MD – Baltimore County | Archive | November, 2007

by Derek Toney

Thomas Johnson High School’s football team approach is simple: It’s just business.

The Patriots routed host Perry Hall, 35-3, Friday evening to win the Class 4A state North Region championship. For the first time since 1997, Thomas Johnson is in the state semifinals, and will travel to Quince Orchard this Friday evening.

After avenging a regular season loss to Frederick County rival Linganore with a come-from-behind victory on the road in the region opener last Saturday, the Patriots took a 90-minute down Interstate 70 to east up I-695 and cast aside the region’s top seed Perry Hall. The Patriots, maybe taking a page from the NFL’s New England Patriots, were reserved about reaching the state Final Four for the first time since in a decade.

“We have our fun during the week in practice and have fun in pre-game. When we get here, we’re all business,” said Thomas Johnson senior running back Corey Hunt. “We take a business approach from the very beginning, get on the bus, come here, we get dressed, do what we got to do, shower and go home.”
     
“We try to approach just like a business. Like later on in life going to a job, you dress properly,” said Patriots coach Ben Wright, whose team wore ties. “It’s a business, and hopefully, we played like it.”

Sophomore Nick Forbes rushed for 170 yards and a touchdown for Thomas Johnson (10-2), and Hunt scored two rushing touchdowns. D.J. Scott and Chris Johnson each added a score for the Patriots, who had four plays of 40 yards or more with three producing touchdowns.

Jordan Dorsey had two quarterback sacks for Thomas Johnson, and Scott recorded two of the Patriots’ four interceptions. Thomas Johnson’s secondary focused its attention on Perry Hall’s six foot, five inch junior wideout Dave Stinebaugh, who had two catches for 52 yards and completed a 13-yard pass.

The Gators tried to slow down the Patriots’ ground game with eight to nine defenders near the line of scrimmage, but Thomas Johnson was able to create long gainers behind the offensive line of Steve Chase,  Steve Probst, Colin Bass, Pat Barb and Willie Reich. On the game’s third play from scrimmage, Hunt went untouched 61 yards to the end zone.

“We felt we had a speed advantage. They were bigger than us when they lined up,” said Hunt, who had 84 yards rushing on nine carries. “If we could find little creases, we could break big runs and big plays. A couple of drives, you want to be able to drive the ball, but we knew the big plays would be there.”

“We try to have nine guys in the box and we still couldn’t stop them,” said Perry Hall interim coach Bob Hruz, whose team finished 10-2. “They have a good offense. Our thought going into the game was we were going to try to make them beat us in the air.”

The Gators were burned in the second quarter as Scott hauled in a 41-yard pass from James White, giving Thomas Johnson a 14-3 advantage. A five-yard score by Chris Johnson (seven carries, 34 yards) extended the Patriots’ margin to 21-3 at intermission.

After an interception by Hunt and subsequent fumble recovery by Dan Haynos ended Perry Hall’s opening drive of the second half, Hunt capped an eight-play, 49-yard drive with a 13-yard run up the middle. Forbes, who had just five carries, went 73 yards for Thomas Johnson’s final score in the fourth quarter.

Brett Ulman’s 29-yard field goal accounted for the Gators’ only points. Senior Nelson Knight rushed for 125 yards and Mike Lang completed 14 of 32 passes for 202 yards for the Gators, who failed to score a touchdown for the first time since a 42-0 loss to Sherwood in the 2005 North Region title game. Despite the ending, Perry Hall was proud of its 2007 campaign that was filled with distractions. 
 
“Our team has been through so much adversity,” said Stinebaugh, whose coach Nick Arminio was fired last month. “It just showed how strong of a team we are, to come together as a family and come out with the season that we had was just phenomenal.”
      
“It’s been a real tough season for us. It’s tribute to the young men that they are that they made it this far,” said Hruz. “This season has nothing to do with this final game.”

The Patriots’ next journey will take them to the state’s No. 1 team, Quince Orchard, which won the West Region crown over Sherwood Friday evening. Thomas Johnson is one win away from taking the ultimate “business” trip to M & T Bank Stadium.  
       
