Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, February 21, 1993 TAG: 9302220238
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: RAY COX STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
SEMONES WINS 3RD STATE TITLE
William Ricks, the Sussex Central High coach and possibly the most demonstrative cornerman in two state wrestling tournaments, sat motionless with barely an expression during the Group A 189-pound final Saturday night.Ricks was watching Glenvar's Brandon Semones work over his guy, Ben Smith. Ricks, like just about everybody else at the Salem Civic Center, could tell Smith was simply outmuscled, outquicked and outclassed.
When Semones pinned him at 3:39, Ricks - the towel-throwing, rear-end chewing, fire-and-brimstone coach - just shrugged and smiled.
Semones had won his third state title and his 75th straight match and now will gallop off into the sunset - with a brief stop for baseball, a sport he hasn't tried lately, and graduation - to play football for Virginia Tech. No wrestling for him for a long while now, if ever again.
So what do you suppose he will miss most?
"I'll miss all the friends I've made wrestling and my coaches," he said.
But what about all those victories and the glory?
"I don't really think about that," he said. "When I go out there on the mat, I put all that behind me."
After a brief bout with butterflies as he awaited his turn, Semones marched out and clobbered Smith. That after a less-than-inspiring 5-2 decision over Derrick Mason of Mathews in the semifinals.
"It made me get my act together," Semones said. "I wanted to come out and prove what I could do."
A twisted knee and an overdose of bad luck were all but forgotten as James River senior Jimmy Adams' last match was perhaps his most courageous.
The 152-pounder held off a strong and quick opponent, Markus Turner of Sussex Central, to win 13-10.
Adams missed last year's tournament with a twisted knee and had to settle for third place in the Region C tournament because the knee balked on him again.
However, against Turner, he did what he had to, wrestling strategically. Turner battled illness throughout the match.
"I just kept telling myself that pain is temporary but pride is forever," Adams said.
It wasn't even close in the 103-pound final. Tony Bocanegra of James River was too experienced and too good for that. He wore out Jammal Jones of Sussex Central 18-3 for a technical fall.
"I lost in the final last year; I wasn't going to let it happen again," Bocanegra said.
A senior, Bocanegra had to cut about 10 pounds to stay at the smallest weight. That and his experience served him well.
"I didn't really know too much about [Jones]," he said. "I was just planning to wrestle on my feet. That's what I do best."
John Cunningham of Stuarts Draft, the third-place finisher in Region B, pulled off a minor upset at 112 when he outwrestled Grayson County's Nicky Arduin 7-4. Arduin, the Region C champion, was seeking the Blue Devils' first title in the school's 4-year-old program.
Jason Hamilton of Parry McCluer was leading Spencer Cooke of Gsayson County 5-0 in the 119-pound final when Hamilton developed a bad nosebleed, forcing a halt to the match. For more than five minutes, the bout was delayed as various attempts were made to stop the bleeding.
A doctor appeared and one of Hamilton's friends, J.J. Cunningham, produced a mask for a broken nose. The bleeding was shut off and Cunningham was equipped with the head gear. He finished off Cooke for a 16-1 technical fall.
Hamilton had lost as a freshman by one point in the championship and had to settle for third last year. As he stood waiting for the bleeding to cease, his thoughts were dark.
"I thought they were going to stop the match," he said. "I asked them not to. They told me, `Your health is more important than a match.' I told them, `No, it's not.' "
Brentsville District had an overwhelming lead in the team competition, followed by Sussex Central and Stuarts Draft.
Brentsville's Will Vanbuskirk came up with one of the more inspirational victories of the final. Despite an ailing right hip that hampered him for a time during the match, he rallied for a 18-16 victory over Chris Fretwell of Stuarts Draft.
Vanbuskirk trailed most of the match before finally taking the lead in the closing seconds. Bad hip and all, he celebrated his victory with a backward flip. \
See microfilm for complete results