DIGITALSPORTS ALL-ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY WRESTLING TEAMS

by Aaron Gray
agray@digitalsports.com

Annapolis High School senior Bubby Graham (160 pounds) and Northeast senior Maurice Fleming (140) each won state titles last weekend at the University of Maryland and have been named the DigitalSports Anne Arundel County Co-Wrestlers of the Year.

After leading his team to county and Class 4A-3A East Region titles, Old Mill coach Dan Youngblood is the DigitalSports Anne Arundel County Coach of the Year.

Graham, an American University signee, pinned North Harford's Tom Stewart in 2:33 to earn his third straight state title. He finishes his reign with the Panthers on a 97-match win streak -- dating back to his sophomore year -- and wrapped up his career with a 121-8 record.

"I bet if you asked him about his record, he wouldn't know what it's up to," said Panthers coach Tom Sfakiyanudis, who has coached Graham since he emerged as a varsity contender his freshman season. "That's just the type of kid he is. As far as having a target on his back, I think he performs better in that role. He never thinks about that stuff but at the same time, he's always very calm and he never gets flustered."

Fleming, who is yet to pick a college suitor, routed Jeff Williams of Northern-Calvert in the finals with a 21-6 technical fall to earn his third state title (one in private school). Fleming finishes his senior year with a 38-1 record. He won 79 of his last 80 matches and wrapped up his career with a 132-11 record.

"If you think about it, we pretty much grew up together, wrestling in junior league and everything," said Fleming, referring to Graham and four-time state champion Josh Asper of Hereford. "We all turned out to be successful. You have to go out there with a mentality of doing what you have to do to win. Go out, not think about the pressure, but just do what you've done for your whole career."

Youngblood knew before his first season at the helm even started that he would be doing a lot more life coaching off the mat. Joey Ackerman, a rising junior with the squad, tragically passed away last summer and the Patriots had to pull together.

"Joey's memory was something that really bonded this team," said Youngblood, who was an assistant coach for two years before taking over for former coach Jim Grim. "It was a tough way to start the season but the kids rallied around (Ackerman)."

Teammates wore commemorative bracelets and T-shirts all season long and a moment of silence occurred before each dual meet.

"Being a coach is a lot like being a father," Youngblood said. "Everything is factored in: grades, girlfriends, families, teachers -- it's the complete package. I don't have any children of my own and when people ask me why, I tell them that I already have 48 teenagers."

Old Mill fell to Stephen Decatur in the dual meet season but came back to overtake the Seahawks in the Class 4A-3A East Region tournament. The Patriots also won their 18th county championship title this year and qualified eight wrestlers for the state meet.

"It was a great season because heading into it, I didn't know what to expect," said Youngblood, who had only two returning varsity wrestlers (Ethan Brown and Willie Pumphrey). "That's a testament to the JV team and how well-prepared they are and the program at Old Mill as a whole."

ALL-COUNTY FIRST TEAM

103 pounds -- Ben Ward, South River sophomore. Ward (33-11) topped Glen Burnie's Brady Hatch for the county championship title, 7-5. He earned a 8-4 decision over Hatch again at the Class 4A-3A East Region meet but fell to Northeast's Marcelius Fleming in a tight 1-0 match in the consolations and settled for fourth. At the state meet, Ward went 1-2 and scored a fall against Northwest's Donte Slaughter.

112 pounds -- Ron Vaughters, Old Mill freshman. Vaughters (32-6) scored a 9-0 major decision over previously-undefeated Houston Zemanski of Broadneck for the county championship title. He scored two takedowns in the final two periods to top Zemanski again in the Class 4A-3A East Region finals, 6-2. At the state meet, he took fifth with a pin of Magruger's Helen Maroulis in 2:07.

"I know it may sound unusual, but Ron was a freshman and he was a leader for our team," Old Mill coach Dan Youngblood said. "We're looking forward to him being a leader for us in the years to come."

