The Tigers wrestled a tough group of ten AA and A public schools this past weekend, achieving impressive results.  At 103 lbs., Witt won consolation finals to place 3rd with a 3-1 tournament record.

 This is Witt’s first time placing in a tournament as a varsity wrestler.  

 Josh, wrestling at 112 lbs., placed 2nd with a 2-1 tournament record.  

At 145 lbs., Douglas won consolation finals to win 3rd place with a 4-1 tournament record.  

 Douglas and his iron grip turn another opponent on his back.

This was also Douglas’s first time placing in a tournament as a varsity wrestler, and he appropriately earned the Hammer Award from Coach Gay for his effort and tough-as-nails attitude.  

Cary with the Near Fall

Cary working his cradle

 Cary placed 4th at 215 lbs. with a 2-2 tournament record, and Rogers won consolation finals to win 3rd place with a 3-1 tournament record.  

 Rogers turning another opponent over

 Rogers with one of his devastating trademark take downs

 This, too, was Rogers’s first time placing in a tournament as a varsity wrestler.  

 Will with a claw ride

 Will working his escape

Harris and Will finished one match away from placing.

For more exciting wrestling action, catch the Tigers on December 17th and 18th at the Turner Ashby Tournament.

Tigers Take 4th out of 12 at Forest Park Tournament

The Tigers opened their 2010-11 season by wrestling five AAA public schools at the Forest Park tournament; Woodberry went 3-2.

Herbert with the take down

WFS 35 Osbourn Park High School 28

Friday night’s first match proved to be the closest and most exciting match of the weekend.  It encapsulated the tenor of the meet with Osbourn Park: Both teams fought back and forth, but the Tigers emerged victorious.  That first match went to Rogers, who won a close match by decisively pinning his opponent.

 Rogers setting the tone

After a strong start, the lower weight classes struggled until Josh and Chan fought hard to win their matches.  Nick lost a close match by decision, and the Tigers were tied up with Osbourn Park.  With their pin at 135, the Tigers fell behind 12-18 until Will won his bout by injury default and tied the match at 18-18.  Osbourn Park responded with a pin at 145 that was then met by Tiger wins by Duke, Taylor, and Jeff to pull ahead.

 Taylor, who went undefeated in the tournament

Spencer, who was injured all last year and unable to wrestle, refused to be pinned and fought off of his back to lose only by decision, which was critical.  The win over Osbourn Park was punctuated by Pierre’s 5-4 win as the last bout of the match.

WFS 17 Forest Park High School 55

In the second match, the Tigers wrestled tournament host Forest Park, one of the top AAA teams in the state with a solid roster of experienced wrestlers.  Highlights of this tough match were wins posted by Jeff, Rogers (3-1 tournament record), and captains Duke and Taylor.

 Duke, team captain

WFS 37 Indian River High School 24

The Tigers were strong out of the gate with a solid win by Brandon, who won his first match of the season as a Tiger wrestler.

 Brandon’s bout set the tone for Josh and Chan to win their bouts, giving the Tigers a significant lead.  Nick also won his bout for his first varsity win of the season. Team captains Duke and Taylor won by pin, while Jeff lost a hard-fought bout by decision (8-3).  Pierre also had a tough loss by decision that came down to one point.  Maintaining the lead, Cary ended the match with his 8-4 win by decision.

WFS 49 Annandale High School 25

The Tigers had another strong opener with Witt taking a forfeit at 103 and Josh (4-1 tournament record) pinning his opponent for an additional six team points.  Raymond won by decision in his high-scoring 15-10 match and first win of the season.

Douglas wins by pin

Douglas won his first varsity match when he pinned his opponent in the second period, while Duke, Taylor, and Jeff continued their strong tournament performance by posting wins for their respective bouts.  Cary ended the match with a heavy weight pin.

WFS 26 Manassas Park High School 45

The Tigers ended the tournament with a tough loss in the consolation finals for fourth place out of 12 teams.  Highlights include Brandon’s overtime win for a 2-2 tournament record and Spencer’s tough overtime loss that helped him earn the Coach’s Award for the tournament.  Josh had a close-scoring win that brought him to a 3-1 record for the tournament, while captains Duke (voted tournament MVP) and Taylor (who went 5-0) by pin and tech fall, respectively.

 Taylor is just that fast!

Jeff won his match by pin for a 4-1 tournament record, and Cary won his match by pin for a 3-1 tournament record.  While the Tigers certainly held their own, the losses by pin pushed the chance of a win beyond their grasp, but the tournament proved to be a solid baseline for what promises to be an excellent season for Tiger wrestling.

