News Page
Hard work pays off for Kowgirls’ winners
04 Feb 2004
By Rick Pedone News-Gazette Staff Writer
The common thread among Candice Pellerin, Vanity Vasquez, Jolene Sun, Jenny Glover and Katie Orben?
They are all state wrestling champions for the Osceola Kowgirls. And they also get up early in the morning.
“All those girls, and the other girls on our team that reached the finals (Krystalee Navarro, Kerri Zupofska, Brandi Castro), are the ones who come in at 6:45 in the morning for weightlifting,” said Osceola Coach Jim Bird. “I guess it paid off.”
The wrestlers agree, without too much prodding.
“I’ve worked a lot harder this year,” said Glover, a 160-pound junior who was a state-runner up in 2003. “It’s been very much worth it.”
Sun, a junior at 130 pounds, said, “I am in so much better than I was last year, 110 percent better. I’m in much better shape, and that’s because of our coaches showing us what to do.”
Orben, the 189-pound champion, plac-ed fourth as a freshman at 165 pounds last year. She called the team’s performance, “Amazing.
“It’s almost unfathomable what we’ve done. The lifting you do in the morning pays off because you get so built up and you feel like you have confidence for every match.”
Pellerin, a transfer at 112 pounds from Gateway, said she had no problem adjusting to the coaching staff at Osceola and also quickly fit in with her new teammates.
“They made the transition so much easier for me,” said Pellerin, a senior and only county wrestler ever to win three state titles. “Everyone was very supportive as soon as I got here.”
Vasquez is perhaps the county’s most versatile athlete. She is one of the county’s top distance runners in cross country and track, while at the same time one of its most accomplished female wrestlers.
“I guess the best way to describe it is that I just don’t like to lose,” said the 103-pound champion.
Glover, Vasquez and Pellerin used some external motivation to bring home first-place trophies last weekend at the OHS gym.
Glover remembered last year’s state tournament, when she finished second by one point at 144 pounds.
“I learned how you had to go hard the whole match. I lost by a point, and if I had rolled her on her back I would have won,” said Glover. “This year I guess my toughest match was the final at the state tournament. I had never seen her before, but I was very confident in myself.”
Vasquez lost one time because she went up a weight class, to 112 pounds, at a tournament.
“She was stronger than I was. I found out that I had to get stronger, and I had to keep from being rolled over,” she said. “It also told me that I need to be here (for wrestling practice) all around the year.”
Pellerin was in Dallas over the Christmas break to compete at the Lonestar Duals.
“I lost a match there, and that helped me because it made me aware that I still have flaws. It made me work harder,” she said.
Even though she entered last weekend’s tournament as a two-time champion, she admitted to nervousness before the title match.
“I knew the girl I had in the final was good and that I had to have my mental game ready,” she said. “I was prepared to handle any bad calls from the ref.”
As it turned out, the Kowgirls simply overwhelmed their competition.
“I wasn’t surprised we won. We’ve worked hard all year to defend the championship,” said Glover.
Sun said extensive practice over the summer made the difference for her. She didn’t place at the 2003 tournament, her first season.
“When my friends were out doing other things, I was in the mat room,” she said. “I just love it. I love the competition. But, if you had told me two years ago I’d be doing this, I’d say, ‘No, way.’ I remember my P.E. coach bringing me into the mat room when I was a freshman and telling me that I’d be a good wrestler, and I told him there was no way I’d ever wrestle.”
Orben, a junior varsity cheerleader, considered skipping wrestling after her freshman season, but changed her mind. It’s a decision she does not regret.
“Over the summer I remembered how hard the work was,” she said. “But, I missed the whole team atmosphere, and I wanted to be part of it again. I’ll definitely wrestle again next year.”
The hard work isn’t over.
Many of the Kowgirls will travel to Cumberland College, Ky., in two weeks for the Kentucky state tournament. Also, coming in March, is the national tournament in Michigan.
“I’m very excited about that,” said Glover. “I went to the nationals during my freshman year (two years ago) but I didn’t go last year. I’m looking forward to it.”
-----------------------------------------------
Kristy Bishop is regional girls champion
By JUDI BOWERS 2/4/04
|
The Big Bear wrestling team has a champion-a regional champion who is headed to the state finals. Kristy Bishop earned the top spot on the podium in the Girls California Wrestling Championships at the Southern California regionals.
The championship at the regional level earned Bishop the opportunity to travel to Vallejo High School in northern California to compete Friday and Saturday, Feb. 6 and 7 at the state level. She will forego the De Anza League individual finals to take part in the state event. "We though this was more important," said Bears coach Martin Bumstead. "We are pretty proud of her, and all three girls," he added.
