couple injuries and stumbles cost Crystal River a spot in the state poll, but the program is more than capable of shocking some people and delivering this weekend with six grapplers qualifying for the region tournament. Jones will be looking to bounce back, but there also are heavy expectations on district champion Corey Neal (135). Kevin Drawdy (152) notched a district win despite lower back pain. Look for him to tough out his way to a state-qualifying bid. Lecanto Five region qualifiers from Lecanto was a shock to most watching the brackets last weekend. The Panthers were considered somewhat of a wild card with their young lineup and lack of individual-bracket tournament experience. Even with that inexperience working against them, coach Richard Slack had his lineup prepared, and the results were obvious. Steven Struble (130) had the best performance with a district runnerup bid, losing to Nature Coast's Taequan Griffin in the finals.
[Last modified February 7, 2007, 20:50:27]
Share your thoughts on this story
|
News
Fifty years ago, they were screwed-up kids sent to the Florida School for Boys to be straightened out. But now they are screwed-up men, scarred by the whippings they endured. Read the story and see a video and portrait gallery.
Print
Email story
Comment
Email editor
