THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, February 26, 1995 TAG: 9502260224
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY PAUL WHITE, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHESAPEAKE LENGTH: Medium: 71 lines
Gloucester's Joey Legg called it an accident. Salem's Chip Reyes said it was simply a good move.
Whatever it was, it triggered the upset of the day in the final round of the Eastern Region wrestling tournament Saturday at Oscar Smith.
Legg, a sophomore, pancaked Reyes as part of a five-point move en route to a 9-3 victory over the previously unbeaten and returning 103-pound state champion.
Great Bridge, despite having just two champions, cruised to its fifth straight regional team title. The Wildcats amassed 218.5 points, far outdistancing second-place Western Branch (125.5).
The Bruins won the individual battle, however, as they crowned a tournament-high three champions. Lee Butler remained unbeaten at 103 by rolling past Denbigh sophomore Joe Wright, 9-3. At 145, Sean Sanderlin (32-1) continued his remarkably consistent season by pinning Cox's Kevin Sullivan at 2:30. And at 152, Byron Tucker (34-0) turned in another technical fall masterpiece at the expense of the previously unbeaten Orlando Morton of Maury.
But the biggest buzz of the night was created by Legg (31-1), who snapped Reyes' 33-match winning streak while denying the Sun Devil a third straight regional title.
``It was pretty much an accident,'' Legg said of the late first period move which trapped Reyes (21-1) on his back for some 20 seconds until he was saved by the towel boy. ``He leaned one way, I shot the other.''
It left Reyes trailing, 6-2, at the end of the first period. Reyes found himself in a similar predicament in last year's regional final, as he trailed Tallwood's Mike Mercado by five points heading into the third period.
That time, Reyes rallied to win in overtime.
Saturday, however, Legg kept Reyes off balance throughout and capped the match with a sweet takedown 10 seconds before the final buzzer.
``He just wanted it more,'' said Reyes, who hugged Legg both after the match and on the victory stand, handling defeat with class.
The region's other returning state champion didn't have nearly as much trouble. Cox heavyweight Brian Wilson cruised to his second straight regional title with a decisive 21-7 victory over Kempsville's Kevin Eaton.
Green Run's Kyle Proffitt (140), Great Bridge's Billy Allred (160) and Deep Creek's Ryan Baker (171) also successfully defended regional titles Saturday, while Wildcat Carl Perry (125) ran his record to a region-best 39-0 with a six-minute technical fall victory.
Tallwood (Mike Mercado at 112 and Jonathan Vann at 189) and Hampton (Randy Devlin at 130 and Eric Thompson at 135) each had two winners Saturday.
The top four wrestlers in each weight class advance to the Group AAA state tournament beginning Friday at Oscar Smith.
In the VISWA championships:
Ryan Ingram (103 pounds), Clay Weisberg (112) and Ryan Smith (145) won in the finals as Norfolk Academy repeated its fifth-place finish from 1994 at the Virginia Independent Schools Wrestling Association tournament.
Ingram won with a first-period fall, while Weisberg took a decision. Smith defeated Cape Henry's Robert Gautreaux for the title at 145.
St. Christopher's won with 190 points, followed by Episcopal with 159, Potomac with 157, St. Stephen's with 152 1/2 and the Bulldogs with 147 1/2.
Catholic's Ben Scotece lost in the 125-pound finals.
Academy's Luke Lindhjem won a third-place match at 119. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
JOSEPH JOHN KOTLOWSKI/Staff
Joey Legg, left, of Gloucester High hugs Salem's Chip Reyes after
their match on Saturday at the Eastern Region wrestling tournament.
Legg defeated Reyes, the defending state champion at 119 pounds.
by CNB