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Cumberland College wrestler is runner-up in World Championships

Associated Press 9/15/03

WILLIAMSBURG, Ky. - Cumberland College wrestler Toccara Montgomery will return to school this week after winning a silver medal in the World Freestyle Championships in New York.

Montgomery, a junior at Cumberland, lost 4-1 in the 72-kilogram (158 1/2 pound) women's final to Kyoko Hamaguchi of Japan on Sunday. Montgomery was one of seven U.S. women to win a medal, by far the nation's best performance ever in the world championships.

The U.S. finished second in the team standings, behind Japan. The teams each finished with 62 points, but Japan won the tiebreaker by winning five gold medals while the U.S. took home only one.

Montgomery pinned Wang Xu of China in 2:59 in the semifinals.

In August, Montgomery won the 72-kilogram gold medal in the Pan Am Games. She is a likely contender to represent the United States in first-ever Olympic women's wrestling competition in 2004 in Athens, Greece.

Cumberland, which has about 1,700 students, is one of six colleges in the country to field a women's wrestling team.

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Wrestling: U.S. women finish second at Freestyle Championships

Monday, September 15, 2003
BY COLIN STEPHENSON
Star-Ledger Staff

NEW YORK -- Winning seven medals in seven weight classes was not enough for the U.S. women's wrestling team at the World Freestyle Championships, which concluded yesterday at Madison Square Garden.

Only one of those medals was gold, and ultimately that opened the door for traditional powerhouse Japan to come from behind and nip the Americans for the team title. The Japanese won by sweeping five gold medals -- going 3-0 in head-to-head meetings with the Americans -- and Kyoko Hamaguchi, secured the victory in the final bout of the competition, when she beat Toccara Montgomery, 4-1. Hamaguchi's win tied the team score, 62-62, but the Japanese won the tiebreaker because they had more gold medals.

The U.S. men also finished second, in another tight affair, losing to the former Soviet Republic of Georgia, and winning a tiebreaker for second place over Iran.

The Americans trailed 31-32 when the finals began, and could have won the title if both its finalists had won gold medals. But Cael Sanderson lost to Russian Sajid Sajidov in the gold medal match at 84 kilos (185 pounds), 4-3, and Georgia sewed up the team title in the next match, when Eldar Kurtanidze beat Iran's Ali Reza Heidari, 4-0, to win the gold at 96 kg (211.5 pounds). Kurtanidze's victory gave Georgia 33 points, and rendered moot the final bout, the 120 kg match (264.5 pounds) between American Kerry McCoy and Uzbekistan's Artur Taymazov. Taymazov won the gold, beating McCoy, 3-1, in overtime.

The gold medal session drew 6,947, and the total attendance for the weekend was given as 53,665, which is a record for a non-Olympic international wrestling event in the United States. The championships had originally been scheduled to take place in New York in 2001, but were moved to Bulgaria after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks that year, and returned to New York this year.

The evening began with such promise for the American women, who held a 61-57 lead over Japan entering the finals, and had five wrestlers in the finals. The only way for the Japanese to win the title was to win all five finals they were in, and to get help. They got that help from Ukrainian Irini Merleni, who beat American Patricia Miranda at 48 kilograms (105.5 pounds) to earn her third World title. Merleni -- whom Miranda had beaten at a tournament in Russia in February -- was named the women's tournament outstanding wrestler.

The Japanese then won the next three weight classes -- two of them against Americans -- before American Kristie Marano won the gold at 67 kilograms (147.5 pounds) against Poland's Ewelina Pruszko.

"It makes me feel good (to win the gold) but my heart goes out to all the other girls," said Marano, who beat Pruszko 7-1 to capture her second world title.

The U.S. women had won one world championship before, in 1999, but they never had all seven team members medal (Jenny Wong and Sally Roberts earned bronzes). And still U.S. women's coach Terry Steiner was glum after Montgomery's loss.

"There's not many chances in life you get five people in the finals -- everyone medaling -- we just didn't close it out," Steiner said. "It's an opportunity lost, no doubt about it.

"If there's anything good about it, it's that we're second in the world and we're not happy about it."

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U.S. women make the right moves

By Gary Mihoces, USA TODAY 9/14/03

NEW YORK — One was a high school football cheerleader who wrestled in the winter season. Another took up wrestling against her dad's wishes. Another switched from judo to wrestling. Sunday, they were all part of the biggest medal haul ever for U.S. women at the World Championships of Freestyle Wrestling. All seven U.S. women won medals: A gold, four silvers and two bronze.

