News Page
N. Burlington female wrestler Price sets sights on regions
Thursday, January 26, 2006
By RYAN LAWRENCE
Courier-Post Staff
The name appears in the paper the day after nearly every match, just like the name of any other wrestler.
But it's not always right.
The Northern Burlington 112-pounder is not Brady Price. Or Brandon Price.
The Greyhounds' first-year starter is Brandy Price. And yes, she is a girl.
"To us, it's no big deal -- it really isn't," said her coach, Jule Dolci.
Brandy Price is the only female wrestler at Northern, and one of just more than a handful of girls to take the mat in South Jersey in the past five years.
But whether it's her prematch grappling with a teammate, her gutsy, six-minute efforts or her presence behind her coaches, rooting on her fellow Greyhounds, Price is more concerned with being a competitive wrestler than being someone different than everyone else. "I've grown up with these guys; they're like my brothers," Price said of her teammates. "I just fit in -- it's good."
But Price isn't just turning heads because people aren't used to seeing someone take off their headgear to reveal long, blonde hair. She's gaining attention because she is winning.
Heading into Friday's match against Delran, Price has a 6-9 record -- and has not received any forfeit wins in Northern's dual meets.
"She's tough, and she gets a lot of respect in our school district," Dolci said. "I think she can get to regions."
In order to advance to Region 7, which will be held the first week of March at Eastern, Price would have to finish among the top three placewinners at District 25. That task shouldn't be a longshot for the Greyhounds junior, who gained postseason experience last year.
Last March, Price, at 114 pounds, placed 10th in the United States Girls' Wrestling Association National Championship in Michigan.
"It was an amazing experience -- eight mats going, all for girls," said Price, who also collected state titles in all-girl competition in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. "I had the biggest weight class, with 28 (other girls). It was just great to see how many other girls are out there."
Price, ranked No. 8 in the nation at her weight by the U.S. Girls Wrestling Association, began wrestling when she was 9. She first gained interest in the sport a few years earlier when she watched a cousin compete.
"My family wouldn't let me and I bugged them every year," Price said. "They didn't think I could do it."
Price's parents, Liz and Dave, finally gave in after the family moved from Reading, Pa., into Burlington County. Now the Price family -- which includes Brandy's twin sister, Brooke, who plays basketball at Notre Dame High School -- is accustomed to driving their wrestling daughter all over the place.
Price made the traveling easier by out-gunning her Northern teammates for the 112-pound spot in the lineup this fall. Now she's hoping her hard work will pay off with a spot at regions.
"If I keep working as hard as I can and I keep doing what I'm doing, I should do pretty well," Price said.
"My first goal was to make varsity, and I did that, so now I want to place top three in the district." Reach Ryan Lawrence at rlawrence@courierpostonline.com
5 more pictures of Brandy Price
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KOMO Prep Sports Hour Jan. 21st, 2006
By Tom Hutyler January 21, 2006
Audio : KOMO 1000 NEWS
Top Ten High School Hoops Recap, Wrestler Whitney Conder, Ray Willis of Chief Sealth, Saturdays with Smitty.
Hear Audio Report
SEATTLE - The KOMO Prep Sports Hour, can be heard from 1-2 p.m. Saturday afternoons. The show focuses on the outstanding individual and team performances each week involving area High School athletes. Hosted by KOMO Sports Anchor Tom Hutyler.
The Jan. 21st, 2006 show featured Ray Willis, head coach of top-ranked girls 3A basketball powerhouse Chief Sealth; Puyallup wrestler Whitney Conder; nutritionist Susan Adams, and Craig Smith of the Seattle Times talking about high school wrestling.
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Washington State High School All-Division Rankings for 2005-06
By Dave Gilbertson
1/22/2006 edition
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High school spotlight: Rachel Gomez River City, sophomore / wrestling
By Joshua Warn -- Special to The Bee
Published 2:15 am PST Monday, January 30, 2006
Story appeared in Sports section, Page C2
Rachel Gomez
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Rachel Gomez's family, coaches and friends say she can read a new novel every other day.
