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| Joey Miller |
OKLAHOMA
CITY – Joey Miller, regarded as
the top girls wrestler in Oklahoma, has signed with Oklahoma City
University to compete for the Stars women’s wrestling program
in 2008-09.
Miller,
from Woodward, Okla., became the first Oklahoma high-school girl to
place at the state tournament. She placed fourth at 103 pounds in Class
4A as a freshman.
She
has been named an Asics high-school all-American three times. She is a
three-time senior all-American and four-time USGWA national champion.
As a freshman, Miller placed third at the World Team Trials.
“Joey
Miller is the top women’s wrestler in Oklahoma,”
OCU coach Archie Randall said.
“She is one of the top three at her weight in the nation. She
will compete at either 51 or 55 kilos with our team.
“She’ll
be close to home, and I’ve coached her her whole life. She
had already decided to come wrestle for us a year ago.”
Soledad High School
wrestlers Brianna Heraz, left, and Andrea Orozco place among the top
eight wrestlers in the California Girls Invitational wrestling
tournament in Hanford.
Annie Dumyahn (112 pounds) of St. Bede qualified for the
sectional by finishing third and Dwight sophomore Holly Reece (103
pounds) also finished third. Dumyahn's sister, T.J. (119 pounds),
competed on Saturday but did not qualify.
In terms of local history, Reece's accomplishment for the Trojans
represents the first time in area history that a girl wrestler has
earned the right to advance to sectional competition.
“She was confident before the regional,” DeLong
said. “She went in as the third seed and she was expecting to
get out.”
She went in as a No. 3 seed because she defeated Travis Koetz of Seneca
head to-head-in the JV Conference Meet in Plano.
Getting beat by a girl
“She was losing 10-0 when she ended up pinning the Seneca kid
at the end of the match,” DeLong said. “I know I
can get vocal sometimes, but you should have heard the crowd when they
saw a girl was wrestling. It got heated, but when she won, the whole
crowd was cheering.”
“They actually split during the season with Travis beating
her earlier in the year,” Seneca coach Todd Yegge said.
“But she got the higher regional seed because the JV
Conference match was the one closest to the regional.”
And how does a boy take getting beat by a girl in such a male-dominant
sport?
“I know darned well that it's tough for a boy. He
has everything to lose when he wrestles a girl. I can't imagine the
kind of ridicule he probably will take,” Yegge said.
“I know Brooke loves getting the opportunity to beat a guy -
and she has beaten a few in her two years in the program. Her eyes
light up when she gets the chance.”
For the record, Koetz, a freshman, got a bit of redemption by sending
Reece to the wrestlebacks in the regional by pinning her in :54, and he
wound up second in Coal City.
From her eyes
In the heavier weight classes, however, the Bruins met with great success. At 160, Daniel Rucinski surprised everyone on the team by taking a second place in his weight bracket after winning two matches out of the three. Another Daniel, Daniel Uher, won third place in his weight class after winning his first match and losing his second. Taking first place in the 171 weight class was Michael Mason, who won all three of his matches with relative ease.
These Bruins will continue practicing for the rest of the week
and will leave for the sectional tournament on Friday with high hopes
of continuing on to state.
Said coach Sean Hobson: “Everyone who believed that they
would make it beyond the regionals, did, and that was the most
important thing ... they won both mentally and physically.”
This wrestler is sure that at least two people will make it to state,
and following Coach Hobson’s advice, is willing to believe
that everyone will make it as well.
A tough row to hoe
Ridicule is something that Reece has had to battle in the last five
years as she wrestled her way to where she is today. In fact, you could
say that any consternation a boy would feel after losing to a girl is
but a mere fraction of what some girls have to go through.
“Most people didn't expect me to wrestle and because I have,
a lot of people don't like me for it,” Reece admitted.
“I don't think anyone thought I was going to do it. I did it
because I wanted to prove that a girl can do it.”
DeLong is hoping that biased sentiment is fading the way of a bygone
era.
“I've always told her to let her work ethic prove
itself,” he said. “I think she gets positive
reinforcement, too, but you know how high school girls can
be.”
