Cox Roars To Regional 'Rasslin Crown
Cox’s wrestling squad brought home its first Eastern Region title since 1986 Saturday at Oscar Smith High, as six Falcons won individual titles. Photo by Jason Norman
As the first few matches of Saturday's Eastern Region wrestling competition rolled by, it was easy for passersby to the Oscar Smith gym to get the wrong impression.
Was this supposed to be a demonstration of the finest matsters in South Hampton Roads - or had the rest of the area put together an all-star squad of its top wrestlers, and then had them face off with Cox?
The Falcons had to earn their top spots, just like anyone else. But their were simply more of them than any other school - and the numbers worked in their favor, as six Cox wrestlers took their respective titles, bringing their school its first regional title since 1986. The Falcons roared past Beach District rival Kellam in second place, 222.5-178.5
"It's great for the program, and it's great for the school," said Cox coach Matt Small. "To bring the trophy back to the administration is something that's been expected since the beginning of the year. We've had a very tough schedule all year, and it's a good feeling to bring this home."
Cody Stageberg got things started for Cox, defeating Kellam's Hayden Felch at 103. Fellow Falcon Caleb Richardson finished a 4-0 tournament by defeating Bayside's Jerrelle McCabe for the 112 title, and Bryan Whitt, who set a new record for career wins earlier this season, avenged a district loss to First Colonial's Christian Olanowski in the 119 championship match.
"Obviously the competition is tough," said Whitt, who transferred to Cox this past season after spending his first few high school years at Norfolk Academy. "This is the last year and everyone's after me, but I have to keep on winning." Next weekend at the state championships at Fairfax's Robinson High, he'll try to become the first five-time state titlist in Virginia history.
Kellam's Aaron Runzo broke the Cox streak at 125 by defeating Bayside's Marcelle McCabe, but his teammate Brennen O'Shea fell to Cox's Michael Chalifant in the 130 match. Zach Kechter brought Salem the 135 title with a win over Landstown's Francisco Bisono. Austin D'Amico grabbed Kellam another championship, scoring a win at 140 over Landstown's Matt Dey, and Cox's Ben Dorsay won the 145 title by beating Ocean Lakes' Kyle Robertson.
After Anthony Copeland grabbed the 152 title for the host Tigers, Norview's Adrin Taylor headed out to battle Turner Bishop of Kellam for the 160 championship. Taylor took a quick 1-0 lead, but Bishop escaped early in the third period to tie the score. Taylor attempted to get behind Bishop for a takedown, but the wrestlers toppled out of bounds, and the match went to sudden death.
Taylor quickly grabbed Bishop and planted him on the ground, but the Knight kept fighting, as turning over would have ended the match. Bishop nearly got to his feet, but Taylor put him down again and scored the takedown, and the title.
"I felt comfortable (in overtime), because I felt that my stamina was better," Taylor said. "I'm better on my feet on takedowns. I was scared, because I didn't know if they would call a stall on me. I felt that if I kept working and moving, I would get the call."
Great Bridge's Joey Grainger had an easier time of things, charging past an overmatched Bryce Barnes of Kempsville 11-5 for a win at 171, Grainger's second regional title.
"My coaches have been getting me where I need to be," he said. "They've really been pushing me and helping me out. This last week, I'm going to go as hard as I can, so even if I lose (at states), I'll know that I gave it everything I got."
Top Southeastern District seed Charles Arnold of Deep Creek took a similar win, beating Smith's Tyler Warren 11-4 for the 189 championship.
"It's been a lot of hard work and a lot of long hours at practice," said Arnold, who lost part of the season to a knee injury suffered during football last fall. "It took me a while to come back. All the work has paid off."
The meet ended just as it had started, as Cox's Conor O'Hara pinned Western Branch's Rico Gonzales with 43 seconds left in the second period for the 215 title, and his teammate Ross Burbank showed why he's one of America's top-ranked heavyweight juniors, outlasting Green Run's Danny Davis 4-2 for the 285 championship.