“The ultimate goal is state championship,” said Hunt. “Two more weeks, we don’t change anything. If we play our game, we’ll be fine.”
                  

Thomas Johnson 35, Perry Hall 3
First quarter
Thomas Johnson-Hunt 61-yard run (Nichols kick), 10:15.
Perry Hall-Ulman 29-yard FG, :59
Second quarter
Thomas Johnson-Hunt 41-yard pass from White (Nichols kick), 11:13
Thomas Johnson-Johnson five-yard run (Nichols kick), 3:30
Third quarter
Thomas Johnson-Hunt 13-yard run (Nichols kick), 6:22
Fourth quarter
Thomas Johnson-Forbes 73-yard run (Nichols kick), 9:50

Thomas Johnson    7 14 7 7-35        
Perry Hall               3   0 0 0-3   

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by Lem Satterfield

Lonnie Liggins rushed for 110 yards and his 26th touchdown of the year, and also returned an inerception 21 yards for his 27th; Nick DePaola had 72 rushing yards and scores 1 and 14 yards; and Jason Fischer completed scoring passes of 6 and 16 yards, respectively, to Bryan Botti and DJ Wacker in Hereford’s 49-3 Class 3A North Region title-game rout of visiting Baltimore County rival Catonsville on Friday night.

The Bulls, who led, 35-0, at halftime, also got touchdowns off of Sam Newton’s recovery of a blocked punt and Eric Hemmeter’s 56-yard scoring run to improve to 12-0 and to earn the right to play host to Lackey of Charles County in Friday night’s state semifinal game.

Hereford kicker Adam Yates was good on six extra point kicks for the Bulls, who are after their program’s fourth state title, having won the Class 1A title in 1997, and the Class 2A crowns in 2001 and 2002.

Liggins has rushed for 1,206 yards on the year, and has 22 rushing touchdowns for the Bulls, who gained 276 yards on the ground against the Comets (8-4).

Defensively, Gordy Boone had three sacks and Peter Green blocked a punt for the Bulls, who prevented the Comets’ running back, Reno Jigetts from reaching the endzone.

Jiggetts entered the game with 1,245 rushing yards and 16 TDs.

A Class 2A school last season, the Bulls captured eight Baltimore County 2A-1A League crowns before rising into the Class 3A based on enrollment.

Hereford won this year’s county 4A-3A League.
 

Hereford  49, Catonsville 3

Hereford              21  14 
7  7   49

Catonsville             0    0 
0  0    3

H- Sam Newton 21 punt block recovery (Yates kick)

H- DePaola 14 run (Yates kick)

H- Liggins 21 INT return (Yates kick)

H- DePaola 1 run (Yates kick)

H- Botti 6 pass from Fischer (Yates kick)

H- Wacker 16 pass Fischer (Yates kick)

H- Hemmeter 56 run (Yates kick)

CHS Dan Vanik 32 FG

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By Mike Buchanan

She may not be putting 25 or
30 points on the scoreboard like she did in high school, but John’a Poole is
still putting points on the board.

 
This time, it is at the college Division 1 level, where Poole starts at shooting guard for Wagner University, which plays in the NEC (Northeast Conference).

 
Poole, who led the Baltimore Metro area in scoring for two seasons, piling up
the points for Eastern Tech, started 20 of 28 games for Wagner last year as a
freshman, and averaged 23 minutes and 6.8 points per game, while adjusting her
game to the much higher level of D1 collegiate level.

 
 Wagner, as a team, struggled last year,
going 3-26 overall and 1-17 in conference.

 
But 2007-08 is a new season, and the Seahawks have looked impressive in winning
their first two outings, defeating Columbia, 78-67, and then Princeton, 75-49. The sweep of the two Ivy League foes gave Wagner its first 2-0
start since 1998-99.

In 2006-07, Wagner lost to Columbia by 20, 66-46. 
Winning by 21 this year makes for a 41-point reversal.

 
Versus Columbia, the sophomore guard from Middle River had eight points, four rebounds and three assists.

