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Holiday Hangover? Not For Red Devils

BRIAN GJURGEVICH/HIGHLANDS TODAY

Sebring's Shanaan Spiegel (top) and Avon Park's Fernando Perez (bottom) duel during the semifinals of the Spiegel Memorial Tournament on Saturday in Sebring.

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By Christopher  Hoffman | Highlands Today

Published: January 7, 2008

SEBRING –– There was no holiday hangover for many of the Heartland's prep wrestlers, as Avon Park placed third in the team competition and Sebring's Shaanan Spiegel continued his dominance on the mat at the annual Spiegel Memorial Tournament on Saturday at Sebring High School.

Spiegel waltzed through the tournament with relative ease, scoring a pin three minutes into his first match against Port Charlotte's Kile Grilz and scoring a pair of technical falls en route to the gold medal in the 152-pound weight class.

"It was nice to come out and win this my senior year," the Sebring senior said. "I always want to do better, and right now my main focus is conditioning and getting ready for the second half of the season."

New Blue Streak head coach Denny Hays praised Spiegel's aggressive style and never-say-die attitude.

"[Shaanan] never let up today," Hays said. "He kept applying pressure and dictated the matches and never let his opponents breath."

Other notable Blue Streaks faring well in the tourney were Dustin Drummond, who took third place in the 119-pound weight class, and Evan Hunter (145) and Shane Liskey (189) who earned a pair of fourth-place finishes at the 11-team tourney.

"It's hard after the holiday break, especially when so many teams didn't have enough kids to field a full team," Hays said. "I'm proud of my kids, but I know that they have to correct some of the basic mistakes I saw being made."

Avon Park came into the tournament with a depleted roster and Kermosi Hatten sidelined by injury, but earned the bronze in the overall team competition with 82.50 points, with Gulf Coast taking the overall title for the third year in a row with 164 points, while Lakeland's Kathleen placed second with 111 points.

"I'm really proud of these kids," said Red Devil coach Lee Elder. "It was nice that these kids got a reward for all the hard work they put in leading up to the tournament. I'm happy with our teams performance, but as a coach, you want your team peaking during districts."

Red Devil wrestlers James Bland (160) and heavyweight Jace Grimmett earned gold medals, with Josh Sala (125) taking second and Jack Bland (140) and Charles Hubbard (145) finishing in third place.

Greg Gentry (103) and Isuel Guzman (215) placed fourth on the day to help secure Avon Park's strong finish.

James Bland, who is Avon Park's lone undefeated wrestler on the season, looked impressive yet again, pinning Port Charlotte's Courtney Dryden in 4:23 to win the title after Gulf Coast's Kris Tompkins injured his shoulder and pulled out of the match.

"James is so much more confident this year compared to last," Avon Park coach Ed Brown said. "There are so many new faces in his weight class and still he keeps winning and beating people handily.

"His skills are sharp and keeps getting better."

What is more impressive is that James had to shed 15 pounds leading up to the tournament –– compliments of the holiday break –– which could have spelled trouble for most wrestlers.

"Losing all that weight can sometimes sap your strength and stamina," James said. "I didn't really lose any of my stamina or quickness and am glad to be getting back on a schedule.

"It doesn't take long to fall out of shape."

A surprise this season for the Red Devils is Grimmett, who has shown staggering improvements this season and is 16-3 on the year.

"That year of experience really seems to have paid off for Jace," Brown said. "He has shown amazing improvement over last season, where he only had a handful of wins.

"It's not to say Jace doesn't make mistakes, but the thing about him is that he doesn't repeat the same mistakes. That'll help him immensely come districts."

Avon Park's John Chittum (119) injured his ankle during his match against Drummond and his status is day to day.

Sebring and Avon Park are back the mat on Jan. 12 for District Duals in Lakes Wales, with matches beginning at 10 a.m.

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