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Gladiators win 8 of final 11 bouts, including five straight. Bumped-around lineup maneuvers have Chris Stinnett at 140, Tim Chase at 152.
Mount St. Joseph's Frankie Goodwin pinned Glenelg's Nick Caffrey (foreground) in this 112-pound bout, but his team still lost, 37-30, in Saturday's dual meet.
by Lem Satterfield
Glenelg's Tim Chase pinned Mount St. Joseph's Bobby Bowman in 4:51 of their 152-pound bout to clinch a 37-30 victory by the visiting Gladiators of Howard County over the No. 2-ranked team in the DigitalSports-Maryland State Wrestling Association Top 20, and a traditional powerhouse whose wrestling tradition is nationally acclaimed.
The win moved the Gladiators, ranked eighth in the DigitalSports-MSWA Top 20, to 8-1 on the year and will reverberate throughout the state's wrestling community for a team that is favored to win this year's Class 2A-1A state dual and tournament titles.
A county and regional champion who placed third at states last seaosn, Chase led, 2-0, early, but trailed, 3-2, in a match that was at 5-5 before he finally pulled away for a 9-5, third-period advantage and eventually earned the fall.
And it came against a Gaels' squad whose assistant to Kirk Salvo is Rob Bowman, Glenelg's coach two years ago, after which Scott Delpo inherited the defending Howard County champs.
The win marks one of the rare times the Gaels of the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association's A Conference have suffered a defeat at the hands of a Maryland public school.
And it was accomplished with a lineup comprised of wrestlers whose weight classes not only were bumped around all over, but whose stud, Chris Stinnett, returned from a nearly month-long absence from a shoulder injury and wrestled, for the first time, down at 140 from 145 pounds.
"We were surprised at the scales. And we only had an hour to digest some of the moves that they made to figure out if three was any moves that we could make, or any juggling that we could do," said Gaels' coach Kirk Salvo.
"But a couple of our guys didn't show up ready to wrestle today, so they [Gladiators] beat us right here," said Salvo, pointing to his heart. "That was a winnable match for us, but I have to tip my had to Glenelg. They came hungry. They came ready to wrestle today, and they just beat us."
Down, 12-0, after the first three bouts, the Gladiators won eight of the final 11 -- including five straight from 119-through-140 -- for the win.
The run was capped by three straight wins by state runners-up Brian Marcoux (130), Dan Bichner (135) and Stinnett (140), respectively, by a 15-4 major decision and pins in 69, and, 59 seconds.
"I give a lot of credit to the kids for the lineup moves that we made. They're the ones who came up with them," said Delpo, who guided Franklin of Baltimore County to a Class 2A-1A state tournament title in 1999.
"They know the compeition, and they make it fun," Delpo said. "They're very intelligent, they've done their research. I think the ship is headed in the right direction, I just don't want to turn it and crash it."
Bichner's fall had the Gladiators ahead for good, 25-24, with three bouts left, and then, Stinnett's pin over the Gaels' Shane Cannaday made it, 31-24.
"I got a power-half in, got my five-count, and then I came out on top," said Stinnett, whose pin was followed by a fall from the Gaels' Pat Downey (145) to make the overall score, 31-30. "He tried to funk away my leg, but I stuck my knee in his face, kept my leg bent and I was able to stick him."
Chase stepped onto the mat for a pivotal win against Bobby Bowman, son of the coaching assistant fo rthe Gaels (11-8).
Chase led, 2-0, early, but trailed, 3-2, in a match that was at 5-5 before he built a 9-5 advantage early in the third period.
"The pressure wasn't really there. I viewed this as more of a challenge. I just went out to win," said Chase, a county and regional champion who placed third at states last year at 171 pounds.
"This is the first time I've been at 152 in a long time," Chase said. "I knew that it was down to me, and I just wanted to win," Chase said. "But once I got going, and after watching my teammates come through in their matches, that gave me tons of energy. I was able to score and then go for the pin."
The Gaels, who were without four starters, went up, 12-0, after Matt Mullett (171) sandwhiched a first-period pin between Ed Jackson's 12-5 decision over county champ Alex Hufnagel at 160, and an overtime, 6-4 decision by Pete Jones (189) over Nick Hoyte.
But that's when the Gladiators started their run, with their intensity being established by Zach Cross at 215 pounds.
Cross made the overall score, 12-6, by building a 17-5 lead over Mike Rovnan before scoring the fall at 3:05.
The Gaels got a fall of their own from Karl Green (285) in 4:43 to stretch their lead back to 12 points at 18-6.
That set up a pivotoal, 103-pound bout between the Gaels' Alex Rice and the Gladiators' Zach Gerber that was won, 5-4, by Gerber before the Gaels' MIAA and private schools' state runner-up Frankie Goodwin (112) came up with a pin to make the overall match score, 24-9.