In the Princeton game, Poole scored 12 of her 14 points in the first half,
including a buzzer-beating three-pointer, as Wagner raced to a 33-14 lead at
the break.

Princeton actually scored the first seven points of the game,
but Wagner went on  a 30-4 run to take
the lead, and never looked back as four other players besides Poole tallied double figures.

Last year, Wagner lost to Princeton, 70-52, in the first game, so last week’s win represented a 44-point
turn-around, going from an 18-point loss to a 26-point win.

The Seahawks were grounded
in their third game, losing to American University, 60-38. Poole scored seven of the team’s first 11 points in the
second half, bringing Wagner to within seven, 37-30, but American went on a
15-0 run to regain control.

With a mark of 2-1 to
open the season, including two convincing wins over teams that had handled them
easily last season, the Seahawks are primed for a much-improved season.

Through three games this
season, Poole is averaging 26 minutes, with 9.7 points and 4.7
rebounds per game.  As she did so effectively in Baltimore County, Poole has been scoring inside and outside, slashing to the basket or pulling up for outside jumpers.

In
high school, Poole was consistent all four years, but
really raised her game the final two, leading the Metro area in scoring both
years.  In her senior year, Poole averaged 24.5
points per game, despite seeing nearly every defense to contain her, and also
added 11.6 rebounds each game.

That
performance helped Eastern Tech to a 19-4 mark and a spot in the 2A North
regional finals.

For
her career, Poole amassed 1,726 points (17.6) and 970
rebounds (9.9).

While
not posting those eye-popping numbers, Poole is still
scoring, and has helped Wagner to its best start in nearly 10 years.

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By E. Shawn Aylsworth
Managing Editor

INDIANAPOLIS – Bobby Kinder did not know until Saturday that he would be wrestling in 11th-ranked Lawrence North’s season-opening dual meet three days later against visiting Warren Central.

So, of course all the pressure of this early season showdown between his Wildcats and the No. 10 Warriors came down upon the inexperienced sophomore’s shoulders Nov. 20 in the night’s final match at 145 pounds.

With Lawrence North trailing 30-28, Kinder posted a huge 4-1 victory by decision over Warren Central junior Devin Gladney to give the Wildcats a 31-30 win in a fierce Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference battle.

“It was our first meet of the year, and Warren Central is a little battle tested (from a second-place finish behind No. 3 Perry Meridian in the Nov. 17 Capital City Classic),” said Lawrence North coach Jared Williams. “It was an **** win, but as a team we were able to get it done.

This see-saw battle saw seven lead changes. Warren Central jumped out to a 12-4 lead after winning four of the first five matches, all by decision. That fast start preceded a decision victory at heavyweight and second-period fall by LN 103-pound sophomore Brandon Nelsen that catapulted the Wildcats in front, 13-12.

At this point, we were just getting started.

After Warren junior Matt Mooreland won by forfeit at 112 to give the Warriors an 18-13 advantage, LN junior Cashe’ Quiroga answered with a crucial pin at 119 just 29 seconds ahead of the final buzzer to out the ’Cats back on top, 19-18. Senior Eric Ross’ decision win at 125 then increased the advantage to 22-18.

When Lawrence North senior Jeremiah Edwards pinned sophomore Michael Conte midway through the second period of their 130-pound bout, the hosts appeared to be sitting pretty with a 10-point cushion at 28-18.

Not so fast, my friend.

Senior Bryan Leach dragged the Warriors back in it at 28-24 with a first-period fall at 135, and Warren leapt back on top at 30-28 when classmate Kyle Haskins won by disqualification at 140 over LN junior Matt Goodwin.

Enter Kinder, who had a far less kind and gentle conclusion to this epic opener than Warren Central had hoped for. Seven wins for Lawrence North, seven wins for Warren Central, a final score that was as tight as could be.

Welcome to the 2007-08 wrestling season, sports fans!

Next up for LN is a road date Nov. 28 at Anderson Highland. Warren Central, meanwhile, will host MIC rival North Central (Indianapolis) Nov. 29.