Reece began wrestling in the sixth grade as a 65 pound wrestler and she
moved up to 75 in the seventh grade, 85 in eighth grade and she's
occupied the 103-pound division at Dwight since last year. With her all
along the way has been DeLong. He had coached her for three years in
junior high and the past two years since taking over the helm in Dwight.
“She came to me in the sixth grade and said she wanted to
wrestle. She was iffy in seventh grade but I told her to stay with it
and see what happens,” DeLong said. “Last year as a
freshman, she was also iffy but we didn't have a 103-pounder. I told
her I wasn't going to send her out to get killed. We just needed her to
grab forfeits and wrestle kids I thought she matched up with.”
Ready for success - Go
Reece's freshman season was abruptly brought to a halt by a Granby
which caught her in a bad position and she dislocated her neck and
missed half the year - including last year's regional.
“I wanted to get to the sectional really bad, especially
since last year I didn't get to go to the regional at all,”
Reece said.
Motivated and healthy, Reece has gotten a lot of mat time during the
long winter season according to DeLong.
“It's probably the most mat time she's gotten in her
career,” he said. “This is also the first year
she's had a legitimate practice partner, too.”
A practice partner? Which means DeLong has had two options at 103 all
year.
“And she's held the spot all year,” he insisted.
Right through the Plano Sectional, and perhaps beyond in the years to
come.
“The biggest thing that she has to do is be more aggressive.
She needs to show more offense,” DeLong said. “I
think at this point she's figured out that she is as strong as a lot of
the boys in her weight class, she's just on her heels too often ... but
what she's done this year, I think, gives her a glimmer of hope since
she has seen what she can do.”
| 1/24/2008 |
| The Bruins traveled to Mendota High School to compete agains Mendota and Eureka High Schools in Varsity Wrestling. In the first match St. Bede competed against Eureka High School. The Bruins led off with a win by pin by senior Dan Uher at 215 pounds over Jeremy Daugherty. After forfeit wins by Eureka at 285 and 103 poinds, Annie Dumyahn, lost to Matt Schaidle at 112 pounds. TJ Dumyahn secured a forfeit win for St. Bede at 119 pounds. Eureka middle weights dominated St. Bede with wins at 125, 130, 135, 140 and 145 pounds. Steve Puhr, St. Bede, at 152 pounds, wond a hard fought battle over John Boland by the score of 14 to 12. Dan Rucinski, St. Bede, at 160 pounds followed with a win by pin over Clint Hartzell. St. Bede lost at 171 pounds. Mike Mason, St. Bede, at 189 pounds lost only his second match of the year to highly state ranked Zach Wakid, 8 to 4. The final team score was St. Bede 21, Eureka 57. In exhibition, 125 Ben Rockey pinned Brandon Smith, Eureka in 3:00; 130 Cody Schumacher, Eureka, pinned Dave Young, St. Bede in 2:35; 130 Evan Zimmerman, Eureka pinned Jung Seo, St. Bede in 1:00; 215 Josoiah Polley, Eureka, pinned Jerad Mekley, St. Bede in :51. In the second match of the evening, St. Bede wrestled Mendota High School. Wrestling started at 285 pounds with a Mendota win by forfeit. After a double forfeit at 103 pounds, Annie Dumyahn, St. Bede, won by forfeit at 112 pounds. Mendota won at 119 pounds. Tim Steinz, St. Bede won by forfeit at 125 pounds. St. Bede lost at 130 pounds, but won by forfeit at both 135 and 140 pounds. St. Bede lost at 145 but then began a string of wins. Steve Puhr, St. Bede, pinned Andrew Leonard at 3:00 at 152 pounds. Dan Rucinski, St. Bede, pinned Matt Ridge at 1:06 at 160 pounds. Joe Puhr, St. Bede, pinned Justin Delhotal at 3:14 at 171 pounds. Mike Mason, St. Bede, won by forfeit at 171 pounds. Dan Uher, St. Bede, closed out the night with a win over Charles Hampton, 10 to 0 at 215 pounds. The final team score was Eureka 23, St. Bede 51. St. Bede's record improved to six wins and four losses. They travel next to wrestle Fulton High School on January 29. |
Sheldon Burton was the picture of relaxation.
