Lynn Burke
02-11-2008, 09:09 PM
http://hrvarsity.com/photopost/data/552/mcadams1.jpg
Poquoson's Chase McAdams celebrates a pin during the Virginia Duals. Photo by Diane Cebala/Daily Press
The meat of Poquoson's wrestling machine
By Jeff Cunningham | Correspondent
Ask wrestling coaches in the Bay Rivers District about The Gauntlet, and their responses encompass a wide spectrum.
“They’re the meat of the machine,” Smithfield coach Tyler Mosely said with a sheepish grin.
First-year Lafayette head man Larry McNeal stuffed his hands in his pockets and offered a similar smile. Grafton coach Lester Ferguson chuckled and shook his head.
Tabb coach Doug Roper, arms folded over his chest, just shrugged and said, “You gotta go through that foursome to get past Poquoson ... and good luck doing it.”
This foursome, the source of such trepidation throughout the district, is one of the main reasons the Islanders are celebrating their second straight district crown heading into this weekend’s Region I sectional tournaments.
Cody Silva, Kayton Marshall, Chase McAdams and Del Bryce rule the mat, climbing atop state rankings and helping Poquoson take 20 straight district meets after a trio of victories Feb. 5 at Smithfield.
“You gotta get through The Gauntlet,” Poquoson coach Mark Strickland said. “It’s Murderer’s Row. I tell you, they pin ... they beat a lot of people.”
And pin people The Gauntlet does — of the 121 wins the foursome has combined for, 80 have come via pin.
When the Islanders faced Tabb at the Smithfield meet, three of the four members recorded pins. Louis Shearer got it started in the 140-pound match with a 44-second pin. Silva, ranked third in Virginia at 140 pounds but wrestling at 145 on Feb. 5, pinned Rudger Shankland in 5:43. McAdams (152) followed that with a pin of Zack Klotz in 41 seconds, and Marshall bumped himself up to 160 pounds to make short work of Blake Helmick.
That match took all of 31 seconds.
“Just get off the mat,” said Marshall, a Poquoson native. “The sooner you get off the mat, the less your chance of getting hurt.”
McAdams, 32-3 on the season, is ranked second in the state behind Christianburg’s Sam Rakes, while Marshall tops Group AA at 145 pounds. Though virginiawrestling.com still lists Bryce at No. 6 at 160 pounds, the senior vaulted his way to the top spot, according to Strickland.
Bryce is 32-8 this season, but five of those losses came when he bumped up to 171 pounds to meet team needs. An illness on the team forced such a move in the Smithfield meet, where Bryce lost a 6-2 decision to Tabb’s Trevor Tackett.
“The state ranking’s nice,” Bryce said. “But that’s an individual thing. ... I’m more concerned with how the team does and what I need to do in order to help that.”
The Islanders will be in Lafayette for the sectionals, which could be considered a tune-up for the Region I event. Poquoson won the regional title last year, sending eight wrestlers to the state tournament in the process.
A good deal of that success came courtesy of 140-pounder Aaron Keeton. The 2007 Daily Press Wrestler of the Year only lost one match en route to a state title, but now calls George Mason and the mats of the Colonial Athletic Association home.
This year tells a little different tale. In addition to The Gauntlet, Poquoson boasts three other wrestlers ranked in the state: Shearer (No. 4 at 130), Andrew Westfall (No. 4 at 103, despite injuries) and Jonathan Holt (No. 5 in the state at 119).
“We all just kind of meshed during the summer,” Silva said. “That’s when it all came together.”
For Strickland, having a team this tough at virtually all weight classes is a nice luxury.
“It’s a great little group out there,” he said. “We believe in team. We’re trying to win team titles, and we have to be solid all the way through ... we’re getting there. We’re building depth and getting stronger, our summer commitment’s gotten better.
“People are starting to believe in that, and I’m real proud of it.”
The Silva File
Name: Cody Silva.
Age: 17.
Class: Junior.
Weight class: 140.
Notables: Ranked third in the state … 31-4 this season … finished third in the Midwest Classic, second in the Great Bridge Christmas Classic and second in the Riverbend Super 32.
The Marshall File
Name: Kayton Marshall.
Age: 17.
Class: Senior.
Weight class: 145.
Notables: Top-ranked 145-pounder in Virginia … 26-4 this season … Group AA state finalist in 2006 … drawing interest from Virginia and Old Dominion.
The McAdams file
Name: Chase McAdams.
Age: 17.
Class: Junior.
Weight class: 152.
Notables: Ranked second in Virginia, behind Christianburg’s Sam Rakes … 32-3 this season, finishing second in the Great Bridge Christmas Classic and won the Northern Regional Invitational.
The Bryce file
Name: Del Bryce.
Age: 17.
Class: Senior.
Weight class: 160.