Although Gerber, came from behind to win, 5-4, cutting the deficit to 18-9, Rice got the jump with a first-period takedown for a 2-0 lead heading into the second.
A locked hands call against Gerber pushed Rice's cushion to 3-0 heading into the third period, where Gerber rallied to take full control.
First, an escape cut the deficit to 3-1. Then a takedown with 49 seconds left tied the bout at 3-3. Gerber cut Rice for an escape and a 4-3 deficit with 43 seconds left before scoring the bout-winning takedown 22 seconds left for the decision.
"I knew that when I went out there, even though he got the lead, I was going to keep wrestling," Gerber said. "I just had to get out, never stop wrestling, take him down, make him work and hopefully get tired. That worked out for me."
That intensity rolled over into the Gladitors' next bout at 119 pounds, where third-place finisher, Brendon Conway (119), carried the fight to Graceson Pastirik on the way to building a 14-6 advantage in an eventual 14-8 decision.
"What I wanted to do was try to get bonus points," said Conway, who scored six takedowns to one for Pastirik, scored a reversal, and let up Pastirik four times in order to score as many takedowns.
"I knew he was a good wrestler, so I wanted to get up on him early and try to get into his head," Conway said. "I figured that, knowing that the strong part of our lineup was coming up, we needed to get as many big wins as we could."
The Gladiators were within, 24-15, following Craig Brindza's 10-5 victory over 125-pound rival Gino Pollack, but that was accomplished only after surviving a late rally by Pollack.
Down, 5-0, Pollack was within, 5-4, after cradling Brindza to his back in the third period. But the Gladiators' wrestler -- who often bumps to face the opposing team's most difficult opponent -- scored a reversal and three nearfall points to pull away.
"I've been at 125 for a couple of matches whenever there's a matchup advantage for our team to do it," said Brindza.
"Fortunately, I was able to build a big lead. And then, when he put me in the cradle, I was able to slip my arm out and get him on his back," Brindza said. "That as my role today -- to be tough and to win at the same time. I had to win that match for the team."
Bichner said that the Gladiators, collectively, were looking forward to facing the Gaels, particularly since being humbled last month, 37-27, at two-time defending Class 4A-3A state duals champion LaPlata of Charles County, ranked No. 7 in DigitalSports' Top 20.
"After the LaPlata match, everyone kind of doubted us," Bichner said. "So I think this was a big statement, to come into their environment and to pull out a big win like this."
In a recent dual meet win over county rival Centennial, for example, Gerber bumped up to 112 pounds for a victory over fourth-place state finisher, Jake Western.
Conway recently avenged a loss of a year ago by defeating River Hill's Scott Mantua, winner of a state title last season.
"I wanted that match really badly. And winning that, it made me realize that I could beat anybody," Conway said. "I was real focused for this match. We had just lost one at 112, so I needed to start it going back in our direction, and we were able to win a bunch more in a row after that."
Marcoux, who will compete at 125 for the counties, regions and states, last month, bumped up to 130 pounds to avenge a loss of a year ago to Walkersville's Chad Cotterman.
"I've been chasing the competition to maybe take out kids that I've lost to or kids that I know are good, and I get better by doing that," Marcoux said. "In matches like this, where we can put me at 130, and Brindza at 125, that's key. That was two wins right there."
But the real surprises were Stinnett's appearence in the lineup at all, let alone, his drop to 140 pounds, as well as Chase's drop to 152 -- a weight he has not seen since his sophomore year.
"I went to the doctors and found out that I had strained my rotator cuff, sprained my joint and had a slight tear in my labrum. I thought I wouldn't be back until the very last part of the season," said Stinnett, who received medical clearance to wrestle on Thursday.
"I did a lot of workouts on my own, three times a week. Next weekend's Mount Mat Madness tournament and this match are want meant a lot to me, besides winning a state title," Stinnett said.
"I was at a decent size at 145, but I knew I could get down to 140. I just kept working on my cardio," Stinnett said.
"Timmy Chase is a weight-lifter, so he never wanted to drop. But I have English class with him, that we needed him down there," Stinnett said. "I told him that if he did it, he could probably win states at 152, and that this was what we needed from him in order to win this match. I got him to do it for himself, as well as the team."
Glenelg's Tim Chase pinned Mount St. Joseph's Bobby Bowman in 4:51 of their 152-pound bout to clinch a 37-30 victory by the visiting Gladiators of Howard County over the No. 2-ranked team in the DigitalSports-Maryland State Wrestling Association Top 20, and a traditional powerhouse whose wrestling tradition is nationally acclaimed.
The win moved the Gladiators, ranked eighth in the DigitalSports-MSWA Top 20, to 8-1 on the year and will reverberate throughout the state's wrestling community for a team that is favored to win this year's Class 2A-1A state dual and tournament titles.