Though his gold medal match was less than an hour away, the Grade 12 student at Chelmsford Valley District Composite School and three-time defending wrestling champ lay on the gym floor, play wrestling with his coach's three-year-old son. He was all laughs while the Ron Preston city wrestling championships raged on all around him at Lockerby Composite School.
Overconfident? Maybe, but with national and international awards already on the 17-year-old's mantle, he has earned that right. And when it came time to perform, Burton was all business, making quick work of College Notre Dame's Kory Nadon, winning 7-0 to claim his fourth and final local high school title.
"It felt pretty good," he said of the win.
"It's kind of sad to be leaving next year, but it will be a nice change. I still have NOSSA and OFSAA to compete at to represent my school and I hope to be on the podium then, too."
Burton, whose matches easily drew the most attention from fellow competitors and onlookers alike, proved during his final he uses as much brain as brawn when he wrestles, taking his time to size up Nadon and wasting no movements or energy during the match.
"He was really strong, so I tried to stay away from reaching up high and kept my hands low in front so he had to reach, and as soon as he reached I went for his legs," Burton explained.
"He tried to go high to throw me every time, so I would just duck it."
Though he hadn't faced Nadon before, Burton put together a game plan after watching his opponent fight once.
"He likes to slow it down a lot and keep it slow," Burton said. "I knew once I started scoring it would take off from there, and it did."
In the girls' competition, the Macdonald-Cartier Panthers ruled the day, winning four of eight available titles and finishing second in two others to take the girls overall title.
Jasmine Morin, 15 and a Grade 10 student, won gold for the Panthers despite wrestling a bigger opponent and got a bit of vengeance along the way.
"I wrestled above my weight category, but I still got it," she said. "It was pretty cool. The girl I beat beat me in the spring and put me in a wheelchair for a week, so I was pretty proud of myself to beat her. I got my revenge and that made it so much sweeter."
Gold medal winner Lee-Anna Taillefer, 19 and a Grade 12 student, said she and her Panthers teammates were determined to carry on the school's female wrestling tradition.
"Three years ago at OFSAA, our school got fourth place with only three wrestlers there because two of them won gold, so that started a tradition of winning banners, and we don't want to stop," she said. "We won a city and NOSSA banner last year, so we really want to keep it going."
Morin said the Panthers girls were a determined bunch from the start of the wrestling season.
"Last year, we were so slack and this year we decided to go for it," she said.
"We wanted to do it for ourselves and we all decided to go for it. Good coaching really helps, too."
While the city championships was the smallest meet Burton has attended this season, he desperately wanted the win.
"It is important to me," said Burton, who has been courted by several universities for his wrestling skills.
"Getting that city gold qualifies me for NOSSA, so that's huge. It's nice to see what we've got here in Sudbury, too, and to get to wrestle with everyone here."
He has accepted being the one to watch in Sudbury.
"At first, I used to be really nervous with everyone watching, but now everywhere I go there's an audience watching, so you get used to it," he said after being named the boys meet MVP.
"Here you get kids trying to study your wrestling style, so they watch every match closely. I enjoy when people watch now. It's motivation."
Chelmsford broke Lockerby's three-year run as overall champs, and won the boys overall title.
