THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, January 13, 1995 TAG: 9501130621
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C4 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY PAUL WHITE, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Long : 144 lines
Great Bridge will try to take a big step toward regaining national prominence Saturday when the Wildcats compete in the inaugural Virginia Duals National Invitational Team Wrestling Championships at the Hampton Coliseum.
The eight-team tournament features five defending state champions and Mount St. Joe, a two-time national prep champion.
``This is what we've been peaking for,'' Great Bridge coach Steve Martin said. ``This is a big one for us - this and the state championships.''
The four-time Group AAA state champion Wildcats are still smarting from a less-than-stellar performance in last year's state championships. Ranked as high as third in the country two years ago, Great Bridge opened the season out of the national top 25.
Plans to compete in a prestigious out-of-state tournament were vetoed by the school's administration. And convincing victories at the Newport News Invitational and the Hornet Holiday Classic proved little because the Wildcats went in as heavy favorites.
Success for the Wildcats on Saturday would also help erase some bitter Virginia Duals memories. Two years ago, then-third-ranked Great Bridge came up nine points short against Jefferson Township (N.J.), a loss that ended the Wildcats' quest to be the nation's top-ranked team.
And Great Bridge's two worst losses in the decade have been at Hampton Coliseum - to Midwest City, Okla., in 1990 and to Nazareth (Pa.) last season.
The balance of this year's field makes it unlikely Great Bridge will get manhandled again. Despite being seeded fifth, this year's Great Bridge team closely resembles more heralded Wildcat teams of recent vintage - quality wrestlers at every weight class with several state title contenders - Jimmy Hawthorne (119), Carl Perry (125), Aaron Beatson (135) and Billy Allred (160) - peppering the lineup.
In fact, two coaches expressed surprise the Wildcats weren't the top seed.
Still, Great Bridge will be tested early. Fourth-seeded Parkersburg South, the West Virginia state runner-up, is battle-tested after a tough early schedule and has quality wrestlers throughout its lineup.
``I have a contact who's told me a lot about them,'' Martin said. ``They're a good team, but we'll be ready.''
Grundy, the tournament's top seed, will meet No. 8 Mount St. Joe in the 9 a.m. first round, while No. 3 Line Mountain (Pa.) faces No. 6 Vestavia Hills (Ala.) and No. 2 McEachern (Ga.) takes on No. 7 Poquoson.
Should the Wildcats get past Parkersburg South, it would set up the possibility of a fan-friendly Great Bridge-Grundy semifinal. The two teams figure to have the largest contingents of supporters.
A brief look at the rest of the field:
MOUNT ST. JOE
Location: Baltimore, Md.
Coach: Paul Triplett
Seeding: Eighth
The team: Two-time national prep champions . . . Young team, perhaps not as strong as last year's edition, according to the coach . . . Best wrestler is 160-pounder Dan DiVivo, a national prep champion and one of USA Today's top 35 seniors . . . 140-pounder David Inkman (three tournament titles this year) and once-beaten heavyweight Kenny Hunter are other top performers . . . Team is known for being aggressive and tough on its feet . . . Triplett admits the lineup has a few holes.
POQUOSON
Location: Poquoson
Coach: Andy Stone
Seeding: Seventh
The team: State runner-up Eddie Keeton (125) and 152-pounder Forest Holloway can wrestle with anyone. But Poquoson doesn't appear to be as strong top-to-bottom as in previous years, as evidenced by a sixth-place finish in Deep Creek's Hornet Holiday Classic and a narrow dual-match victory over a Hornet team missing some starters . . . Perennial state AA runners-up catch something of a break by being in the lower half of the bracket, which is considered by most to be the weaker of the two.
MCEACHERN
Location: Power Springs, Ga.
Coach: Gordon Pritz
Seeding: Second
The team: The six-time Georgia state champs lost their first dual match - wrestling without six starters - but have won 11 in a row since. McEachern has also won three tournaments . . . 125-pounder Todd Lambert has won 110 straight matches and is the first three-time state champion to compete in the Duals since 1986. He's wrestled at 130 most of the year but could drop to 125 this weekend . . . Travis Bealmear (112, 20-0), James Alverado (160, 21-0) and Grey LeCroy (103) are the team's other top wrestlers. All but Bealmear are returning state champions.
VESTAVIA HILLS
Location: Vestavia Hills, Ala.
Coach: Steve Gaydosh
Seeding: Sixth
The Team: First-round match against Line Mountain features an ironic twist, as Gaydosh was offered the Line Mountain job eight years ago but declined because the school couldn't provide a teaching position . . . Placed third in Grundy's Christmas tournament, and has a 3-0 record in dual matches . . . Top wrestlers include Rod Gaddie (119, 17-4) Ryan Richey (125-130, 16-6), Mitch Hawley (145, 17-3) and Jim Whaley (152) . . . Several wrestlers, most notably Richey, will have to make weight adjustments, as Alabama is one of the states using the new weight classes . . . Gaydosh was an assistant under Gray Simons at Tennessee and works Simons' clinics at Old Dominion during the summers.
LINE MOUNTAIN
Location: Herndon, Pa.
Coach: Bryan Buddock
Seeding: Third
The team: Defending Group AA state champions are currently ranked fifth in Pennsylvania and are 6-1 in dual matches . . . Three starters aren't making the trip because of illness. The most significant absence will be 130-pounder Mike Martz, who whipped a defending state champion last Saturday . . . That leaves Matt Shaffer (189), 1994 state runner-up Brett Schadel (160, 13-0) and exciting sophomore Mike Shingara (135) to try to cover the few holes in the team's lineup . . . Line Mountain wrestlers are schooled in Granby techniques but also heavily emphasize working on top.
GRUNDY
Location: Grundy, Va.
Coach: Kevin Dresser
Seeding: First
The team: Preseason rank (17th according to USA Today) was the highest among teams in this field and precipitated the Golden Waves' top seed here. Grundy has since moved up to 14th in the USA Today poll . . . Features five returning state placewinners, including three runners-up. Brian Shortridge (119), Shawn Horn (135), Kevin Large (145), Brandon Matney (171) and Brandon Stevenson (189) head a deep lineup that on paper has fewer holes than any save Great Bridge.
PARKERSBURG SOUTH
Location: Parkersburg, W.Va.
Coach: Paul Johnson
Seeding: Fourth
The team: Wrestling in the Iron Man Invitational - probably the nation's toughest high school tournament - and being competitive with 10th ranked St. Edwards (Ohio) should make Parkersburg South well prepared for the likes of Great Bridge. Top wrestlers include Bobby Morris (152), Chad Smith (112), Justin Mulinex (125) and Bobby Roberts (145). A semifinal meeting with Grundy would be the first of two meetings with the Golden Wave in a week. The teams will meet in a dual match next weekend. by CNB