The individual results:

103 – Brandon Nelsen (LN) pin Ryan Kirkhoff (WC), 3:28 (LN, 13-12)
112 – Matt Mooreland (WC) won by forfeit (WC, 18-13)
119 – Cashe’ Quiroga (LN) pin Nick Odom (WC), 5:31 (LN, 19-18)
125 – Eric Ross (LN) dec. Zach Baughman (WC), 5-1 (LN, 22-18)
130 – Jeremiah Edwards (LN) pin Michael Conte (WC), 3:19 (LN, 28-18)
135 – Bryan Leach (WC) pin Kolby Komenda-Myers (LN), 1:48 (LN, 28-24)
140 – Kyle Haskins (WC) won by DQ Matt Goodwin (LN) (WC, 30-28)
145 – Bobby Kinder (LN) dec. Devin Gladney (WC), 4-1 (LN, 31-30)
152 – Quinten Brooks (WC) dec. Ethan Wilson (LN), 6-3 (WC, 3-0)
160 – Spencer Reese (WC) dec. Qwion Booker (LN), 11-8 (WC, 6-0)
171 – Bryce Grimes (LN) major dec. Kyle Willis (WC), 13-4 (WC, 6-4)
189 – Michael Johnson-Jones (WC) dec. Matt Brumfield (LN), 7-0 (WC, 9-4)
215 – Gabriel Berry (WC) dec. B.J. Grimes (LN), 3-2 (WC, 12-4)
285 – Nick Polson (LN) dec. Michael VanSkyock (WC), 6-4 (WC, 12-7)

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Note: State rankings precede the team’s name

 Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association Regional Finals

Friday’s games

 
4A North

Thomas Johnson (9-2) at Perry Hall (10-1 click here for Perry Hall vs. Hereford)
Outlook: The
visiting Patriots of Frederick County have won four straight games
since blowing a 15-0, first-quarter lead in a 29-25 loss to North
Carroll of Carroll County, the team the homestanding Gators just beat,
28-21.

In addition, the Patriots are coming off of a 21-19 upset
of previously unbeaten county rival Linganore, a win that avenged an
earlier, 17-0 loss.

A big reason for the success of the
Patriots, who were state titlists in 1982 and finalists in ’97, is
long-time coach Ben Wright, who is 174-130 for his career.

In
last weekend’s victory over Linganore, the Patriots’ got a
game-winning, 17-yard field goal from Jake Nichols with five seconds to
play, ending a 10-play, 85-yard drive that began with 1:12 on the clock.

There
was also, James White, who threw an 8-yard scoring pass to D.J.
Jenkins, as well as scoring runs by Cory Hunt and Chris Johnson.

The
Gatorts are led by 6-5, 200-pound junior WR-TE-LB-DB Dave Stinebaugh,
who has 52 receptions for 974 yards and 13 TDs, and 16 total TDs this
year (31 over the past two seasons).

The Gators also boast RB
Nelson Knight, who has covered 1,341 yards for 11 TDs, and QB Mike
Lang, who has thrown for 1,643 yards and 19 TDs.

The Gators OL is anchored by Joe Lynch (6-3, 275), Joe Esbrant (6-0, 250), Brian Howell, Jimmy Zaicko and Sonny Singh.

Defensively,
LB Marquis Glascoe, LB Sam Hunter and LB Ryan Pittillo anchor the
Gators, who have won seven straight games since losing, 28-25, to Class
3A North Region finalist Hereford.

3A North

Catonsville (8-3) at No. 10 Hereford (11-0 click here for Hereford over Towson video)
Outlook: The visiting Comets are making their first playoff appearance since 2005, when they were Class 3A North Region
runners-up to City College of Baltimore City.

The Comets boast RB Reno Jiggetts, who ranks third on the program’s all-time rushing list with 2,337 career yards and 40 TDs,
and who has covered 1,245 yards for 16 TDs on the season.

In a close game, PK Dan Vanik could be a factor, with seven successful FG kicks, including a 42-yarder.