A county and regional champion who placed third at states last seaosn, Chase led, 2-0, early, but trailed, 3-2, in a match that was at 5-5 before he finally pulled away for a 9-5, third-period advantage and eventually earned the fall.
And it came against a Gaels' squad whose assistant to Kirk Salvo is Rob Bowman, Glenelg's coach two years ago, after which Scott Delpo inherited the defending Howard County champs.
The win marks one of the rare times the Gaels of the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association's A Conference have suffered a defeat at the hands of a Maryland public school.
And it was accomplished with a lineup comprised of wrestlers whose weight classes not only were bumped around all over, but whose stud, Chris Stinnett, returned from a nearly month-long absence from a shoulder injury and wrestled, for the first time, down at 140 from 145 pounds.
"We were surprised at the scales. And we only had an hour to digest some of the moves that they made to figure out if three was any moves that we could make, or any juggling that we could do," said Gaels' coach Kirk Salvo.
"But a couple of our guys didn't show up ready to wrestle today, so they [Gladiators] beat us right here," said Salvo, pointing to his heart. "That was a winnable match for us, but I have to tip my had to Glenelg. They came hungry. They came ready to wrestle today, and they just beat us."
Down, 12-0, after the first three bouts, the Gladiators won eight of the final 11 -- including five straight from 119-through-140 -- for the win.
The run was capped by three straight wins by state runners-up Brian Marcoux (130), Dan Bichner (135) and Stinnett (140), respectively, by a 15-4 major decision and pins in 69, and, 59 seconds.
"I give a lot of credit to the kids for the lineup moves that we made. They're the ones who came up with them," said Delpo, who guided Franklin of Baltimore County to a Class 2A-1A state tournament title in 1999.
"They know the compeition, and they make it fun," Delpo said. "They're very intelligent, they've done their research. I think the ship is headed in the right direction, I just don't want to turn it and crash it."
Bichner's fall had the Gladiators ahead for good, 25-24, with three bouts left, and then, Stinnett's pin over the Gaels' Shane Cannaday made it, 31-24.
"I got a power-half in, got my five-count, and then I came out on top," said Stinnett, whose pin was followed by a fall from the Gaels' Pat Downey (145) to make the overall score, 31-30. "He tried to funk away my leg, but I stuck my knee in his face, kept my leg bent and I was able to stick him."
Chase stepped onto the mat for a pivotal win against Bobby Bowman, son of the coaching assistant fo rthe Gaels (11-8).
Chase led, 2-0, early, but trailed, 3-2, in a match that was at 5-5 before he built a 9-5 advantage early in the third period.
"The pressure wasn't really there. I viewed this as more of a challenge. I just went out to win," said Chase, a county and regional champion who placed third at states last year at 171 pounds.
"This is the first time I've been at 152 in a long time," Chase said. "I knew that it was down to me, and I just wanted to win," Chase said. "But once I got going, and after watching my teammates come through in their matches, that gave me tons of energy. I was able to score and then go for the pin."
The Gaels, who were without four starters, went up, 12-0, after Matt Mullett (171) sandwhiched a first-period pin between Ed Jackson's 12-5 decision over county champ Alex Hufnagel at 160, and an overtime, 6-4 decision by Pete Jones (189) over Nick Hoyte.
But that's when the Gladiators started their run, with their intensity being established by Zach Cross at 215 pounds.
Cross made the overall score, 12-6, by building a 17-5 lead over Mike Rovnan before scoring the fall at 3:05.
The Gaels got a fall of their own from Karl Green (285) in 4:43 to stretch their lead back to 12 points at 18-6.
That set up a pivotoal, 103-pound bout between the Gaels' Alex Rice and the Gladiators' Zach Gerber that was won, 5-4, by Gerber before the Gaels' MIAA and private schools' state runner-up Frankie Goodwin (112) came up with a pin to make the overall match score, 24-9.
Although Gerber, came from behind to win, 5-4, cutting the deficit to 18-9, Rice got the jump with a first-period takedown for a 2-0 lead heading into the second.
A locked hands call against Gerber pushed Rice's cushion to 3-0 heading into the third period, where Gerber rallied to take full control.
First, an escape cut the deficit to 3-1. Then a takedown with 49 seconds left tied the bout at 3-3. Gerber cut Rice for an escape and a 4-3 deficit with 43 seconds left before scoring the bout-winning takedown 22 seconds left for the decision.
"I knew that when I went out there, even though he got the lead, I was going to keep wrestling," Gerber said. "I just had to get out, never stop wrestling, take him down, make him work and hopefully get tired. That worked out for me."
That intensity rolled over into the Gladitors' next bout at 119 pounds, where third-place finisher, Brendon Conway (119), carried the fight to Graceson Pastirik on the way to building a 14-6 advantage in an eventual 14-8 decision.
