Mail Tribune Sports - Local matmen shine at Classic

Mail Tribune (Medford, OR — Wayback)

2000-09-15

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Local matmen shine at Classic By KEVIN GOFF NORTH BEND -- The Southern Oregon Conference provided a glimpse of what's to come this season as three wrestlers took home titles from the Coast Classic on Saturday. Sixth-ranked Eagle Point had two of its wrestlers come home with victories in the finals and had seven other competitors place at the 26-team tournament that featured some of the state's top Class 4A and 3A wrestlers. Grants Pass earned one title, with Jeremy McLean capturing the 130-pound weight division. Blake Cam, the top-rated wrestler at 275, finished with an 11-0 win in the finals and Chet McBee took a 10-5 decision at 145 pounds to claim their championships. Both wrestlers failed to give up an offensive point during the entire tournament, allowing only unchallenged escape points. Cam and McBee each posted 4-0 runs in the tournament to claim their titles. "They didn't really have a close match (in the Coast Classic)," first-year Eagle Point coach Brad McBee said of the duo's domination. Morgan Edenstrom took out the top-seeded wrestler at 119 on his way to a second-place finish for the Eagles. Justin Winner also fared well for Eagle Point, finishing second at 103 pounds while James Mannenbach took third at 171. John Gallo finished fourth in the 135-pound division and Evan Pogue took fourth at 160 for Eagle Point. Teammate Scott Stockton captured sixth at 130 pounds. B.J. McFall battled through the flu to bring home a fourth-place finish at 140. "B.J. was really bad with the flu," said Brad McBee. "But he was also in a tough weight class with a tough draw. If he was healthy I would have liked his chances." As a team the Eagles ended with 213 points, finishing behind second-ranked Newberg's 242. Crook County took third at 213. "I think we're showing we can compete with the best teams in the state," said Brad McBee. "A lot of this tournament too was luck of the draw in some weights." The Cavemen finished fifth with 135 points and Roseburg placed ninth with 93 points. North Medford had three competitors place to help the Black Tornado to a 13th-place finish with 63 points. Phoenix High took 14th with 61 points and Klamath Union finished 24th with 31 points. Chris Jensen (103), Norris Bier (215) and Joel Gibson (152) each advanced to the semifinals before losing decisions for the Black Tornado. Jensen went 3-2 in the tournament and finished fourth while Bier lost in the finals to Robert Sauder of Bend. Gibson went 3-3 to claim sixth-place in a tough weight class, with Gibson dropping his three matches by a combined three points. Today's Sports Index Mail Tribune   Copyright� The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, OR U.S.A.