Father Ryan Spanks Cleveland In Battle Of State Champions, 53-10

Purple Irish Among Favorites In Saturday's Al Miller Cleveland Duals

  • Friday, December 11, 2015
  • John Hunt

CLEVELAND – There have been some classic battles on the wrestling mat between state powers Father Ryan and Cleveland in years past on the eve of the Al Miller Cleveland Duals, but Friday’s match at the Jones Wrestling Center wasn’t one of them.

 

Last year’s match came down to several criteria levels as both teams won seven matches and the final score was deadlocked.  Father Ryan won by the slightest of margins.

 

That wasn’t the case this year as the Purple Irish bolted to a 25-0 lead by winning the first five matches as they breezed to a 53-10 victory over the Blue Raiders in the battle of defending state champions.

 

For the evening, the Purple Irish won 12 of 14 matches and had the first takedown in 10 of those matches.

 

Michael Whiteside earned a 12-4 major decision at 120 and Colton Landers got a first-period pin at 132 to spark Cleveland’s effort, but it was all Father Ryan the rest of the way as they recorded four pins, four regular decisions, three major decisions and one technical fall as they improved to 8-0 on the young season.

 

“We’re getting better and I’m absolutely happy with the way we wrestled tonight,” said Father Ryan coach Pat Simpson afterward.

 

“We only lost two matches and you don’t do that very often against Cleveland.  We weren’t really sure what they had, but our guys wrestled hard.

 

“We’re a veteran team with 11 starters back and we have a lot of experience.  We just hope it pays off in February, but we have to get ready for tomorrow,” he added, referring to the duals that have 16 teams on tap for Saturday.

 

George Hooker got the Purple Irish off and running with a 12-3 major decision at 195 before Ben Stacey and Rotimi Bambose posted back-to-back pins in the two heaviest weight classes.

 

James Killian added a 5-2 decision at 106 and Christian Simpson had a second-period pin at 113 before Whiteside got the Blue Raiders on the board with a 12-4 major at 120.

 

Landers had a 70-second fall at 132, but the rest of the evening belonged to those guys from Nashville as they won the final six matches.

 

Cleveland coach Jake Yost knew his team was in for a big challenge, but he wasn’t expecting to get whipped like they did.

 

“You never expect to get beat like that and it’s real obvious that we aren’t where we need to be.  The good news is that we fought.  We didn’t just roll over and give up, but Father Ryan is a really good team,” he expressed while mats were being moved in preparation for Saturday’s duals.

 

“We were outclassed in a couple of spots, but we just have to look at the positives.  We can’t ignore what we did wrong, but we have a long way to go and a long season to get there.  But no doubt, this was a little bit of an eye-opener for us,” he concluded.

 

SATURDAY’S DUALS begin with action on six matches in four pools.  Matches will be held in the volleyball gym, the cafeteria and Jones Wrestling Center with the first one set to begin at 8:30.

 

The field includes six teams from Tennessee, two from Alabama and eight from Georgia.

 

In addition to Father Ryan and Cleveland, other Tennessee teams include Baylor, Bradley, Soddy Daisy and McCallie while the two from Alabama include Oak Mountain and Buckhorn.

 

Those eight from Georgia include Carrolton, Cambridge, Woodland, Heritage, Sonoraville, Gilmer, Pope and Southeast Whitfield.

 

Pool winners will meet in the semifinals around 2:30 with the championship match to follow.

 

FATHER RYAN 53, CLEVELAND 10

(Match Began at 195 Pounds)

106 – James Killian (FR) dec.  Bryce Pond, 5-2;

113 – Christian Simpson (FR) pinned Phillip Freeman, 3:48;

120 – Michael Whiteside (Clev) major dec.

Matt Klett, 12-4;

126 – Trey Chalifoux (FR) pinned Jayce Mullin, 3:01;

132 – Colton Landers (Clev) pinned Joey Vogelpohl, 1:10;

138 – Kirby Simpson (FR) won by technical fall over Cody Mathews, 4:27;

145 – Eli King (FR) major dec. Caleb Eachus, 8-0;

152 – Daniel Wesley (FR) dec. Seth Eachus, 6-2;

160 – Jake Wilson (FR) dec. Greg Wilson, 4-3

106 – James Killian (FR) dec.  Bryce Pond, 5-2;

113 – Christian Simpson (FR) pinned Phillip Freeman, 3:48;

120 – Michael Whiteside (Clev) major dec. Matt Klett, 12-4;

126 – Trey Chalifoux (FR) pinned Jayce Mullin, 3:01;

132 – Colton Landers (Clev) pinned Joey Vogelpohl, 1:10;

138 – Kirby Simpson (FR) won by technical fall over Cody Mathews, 4:27;

145 – Eli King (FR) major dec. Caleb Eachus, 8-0;

152 – Daniel Wesley (FR) dec. Seth Eachus, 6-2;

160 – Jake Wilson (FR) dec. Greg Wilson, 4-3;

170 – Robert Garstin (FR) major dec. Manny Ospina, 11-3;

182 – Andrew Wesnofske (FR) dec. Riley Stevison, 6-0;

195 – George Hooker (FR) major dec. Seth Garcia, 12-3;

220 – Ben Stacey (FR) pinned Jacob Martinez, 3:04;

285 – Rotimi Bambose (FR) pinned Michael Lewis, 3:49.

 

(Email John Hunt at nomarathonmoose@gmail.com)

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