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Ready for the challenge Mail Tribune / Jim Craven Greg Brown�s second-place finish in last year�s Class 3A state meet at 189 pounds helped the Phoenix Pirates win the team title. Phoenix�s Greg Brown faces some stiff competition in the 189-pound weight class, but don�t expect him to back down By Kris Henry Mail Tribune PHOENIX � A funny thing happened to Greg Brown as he shed his junior status and prepared to enter his final season as a high school wrestler. Instead of the road leveling off in his bid for a state championship, last year�s Class 3A runner-up at 189 pounds found his path more uphill than ever before. "I don�t know why it has to be tougher for me," the 5-foot-9 Phoenix senior says with a slight grin. "It�s supposed to be easier your senior year, isn�t it? That�s OK, though. I like a challenge." Few weight classes in the state represent more of a challenge than what lies ahead for Brown at 189. Standing in the Pirate�s path are defending champion Abe Ewing of Banks, who edged Brown 1-0 in last year�s state final; Tony Rolen of The Dalles, a two-time state champion at 171 who has moved up a weight; and Brenden McLean of North Valley, who beat Brown 9-4 for last year�s district title and placed fifth at state. And the list goes on and on of 189-pounders capable of upsetting the apple cart. "I�ve heard a couple people tell me 189�s the toughest weight class this year out of the whole state, not just 3A," Brown says without flinching. "It�s pretty tough." Not tough enough, however, for Brown to consider a step up to 215. "That never crossed my mind," he says. "I want to win at 189. It�s tougher competition and that just means I�m a better wrestler if I win." So far this season, Brown has put up a 23-5 record. In that tally, however, is a 9-3 loss to Rolen, a 5-1 loss to Ewing and a 2-0 loss to Eagle Point�s Jake Phillips, who is third in the Class 4A state rankings at 189. "Greg�s got a label on him from being second in the state," says Phoenix coach Harry Mondale. "He�s handling it pretty well, I would say. He�s dropped a couple matches this year but he�ll learn from that. "I�d say that he�s right there knocking at the door. Probably when the big one comes around, he�ll step it up." In preparation for that day, Brown has stepped up his training in the weight room and on the mat. "When I come to practice every day and I realize that I have three people who are just tough as hell in the weight class that I�m in," Brown says, "I know that I have to push myself harder than I think anybody else is going to go." That work ethic is one honed from years of standout play on the football field, where Brown twice was a first-team all-Skyline Conference pick. This past season, Brown played a vital role in helping the Pirates advance to the state playoffs for the first time in eight years. "If you work hard in football and always push yourself, you�re going to be an exceptional football player in some way or another," he says. "It�s the same with wrestling. If you come in and push yourself as hard as you can, you�re going to stand out as a wrestler, too." Slightly undersized in both athletic pursuits, Brown has made up for any perceived shortcomings with a lot of heart and an uncanny ability to use his brain to combat someone else�s brawn. "Contrary to what a lot of people think, wrestling is a smart man�s game," says Mondale. "There�s a lot more mental preparation involved than a lot of other situations. You have to learn where to put your body and how to put your body there, and I think Greg�s a pretty smart kid and uses that to his advantage." Brown admits his strength is in using more of a finesse approach when on the mat. Although he sees it a lot in his opponents, the pure-muscle style simply isn�t his forte. "I don�t know what it is, but I don�t really have the drive to go out and kick somebody�s butt," he says. "I just want to wrestle and show them how bad they are against me. Sometimes I wish I could beat them up and get that aggression, but that�s just not me. "If I can get the two of them together, I think I could pretty much be unstoppable." Of course, that doesn�t mean Brown is a walkover. Far from it. "If you scratch him, he�ll cut you," says Mondale. "You�ve got to have a little of that in you if you�re going to be successful in any of this athletic stuff. If somebody punches you in the nose, you�ve got to knock his head off. That�s the mentality." And although you may not see it on Brown�s face, that mentality certainly lingers in his words. "Thinking that I took second last year actually depresses me," he says. "All that reminds me of is I didn�t win it. "I want to be a state champion. That�s my goal. That�s the only thing I care about. Being up at the state tournament is just something that happens. Winning is what it�s all about." Rocky road or not. Reach reporter Kris Henry at 776-4488, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.