The Bulls are led by RB Lonnie Liggins, who has 21 TDs on 1096 rushing yards, and 25 total TDs.

But Liggins is far from alone.

RB-WR
Nick DePaola, QB-RB-DB Jason Fischer, and RB-LB D J Wacker and others
are steady contributors for a Bulls’ team that has out-scored its
opponent by a combined, 506-135, with two shutouts, or an average of
46-to-12.2.

The Bulls, with a quality PK in Adam Yates, handled
Catonsville, 56-0, on Sept. 14 in what was the second game of the
season for both teams.

But the Comets are a far better program than that, having won seven of their past nine games.

Last
week, the Comets won by a 31-0 shutout over last year’s Class 3A North
Region champion Franklin, a team the Comets defeated, 38-35, earlier
this year after having trailed, 28-6, at halftime.

And they did it largely without Jiggetts, who missed the majority of the game with a high ankle sprain.

In Jiggetts’ absence, Brian Chapman (98 rushing yards), Sam Burk (85) and QB Darius Savage carried the load.

Savage rushed for two scores and threw another to Terrance Cromer, and Burk rushed for a 30-yard score.

DB Skippy Clary is a key in the secondary, with six INTs on the year, and 12 for his career.

Grey Meyd and Mike Zwingleberg also had INTs against Franklin, with Clary, Eric Brown and Wayne Emerson also registering sacks.

Hereford was Class 1A state champ in 1997, and won consecutive Class 2A crowns in 2001 and 2002.

A
Class 2A school last season, the Bulls captured eight Baltimore County
2A-1A League crowns before rising into the Class 3A based on enrollment.

Hereford won this year’s county 4A-3A League crown.

2A North

Edmondson (9-2 click here for Edmondson over City) vs.No. 15 Eastern Tech (11-0, click here for Eastern Tech over Poly)
Site: CCBC-Essex
Outook: Visiting Edmondson’s Red Storm is both the defending Class 2A North Region and Class 2A overall state champion.

And
it appears to have righted itself with two straight wins after having
been blown out, 38-14, by Baltimore City rival Poly, last week’s 20-14
loser to Eastern Tech.

The Red Storm is coming off of last
week’s 20-14, double-overtime victory over city league rival City
College, which also was coming off of a win over Poly.

Against
City, the Red Storm’s All-Baltimore City QB selection, Carroll
Washington, scored his game-winning, seventh TD — his second of the
night–from 13 yards.

Washington, who has rushed for 13 TDs
over two seasons, and thrown for 20 TDs over two seasons (10 so far
this year), also relies on 6-0, 200-pound RB Terrence Wilson (15 TDs)
and 6-0, 225-pound RB Jamal Fields.

The Red Storm, winners of
five of their past six games, rely on an OL comprised of Darrius Morris
(6-4, 300), Stanley Savoy (6-4, 305), Quinton Lyons (6-4, 255), Joshua
Kittrell (6-2, 260), Allen Booker (6-1, 280) and Deandre Burton (6-0,
270).

Against City, LB David Makell (6-3, 245) registered his
12th sack of the season, and DE Anthony Rice (6-3, 220), who has 11
sacks, recovered a fumble.

DB D’Andre Green has eight INTs, and
DB Christopher Green, three INTs for the Red Storm. Aaron Moore also
played well in last week’s game against City.

The Mavericks,
meanwhile, are trying to reach the state finals for the first time
since being Class 3A state runners-up in 1998, and, attempting to earn
their first state semifinal berth since being a Class 2A semifinalists
in 2003.

Mavericks QB Travis Crane engineers a balanced offense,
including RBs Darian Conners (12 TDs), RB Derryck Davis (eight TDs), RB
Thomas Edwards and LB-RB Bryan Watson.

Combined with a defense
led by DE Ryan Schlothauer (nine sacks) and DB Joe Jones (six INTs),
the Mavericks have out-scored their opposition by a combined,
428-to-61, with three shutouts.

PK Dave Spalt is solid for the Mavericks, having converted 51-of-55 extra point kicks.