Jackie Newsome and Ginny Jimenez also competed in the regional tournament, but missed the top five cut to advance. Jimenez will travel with Bishop and could slide in as an alternate, having finished sixth in her weight class.
Bishop, competing at 122 pounds, won four matches to earn the title. In a full class of 16 wrestlers, Bishop pinned her first opponent in three minutes, 25 seconds. The next pin was in 1:33, which Bishop followed with an 8-3 decision over a state-ranked opponent. Her final match of the day was against a nationally ranked wrestler from Ramona High School, who Bishop beat 8-5.
Earlier in the week, the entire Big Bear team hosted Beaumont in the final league dual meet of the season. The Bears lost 44-36.
Beaumont is fielding a wrestling team for the first time in close to 20 years, and the team is strong. "It was nip and tuck all the way," Bumstead said. The Bears opened with a quick pin by Andy Cohen at 147 pounds. Cohen pinned his opponent in 49 seconds. The finish with put Cohen at the third or fourth seed in league finals.
Senior Cort Crossen (191) also pinned his opponent in 2:51. He is 4-1 in league and will be seeded second in the finals, looking to defend is league title he earned last season.
Joseph Valencia (121) earned a pin in the second period at 3:32 and is expected to be seeded third in the league finals meet. Anthony Rasmuessen at 217 pounds also pinned his Beaumont foe.
The Bears also earned wins in the 162 and heavyweight class.
Bishop competed in one of the most exciting matches of the night, losing in overtime 6-4.
-----------------------------------------------
By JUDI BOWERS 2.4.04
Wrestler. The word conjures up an image of brute strength.
Ballet dancer. Complete opposite of wrestler, strong yes, but with grace and elegance not normally associated with a wrestling mat.
Yet, sophomore Ginny Jimenez is both, choreographing her dance for the stage and mat.
Since she was a little girl, Jimenez has been acting of sorts, doing shows for family on her grandmother's back porch. The acting bug bit hard a few years ago when she appeared on stage in the Community Arts Theater Society's production of "Life With Father." Then came "Little Women" and dance classes.
"I like being on stage so much, " Jimenez said. "I just feel at home."
In between studying her lines, Jimenez' mother invited her daughter to a high school wrestling match. Alicia and Ed Jimenez are assistant coaches for the Big Bear High School team. "I had fun," Ginny said about her first match as a spectator, which she attended as an eighth-grader. The next year she was a member of the Big Bear wrestling team.
Wrestling at 112 pounds, Jimenez is petite, but uses her dance and wrestling skills together to choreograph her way to success on the mat. Jimenez said while wrestling and dance may seem different, they connect for her. Wrestling makes her stronger and gives her more confidence for dancing, she says.
All sports have the movements of dance, said Jimenez' wrestling coach Martin Bumstead. "We look like a gymnastics team when we first start," Bumstead said of his team. He explained that the moves required in wrestling need flexibility and balance, two essential tools for dancers.
Jimenez said her wrestling opponents often look at her with amazement as her flexibility maneuvers her out of situations meant to pin her to the mat.
As a dancer, Jimenez needs strong legs; as a wrestler, upper body strength is vital. Jimenez is working on the latter, and admits she struggles against many of her opponents who have that upper body dominance. Females are still fairly new to the sport of wrestling, with only three girls on this year's Big Bear team. After a recent league match at Big Bear High School, Jimenez said she had people who watched the match tell her they didn't realize how tough she and the other girls are. "They said we were inspirational," Jimenez said.
"All three girls do every single conditioning exercise they are asked to do," Bumstead said. "They've stayed right there with it." Bumstead said he expects female wrestling to increase in popularity after the summer Olympics, where there will be a women's wrestling exhibition as part of the summer games.
Going up against male wrestlers was "a little intimidating" at first, but something Jimenez has gotten past. "Now, it doesn't matter, they are just another wrestler," she said.
The wrestling season is coming to an end, but Jimenez won't skip any steps. She is auditioning for the school musical "Cinderella," scheduled for a spring production. When asked which part, Jimenez smiles shyly and says, "Cinderella, or one of the step sisters. But I'll be in it regardless, because I like being in plays."
Jimenez likes to dance, to act and to sing. She was one of several Big Bear dancers who traveled to New York City to dance in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. She's taken voice lessons and will most likely return to those lessons sometime soon. She prefers ballet, but enjoys dance in general and likes musicals, but really likes dramas.
Drama of another sort is the path her life may follow in the future. Dance and wrestling will take a back seat after high school. Jimenez plans to study psychology or law, or both. "I'm addicted to 'Law and Order: Special Victims Unit,'" she said. "I want to work with rape victims to find out what really happened."