The River City wrestler, who carries a 4.0 GPA, has sped through countless books -from the "Harry Potter" series to "Wuthering Heights" - as she absorbs the stories. It's how she approaches everything she's passionate about -at full throttle.
"When she really commits herself to something, she does it at 110 percent, and you don't even have to ask," her father, Gabe Gomez, said.
Rachel Gomez's pastor, Conor Manning, described a "spirit, focus and extra level of discipline," which she displays whenever one of her favorite topics arises: her faith, equal opportunities for women and wrestling.
But it's in the latter that her passion wins her medals. Gomez represented the Raiders at the first CIF Girls Regional Wrestling Tournament and took gold in her 165-pound weight class. She also reached the Sac-Joaquin subsection tournament last year as a freshman.
Gomez won Mexico's junior Olympics in women's freestyle, and she is scheduled to travel to Lithuania this coming year as a member of USA Wrestling. But her success has been well-earned.
"I practice until I'm half-dead," Gomez said.
Said Stephan Raymond, Gomez's River City teammate and practice partner: "She's always practicing -year-round. She practices with multiple schools. She'll practice with our school, then she'll go to Lodi and practice with them."
About two or three times a week, after practicing with the Raiders, Gomez makes a 40-minute drive from West Sacramento to Lodi for an additional practice with technique mentor Phil Kendall. He said Gomez relies too much on her raw strength to win matches, but if she fine-tunes her technical skills, the possibilities are limitless.
"Her technique is based solely on her strength," Kendall said. "Once she becomes technically sound, she's going to be unstoppable."
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BREAKING DOWN GENDER BARRIERS: Wrestling for respect
Arbor View's Mayes competing in male-dominated sport
By TODD DEWEY
REVIEW-JOURNAL 1/26/06
It's tough enough to make a varsity team as a freshman. But when the freshman in question is a female in a male-dominated sport such as wrestling, the challenge is even more daunting.
Earning a spot on the Arbor View varsity wrestling squad is only one goal on a list of many that freshman Angie Mayes hopes to accomplish, though.
Advertisement
Mayes, who has compiled an 11-8 record at 119 pounds this season against mostly boys, is also 10-1 in girls prep tournaments in California this season.
Mayes, who moved to Las Vegas from Lafayette, Calif., in August, is one of the top-ranked girls in her weight class in California, where high school girls wrestling is widespread.
She has won three of four tournaments she's competed in this season in California, and she hopes to qualify for the girls national freestyle and Greco-Roman tournaments this year.
"Wrestling here in high school is big for me, and going to challenge girls is big for me, too," Mayes said. "When I go on the mat, I tell myself it doesn't matter who I'm wrestling or how good they are, it's how bad do I want to beat them. I just say to myself, 'You're going to do it, Angie.' "
Mayes, who was introduced to the sport by her father, former prep wrestling coach Nicky Mayes, will try to qualify for nationals in events in Kentucky and Missouri over the next few weeks.
She also has her sights set on qualifying for the prep girls world championships, earning a college scholarship in women's wrestling and competing in the Olympics.
"I'm going to give it all I can and work as hard as I can to try to get it," she said.
Arbor View coach Jeff Bzoskie said Mayes, who had to earn her spot on the squad by beating a couple boys in her weight class, already has established herself as a team leader.
"She's the toughest kid in that weight class," he said. "She's the best wrestler in our room, technically speaking, and her work ethic is phenomenal. She's our leader.
"She has great determination for the sport. She trains hard and she works out at home with her dad."
Mayes, a B student who aspires to earn 12 varsity letters in high school -- in volleyball, wrestling and softball -- said she used to get teased in middle school about wrestling but added that she has earned the respect of her high school teammates.
"Mostly guys get intimidated by me and some overreact, but they respect me for being out here," she said. "On the mat, they treat me like another guy and I treat myself like that, too. I'm not any different from anyone else on the mat and I respect them for treating me like that."
Bzoskie, who has coached wrestling for 15 years, said he wasn't sure what to expect from Mayes at first.
"I was kind of hesitant myself, but after seeing her go at it, it was amazing to see her beat these boys," he said. "Initially, boys are hesitant when they have to wrestle her, but after they see her work ethic and how good she is, she fits right in. Everyone comes over after a match and says, 'she's tough.' She's all girl, but when it comes to wrestling, she's all business.
