THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, February 24, 1995 TAG: 9502240709
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C4 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY PAUL WHITE, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Short : 50 lines
Maury's Orlando Morton, after absorbing six minutes of the type of punishment only a Great Bridge Wildcat can dish out, limped gingerly to the edge of the mat before allowing gravity to deposit his battered body on a nearby table.
Imagine how he would have felt had he lost the match.
Morton, a returning state placewinner, gutted out a 13-12 quarterfinal victory over Great Bridge's Christian Basnight Friday in a showstopper of a match on Day One of the Eastern Region wrestling tournament at Oscar Smith.
The tournament resumes today at 2 p.m. with first-round consolation matches. The semifinals are scheduled for 7 p.m.
Morton, who placed fifth in the state last year at 145 but missed the first semester this season while on academic suspension, wrestled in flurries against Basnight and scored several slick takedowns. But he also took a severe pounding from the ultra-aggressive Basnight, forcing Morton to use all of his injury time while incurring the wrath of Great Bridge fans.
Morton appeared thoroughly drained at the end, but did just enough to avoid a stalling call and eke out the one-point victory.
``I was hurting, but God helped me suck it up,'' Morton said.
Meanwhile, an angry Basnight headed for the consolation bracket, where he'll be joined by fellow Wildcat stars Michael Harper - the defending champion at 145 - and 103-pounder Aaron Anton. But fret not for the Wildcats. With eight wrestlers set to compete in today's semifinals, Great Bridge appeared destined to lock up its fifth straight region title.
The Wildcats amassed 92.5 points, off their near-record pace of a year ago but 38 more than second-place Lake Taylor.
The Titans have four wrestlers in the semifinals, as does Western Branch (46 points, tied for third with Gloucester).
Beach District champion Cox, with 31.5 points and three semifinalists, is in fifth place.
Lake Taylor semifinalists include 125-pounder Lionel Davis, who continued his late-season surge with a 12-8 quarterfinal victory over Cox' Wes Lewis.
Last week, Davis surprised even the Titan coaching staff by winning the Eastern District title over Granby's Trip Nofplot.
``We weren't sure he was going to win the district,'' Lake Taylor coach Ken Whitley said. ``But ever since he beat Nofplot, he thinks he can beat anyone.'' by CNB