"What I wanted to do was try to get bonus points," said Conway, who scored six takedowns to one for Pastirik, scored a reversal, and let up Pastirik four times in order to score as many takedowns.
"I knew he was a good wrestler, so I wanted to get up on him early and try to get into his head," Conway said. "I figured that, knowing that the strong part of our lineup was coming up, we needed to get as many big wins as we could."
The Gladiators were within, 24-15, following Craig Brindza's 10-5 victory over 125-pound rival Gino Pollack, but that was accomplished only after surviving a late rally by Pollack.
Down, 5-0, Pollack was within, 5-4, after cradling Brindza to his back in the third period. But the Gladiators' wrestler -- who often bumps to face the opposing team's most difficult opponent -- scored a reversal and three nearfall points to pull away.
"I've been at 125 for a couple of matches whenever there's a matchup advantage for our team to do it," said Brindza.
"Fortunately, I was able to build a big lead. And then, when he put me in the cradle, I was able to slip my arm out and get him on his back," Brindza said. "That as my role today -- to be tough and to win at the same time. I had to win that match for the team."
Bichner said that the Gladiators, collectively, were looking forward to facing the Gaels, particularly since being humbled last month, 37-27, at two-time defending Class 4A-3A state duals champion LaPlata of Charles County, ranked No. 7 in DigitalSports' Top 20.
"After the LaPlata match, everyone kind of doubted us," Bichner said. "So I think this was a big statement, to come into their environment and to pull out a big win like this."
In a recent dual meet win over county rival Centennial, for example, Gerber bumped up to 112 pounds for a victory over fourth-place state finisher, Jake Western.
Conway recently avenged a loss of a year ago by defeating River Hill's Scott Mantua, winner of a state title last season.
"I wanted that match really badly. And winning that, it made me realize that I could beat anybody," Conway said. "I was real focused for this match. We had just lost one at 112, so I needed to start it going back in our direction, and we were able to win a bunch more in a row after that."
Marcoux, who will compete at 125 for the counties, regions and states, last month, bumped up to 130 pounds to avenge a loss of a year ago to Walkersville's Chad Cotterman.
"I've been chasing the competition to maybe take out kids that I've lost to or kids that I know are good, and I get better by doing that," Marcoux said. "In matches like this, where we can put me at 130, and Brindza at 125, that's key. That was two wins right there."
But the real surprises were Stinnett's appearence in the lineup at all, let alone, his drop to 140 pounds, as well as Chase's drop to 152 -- a weight he has not seen since his sophomore year.
"I went to the doctors and found out that I had strained my rotator cuff, sprained my joint and had a slight tear in my labrum. I thought I wouldn't be back until the very last part of the season," said Stinnett, who received medical clearance to wrestle on Thursday.
"I did a lot of workouts on my own, three times a week. Next weekend's Mount Mat Madness tournament and this match are want meant a lot to me, besides winning a state title," Stinnett said.
"I was at a decent size at 145, but I knew I could get down to 140. I just kept working on my cardio," Stinnett said.
"Timmy Chase is a weight-lifter, so he never wanted to drop. But I have English class with him, that we needed him down there," Stinnett said. "I told him that if he did it, he could probably win states at 152, and that this was what we needed from him in order to win this match. I got him to do it for himself, as well as the team."
Mount St. Joseph's Matt Mullett (top) pinned Glenelg's Gary Keister at 171 pounds to give his Gaels an early lead in an eventual 37-30 dual meet loss on Saturday.
No. 8 Glenelg 37, No. Mount St. Joseph 30
160- Ed Jackson (M) d. Alex Hugnagel, 12-5 (3-0, M0
171- Matt Mullett (M) p. Gary Keister, 1:35 (9-0, M)
189- Pete Jones (M) d. Nick Hoyte, 6-4, OT (12-0, M)
215- Derek Patrick (G) p. Mike Rovnan, 3:05 (12-6, M)
285- Karl Green (M) p. Derek Patrick, 3:43 (18-6 M)
103- Zach Gerber (G) d. Alex Rice, 5-4 (18-9, M)
112- Frank Goodwin (M) p. Nick Caffrey, 1:54 (24-9, M)
119- Brendon Conway (G) d. Graceson Pastirik, 14-8 (24-12, M)
125- Craig Brindza (G) d. Gino Pollack, 10-5 (24-15, M)
130- Brian Marcoux (G) mj. Jake Hullsey, 15-4 (24-19, M)
135- Dan Bichner (G) p. Tyler Irvine, 1:09 (25-24, G)
140- Christ Stinnett (G) p. Shane Cannaday, 0:59 (31-24, G)
145- Pat Downey (M) p. Mike O'Leary, 2:36 (31-30, G)
152- Tim Chase (G) p. Bobby Bowman, 4:51 (37-30, G)