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The second round of team rankings for the 2007-08 wrestling season have been released by the Indiana High School Wrestling Coaches Association, and the Top 10 once again resembles greatly the previous poll – at least where the initial nine are concerned. From defending state champ Evansville Mater Dei all the way down through ninth-ranked Carmel, there was no movement among teams.

The only difference in the Top 10, in fact, was Lawrence North bumping up one spot into the 10th slot, nudging its Nov. 20 dual-meet victim Warren Central down two spots to 12th. Meanwhile, Columbus North makes its Top 20 debut at No. 15.

Teams are listed by rank followed by school and number of votes received. Here is your Top 20-plus from Nov. 21:

1. Evansville Mater Dei 398
2. Mishawaka 375
3. Perry Meridian 355
4. Indianapolis Cathedral 317
5. Bellmont 314
6. Crown Point 289
7. Merrillville 266
8. Elkhart Memorial 193
9. Carmel 186
10. Lawrence North 152
11. New Palestine 131
12. Warren Central 119
13. Evansville Memorial 117
14. Penn 101
15. Columbus North 100
16. Columbia City 84
17. Chesterton 81
18. Bloomington South 78
19. Center Grove 63
20. Avon 58

Also receiving votes: Anderson Highland, Castle, East Central, Evansville Reitz, Floyd Central, Carroll (Fort Wayne), Franklin, Garrett, Hanover Central, Hobart, Jasper, Jeffersonville, Harrison (West Lafayette), Lawrence Central, Munster, New Castle, New Haven, Peru, Portage, South Bend Riley, South Dearborn, Southmont, Tipton, Westfield, Yorktown, Zionsville

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By Eric Eaton
Staff Writer

OXFORD – Tipton wrestlers won eight bouts by fall over their Lafayette Jefferson opponents in the decisive Round 4 match en route to upsetting the 20th-ranked Bronchos, 54-28, and capturing the Benton Central Super Six round-robin tournament held Nov. 17.
    
The victorious Blue Devils, who just barely missed out on Hoosier Conference championships each of the past two seasons, lost no one to graduation and appear primed to have a banner season under first-year coach Cal Warner.
    
Warner was quick to point out that Lafayette Jeff was wrestling short-handed against his Blue Devils.

“I think the score’s probably a bit deceiving because they had five guys out of their lineup,” Warner said. “Realistically, I can’t credit that totally to us, but I think our guys wrestled pretty hard.

“We’ve been working hard in the room.”

Tipton has two wrestlers ranked in the Indiana Wrestling Coaches Association’s individual preseason rankings. Junior Levi Rutledge, who competed in last year’s individual state finals, is ranked fourth at 130 pounds, while junior Colin Warner – the coach’s son – is ranked seventh at 171.

Although neither wrestled against the Bronchos in the weight class in which they are ranked, both recorded easy first-round pins of their opponents. In fact, the number of pins the Blue Devils registered against Jeff surprised Cal Warner.

“I didn’t expect that,” said the elder Warner. “I think we fell into a couple of side headlocks, which was kind of nice – we’ll take those. Bonus points are key to winning a lot of matches.

“You gotta get the bonus points, and that helped us today.”

Tipton began its day with a 46-30 victory over the host Bison before downing Pike (60-29) and Greenwood (39-23) over the next two rounds. Following the Jeff triumph, the Blue Devils
whipped Twin Lakes by a 62-15 count to finish 5-0.

Mark Pore (125), Rutledge (135), and Kevin Moats (160) all went 5-0 for the Blue Devils, with Rutledge winning all five matches by fall while Pore and Moats each got four pins. Alex Napier (152) and Colin Warner (215) both went 4-0 with four pins.

The runner-up Bronchos were missing at least four individuals who would normally be in their lineup, including defending regional champion Oscar Trujillo, who was out with a dislocated elbow.

Despite that shortcoming, Lafayette Jeff coach Tom Miller was disappointed that his kids who did wrestle against Tipton didn’t pay attention to detail.