"She's very well-rounded. She's good on her feet and good on the mat. If she had more strength, she could go against anybody in the city. She just lacks the strength of a boy."
Mayes agreed.
"I hope by next year I'm able to go to state, but I don't have enough strength yet," she said. "It's the strength that usually holds me back, but I'm starting to get more into weight training."
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Wrestlers Hunter, Espana recognized
Michael Sudhalter
Record Staff Writer
Published Wednesday, Jan 25, 2006
Emily Espana has won five high school girls wrestling tournaments this year, but the Lincoln senior has her eyes on some bigger prizes.
The California Girls Invitational Tournament on Feb. 3-4 at Hanford West High School and the United States Girls Wrestling Association Nationals in Michigan on April 1-2.
"This is my year," said Espana, who is 25-2. "I pretty much have to prove everything this year. Everybody's trying to knock you down. I have to train harder to keep my spot."
Espana's spot currently is No. 2 in the nation at the 132-pound division, according to the USGWA.
Espana The Record Girls Athlete of the Week, has won five tournaments this season and finished second at another.
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Stockton duo pins future on wrestling
LORI GILBERT
Columnist
Published Friday, Jun 24, 2005
Maybe it’s because when it made its Olympic debut in Athens last summer, women’s wrestling — or four matches of it — aired at that prime viewing time of 2 a.m.
Or, it could be that the sports-watching world isn’t ready for women engaged in hand-to-hand combat.
It will take time to overcome that well-established bias.
And, it will take more girls like Emily Espana and Kristen Campbell.
The Stockton teenagers, members of their high school teams, have overcome the "are you kidding?" comments of their friends, the initial derision from their male teammates, the "I’m not going to lose to a girl" thinking of opponents and, most importantly, the rigorous demands of the sport.
The teammates at USA Stockton wrestling club dream of winning a national championship, even if most sports fans aren’t even aware it exists.
"It’s my life," said Espana, who competes at 128 pounds. "I have a social life, but I don’t do that much. I dedicate my time to wrestling."
She doesn’t do it for attention. Even male wrestlers get little notice.
"I liked how you’re one on one," said Espana, who will be a senior at Lincoln High. "It’s just you out there."
Other individual sports didn’t appeal to her or to Campbell.
"I tried dance," Espana said. "I had two left feet."
"I can do that," said Campbell, who likes to Salsa dance.
But wrestling was the only sport Campbell seriously considered trying at Bear Creek High, and last year, as a junior, she joined the team.
"I’ve always been a ‘little girl,’ " said the 111-pounder. "I am little, but I didn’t want to be thought of that way."
Nothing breaks that image quite like getting on a mat and going one-on-one with a boy. It’s a challenge Campbell relishes, but the idea of boys and girls competitively grabbing and hugging one another turns off many.
Wrestling is a sport that should be gender specific.
Unfortunately, of the 20 or 25 girls who began the season with local high school teams, only about 10 lasted until the end, according to Franklin assistant coach Mark Duncan, who is a member of the California Women’s Wrestling Association, a group that promotes the sport. Statewide, that group estimates, 1,500 high school girls wrestle.
It’s physically demanding. And Duncan said he knows of incidents where coaches encouraged boys to be particularly tough on girls in practice in the hopes of driving the girls away. In some places, coaches have forfeited matches rather than have a boy wrestle a girl.
We’re not so enlightened that we can easily accept a girl being more physically able than a boy, and certainly a 15- or 16-year-old boy isn’t ready for that setback.
Hence, girls who want to wrestle have an additional obstacle to overcome if they want to pursue their sport.
Espana and Campbell have managed to do that.
Admitted tomboys, the two grew up wrestling with older brothers and their dads.
Espana’s brother, Bobby, was on Lincoln’s team when she joined as a sophomore.
"They saw me as Bobby’s little sister. I had to prove myself," she said. "It took a while to get respect."
From her peers, but not from Campbell.
"Emily was the first girl I saw wrestling, and I wanted to do it," Campbell said. "She’d kick butt against the guys."