Kristie Marano, who takes a hand in the face from Canada's Shannon Samler, won the gold medal.
By Robert Deutsch, USA TODAY

Their theme afterward at Madison Square Garden was "wait 'til next year" — when women's wrestling becomes an Olympic sport in Greece. (Related items: Cael Sanderson comes up short | Worlds index)

"Next year, we should be untouchable, and that's our goal … This is just another step to getting to our Olympic dream," said silver medallist Tina George, who lost 5-2 in the 121-pound final to returning world champ Saori Yoshida of Japan.

The USA and Japan both totaled 62 points, but Japan earned the team title because it had five gold medals compared to one by the Americans, who placed second.

Kerry McCoy and Cael Sanderson won silver for the U.S. men, who came in second to Georgia. American men and Iran both finished with 31 points, but winning two silvers to just one for Iran gave the U.S. the edge.

While George came up a victory short, Kristie Marano of Albany, N.Y., won her second world title with a 7-1 victory against Ewelina Pruszko of Poland in the 147.5-pound final.

It was the seventh world wrestling medal for Marano, who was a teenaged judo star until 1995 when she injured her knee. She had to wear a knee brace, and such braces aren't allowed in judo. So she switched to wrestling.

Sunday, she watched teammates fall in the finals before she got her turn.

"It fueled me," said Marano. "I was really upset because these girls really worked hard. But it just put more momentum into my match, and it helped me."

All seven U.S. woman made Sunday morning's semifinals after a perfect 22-0 start through two days of competition. After losses early Sunday, Jenny Wong (112.25 pounds) and Sally Roberts (130) both won bronze medal matches.

Wong was a football cheerleader at Woodbury (Minn.) High School, but she took up wrestling with the boys' team as a freshman.

"I love cheerleading, but it's not the rush that wrestling is," she said. "It's just me and the other wrestler out there."

Wong was defeated 3-0 by Natalia Karamchakova of Russia in the semifinals, but she bounced back to beat Alena Kareisha of Belarus 3-2 for the bronze at 112.25 pounds.

"It's always important to learn from your losses," said Wong. "I just took that loss and came back stronger."

Sally Roberts lost 7-6 to Natalia Ivashko of Russia in the 130-pound semifinals.

"All I wanted to do was get on the phone and cry to my mom," said Roberts. "But I knew at that point crying wasn't going to do anything except make me feel worse."

So she went out and beat Marianna Sastin of Hungary 8-2 for the bronze at 130 pounds.

In the opening match of the gold medal round, Patricia Miranda lost 5-4 to Irini Merleni of the Ukraine in the 105.5-pound class. It was the second world silver for Miranda, who expects the performance of the women here to inspire other young women around the USA.

"I think that it's going to be a real positive influence for the girls out there in the U.S. who are still the only girls on the guys' team," she said.

Miranda competed on the boys' team at Saratoga (Calif.) High School. She wrestled on the men's team at Stanford University, where she had a stint as a starter as a senior.

Her father, Jose Miranda didn't approve of her wrestling.

"He never had anything against me wrestling because I was a girl. I think it was more that it would interfere with my education," she said. "So in silent protest, he wouldn't come (to watch). He was like, 'When are you going to give up this hobby?' "

She said her father saw her wrestle once in college and was here in New York to support her.

"He still views it as a hobby, but he's come around a little," said Miranda, already accepted to Yale Law School but postponing that until after the Olympics.

In other finals involving U.S. women, Sara McMann (138.75 pounds) lost 4-3 in overtime to two-time world champion Kaori Icho of Japan, and Toccaro Montgomery (158.5 pounds) lost 4-1 to five-time world champion Kyoko Hamaguchi of Japan.

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CHOOSING SIDES

Athletes find challenge in crossing gender lines

Monday, September 15, 2003BY MEGAN WALDE
Of The Patriot-News

At 100 pounds, Kaitlyn Sanders doesn't look like she should intimidate other wrestlers.

But the Annville-Cleona senior sometimes takes wins by forfeit. Uncomfortable at the thought of grappling on the mat with her, some boys have backed out of matches.

"If you lose, you hear about it from your friends for a long time. And if you win, so what, it's like, 'Wow, I beat a girl,'" Kaitlyn said.

The battleground for what is fair play between the sexes continues on high school sports fields. Most school districts discourage boys from playing on girls' teams and vice versa, but few have formal policies banning crossover.

In one of the more high-profile cases, Big Spring School Board recently banned the girls' field hockey, softball and volleyball teams from playing any opponent that allows boys on its team.

Big Spring's field hockey team forfeited a game to Middletown last week because the latter has junior John Pitek at forward line.

The board said concerns for athlete safety prompted the decision.

A 1973 Commonwealth Court ruling bans the PIAA from setting rules about gender makeup of high school sports teams. That decision is left up to the districts.

