THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, January 7, 1996 TAG: 9601070183
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C13 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY KEVIN DOEPP, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 73 lines
George Mason wrestlers Rob Barlow and Brad Ginn have about as much in common as Oscar Madison and Felix Unger did in ``The Odd Couple.''
Barlow is the quiet, easy-going type with a serious girlfriend, while Ginn is an unattached guy who can be outspoken.
However, if you are really pressed to find one or two items that the two have in common, you don't have to look too hard.
Aside from wrestling at George Mason, Ginn and Barlow are Kempsville graduates. They were also invited to wrestle at the prestigious Midlands Championships held at Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill., last weekend.
Barlow, last year's Colonial Athletic Association's champion at 177 pounds, entered the season ranked 25th in the nation by Wrestling USA in the preseason poll. He finished in the top 12 at 177 at the Midlands in his first appearance.
``I was real happy to be able to go there,'' Barlow, a junior, said. ``I was in better shape for it and a lot of it had to do with having two workouts a day.''
Ginn, a junior who transfered to Mason from Appalachian State, wasn't too happy with his first performance at the Midlands. He was eliminated after losing his first match at 150.
``It was my first match back since I dislocated my shoulder,'' Ginn said. ``I wasn't into it. I was just happy to go because it was my first goal coming into the season.''
Unlike Ginn, Barlow decided on attending George Mason right out of high school. Barlow, who wrestled at 160 at Kempsville, won the district and region titles his senior year.
He jumped to 167 in his freshman year. When that didn't work out, coach Brian Shaffer asked him if he wanted to try out at 177 to plug a hole in the lineup.
And Barlow has been happier ever since. With 12 wins in 14 matches, he seems to have found his niche on the mat at that weight class.
``The guys that wrestle at 177 aren't as quick as the the lower weights,'' Barlow said. ``And you don't have to worry a whole lot about sucking weight.''
Ginn, on the other hand, received offers from small Division II and III football teams coming out of Kempsville. However, they weren't his idea of what college was all about so he decided to sign with Appalachian State to wrestle.
But he didn't feel like he fit in with the other wrestlers and decided to head to Fairfax and Mason.
``My main reason to go to George Mason was the fact that it had a good program,'' Ginn said. ``I was also able to get back with Rob. It was nice to know that someone that I grew up with would be there.''
ALUMNI REPORT: Michele Jarman (Churchland) has started in six of eight games for the Western Maryland women's basketball team and is averaging 5.2 points and 5.8 rebounds per game. . . . Junior Jeff McLean (Booker T.) continues to have a good season for the Christopher Newport Captains. He is averaging 15.5 points per game, second on the team, and 5.3 rebounds per game, the third-best Captain. Sophomore Matt Bryant (Deep Creek) is third for Newport in scoring at 10.5 points per game and is grabbing 3.3 rebounds per game. . . . Cammie Pickett (Norfolk Academy), a freshman for the Emory University swimming and diving team, is ranked in the top 10 in Division III in the 50-, 100-, 200-, 500- and 1,000-yard freestyle events. She was named the University Athletic Association's athlete of the week after winning the 200 and 500 free events in a dual meet victory against Kalamazoo College. ILLUSTRATION: Photos
Rob Barlow, left, and Brad Ginn have gone from their Kempsville High
days to being invited to the prestigious Midlands college meet last
weekend.
by CNB