Sometimes, anyway.
Girls have a hard time beating boys, even if they’re in the same weight class. Physiology, not political correctness, gives boys the advantage every time.
Espana and Campbell both have defeated boys and can recite explicit details about those wins.
Taking their lumps and bruises by practicing with and competing against boys has better prepared them to wrestle other girls.
Espana, invited to compete in Mexico’s Junior Olympics because she is of Mexican heritage, recently returned from Mexico City with a gold medal.
The first time Campbell competed against a girl, she won by pin in about 30 seconds.
Both will compete against girls only at USA Wrestling’s national championship scheduled for late July in Fargo, N.D.
Espana, two years into her career, is ranked third in the nation in her division. She will spend the next week training with the U.S. national devlopmental program at the Olympic training center in Colorado Springs, Colo. She also is being contacted by the few colleges that offer women’s wrestling teams. It is not an NCAA-sponsored championship event.
Girls wrestling isn’t a high school-sponsored event in California, either. Texas and Hawaii are the only states with girls-only sanctioned wrestling.
But the California Interscholastic Federation is scheduled to vote in October on whether to sponsor Northern and Southern California regional championships for girls as soon as 2006. No girl has qualified for the state wrestling tournament.
Providing a championship could help girls wrestling grow.
It never will be overwhelmingly popular, however, in part because it is too demanding.
Wrestling may consist of three two-minute rounds, but the cardio, flexibility, agility and strength work necessary to withstand those scant minutes drives lesser athletes away.
Boys as well.
Espana said she knew her male teammates were just waiting for her to give up when she first joined Lincoln’s team.
She never gave in to the pain and fatigue that left her exhausted the first three weeks of practice.
The result has been not only trips to Mexico, Michigan, Oregon and Washington to compete, but a different sense of herself.
"It’s like the poster says," Espana said. "Once you’ve wrestled, everything else in life is easy."
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Bloom proves she belongs
By Jesse Sowa 1/29/06
Albany Democrat-Herald
LEBANON — Amy Bloom was in the fifth grade when she decided she wanted to wrestle.
Now a Lebanon High School freshman, she had seen her cousin, Ryan Bloom, compete for the Warriors and was interested in the sport.
Soon enough, she joined the local mat club. Her parents — Jim and Debbie Bloom — hesitated, but went along.
“I just wanted to try it and I liked it,” she said. “My dad didn’t think I’d like it, but they supported me through it.”
Four years later, she’s a national champion and Lebanon’s top wrestler at 103 pounds.
Bloom won her weight class in a national tournament in Michigan in March.
Not surprisingly, many of her current Lebanon teammates knew about her before she arrived for the first day of wrestling practice.
Bloom proved herself early in the high school season.
She finished second in the Warriors’ first tournament, at Crescent City, Calif.
A few weeks later, she won a tournament at Cascade in Turner.
“For a freshman it’s impressive. For a girl, it’s double impressive,” said Lebanon coach Jim Vandehey.
Bloom, who excels in the classroom, has an 11-4 record. She’s ranked 26th in the 4A 103 class according to one set of state rankings.
“She’s not very muscular, but she has a lot of skill,” said junior teammate Derek Olson, the Warriors’ first-string competitors at 130 pounds.
Bloom, who ran cross country to get in shape for wrestling, said she had no expectations for herself. It was pretty simple.
“I go out there and give it my all,” she said.
Bloom’s goal ... “just do my best.”
Bloom isn’t the first Lebanon girl to have success under Vandehey, in his eighth year as the Warriors’ head coach and ninth with the program.
Shoni Plagmann was the first girl to qualify for Oregon’s high school state tournament, at 112 pounds in 2001.
Only a few other girls have made state since then.
Bloom said her teammates have treated her like anyone else, just the way she hoped it would be.
“They didn’t seem to bother,” she said of joining the te am.
Added Vandehey: “Girls on our team are fine, and the boys are protective.”
Though Bloom realizes there are some outside the program — mainly other coaches and opponents — who criticize her because of her sex.
“Some don’t think I can win,” she said.