Crossover athletes such as Kaitlyn and Gabe Grab, the goalie for Central Dauphin's field hockey team, think they should have the say.

"If they're good enough to be on the team, they should be able to play," Gabe said. "As long as they're not out there for the wrong reasons."

Gabe, a senior at CD, has played field hockey since eighth grade. He went out for the team on a dare from friends and ended up sticking around, he said, thanks to the support of his team and coach.

Gabe is good enough to have played internationally on the U.S. national men's under-16 team.

Middletown field hockey coach Nicole Petrovich said she doesn't think about her players as girls or boys, but as athletes. She said John Pitek is a good field hockey player who brings a lot to the team.

"They enjoy playing with John because they learn a lot from him," Petrovich said. "They are bettering themselves on the field."

Gabe said he understands the concerns people have about boys being more aggressive athletes. But, he said, in sports such as field hockey, technique is more important than strength or speed.

"Speed and size help a little bit, sure, but with goalie, you either have the reaction time or you don't," he said.

Still, some coaches and parents say dangerous collisions are more likely when boys play.

Rose Paulus had that concern when her daughter Whitney started playing soccer at Halifax High School four years ago. Halifax will start a girls' team next season.

"Going from league soccer to high school, it's a lot more physical, so I was really worried that year," Paulus said. "But now, she holds her own."

Now a senior, Whitney is a starter on the varsity team. She says she hasn't been intimidated since that first year and now feels like one of the guys. Competition has kept her at Halifax.

"I had offers to come play on other teams, but the girls' teams weren't as competitive," she said.

That competitive nature probably drives most students to cross the sports gender lines, said Ed Batista, a psychologist and Cumberland Valley girls' soccer coach.

A girl might see playing a boys' sport as a personal challenge. A boy, on the other hand, might try a girls' sport because he's played other sports all his life.

"We're more tolerant of a girl who's willing to take her lumps and not ask for special consideration," Batista said. "It's like in league soccer. You can play up in age but not down because there's a perceived advantage."

Kaitlyn Sanders doesn't worry about who has the advantage when she's wrestling an opponent in the 103-pound featherweight class. She focuses on technique.

"She has to have technique since she's not going to overpower somebody," said Jim Sanders, her dad.

His daughter's athletic priority is softball, but she was a wrestling team trainer in her sophomore year when the coach offered her a featherweight spot on the team. Kaitlyn took it.

Three years later, she has yet to forfeit.

"It's actually easier to get hurt in softball than in wrestling, if you know what you're doing," she said.

Her mom, Tina Sanders, was a little more skeptical but warmed up to the idea after seeing her in action.

"I don't believe either sex should be told they can or can't do something," Tina Sanders said. "There are different advantages and disadvantages for both."

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Marano Wins Gold, Japan Gets Women's Title

Associated Press 9/14/03

NEW YORK - Kristie Marano won a gold and the U.S. women won six other medals, but Japan won five golds to take the women's team title and Georgia took the men's at the World Freestyle Championships on Sunday.

Kerry McCoy and Cael Sanderson won silver for the U.S. men, who came in second. Georgia finished with 33 points. The U.S. men and Iran both finished with 31 but the Americans finished second by virtue of winning two silvers to just one for Iran.

Sanderson earned two points for flipping Russia's Sajid Sajidov, who quickly tied it with a reversal and won the 185-pound title with a single-leg takedown with 14 seconds left.

"I didn't wrestle well and this was a time to wrestle well, so I'm disappointed," Sanderson said. "This year has been pretty ugly for me."

McCoy forced overtime at 265 by taking down Uzbekistan's Artur Taimazov with 7 seconds left, but Taimazov flipped the American from the clinch in overtime to win.

Japan won gold medals at 112, 121, 130, 139 and 158 to tie the U.S. women, who had led the team race going into the finals. Both teams finished with 62 points but the tiebreaker was Japan's gold medal count.

Marano won her second gold and seventh medal at the worlds, using two 3-point rolls to defeat Poland's Ewelina Pruszko 7-1. Only two other American women have won gold medals at the worlds: Tricia Saunders in 1992, '96, '98 and '99 and Sandra Bacher in 1999. Marano also won a gold at the 2000 worlds.

"It actually fueled me," Marano said of watching three American losses before taking the mat. "I was really upset because those girls worked so hard. It put more momentum into my match."

The U.S. women's team had never taken home more than three medals. It last won three in 1999, when the team took the title. Patricia Miranda (105), Tina George (121), Sara McMann (139) and Toccara Montgomery (159) won silvers and Jenny Wong (113) and Sally Roberts (130) earned bronze.

But it was still a disappointing day for the American women, who were ensured a medal in each division after Saturday' quarterfinals.