Sara Hirschfeld of Sudbury Secondary School was named the girls MVP. bheidman@thesudburystar.com
Results
The Ron Preston city wrestling championships were held at Lockerby Composite School on Wednesday. The following are the gold medal winners:
Boys
47.5 kg - Brett Loyer, Lockerby
51 kg - Pete Barbeau, Lo-Ellen
57.5 kg - Jeffrey Theriault, Hanmer
61 kg - Eric Roque, Notre Dame
64 kg - Laek Mullin, Lo-Ellen
6.5 kg - Sheldon Burton, Chelmsford
72 kg - Spencer Burton, Chelmsford
77 kg - Jason Schilling, Confederation
89 kg - Dustin Sutherland, Chelmsford
95 kg - Dylan Byrnes, Chelmsford
Unlimited - Jon Reis, St. Charles
Girls
44 kg - Jenna Howard, Chelmsford
51 kg - Maxime Comeau, Macdonald Cartier
54 kg - Page Henri, Macdonald Cartier
67.5 kg - Sara Hirschfeld, Sudbury Secondary
72 kg - Megan Roy, St. Benedict
77 kg - Jessica Kutcke, Lockerby
84 kg - Jasmine Morin, Macdonald Cartier
Unlimited - Lee-Anna Taillefer - Macdonald Cartier
All-around
Girls' combined title - Macdonald-Cartier Panthers
Boys' combined title - Chelmsford Valley District Composite School
Overall title - Chelmsford Valley District Composite School
Boys' MVP - Sheldon Burton, Chelmsford Valley District Composite School
Girls' MVP - Sara Hirschfeld, Sudbury Secondary School
Top Girls' Rookie - Mercedes Byrnes, Champlain
Top Boys' Rookie - Devin Jokinen, Lockerby
In the heavier weight classes, however, the Bruins met with great success. At 160, Daniel Rucinski surprised everyone on the team by taking a second place in his weight bracket after winning two matches out of the three. Another Daniel, Daniel Uher, won third place in his weight class after winning his first match and losing his second. Taking first place in the 171 weight class was Michael Mason, who won all three of his matches with relative ease.
These Bruins will continue practicing for the rest of the week
and will leave for the sectional tournament on Friday with high hopes
of continuing on to state.
Said coach Sean Hobson: “Everyone who believed that they
would make it beyond the regionals, did, and that was the most
important thing ... they won both mentally and physically.”
This wrestler is sure that at least two people will make it to state,
and following Coach Hobson’s advice, is willing to believe
that everyone will make it as well.
By Colin McEwen
Record-Courier staff writer
Although he did not bring home the gold, Tadaaki Hatta is pleased with a silver medal.
The Ravenna High School art teacher is a coach with the USA Wrestling national women's team that recently finished second in the World Cup Championships in China.
The team lost to the home-team China, by one point in the last match, which Hatta said was down to the wire.
"I'm still satisfied with the silver medal, because of the way the girls wrestled," he said. "They wrestled with pride. Even though we lost, we showed we could compete with anybody."
In the first round, the U.S. team beat Ukraine, and then defeated Hatta's home country of Japan -- a country where his father revolutionized the sport nearly 80 years ago.
"They didn't like it," Hatta said. "I didn't mind competing against them, because I know what they're doing. They wrestle like I used to, so they can't hide."
Although Hatta was born in Beijing 65 years ago, nothing seemed familiar to him. His family moved to Japan when he was 3 years old.
He won the Japanese national championship in high school and received a scholarship to compete in the U.S. at Oklahoma State University, where he won the NCAA championship in 1965.
Hatta said Japan "was the team to beat" at the World Cup, so he feels confident about the team's chances at the Olympics in Beijing this summer.
"They showed the world what they can do," he said. "The U.S. team is capable of beating anybody."
Hatta's wrestling résumé is stocked with credentials that include being a member of the coaching staff with the U.S. women's team in Athens in 2004; U.S. Olympic men's freestyle wrestling team in 1988, 1992 and 1996; the Japanese Olympic team in 1968 and 1984; and the 1972 Mexican Olympic team.
He said his coaching specialty is scouting the other teams' methods and finding ways to counter them. He also has coached with many northeast Ohio high schools, including Ravenna.
Superintendent Tim Calfee said he is proud of Hatta and the team.
"It's a wonderful accomplishment," he said. "With such a great finish, we're all looking forward to a gold medal in Beijing in 2008."
Hatta said trials begin in April, and when training begins again in June, he will join the team once the school year is finished. Then, in August, he and the team will head to Beijing to compete for the gold.
"At the Olympics, anything can happen," Hatta said. "We just have to refine what we're doing. The goal is to get a few gold medals."