Next week the Tigers will compete in the Harrisonburg Tournament, while captains Duke and Taylor represent Woodberry at the Ironman Tournament at Walsh Jesuit High School.

Two Tigers Place in the Valley Dominator at Harrisonburg High School

Tiger wrestlers Taylor Reuss and Cary Jones competed in the Valley Dominator Wrestling Tournament on April 3 at Harrisonburg High School. Both wrestlers made it to the finals. Taylor was the the champion, scoring an exciting 7-5 win in the finals and overcoming an early 4-1 deficit. Cary took second, wrestling up as the smallest wrestler in the heavyweight division. Congratulations to both wrestlers.

Duke Pickett places 4th at the First Annual Flo Nationals Tournament

Duke Pickett competed in the first annual Flo Nationals Tournament March 27-28 at Walsh Jesuit High School in Ohio. This is a very tough tournament for which contestants must qualify by placing at other top national tournaments. Duke placed 4th out of 34 wrestlers and was 4-2 on the weekend. He won three matches on the first day, advancing to the semifinals by beating wrestlers for Kansas, Michigan, and Ohio. In the semifinals Duke lost a hard-fought match to the eventual champion from New Jersey. He wrestled hard in the consolation finals, eventually dropping a close match.

National Prep Tournament

Woodberry qualified five wrestlers for the National Prep Tournament: Josh Trudgeon, Duke Pickett, Taylor Reuss, Cary Jones, and Chad Kolumber.

It was a great experience for the Tigers, as all wrestlers got at least one win. Woodberry placed 26th out ouf about 150 teams. Josh went 1-2, with a dominant 16-1 win by technical fall in the first round. Josh was seconds away from winning his last match.

Taylor Reuss was one win away from placing at Nationals. He went 3-2, with 3 hard-fought wins and two extremely close losses in matches that could have easily gone Taylor’s way.

Cary went 2-2, with a huge win over a wrestler from Episcopal High School who had beaten Cary 3 times over the past 2 years.

Chad had tough draw in the tournament, and went 1-2, losing matches to the second- and eighth-place winners. Chad finished his Woodberry wrestling career competing at the highest level possible.

Duke Pickett had an outstanding tournament. Entering the tournament as the second seed, Duke worked his way to the finals upsetting the second seed in the semifinals by a score of 5-0. In the finals Duke lost a tough and hard-fought match to Evan Henderson from the Kiski School.

Duke ended the season with a 41-3 record and represented the team’s values throughout the season. Duke also earned the weekly Hammer Award for his tough performance.

Hard Work

Tigers Place 8 at State Tournament

7th Overall, 8 Placers
Josh Trudgeon- 3rd, Duke Pickett- 1st (OW Middle Weights), Taylor Reuss- 3rd, Jeff Smith- 7th, Phil Rogers- 8th, Charlie Hilliard- 8th, Cary Jones- 4th, Chad Kolumber- 5th

The Tigers traveled to St. Christopher’s School in Richmond for the Virginia State Prep School Tournament. Things started well for the team, as thirteen wrestlers moved on to wrestle on the second day of the tournament. Nick Cirillo, Will Choate, and George Sutherland all picked up wins in their first State Tournament appearance. The tigers wrestled well on Saturday as well. Josh Trudgeon lost in the semi-finals, then came back to take third, avenging a loss from earlier this season in his third-place match.

Taylor Reuss also battled back from a tough semi-finals loss and won two key matches to take third. Jeff Smith had a solid performance, earning a takedown against the eventual state champion and national prep finalist in a quarterfinals loss, eventually placing seventh. Team co-captain Phil Rogers ended his Woodberry wrestling career on a high note, placing eighth in the tournament. Charlie Hilliard battled through an injured wrist and wrestled above his ninth-place seeding to take eighth, avenging Rogers Clark’s loss to Collegiate along the way. Cary Jones wrestled a good tournament, placing four and competing hard in his two losses. Chad Kolumber placed fifth, earning another win over St. Christopher’s and finishing the year undefeated against Prep League opponents. Duke Pickett came into the tournament seeded #1, and did not disappoint. Duke dominated all his opponents on the way to a state championship, and earned the Outstanding Wrestler Award. Because of his dominating performance, Duke earned the team’s weekly Hammer Award. Duke’s performance also earned him All-Prep honors. Overall at States, the team finished with eight placers, and finished seventh in the team standings only ten points out of fifth place.