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Orlando Sentinel Article "Oviedo wins 4th straight wrestling title 2-18-07 |
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-------------------- Oviedo wins 4th straight wrestling title -------------------- Jesse Robbins, Tyler Davis and Brandon Hatchett were among 8 Lions to place. Brant Parsons Sentinel Staff Writer February 18, 2007 LAKELAND -- Jesse Robbins returned Saturday night to a place he hadn't been at the FHSAA state wrestling finals since eighth grade: the top of the medal stand. The 171-pound Oviedo senior defeated Flagler Palm Coast's Anthony Onan 5-2 in the championship match at The Lakeland Center to capture his second individual title and put an exclamation point on the Lions' fourth consecutive team championship. Robbins won his first state title as an eighth-grader at Cocoa Beach. He never expected it would take four more years to get his second. "Every year, it seems I let my nerves get the best of me here," Robbins said. "It feels good to finally win it again this year as a senior." Also winning state titles for the Lions were Tyler Davis (145) and Brandon Hatchett (160). In all, eight Oviedo wrestlers placed as the Lions (165.5 points) easily outpaced Homestead South Dade (115.5) for the title. "Everyone just worked so hard this year, and anyone on our team could have been a state finalist," Robbins said. Davis' title also was retribution for his loss last year in Lakeland. Battling illness, Davis fell to Miami Palmetto's William Dieterle in the consolation round. On Saturday, Davis erased old demons with a 3-0 victory against Dieterle to win the title. "It makes it that much sweeter to defeat him to win the title this year," Davis said. Kissimmee Osceola's Alex Eggers stunned the near capacity crowd when he defeated South Dade's Prince Thompson 10-4 to take the Class 3A 140-pound title. Eggers, a sophomore, dominated Thompson throughout the match. "He's been talking about this all year," Osceola Coach Jim Bird said. "He got his mind set on this goal, and he didn't stop until he had it." The Kowboys finished in third place in Class 3A with 88 points. Daniel Byron (145) and Jacob Mohr (119) both placed third for the Kowboys. Of their state placers, only Byron graduates. "A great performance and a great weekend for our guys," Bird said. "We're going to use this to build off of for next year." Olympia's Joe DeLisle completed the Class 3A collection of top honors after the 215-pound senior defeated Miami Columbus' Christian Leiva 5-2. It was the second loss all season for Leiva. "I know a lot of folks didn't give Joe a chance tonight," Olympia Coach Jeremy Bourst said. "I believed he was going to win this match the whole time." In Class 2A, Marcelo Castaneda (119) ended a decade-long drought as he became the first St. Cloud wrestler since 1997 to win a state title when he defeated Lake Gibson's Brent Jorge 10-8 in an overtime thriller. "I've been dreaming about this day since I was a freshman, and it means so much to win this in a St. Cloud uniform," Castaneda said. Castaneda's teammates John McMahan and Tom Oswald also placed. McMahan came in second in the 285-pound class, while Oswald (145) finished fourth. In a much-anticipated matchup of unbeaten wrestlers, Bishop Moore's Bobby Isola fell in the Class 1A final to Fort Lauderdale Cardinal Gibbons' Bobby Christopher 8-6 in the 285-pound final. The loss snapped a 74-match victory streak for Isola. Brant Parsons can be reached at bparsons@orlandosentinel.com. Copyright (c) 2007, Orlando Sentinel | Get home delivery - up to 50% off Visit OrlandoSentinel.com |