 Photo By Zak Bennett Fort White High School student Katlynn Cormier jokingly wrestles at her home with her brother (left) Zach and her cousin, Rey Ozuna. Wtih all three of them living in the same home, Katlynn gets a lot of practice as the only female wrestler in Columbia County.  Photo By Zak Bennett Katlynn Cormier (in red), 14, wrestles Caleb Sanders, a senior at Suwannee High School. She recently placed fourth in the boys' district competition, and is the only girl wrestler in Columbia County.  Photo By Zak Bennett Katlynn Cormier, 14 stands in front of her many awards that she has won in a variety of areas, from wrestling to cheerleading. Katlynn Cormier (in red), 14, wrestles Caleb Sanders, a senior at Suwannee High School. She recently placed fourth in the boys' district competition, and is the only girl wrestler in Columbia County. |
FORT WHITE -- Zach Cormier hesitated as
his sister yelled, "Let's go!" and grabbed him in a headlock.
With his head in one of her arms and her cousin's head in her other,
Katlynn Cormier smiled up at the camera.
They were playing around -- but only somewhat. Wrestling is something
they do often and with much seriousness.
All three of them are on the same team at Fort White High School -- the
varsity boys wrestling team.
Since Katlynn,14, is the only female wrestler in Columbia County, she
participates on the boys' team.
"I like wrestling boys because it's more fun," she said.
She competes against boys from sixth grade to twelfth grade.
"We have to tell the wrestling coach to
tell her teachers we don't beat her because of all the bruises," said
Jeff Cormier, Katlynn's father.
Katlynn wrestled against a boy for the first time at Clay Middle School
last year. She was nervous, she said, but ended up winning.
"The stands went crazy when she won," Jeff said.
she won first place for the 119-pound weight class at the Clay Middle School
tournament.
"When they lock up with her, they don't just throw her
around, they've got to fight for it," Jeff said.
After placing fourth in
the boys' district competition last week, Katlynn will go on to compete in the
regional competition on Friday.
"She's pretty tough for a
seventh-grader," said Caleb Sanders, a senior at Suwannee High School who
wrestled Katlynn in the district competition.
If she places at the
regional competition, then she will compete in the boys' state wrestling
championship.
In January, Katlynn went to the girls' state championship
and placed fourth.
She is the only seventh-grader in state history to
wrestle against varsity girls at the state championship, Jeff said.
"The
girls at state did not have the technique that wrestling boys gives Katlynn," he
said.
Katlynn's signature move is the "crab ride" in which she sits on
her opponent's back and intertwines her legs in theirs, forcing them to fall
over, Jeff said.
"It's all about technique; it's not about strength all
the time," said Dawn Cormier, Katlynn's mother.
| Thursday, February 7, 2008 11:00 AM PST |
 DAILY WORLD / DAVID SANDLER Members of the Hoquiam girls wrestling team play a joke on coach Russ Skolrood by ganging up and jumping on him before the start of a recent practice at Hoquiam High School. On Saturday, the Grizzlies will be in Tumwater for the girls regional tournament. In two weeks, they’ll defend their state championship at the Mat Classic XX in Tacoma. |
HANFORD -- Buhach Colony's Katarina Perez won the 103-pound state wrestling title at the California Girls Wrestling Invitational at Hanford West High School.
Perez was one of five local wrestlers to place as Merced's Amanda Ortiz took fourth at 103, Los Banos' Danielle Smith finished seventh at 114, LB's Mabel Flores as sixth at 126 and LB's Kayla Garza finished fourth at 132.
GABRIELLE
JOHNSTON
Courier staff writer 2/7/08
Pee wee league wrestling is looking to put Vinton County in
a full nelson as the sport gains popularity and struggles to take its place
among other local youth sports programs.
Vicky Beckley is the local pee
wee league's coordinator. She organizes the teams and sets schedules, making the
league possible. Beckley said she gained an interest in the sport when her high
school-aged sons signed up for wrestling at Vinton County High School. The high
school team is a recent re-addition to the sports roster, having new life
breathed into the program about five years ago after a years long
absence.
"I begged them not to sign up," Beckley said. Like many, Beckley
didn't know much about the sport of wrestling and wasn't all that willing to
learn. But, as her sons progressed through the high school's program, she became
more and more involved, learning all the ins and outs of the sport.
When
talk of a pee wee wrestling organization arose, Beckley decided to help out.
Now, three years later, as the pee wee coordinator, she's in up to her elbows
and enjoying every minute of it. "We've got some very good pee wee wrestlers,"
Beckley said.