But her approach remains the same. She just proves them wrong by winning.
Vandehey said Bloom works as hard or harder than everybody else in the Lebanon wrestling room, which has earned their respect — “absolutely everybody,” he added.
Several of the boys she competes with in practice agree. She’s just one of the “guys.”
Freshman 112-pounder Tyler Henry said he notices Bloom’s work ethic.
“She never slacks off. She works 100 percent,” he said.
Bloom’s best competition for the 103-pound varsity spot has come from fellow freshman Robert Duran.
Duran said the two help each other by trading ideas on moves.
“She’s a good teacher,” he said. “If I’m not doing something right, she’ll show me how to do it.”
Duran said Bloom is also a good listener, willing to accept criticism and suggestions from teammates.
Vandehey said Bloom — competing at 95 pounds — makes up for her lack of muscle with technique and hard work.
The heavier weight the more muscle boys have, which makes the 103-pound class the perfect spot for Bloom.
Vandehey said he works Bloom as hard as anyone else. She doesn’t complain about strenuous workouts and has no problem getting the job done.
“She’s just like a champion,” Vandehey said. “You’re excited to have a kid like that.”
By Jesse Sowa
Albany Democrat-Herald
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Prep Spotlight
Published: Thursday, January 19, 2006
PREP SPOTLIGHT
WRESTLING
• Lebanon's Amy Bloom, wrestling at 103 pounds, pinned her opponent in 46 seconds to help Lebanon beat Springfield 50-24.
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WSAZ 2006 High School Place Winners: 103
Jan 20-21, 2006
1st Sexton Independence 5- 0
2nd Stephen Ferris Jackson 4- 1
3rd Cory Spencer Johnson Central 5- 1
4th Jared Searls Point Pleasant 4- 2
5th Chuck Wentz Fairland 5- 2
6th Jessica Teter Parkersburg South 2 4- 3
7th Tyler Canaday River Valley 4- 2
8th Robbie Cogar Buckhannon-Upsher 3- 3
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Four B-UHS Buccaneers place at WSAZ tournament
BY STAFF REPORTS 1/26/06
HUNTINGTON — The Buckhannon-Upshur High School Buccaneers wrestling team recently took to the mats in Huntington for the WSAZ tournament.
The tournament brought together 39 West Virginia high schools, and lasted for two days, from January 20-21.
Wrestlers from host Huntington High School won the tournament overall, turning in a cumulative score of 224 points, well out-distancing second place finisher East Fairmont — whose wrestlers compiled 192.50 points. The Buccaneers finished the tournament in 11th place, with a team score of 88.50 points.
Individually, several Bucs put on standout performances, as four Buckhannon wrestlers placed at the WSAZ tournament.
The top B-UHS finisher was Ricky Lane, who finished second at the 160-pound division with a 5-1 record. Lane battled his way to the division’s championship round by pinning two of his earlier opponents, and winning by decision over three others. However, Lane’s five match winning streak came to an end in the championship round, as he lost a 9-6 decision to Liberty Raleigh’s Nick Hylton.
145-pounder George Lavis also finished the WSAZ tournament with a 5-1 record, which was good enough for third place in his division. Lavis won his first three matches, before losing by pinfall to Turner Ashby’s Caleb Shank in the fourth round by way of pinfall at :55. Yet, Lavis bounced back in his next two matches, winning 6-1 and 5-0 decisions over Williamstown’s Brandon Baylor and Spring Valley’s Tyler Smith respectively to place third.
William King and Robbie Cogar also placed for the Buccaneers at the Huntington tournament — both bringing home eighth place finishes on 3-3 records.
King won two of his first three matches at the 140-pound weight class, before going 1-2 in his next three clashes. King’s final match of the tournament came against St. Alban’s Patrick Allen, who King had won a 10-2 major decision over in the second round. But in the rematch, Allen turned the tables against King, winning on a 10-2 major decision — forcing King into eighth place.
Cogar made his mark at the 103-pound weight class, also by winning two of three of his opening matches before, like King, finishing 1-2 on the back end of his tournament to place eighth in his division.
