THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, January 27, 1995 TAG: 9501260164
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 22 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY LEE TOLLIVER, BEACON SPORTS EDITOR
LENGTH: Medium: 68 lines
JASON BOSWELL IS starting to see athletics more clearly than before - for several reasons.
The Kellam sophomore is starting to come into his own as a wrestler and football player.
And at the start of the football season Boswell got contact lenses.
``Oh, yes, they're helping a lot,'' the 119-pounder said. ``I can see coach now.''
Before, with his glasses sitting in his bag on the bench, Boswell struggled to get instructions from coach Kevin Michaels.
``I'd spend half the time yelling at him, `Hey, I'm over here,' '' Michaels laughed. ``If you watch wrestling coaches, they don't only shout out instructions, they act them out.''
Boswell has been following the acting classes pretty well, grappling his way to a 10-3 record in preparation for the Beach District tournament.
Most of his competition has been at 125, but he'll probably wrestle at 119 for the tournament.
While seeing is believing, Michaels said Boswell's attitude is what is making a believer out of the veteran coach.
``He's not our leader, but he's starting to understand about leadership,'' Michaels. ``Jason has a tremendous work ethic. I mean, he wrestles more in the offseason than anybody I know.
``And bigger than that is his burning desire to improve and learn. Nobody has a bigger heart than Jason.''
It all comes from Boswell's love of wrestling. While he enjoys football and plans to give baseball a shot this year, it is the one-on-one atmosphere of wrestling that he yearns for most.
``I like the individualism of it,'' said Boswell, who described himself as a finesse-style wrestler. ``It's just you and the other guy and if you make a mistake, it's you by yourself. You learn from it.
``Right now, I think I'm getting better and better. I think I can be in the final of the touranment.''
Boswell has been one of Kellam's few bright spots in what has been a puzzling season to many on the outside.
The Knights shaped up as a potential contender with several placement winners from last year returning. Many of those wrestlers were to be Michaels' leaders in the workout room and in matches.
But for their own personal reasons, several of those athletes chose not to wrestle this year.
While Michaels, Boswell and the rest of the Knights say they can respect their peers' decisions, it has made the season tough.
And it has helped toughen Boswell.
``Wrestling is hard. Life is hard,'' he said. ``Practice is hard. I think you sometimes have to go through things that are hard and I'm going to stick with wrestling because it is hard.
``That's what I like about it.''
And that's what Michaels likes about Boswell. ILLUSTRATION: Photo by LEE TOLLIVER
``Wrestling is hard. Life is hard. Practice is hard,'' says Kellam's
119-pound wrestler, Jason Boswell. ``I think you sometimes have to
go through things that are hard and I'm going to stick with
wrestling because it is hard.''
by CNB