The local pee wee league is a part of the Southern Ohio
Youth League. Beckley goes to most if not all of the organization's meetings,
doing her part to see to it that the local program has grown from about 10 kids
at its inception to almost 40. There are 16 teams in the league and the players
come from Vinton, Jackson and Athens counties. Kids age five to 12 are eligible
to participate. However, there are some younger ones who get involved. According
to local pee wee director and coach Brett Webb, some wrestlers currently in the
league are only 3 years old.
"They actually do quite well," Webb said of
the younger wrestlers. "When they're 3, some are more mature than others." The
coach said one of the local pee wee program's 3-year-olds is very serious about
wrestling, but equally as serious about getting away from his opponent after the
match is finished. Webb said once the whistle is blown, signaling the end of a
match, the little boy runs behind the referee, causing parents and others to
chuckle.
But, the talent displayed by the younger wrestlers is nothing to
be laughed at. "There's an incredible amount of competition at the 5-year-old
level," Webb said. "They're very serious about what they're doing."
Both
boys and girls are welcome in the local pee wee league, according to Beckley.
The co-ed rule applies in older sections, too, reaching into the middle school
and high school if girls are interested. This season, Beckley said two girls
participated in the pee wee league and two girls were on the middle school team.
"They're awesome," she said of the girl wrestlers.
Like many youth sports
programs, pee wee wrestling isn't only about learning the game. "It's a sport
that teaches respect," Beckley said. Before and after each match, the wrestlers
shake hands with each other. They also shake the opposing team's coach's hand
after the match.
"Whether win or lose, we always shake hands," Webb said.
Other qualities instilled in wrestlers are patience, self confidence and
discipline, Beckley and the coach said. Webb said he and others involved with
the league often see kids go through tremendous personal changes during their
time in wrestling.
"When they come out of a year of wrestling, their
shoulders are back and they're standing up straight," he said, referring to the
confidence many young wrestlers gain.
Wrestling is gaining popularity in
Vinton County, according to Beckley. "You don't bench warm in wrestling,"
Beckley said, explaining why the sport is growing. As one wrestler related to
her, "You don't have to be a name to play." The pee wee coordinator said that
kids who aren't as good at basketball, football or another sport, get the chance
to shine in wrestling.
"It's an alternative to basketball and other
sports," Webb said. "It allows a niche for kids who may not be coordinated at
the basketball level."
But time in the proverbial limelight doesn't come
without its cost to the kids. "It's the hardest conditioning they'll ever go
through," Beckley said, adding the hard work put into preparing for a match
doesn't end at the mat. "You don't get a breather until it's over," she
said.
Webb agreed with Beckley, saying the conditioning for wrestling is
tough. But, he also said that most are up for it. "We've got super kids," he
said. "They work really hard. We've had kids win and lose all season, but, we've
never had a kid tired."
Webb continued, explaining that local wrestlers
don't often receive the acclaim they deserve. "In my estimation, it's the
pinnacle of competition," he said of the sport. "There isn't anyone who puts in
more time and effort than a wrestler."
By starting kids young in the
sport, the programs at the middle school and the high school will only be
strengthened, according to Beckley and Webb. They said coaches at each of the
three levels of county wrestling work together, making sure the young athletes
accomplish as much as they can. "We all work together to build the sport," Webb
said.
Webb said he feels like it's time for wrestling to take its place
among the sports in the county. "It hasn't really spent much time in the
spotlight," he said. "But, the time for wrestling in Vinton County is
now."
For more information about pee wee wrestling, contact Beckley or
Webb.
FOREST GROVE, Ore. – Like most college freshman, Teresa Ayala had adjustments to make when she went away to school at Pacific University. “It was really strange,” Ayala said, “To wrestle only girls. I mean, the guys say things like, ‘I don’t want to wrestle a girl – I don’t know what it’s like.’ And the first time I had to wrestle a girl, I said the exact same thing. I’m like, ‘I don’t know what to do – it’s a girl!’ I felt the same way.” This story sponsored by: Adam The Wrestling Takedown Machine Online Store After wrestling against males during her high school career, Ayala would now be wrestling against females in college. You see, when it comes to wrestling at Pacific, there are Boxers for both genders. Read More