The Buccaneer wrestlers will be back in action on Friday, as the team will head to Fairmont Senior for a quad match at 6 p.m. The Bucs will then host a quad match on Saturday, as their final tune-up before the NCAC tournament on February 4.
WSAZ Results
Team Placings (Top 20)
Place Team Score
1. Huntington High School 224.00
2. East Fairmont 192.50
3. Turner Ashby 171.50
4. Cabell Midland 144.00
5. Independence 138.50
6. Williamstown 135.00
7. St. Albans 127.50
8. Riverside 120.00
9. Point Pleasant 115.50
10. Ripley 113.00
11. Buckhannon-Upshur 88.50
12. Sheldon Clark 86.50
13. Parkersburg South 2 82.50
14. Dobyns-Bennett 78.00
15. Jackson 76.00
16. Chesapeake 75.00
17. St. Mary’s 74.50
18. Shady Spring 68.00
19. Oak Hill 64.00
20. George Washington 62.00
Individual Results
Brittany Woodall (2-2)
112 lbs.—
Woodall took a split in her four matches at the two-day tournament. She started things off right, pinning Ashland’s Leland Stafor at 3:34 and edging out St. Mary’s Danny Palmateer 5-4 for two consecutive wins. However, things went south for Woodall in her next two matches, as she first lost to Jackson’s Alex Stepp 6-1, and then again to Nitro’s Jeremy Page 8-2.
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Sports Scene: Caprock girls grab state wrestling title
From Staff and Wire Reports 1/22/06
GRAPEVINE - For the fourth time in the last five years, Caprock's girls won the state duals championship. The Lady Longhorns squeezed past Arlington High, 27-24, in the final dual on Saturday.
The Lady Longhorns disposed of South Grand Prairie, 42-12, in the quarterfinals. Then the Lady Longhorns dumped Arlington Bowie, 38-18, in the semifinals.
Caprock's boys finished fifth in the state duals and Randall's boys took 10th in the tournament
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On the mat
Staff Reports 1/30/06
High School wrestling teams are finishing up their regular-season schedules and competing in conference tournaments.
The next step for some teams will be to compete in the Dual Team State Championships.
This is an exciting time of year. The team championships in all four classifications will be held on Feb. 11.
The Western Champions will host the State Dual Team Finals for each class. Team Plaques will be given to the winner and runner-up teams at both the championship and regional levels. Members of the winning and runner-up teams will also receive individual awards. Admission for the Dual Team State Championships will be $6.
The Regional meets in all high school classifications will be held on Feb. 17-18. A school may enter only one wrestler in each weight class. The top four wrestlers to come out of each weight class will qualify from each regional to the state tournament.
Team plaques will be awarded to each regional champion and runner-up. Awards for individual champions , runner-up and third place in each weight class will be provided. A session pass for the first day is $5. The championship session costs $6. All-Tournament passes are $12. A Saturday pass is $10.
New trend
The sport of wrestling has traditionally been for the most part an all-male sport. Lately however I have been hearing and seeing more about the participation of females on middle school and high school teams.
The trend seems to be growing.
The USA Wrestling Association records indicate that there are approximately 3,800 females participating in the sport across the country. That is compared to about 250,000 males that participate in the sport.
The North Carolina High School Athletic Association estimates that between 20 and 30 girls wrestling in the state this winter.
One thing that has helped generate interest in the sport in regards to female participation is the addition of women’s wrestling for the U.S Olympic Team in 2004. It has been reported in years past that about 896 schools across the country offered girls wrestling.
At the middle and high school levels most female participants have no choice than to participate on the male team. Two states, Texas and Hawaii, sanction the sport for girls and offer official high school all-girl tournaments. At present only about six colleges nationwide offer a varsity women’s wrestling team.
Hope Christian
Former Kings Mountain High wrestler Vince Sullens is helping coach a wrestling club at Hope Christian Academy in Kings Mountain.
Vince was an outstanding wrestler during his day’s in school and I’m sure will do a good job with that program.
Don’t forget to get out and support your favorite team . Here’s hoping to see you at the Mat !
Phil Weathers, a former wrestling coach, is Director of Safe Schools in the Cleveland County Schools system.
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