Taking on psychology or law won't be a problem for Jimenez. She has a 4.16 grade point average and has five colleges on her list she plans to send applications to: California State University, Fullerton, Berkeley, UCLA, Sarah Lawrence and New York University.
She says she spends a lot of late nights juggling homework, wrestling practice, play or dance rehearsals and sleep. And she throws in a monthly school board meeting as the high school representative. But she says she has a role model in her mother. "My mom is amazing. She balances theater and coaches wrestling," Jimenez said.
For now, Ginny will balance homework, a few more wrestling meets and auditions in search of the glass slipper.
-------------------------------------------
2/3/2004
Gary Abbott/USA Wrestling
The February 2, 2004 TheMat.com U.S. Women’s College Wrestling Rankings for teams and individuals have been released.
Cumberland College, a NAIA school in Kentucky, remained as the top U.S. women’s college team, receiving all three first-place votes.The team, coached by Kip Flanik, won both of their matches in the recent NWCA National Duals on January 16 in Cleveland..
Missouri Valley College, a NAIA team coached by Carl Murphree, placed second in the poll. Missouri Valley competed in the recent NWCA Duals, the Regina Cup and the Manitoba Open.
Moving back to the No. 3 position was Pacific University, an NCAA Div. III team in Oregon, coached by Scott Miller. Pacific has been active in dual meet competition in recent weeks, both in the U.S. and in Canada.
The No. 4 spot in the polls is NAIA school Menlo College in California, coached by Lee Allen. Holding strong at No. 5 is the Univ. of Minnesota-Morris, an NCAA Div. II school coached by Doug Reese.
Rounding out the Top 10 are No. 6 Lassen College, No. 7 MacMurray College, No. 8 Univ. of Hawaii Rainbow Wahine WC, No. 9 Cal-State Bakersfield and No. 10 Princeton Univ.
The poll can be found at:
http://www.themat.com/rankings/default.asp?CategoryID=108&RankingID=645
The team ranking poll is elected by a panel of three U.S. women’s college coaches. Eligible for ranking are college varsity and club women’s wrestling programs.
Cumberland College, with some recent strong performances throughout the lineup, has the most No. 1 ranked athletes with five top-ranked individuals.
Retaining their No. 1 individual rankings for Cumberland College are Suekoiyla Shelly at 55 kg/121 lbs. and Alaina Berube at 59 kg/130 lbs. and two-time World silver medalist Toccara Montgomery at 72 kg/158.5 lbs. Claiming the No. 1 position for the first time this year were Lauren Lindsay at 51 kg/112.25 lbs. and Shelly Ruberg at 63 kg/138.5 lbs.
The other top-ranked wrestlers in the nation are Mary Kelly of MacMurray College at 48 kg/105.5 lbs., Kelly Branham at 67 kg/147.5 lbs. and Megan Goldsmith of UM-Morris at 80 kg/176 lbs.
The February 2, 2004 TheMat.com U.S. Women’s College Individual rankings can be found at:
http://www.themat.com/rankings/default.asp?CategoryID=108&RankingID=646
The individual rankings are selected by TheMat.com. Athletes who are considered for ranking are eligible full-time college students, and are members of their college women’s varsity or club program, or a member of their college men’s wrestling team.
----------------------------------------------------------------
2/3/2004
Amy Ufnowski/USA Wrestling
The Dave Schultz Memorial International will bring many elite wrestlers from around the world to the mats at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs Febuary 7-8.
Not only will talented athletes be attending from other nations in all three international styles, but a strong contingent of outstanding U.S. wrestlers are expected to participate.
As the competition is an open tournament, and athletes do not have to pre-register to compete, the exact U.S. wrestlers who will participate can not be completely determined. However, many of those who have indicated they might compete are top Olympic contenders with impressive achievements.
Among the top elite Greco-Roman athletes expected include 2000 Olympic Champion and 2001 World Champion Rulon Gardner (Cascade, Colo./Sunkist Kids) at 120 kg/264.5 lbs. Gardner received international acclaim for his upset victory over three-time Olympic champion Alexander Kareline of Russia in the Sydney Olympics.
Another star from the Sydney Games, Olympic bronze medalist Garrett Lowney (Freedom, Wis./Minnesota Storm) will participate at 96 kg/211.5 lbs
2003 World Team members Kevin Bracken (Colorado Springs, Colo./New York AC) at 66 kg/145.5 lbs., T.C. Danzler (Colorado Springs, Colo./New York AC) at 74 kg/163 lbs., and Justin Ruiz (Salt Lake City, Utah/New York AC), at 96 kg/211.5 lbs. are expected to participate.
