THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, December 21, 1994 TAG: 9412210410
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C3 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Athletes of the Week
SOURCE: BY PAUL WHITE, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHESAPEAKE LENGTH: Medium: 57 lines
Some wrestlers would rather avoid having their team's fate in a tournament rest on their performance. Others thrive in that situation.
And then there's Oscar Smith's Rafael Butts, who'll take a match any way it comes.
The sophomore took the mat against Bayside's John Fuller Saturday in the heavyweight final of the Portsmouth Invitational Wrestling tournament knowing the outcome of his match would determine whether the Tigers finished as champions or also-rans. But if the significance of the occasion fazed Butts, he's not letting on.
``My teammates told me I needed to win, so I knew what the situation was,'' Butts said. ``But I didn't let it get to me. I always go out there trying to win.''
The calm demeanor apparently paid off, as Butts pinned Fuller late in the first period to lift the Tigers to an 8 1/2-point victory in the annual tournament.
``I thought I'd just go out there and outpoint him,'' Butts said. ``But once I got him on his back, I figured I might as well go ahead for the pin.''
Butts' ability to come through in the clutch made him an easy choice for The Virginian-Pilot and The Ledger-Star athlete of the week award.
The fact that Butts doesn't overemphasize winning prior to a match shouldn't be surprising, since last year, he didn't do a lot of it. Wrestling competitively for the first time, Butts won fewer than half of his matches as a freshman.
But while he got tossed around pretty good, Butts, who is also a two-way tackle on Oscar Smith's football team, said he didn't consider quitting.
``It was hard sometimes, but it was also fun,'' Butt said. ``I just said I'm going to stick with it.''
Butts committed himself to learning some of the subtleties of the sport. He also bulked up from 215 pounds a year ago to his current 236. And so far, the change has been dramatic. Butts sports an 8-2 record with six pins.
``I've gotten better on my moves, and I have a better understanding of wrestling,'' he said.
It's all made Butts reassess his goals for the season. Coming in, he simply wanted to do better than last year. Now, ``I'd like to qualify for regionals and maybe try to get to state,'' he said.
Butts acknowledges that when it comes to wrestling, he still has a lot to learn. But if Saturday's performance is any indication, Butts can now give a few lessons, too. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
Rafael Butts
by CNB