“Our kids didn’t counter their throws,” Miller said. “You know we got hit with, I think, three or four headlocks. That’s not a good situation, and our kids knew that going in.

“They just didn’t, I guess, pay attention to what they were told.”

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Catonsville High School’s Peyton Johnson has been selected to the Maryland Association of Coaches of Soccer All-State first-team. Johnson, a sophomore midfielder, was the lone Baltimore County public performer on the 25-person roster.

Loch Raven junior midfielder Sa’Sha Kershaw and Jessica Nonn from Catonsville were second-team selections.

-Derek Toney

MARYLAND ASSOCIATION OF COACHES OF SOCCER ALL-STATE TEAM
FORWARDS
Kim Byrnes, Good Counsel; Monica Fisher, Fallston; Danielle Kell, Parkside; Caroline Miller, Walter Johnson; Ariel Nehemiah, Quince Orchard; Erica Page, Archbishop Spalding; Courtney Yee, Tuscarora
MIDFIELDERS
Jacquelyn Blake-Hedges, St. Mary’s Ryken; Sarah Chapman, Good Counsel; Kaitlin Devine, Leonardtown; Megan Gibbons, McDonogh School; Peyton Johnson, Catonsville; Gigi Mangione, McDonogh School; Christine Nairn, Archbishop Spalding; Samatha Novy, Severna Park; Colby Rhea, McDonogh School; Julia Roberts, Urbana; Katie Ruhe, Urbana; Erica Suter, River Hill; Elsa Wu, Centennial
DEFENSE
Allyson Carey, John Carroll; Katie Duncan, Wootton; Terryn Marette, Bethesda-Chevy Chase; Amy Olson, Arundel
GOALKEEPER
Karen Blocker, Archbishop Spalding

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by Lem Satterfield

Speaking exclusively with DigitalSports, Hereford wrestling sensation Josh Asper, a three-time state champion, has announced that he has signed a national letter of intent to wrestle for the University of Maryland.

Still in the midst of a run at a 3A state title with the Hereford football team, Asper accepted the offer of an athletic scholarship from Maryland wrestling coach Pat Santoro.  When football season ends, Asper will attempt to become only the third four-time Maryland public school state wrestling champion.

“I’m excited.  I’m glad to be going to the University of Maryland,” said Asper on Sunday night.  “I’m glad I signed early so that I can just concentrate and focus on my wrestling season.”

Asper is 114-7 for his career and has won 50 consecutive matches.  He was also considering Clarion University, but decided to skip his visit there to accept the offer from Maryland.

A Class 2A-1A state titlist at 135, 145 and 160 pounds, respectively, as a freshman, sophomore and junior, Asper is  presently “weighing around 176, 177 right now.” Asper will not only rise to 171 pounds this season, but his Bulls, reclassified as a 3A program based on enrollment, will compete in this year’s 4A-3A state tournament.

As anxious as Asper is to return to the mats, he is willing to wait a little longer, as his Bulls continue their march on the gridiron.  Friday, Asper, a linebacker, was a part of a defense which shutdown Mervo in 63-0 rout in a 3A North Region semifinal contest.

This week Hereford will face Catonsville in the Regional Finals.  In early September, Hereford romped over Catonsville, 56-0.

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By Will Willems
Contributing Writer

BEECH GROVE – No. 3 Perry Meridian was well on its way to winning the Circle City Classic after the morning quarterfinals Nov. 17. The Falcons had 93.5 points after the season’s first big tournament’s opening-round matches, nearly 30 points ahead of Jeffersonville.

The Falcons used that early advantage to coast to the team title of the eight-school tourney hosted by Beech Grove, capturing eight of 14 weight classes and finishing second in three others en route to 284.5 points. No. 10 Warren Central tied Columbus North for second place with 170 points, while Jeffersonville (163) took fourth.
    
Perry Meridian won all 14 of its first-round matches in establishing early dominance.

“I don’t want to diminish what we did today – tournament-wise, we did great,” Perry Meridian coach Jim Tonte told indystar.com. “But if we’re going to beat the Cathedrals, the Mishawakas, the Bellmonts, we’re going to have to wrestle better.