Other Greco-Roman Team members expected in the field include: four-time U.S. Nationals champion Keith Sieracki (Colorado Springs, Colo./U.S. Army), at 74 kg/163 lbs., two-time U.S. Nationals champion Glenn Nieradka (Colorado Springs, Colo./U.S. Army) at 60 kg/132 lbs., and two-time World Team Trials runner-up Lindsay Durlacher (Colorado Springs, Colo./New York AC) at 55 kg/121 lbs.
Almost all of the top women wrestlers in the United States are expected to participate in this event.
Included are six of the seven 2003 World Team members. World gold medalist Kristie Marano (Albany, N.Y./ATWA) at 63 kg/138.5 lbs., World silver medalists Patricia Miranda (Colorado Springs, Colo/DSWC) at 48 kg/105.5 lbs., Sara McMann (Colorado Springs, Colo./Sunkist Kids) at 63 kg/138.5 lbs. and Toccara Montgomery (Cleveland, Ohio/New York AC) at 72 kg/158.5 lbs., and World bronze medalist Jenny Wong (Colorado Springs, Colo./Sunkist Kids) at 51 kg/112 lbs., are expected to attend.
Other top women expected to compete include past U.S. Nationals champions Malinda Ripley (Colorado Springs, Colo./Sunkist Kids) at 48 kg/105.5 lbs., Tela O’Donnell (Colorado Springs, Colo./Dave Schultz WC) at 55kg/121 lbs. and Iris Smith (Colorado Springs, Colo./U.S. Army) at 72 kg/158.5 lbs.
Other Women’s National Team members expected to enter include Tori Adams (Colorado Springs, Colo./Gator WC) at 63 kg/138.5 lbs., Samantha Lang (Tualatin, Ore./ unattached) at 72 kg/158.5 lbs., Katie Kunimoto (Colorado Springs, Colo./Gator WC) at 51 kg/112 lbs., Marcie VanDusen (Colorado Springs, Colo./Sunkist Kids) at 55 kg/121 lbs. and Erin Tomeo (Colorado Springs, Colo./Sunkist Kids) at 59 kg/130 lbs.,
Many elite men’s freestyle wrestlers from the United States are also expected. Leading the group is 2002 World silver medalist Brandon Eggum (Minneapolis, Minn./Minnesota Storm) at 84 kg/185 lbs.
Past U.S. World Team members who are expected to enter include Eric Akin (Lincoln, Neb./Dave Schultz WC) at 55 kg/121 lbs. and Tim Hartung (St. Paul, Minn/Minnesota Storm) at 96 kg/211.5 lbs.
Other members of the current Freestyle Team USA who are expected are Mike Mena (Bloomington, Ind./New York AC), at 55 kg/121 lbs., Jason Kutz (Colorado Springs, Colo./U.S. Army) at 60 kg/132 lbs., Kirk White (Tacoma, Wash./Dave Schultz WC) at 74 kg/163 lbs., Lee Fullhart (Colorado Springs, Colo./Gator WC) at 84 kg/185 lbs. and Dean Morrison (Colorado Springs, Colo./New York AC) at 96 kg/211.5 lbs.
Jesus Wilson (Fayette, Iowa/Minnesota Storm), who was fifth in the 1993 World Championships, will compete at 60 kg/132 lbs. College stars Chris Fleeger (Trout Run, Pa./New York AC) at 60 kg/132 lbs. and Steve Mocco (N. Bergen, N.J./New York AC), at 120 kg/264.5 lbs. are also expected to compete. Fleeger. from Purdue Univ., and Mocco, from the Univ. of Iowa, are seeking Olympic redshirt years to pursue their Olympic quest.
Men's freestyle, Greco-Roman and women's freestyle preliminaries will begin Saturday, February 7 at 9:00 a.m. All three styles will continue on Sunday, February 8 starting at 9:00 a.m. with semifinals and third place matches. Finals will start at 3:30 p.m. (This schedule is subject to change.)
Tickets are available at the door. Prices are as follows:
Adult all-session ticket - $15
Adult Saturday and Sunday - $10 each (or $5 per session)
Adult Medals and Final Matches (only) - $8
High school students with I.D. and senior citizens 62+ - $5 per day
Youth - $4 per day
Coaches FREE with five paid wrestlers
USA Wrestling and the Dave Schultz Wrestling Foundation have worked together to create the Dave Schultz Memorial International. The event honors the memory and achievements of Olympic Champion Dave Schultz, who was tragically killed in 1996.
The 2004 Dave Schultz International is sponsored by Front Range Orthopaedics, Old West Business Forms, Jun Japanese Restaurant, Service Typographers, and Mountain Dew.
For more information on the Dave Schultz Memorial International Wrestling Tournament, contact USA Wrestling at 719-598-8181 or visit TheMat.com