119 pounds -- Willie Pumphrey, Old Mill junior. Pumphrey (31-11) pinned Jamie Claytor of Northeast in 0:51 to secure his first county championship title. After falling in his first match at the Class 4A-3A East Region meet to the eventual tournament runner-up, Pumphrey answered with three straight wins and took third with a 6-1 decision over Claytor. He posted an 8-6 win over Tuscarora's Johnny White at the state meet, but in overtime to Aberdeen's Chris Hoffman in the third-place match.

"After not qualifying for the state meet last year, Willie made some great strides this season," Old Mill coach Dan Youngblood said. "His work ethic was phenomenal and he made everyone in the weight room work harder."

125 pounds -- Joe Kidwell, Arundel junior. Kidwell (34-4) jumped to an early lead and earned a 13-3 major decision over Broadneck senior Scott Murphy for a county championship title. He rode Howard senior Tyler Bulger to a 3-0 win at the Class 4A-3A East Region meet. At states, Kidwell advanced to the finals after beating his first three opponents by a combined 25-6 score. In the championship, he fell to undefeated Deonte Carter of Woodlawn and settled for second.

"I feel confident on my feet and I thought I could win the battle there," Kidwell said after his county championship victory. "I stood up and just used a mental strategy. If I had to ride him, I knew I could."

130 pounds -- John Graham, Annapolis senior. Graham (30-6) fell to Brodneck's Jack Reed in the county semifinals and took third after a 3-0 decision over Old Mill's Teyon Jones. At the Class 4A-3A East Region meet, he scored an 8-3 decision over county champion Zach West of Northeast in the quarterfinals and then scored a two-point reversal with 50 seconds left and held on for a 2-1 victory over Kevin O'Brien of C.M. Wright in the finals. Graham went 1-2 at the state meet and dropped a match to the eventual fourth-place finisher, Arthur Holland of Quince Orchard, 6-3.

135 pounds -- Jordan Hernandez, Arundel senior. Hernandez (35-3) scored a 19-14 decision over South River's Tyler Stubbs in an eventful finals match at the county championship. He lost to then-unbeaten Skylar Snead of Stephen Decatur in the Class 4A-3A East Region finals, 17-2. But Hernandez picked up momentum at the state meet and advanced to the championship after a major decision and a fall. In the finals, however, he fell again to Snead and settled for second.

140 pounds -- Maurice Fleming, Northeast senior. Fleming (38-1) scored an overwhelming 19-4 technical fall over Glen Burnie's Cory Ridolfi to earn a county championship and help pace his team's second-place showing. He opened a 6-2 lead after one period on Broadneck's Stephen Woody in the Class 4A-3A East Region finals and cruised to a 21-5 technical fall. At the state meet, Fleming registered a quarterfinal pin and outscored his other three opponents by a 56-16 margin.

"My goal coming into this tournament was that I didn't want to last longer than the first period," Fleming said after his county championship title. "Two of the three (matches) went beyond but I'm not mad. I just wanted to show that I can dominant at this level."

145 pounds -- Zach Shreve, Severna Park senior. Shreve (34-5) tallied his first county championship title with a 9-3 decision over Broadneck's Chris Saroch. At the Class 4A-3A East Region meet, he topped Old Mill's Michael Sillaman (third at county championship) and rallied for a thrilling 8-7 victory over Kyle Werner of Atholton in the finals. Shreve scored a reversal with 4.5 seconds left to pull out the one-point win. Shreve won his opening match at states against Chopticon's Vincent Shontere and finished sixth overall.

"I've been a top seed before and been knocked off so I really think working my butt off with people like (teammate Mark) Massie and Nichols has finally paid off," Shreve said. "Every Sunday, we run sprints and it put me in the best shape of my life. Without that, I can count at least 10 matches I would have lost this year."

152 pounds -- Zach Jankiewicz, Glen Burnie senior. Jankiewicz (33-5) scored a pin in the county championship semifinals and then took the title with a 5-2 decision over Chesapeake's Tyler Lomax. Lomax got revenge in the Class 4A-3A East Region semifinals and Jankiewicz finished fourth. At the state meet, the two potentially could have met in the finals but Lomax fell in the quarterfinals and Jankiewicz took home third-place honors when he pinned LaPlata junior Brent Lowry in 2:52.

