High School Sports
Email
Print
Wrestlers to start playoffs today
ADVERTISEMENT
Published: February 3, 2009
The Parkland wrestling team has won all 38 of its dual matches this season and 128 straight overall.
Next up for the Mustangs as they try to continue their streak are this week's NCHSAA team tournaments.
Competition in all four classifications will start tonight, and teams will wrestle through the second round. The quarterfinals and semifinals are scheduled Thursday, and the title matches will be Saturday at the homes of the Eastern champions.
Parkland, the two-time defending 3-A champion, is one of five unbeatens in the tournaments, and 4-A Davie County (32-0) and 2-A North Surry (30-0) also are on the list.
Parkland will wrestle Indian Trail Porter Ridge (20-5) today at Charlotte Catholic, and the winner will face the Charlotte Catholic-Anson County winner in the second round.
"I have a young team, and they have to perform," Coach Maurice Atwood of Parkland said. "Some of them, it's their first time in the state duals. But they have been in tense matches when we wrestled teams like (Hillsborough) Orange. But it's different in state duals. The atmosphere is different, and the intensity is different.
"But if my boys wrestle, I think we can be there in the end."
Other defending champions back in the tournaments are Class 4-A Cary and Class 2-A Hillsborough Orange. Alleghany, last season's 1-A champion, did not qualify.
Davie could be on another crash course to meet Cary, which is 31-0. The two met in last season's 4-A final, with Cary winning 40-27. It was the third time that the teams wrestled for the title in a four-year span. Cary beat Davie 34-32 in the 2005 final, and Davie won 41-23 in 2006.
Coach Eric Jessup of North Surry said he was a little surprised his team made it through the regular season undefeated.
"We have a good bunch of kids, and we have caught about every good break along the way that we could catch, and that helps a lot," Jessup said. "We lost five good seniors last year. I felt like we would be pretty good. I didn't know how good.
"We have wrestled a good schedule. We have not wrestled Parkland or Davie or Cary or anyone at that level. But I feel like we have wrestled a good schedule. I am just anxious to see how we do."
North will open tonight at Catawba Bandys, which is 18-12 and came out of a tough 3-A/2-A conference. Surry Central and Canton Pisgah will wrestle in the other first-round match at Bandys.
"We got a tough draw, but they are all tough from here on out," Jessup said. "(Bandys) is a solid team from bottom to top. They will be one of the best teams we have seen this year. A lot of it depends on matchups; I think it will be a good match."
■ Mason Linker can be reached at 727-7324 or at mlinker@wsjournal.com.
Class 4-A
Today's first and second rounds
At Fayetteville Byrd
Fay. Pine Forest (12-6) vs. Raleigh Leesville Road (26-7)
Fay. Byrd (14-5) vs. Wilmington Laney (20-10)
At Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill (17-5) vs. Cary (31-0)
Raleigh Green Hope (18-3) vs. East Wake (16-11)
At Durham Riverside
Scotland (20-8) vs. Hope Mills South View (19-0)
Holly Springs (20-4) vs. Durham Riverside (38-1)
At Fayetteville 71st
Panther Creek (24-5) vs. Fay. 71st (23-8)
Raleigh Sanderson (12-6) vs. New Bern (16-2)
At Charlotte Berry Academy
Charlotte Providence (14-3) vs. Berry Academy (13-3)
Gastonia Ashbrook (17-6) vs. Char. Butler (17-3)
At Charlotte Mallard Creek
Mallard Creek (16-3) vs. NW Guilford (20-3)
Alexander Central (21-14) vs. East Gaston (9-3)
At Charlotte Myers Park
West Forsyth (32-8) vs. Concord Robinson (22-2)
East Forsyth (28-11) vs. Char. Myers Park (24-8)
At Davie County
South Caldwell (23-12) vs. Davie (32-0)
HP Central (8-4) vs. Morganton Freedom (20-8)
Class 3-A
Today's first and second rounds
At Southern Alamance
Pikeville Aycock (22-7) vs. Nash Central (21-13)
Rocky Mount (17-8) vs. Southern Alamance (24-7)
At Burlington Williams
Greensboro Dudley (16-5) vs. Southern Lee (20-3)
Burl. Williams (11-4) vs. Eden Morehead (13-6)
At Wilson Hunt
Washington (24-8) vs. Wilson Hunt (8-10)
Union Pines (20-9) vs. Havelock (21-2)
At Winterville South Central
Eastern Wayne (8-18) vs. Currituck (23-8-1)
South Central (25-4) vs. Jacksonville White Oak (16-5)
At Gastonia Huss
NW Cabarrus (25-6) vs. R-S Central (13-12)
Hickory St. Stephens (34-1) vs. Huss (17-6)
At Enka
Lake Norman (26-3) vs. Enka (27-1)
North Buncombe (19-4) vs. Mooresville (28-1)
At SW Randolph
SW Randolph (32-2) vs. Monroe Piedmont (19-2)
HP Andrews (8-3) vs. Trinity (23-3)
At Charlotte Catholic
Indian Trail Porter Ridge (20-5) vs. Parkland (33-0)
Anson (13-5) vs. Charlotte Catholic (11-4)
Class 2-A
Today's first and second rounds
At Franklinton
Pittsboro Northwood (16-13) vs. North Pitt (11-5)
West Stokes (23-17) vs. Franklinton (18-19)
At Hillsborough Orange
McMichael (13-15) vs. Hillsborough Orange (22-3)
Raleigh Cardinal Gibbons (24-6) vs. Eastern Guilford (14-5)
At Richlands
Bunn (9-22) vs. South Brunswick (21-9)
South Lenoir (14-11) vs. Richlands (11-7)
At Elizabeth City Northeastern
Kill Devil Hills First Flight (10-3) vs. Northeastern (17-12-2)
Edenton Holmes (11-3) vs. Croatan (16-3)
At Newton-Conover
North Henderson (12-16) vs. Madison (17-8)
Lincolnton (12-11) vs. Newton-Conover (32-5)
At Catawba Bandys
Bandys (18-12) vs. North Surry (30-0)
Surry Central (30-6) vs. Pisgah (8-4)
At Monroe
East Lincoln (18-7) vs. Mount Pleasant (14-6)
Monroe (20-15) vs. West Lincoln (29-6)
At Ledford
Central Davidson (10-1) vs. Shelby (9-3), 5 p.m.
Black Mountain Owen (23-11) vs. Ledford (22-6), 5 p.m.
Class 1-A
Today's first and second rounds
At Holly Ridge Dixon
Rosewood (18-7) vs. Topsail (20-11)
Dixon (18-6) vs. Heide Trask (9-7)
At Louisburg
Thomasville (13-10) vs. North Johnston (23-2)
Louisburg (38-3) vs. South Davidson (16-5)
At Polk County
Swain (9-10) vs. Polk County (10-3)
Monroe Central Academy (22-9) vs. Robbinsville (17-7)
At West Wilkes
South Stanly (17-9) vs. West Wilkes (21-2)
Bishop McGuinness (18-7) vs. Cherryville (6-18)
Email
Print
