Stebbins, Chapman top Generals’ invite showing with pair of seconds
Wooster High wrestling coach Troy Worth had a different look at his team Jan. 21.
The Generals hosted the Wooster Wrestling Invitational, which found Worth running the tournament instead of being in the chairs mat-side. The Generals weren’t able to defend their 2010 title, but Worth still saw some encouraging signs from his team.
Orrville won the meet with 160 points as it slipped by Plymouth (151.5) for top honors. Crestview finished with 146 points, followed by Akron Buchtel with 134.5, Columbia Station 125, Canton McKinley 94, Wooster 78.5, Malvern 58, Cuyahoga Falls 51.5 and Dalton 49.
“Overall the kids wrestled well,” said Worth. “We had matches where we wrestled well and then had lapses, which shows our inexperience. That’s to be expected. Young kids can have letdowns after they’ve had a big win.”
Wooster had a pair of runner-up finishes in the meet, getting those finishes from senior Nate Stebbins at 126 pounds and another from junior Trever Chapman at heavyweight. Phil Wentz had a third at 113 pounds, winning three of his four matches, and Jeb Beeman was fourth at 160.
“Jeb was a surprise,” said Worth. “He’s a senior and this is his first year wrestling. He hadn’t won a match yet, so for him to have three good pins is great. He wrestled well in his last two matches. Even though he lost, he wasn’t overmatched. He’s been wrestling for fun and enjoying it and it showed. It was a good payoff in front of the home crowd.
“Phil lost to a tough kid, Brandon Miller from McKinley. He’s a quick kid and Phil is more methodical. … Phil wrestled a hard, tough kid and had a nice tournament.”
Stebbins, who improved to 18-5, went 3-1 and “wrestled well,” said Worth. “He lost to Devin (Strobelt-McCan of Buchtel), who is a short guy and very strong, which made it very difficult for Nate to work his stuff. It’s hard to win when someone counters your best moves, but it gave us an idea of what we have to work on to change.”
Chapman, now 19-11, was 4-1 before losing to Orrville’s Ron Lehtomaki in the finals of their heavyweight match.
“Ronnie is a good kid,” said Worth. “He’s a hard wrestler. Trever got extended and got caught. He wrestled really well. Ronnie’s a strong kid. He’s been in our room and I’ve wrestled him. He’s very fundamental, which is what (Orrville) coach (Mike) Hamsher works on.”
Wooster won the tournament a year ago, but with several open weight classes, Worth was also realistic and looking for strong individual performances.
“Everybody, even the JV kids (put in the lineup), got a win,” said Worth, commenting on Brian Grimsley (220), Jacob Shook and Nick Trepal (both heavyweights). “To get a win, they should feel good. I felt happy for them to come into this tournament and get a win in front of the home crowd.”
Wooster competed in the Euclid Duals Jan. 28.
The Generals hosted the Wooster Wrestling Invitational, which found Worth running the tournament instead of being in the chairs mat-side. The Generals weren’t able to defend their 2010 title, but Worth still saw some encouraging signs from his team.
Orrville won the meet with 160 points as it slipped by Plymouth (151.5) for top honors. Crestview finished with 146 points, followed by Akron Buchtel with 134.5, Columbia Station 125, Canton McKinley 94, Wooster 78.5, Malvern 58, Cuyahoga Falls 51.5 and Dalton 49.
“Overall the kids wrestled well,” said Worth. “We had matches where we wrestled well and then had lapses, which shows our inexperience. That’s to be expected. Young kids can have letdowns after they’ve had a big win.”
Wooster had a pair of runner-up finishes in the meet, getting those finishes from senior Nate Stebbins at 126 pounds and another from junior Trever Chapman at heavyweight. Phil Wentz had a third at 113 pounds, winning three of his four matches, and Jeb Beeman was fourth at 160.
“Jeb was a surprise,” said Worth. “He’s a senior and this is his first year wrestling. He hadn’t won a match yet, so for him to have three good pins is great. He wrestled well in his last two matches. Even though he lost, he wasn’t overmatched. He’s been wrestling for fun and enjoying it and it showed. It was a good payoff in front of the home crowd.
“Phil lost to a tough kid, Brandon Miller from McKinley. He’s a quick kid and Phil is more methodical. … Phil wrestled a hard, tough kid and had a nice tournament.”
Stebbins, who improved to 18-5, went 3-1 and “wrestled well,” said Worth. “He lost to Devin (Strobelt-McCan of Buchtel), who is a short guy and very strong, which made it very difficult for Nate to work his stuff. It’s hard to win when someone counters your best moves, but it gave us an idea of what we have to work on to change.”
Chapman, now 19-11, was 4-1 before losing to Orrville’s Ron Lehtomaki in the finals of their heavyweight match.
“Ronnie is a good kid,” said Worth. “He’s a hard wrestler. Trever got extended and got caught. He wrestled really well. Ronnie’s a strong kid. He’s been in our room and I’ve wrestled him. He’s very fundamental, which is what (Orrville) coach (Mike) Hamsher works on.”
Wooster won the tournament a year ago, but with several open weight classes, Worth was also realistic and looking for strong individual performances.
“Everybody, even the JV kids (put in the lineup), got a win,” said Worth, commenting on Brian Grimsley (220), Jacob Shook and Nick Trepal (both heavyweights). “To get a win, they should feel good. I felt happy for them to come into this tournament and get a win in front of the home crowd.”
Wooster competed in the Euclid Duals Jan. 28.
Published: January 25, 2012