Notables: Top-ranked 160-pounder in Virginia … 32-8 on the season … five of eight losses came at 171 pounds.
Poquoson's Chase McAdams celebrates a pin during the Virginia Duals. Photo by Diane Cebala/Daily Press
The meat of Poquoson's wrestling machine
By Jeff Cunningham | Correspondent
Ask wrestling coaches in the Bay Rivers District about The Gauntlet, and their responses encompass a wide spectrum.
“They’re the meat of the machine,” Smithfield coach Tyler Mosely said with a sheepish grin.
First-year Lafayette head man Larry McNeal stuffed his hands in his pockets and offered a similar smile. Grafton coach Lester Ferguson chuckled and shook his head.
Tabb coach Doug Roper, arms folded over his chest, just shrugged and said, “You gotta go through that foursome to get past Poquoson ... and good luck doing it.”
This foursome, the source of such trepidation throughout the district, is one of the main reasons the Islanders are celebrating their second straight district crown heading into this weekend’s Region I sectional tournaments.
Cody Silva, Kayton Marshall, Chase McAdams and Del Bryce rule the mat, climbing atop state rankings and helping Poquoson take 20 straight district meets after a trio of victories Feb. 5 at Smithfield.
“You gotta get through The Gauntlet,” Poquoson coach Mark Strickland said. “It’s Murderer’s Row. I tell you, they pin ... they beat a lot of people.”
And pin people The Gauntlet does — of the 121 wins the foursome has combined for, 80 have come via pin.
When the Islanders faced Tabb at the Smithfield meet, three of the four members recorded pins. Louis Shearer got it started in the 140-pound match with a 44-second pin. Silva, ranked third in Virginia at 140 pounds but wrestling at 145 on Feb. 5, pinned Rudger Shankland in 5:43. McAdams (152) followed that with a pin of Zack Klotz in 41 seconds, and Marshall bumped himself up to 160 pounds to make short work of Blake Helmick.
That match took all of 31 seconds.
“Just get off the mat,” said Marshall, a Poquoson native. “The sooner you get off the mat, the less your chance of getting hurt.”
McAdams, 32-3 on the season, is ranked second in the state behind Christianburg’s Sam Rakes, while Marshall tops Group AA at 145 pounds. Though virginiawrestling.com still lists Bryce at No. 6 at 160 pounds, the senior vaulted his way to the top spot, according to Strickland.
Bryce is 32-8 this season, but five of those losses came when he bumped up to 171 pounds to meet team needs. An illness on the team forced such a move in the Smithfield meet, where Bryce lost a 6-2 decision to Tabb’s Trevor Tackett.
“The state ranking’s nice,” Bryce said. “But that’s an individual thing. ... I’m more concerned with how the team does and what I need to do in order to help that.”
The Islanders will be in Lafayette for the sectionals, which could be considered a tune-up for the Region I event. Poquoson won the regional title last year, sending eight wrestlers to the state tournament in the process.
A good deal of that success came courtesy of 140-pounder Aaron Keeton. The 2007 Daily Press Wrestler of the Year only lost one match en route to a state title, but now calls George Mason and the mats of the Colonial Athletic Association home.
This year tells a little different tale. In addition to The Gauntlet, Poquoson boasts three other wrestlers ranked in the state: Shearer (No. 4 at 130), Andrew Westfall (No. 4 at 103, despite injuries) and Jonathan Holt (No. 5 in the state at 119).
“We all just kind of meshed during the summer,” Silva said. “That’s when it all came together.”
For Strickland, having a team this tough at virtually all weight classes is a nice luxury.
“It’s a great little group out there,” he said. “We believe in team. We’re trying to win team titles, and we have to be solid all the way through ... we’re getting there. We’re building depth and getting stronger, our summer commitment’s gotten better.
“People are starting to believe in that, and I’m real proud of it.”
The Silva File
Name: Cody Silva.
Age: 17.
Class: Junior.
Weight class: 140.
Notables: Ranked third in the state … 31-4 this season … finished third in the Midwest Classic, second in the Great Bridge Christmas Classic and second in the Riverbend Super 32.
The Marshall File
Name: Kayton Marshall.
Age: 17.
Class: Senior.
Weight class: 145.
Notables: Top-ranked 145-pounder in Virginia … 26-4 this season … Group AA state finalist in 2006 … drawing interest from Virginia and Old Dominion.
The McAdams file
Name: Chase McAdams.
Age: 17.
Class: Junior.
Weight class: 152.
Notables: Ranked second in Virginia, behind Christianburg’s Sam Rakes … 32-3 this season, finishing second in the Great Bridge Christmas Classic and won the Northern Regional Invitational.
The Bryce file
Name: Del Bryce.
Age: 17.
Class: Senior.
Weight class: 160.
Notables: Top-ranked 160-pounder in Virginia … 32-8 on the season … five of eight losses came at 171 pounds.