"The matches couldn't have been more different, though," Jankiewicz said when comparing his bouts with Lomax this year. "The first time we wrestled, I had to come back. This time (county championship), it was more about holding him off. He's tough and I knew it would be a tough match because we both really wanted it."

160 pounds -- Bubby Graham, Annapolis senior. Graham (36-0) registered two first-period pins en route to a 7-0 decision over Old Mill's Chase Russell in the county championship finals. He secured his fourth Class 4A-3A East Region title with a pin over North Harford's Tom Stewart in 3:02. Two more pins and a 15-0 major decision led Graham to a rematch with Stewart in the state finals. He pinned him again, this time in 2:33.

"I think I wrestled better technically than in the recent past," Graham said after his region title win.

171 pounds -- Zach O'Keefe, Chesapeake senior. O'Keefe (42-3) dumped Severna Park's Mark Massie, 9-5, to earn a county championship title. He would meet Massie again in the Class 4A-3A East Region finals and the match would be decided in overtime. O'Keefe knotted it up, 1-1, in the third and then pinned Massie with 12.6 seconds left in the extra period. At the state meet, O'Keefe registered an impressive four pins but he dropped a 5-0 decision to eventual four-time state champion Josh Asper of Herford in the semifinals. He scored a fall in 2:18 over Walt Whitman sophomore Taylor Leighton in the third-place match.

189 pounds -- Ethan Brown, Old Mill senior. Brown (32-8), last year's state champion, showed he can come back in a match when he rallied past North County's Patrick Louis Carey to win the county championship, 9-7. He pinned Atholton's Malcolm Stennett at the Class 4A-3A East Region meet before bowing to Danny Miller of Stephen Decatur in the finals. At the state meet, Borwn went 2-2 and finished fourth.

"I was really happy with Ethan," Old Mill coach Dan Youngblood said. "That was just a testament to his conditioning. He never gave up and he kept driving."

215 pounds -- Billy Nichols, Severna Park junior. Nichols (31-5) pinned three straight opponents in the county championship and capped the performance with a fall in 3:24 over Old Mill's Nigel Pierce in the finals. The pin party continued at the Class 4A-3A East Region meet until he fell to Atholton's Mike Massarelli in the championship bout. Nichols pinned Ralph Parson of Oxon Hill at the state meet -- his sixth pin in the postseason -- but fell to North Carroll's Jason Thomen in the quarterfinals.

287 pounds -- Aaron Hawkins, Old Mill junior. Hawkins (37-6) survived a stacked heavyweight class in the county championship with a 4-0 decision over South River senior Eric Mauler in the finals. The county's heavyweights followed him through the Class 4A-3A East Region meet and he pulled out a 5-2 victory over Severna Park's Jared Planz. Hawkins then registered two pins at the state meet and took third after a slim 1-0 decision over Mauler.

"I tell you what, Anne Arundel County has some tough heavyweights and it's an honor to come out on top today," Hawkins said after his win over Planz in the region finals. "Eric and Jared are tough kids. They work so hard. It's difficult to go against these guys because we see each other all year long."

ALL-COUNTY SECOND TEAM

103 pounds -- Marcelius Fleming, Northeast freshman

112 pounds -- Houston Zemanski, Broadneck junior

119 pounds -- Jamie Claytor, Northeast senior

125 pounds -- Scott Murphy, Broadneck senior

130 pounds -- Zach West, Northeast senior

135 pounds -- Tyler Stubbs, South River senior

140 pounds -- Stephen Woody, Broadneck junior

145 pounds -- Michael Sillaman, Old Mill junior

152 pounds -- Tyler Lomax, Chesapeake senior

160 pounds -- Chase Russell, Old Mill senior

171 pounds -- Mark Massie, Severna Park senior

189 pounds -- Patrick Louis Carey, North County sophomore

215 pounds -- Nigel Pierce, Old Mill senior