“We’ve got some spots who we consider to be quality kids, and they took a licking today.”

Tonte may have been speaking about his own son, Jacob Tonte. A seventh-place finisher last year at 103 pounds, the sophomore who’s preseason-ranked sixth at 103 moved up two classes Saturday to 119. That’s where he ran into a Franklin Central buzzsaw in two-time state qualifier D.J. Rackley (ranked eighth at 112).

Rackley scored an almost-immediate takedown on Tonte before almost pinning him twice in the opening period. That fast start lifted Rackley, who was named the tournament’s most outstanding wrestler, to an impressive 15-0 technical fall victory just 20 seconds ahead of the second-period buzzer.

“I felt pretty good today,” Rackley told indystar.com. “I ran cross country this year, so I’m in a lot better shape.”

Other winners for Perry Meridian were:

•    No. 3 Jimmy Schoettle (pin at 5:37 over Warren Central’s Matt Mooreland at 112)
•    Chris Goodwin (pin at 1:04 over Franklin Central’s Korey Dubois at 125)
•    No. 6 at 119 Brian Vest (5-0 decision over Beech Grove’s Wade McClurg at 130)
•    No. 12 at 130 Jacob Tasseff (pin at 3:22 over Bloomington North’s Adriel Jordan at 135)
•    No. 15 John Leonard (13-0 major decision over Jeffersonville’s Alex Bailey at 140)
•    No. 9 Chris Stepp (5-2 decision over No. 6 at 145 Columbus North’s Logan Sadtler at 152)
•    Chris Schaefer (5-2 decision over Beech Grove’s Thomas Logan at 215)
•    Defending state champion and top-ranked heavyweight Chico Adams (7-2 decision over Bloomington North’s No. 16 Joe Arthur)

Columbus North had three winners on the day: seventh-ranked Francisco Colon (10-1 winner by major decision over Perry’s Jacob Nealey at 103), No. 4 at 125 Ethan Ott (3-1 decision over Perry’s Blake Wood at 145), and Jeff Tobias (12-1 major decision over Jeffersonville’s Austin Copeland at 160).

The meet’s other two winners were Warren Central 171-pounder Kyle Willis (pin at 1:32 over Bloomington North’s Randy Tague) and Jeffersonville No. 10 189-pounder Tyler Tatgenhorst (7-6 overtime decision over Warren Central’s Michael Johnson-Jones).

NOTE: Expect the rankings to settle down a bit once it’s fairly established at which weight everyone is wrestle for the season.

Team scores
1. #3 Perry Meridian 284.5
2. Columbus North 170
2. #10 Warren Central 170
4. Jeffersonville 163
5. Bloomington North 128
6. Beech Grove 122
7. Franklin Central 112.5
8. Seymour 59

Championship matches
103 – Francisco Colon (CN) major dec. Jacob Nealey (PM), 10-1
112 – Jimmy Schoettle (PM) pin Matt Mooreland (WC), 5:37
119 – D.J. Rackley (FC) tech fall Jacob Tonte (PM), 15-0
125 – Chris Goodwin (PM) pin Korey Dubois (FC), 1:04
130 – Brian Vest (PM) dec. Wade McClurg (BG), 5-0
135 – Jacob Tasseff (PM) pin Adriel Jordan (BN), 3:22
140 – John Leonard (PM) major dec. Alex Bailey (J), 13-0
145 – Ethan Ott (CN) dec. Blake Wood (PM), 3-1
152 – Chris Stepp (PM) dec. Logan Sadtler (CN), 5-2
160 – Jeff Tobias (CN) major dec. Austin Copeland (J), 12-1
171 – Kyle Willis (WC) pin Randy Tague (BN), 1:32
189 – Tyler Tatgenhorst (J) dec. Michael Johnson-Jones (WC), 7-6 (OT)
215 – Chris Schaefer (PM) dec. Thomas Logan (BG), 5-2
Hwt – Chico Adams (PM) dec. Joe Arthur (BN), 7-2

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