"We didn't get the job done. It's an opportunity lost, but we'll learn from it," women's coach Terry Steiner said. "The good thing is, we were second in the world and there aren't a lot of happy faces in the locker room."

The closest the American women came to another gold was at 139. McMann overcame a 3-1 deficit to force a tie with Japan's Kaori Icho, but lost in the second minute of overtime.

Japan defeated the U.S. in all three of the nations' head-to-head matches, as Saori Yoshida defeated George at 121 and Kyoko Hamaguchi clinched Japan's win with a win over Montgomery at 159.

"Another year of this training will not only take us to the next level but put us over the top of our opponents," a tearful George said. "Then we'll be untouchable. This is just another step to our Olympic dream."

Ukraine's Irini Merleni defeated Miranda with a 2-point flip and a 1-point hold, and held on in the last minute for gold.

Chiharu Icho earned Japan's first gold by defeating Russia's Natalia Karamchakova at 112, and Seiko Yamamoto followed with Japans third gold in as many matches by defeating Russia's Natalia Ivashko 4-0.

Other women's bronze medallists included China's Li Hui (105), Russia's Natalia Golts (121), Canada's Viola Yanik (139), Russia's Svetlana Martynenko (148) and China's Wang Xu (159).

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George, Montgomery take silver at Worlds

09/15/03
Associated Press

New York- Two Northeast Ohio wrestlers lost in championship matches as Japan took the women's team title and Georgia took the men's at the World Freestyle Championships yesterday.

Japan defeated the U.S. in all three of the nations' head-to-head matches, as Saori Yoshida defeated Cleveland Heights native Tina George at 121 pounds and Kyoko Hamaguchi clinched Japan's win with a victory over Cleveland's Toccara Montgomery at 159. Both George and Montgomery claimed silver medals.

Kristie Marano won a gold and the U.S. women won six other medals, but Japan's five gold medals were the tiebreaker in the overall team competition.

Kerry McCoy and Cael Sanderson won silver for the U.S. men, who came in second. Georgia finished with 33 points. The U.S. men and Iran both finished with 31, but the Americans finished second by virtue of winning two silvers to just one for Iran.

Marano won her second gold and seventh medal at the worlds, using two 3-point rolls to defeat Poland's Ewelina Pruszko, 7-1. Only two other American women have won gold medals at the worlds: Tricia Saunders in 1992, '96, '98 and '99 and Sandra Bacher in 1999. Marano also won a gold at the 2000 worlds.

The U.S. women's team last won three medals in 1999, when the team took the title. George, Montgomery, Patricia Miranda (105) and Sara McMann (139) won silvers and Jenny Wong (113) and Sally Roberts (130) earned bronze.

But it was still a disappointing day for the American women, who were ensured a medal in each division after Saturday's quarterfinals.

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Stanford's Miranda Earns Spot In World Wrestling Finals

September 14, 2003

NEW YORK -- Former Stanford star Patricia Miranda advanced to Sunday's 105-pound finals in the women's competition at the World Wrestling Championships with a berth to the 2004 Summer Olympics on the line.

Miranda won a technical fall over France's Angelique Michele Berthenet by an 11-1 score on Saturday night.

"I just feel like the sports is so much more a part of me now (than in 2000)," said Miranda who wrestles for the Dave Schultz Wrestling Club. "Then, I knew two or three positions. Now, I basically know about a dozen moves, but I also know how to control the match."

Overall, the U.S. women's wrestling team has assured itself a medal in every weight class by winning two third-place matches earlier Sunday at freestyle wrestling's world championships.

Both U.S. men's semifinalists advanced to Sunday night's finals. With wins Saturday, the American men qualified for five of seven Olympic divisions.

The championships are a qualifying event for the Athens Olympics, and the top 10 men and top five women of each Olympic weight class qualify their nation for the games.

Jenny Wong and Sally Roberts each won bronze medals after losing semifinal matches earlier in the day.

Women's wrestling will be an Olympic event for the first time at the 2004 Games, and the Americans have four wrestlers in the finals of the four weight classes that will be featured: Miranda at 105 pounds, Tina George at 121, Sara McMann at 139 and Tocarra Montgomery at 159. Kristie Marano will also compete for the world title at 148.

Cael Sanderson beat Georgia's Revaz Mindorashvili in the semifinals of the 185-pound division, and Kerry McCoy pinned Iran's Ali Reza Rezai to advance to the finals of the 265-pound class.

Other women's bronze medalists included China's Li Hui in the 105-pound class, Russia's Natalia Golts at 121, Canada's Viola Yanik at 139, Russia's Svetlana Martynenko at 148 and China's Wang Xu at 159.