Six Freshman Division Champions To Compete In National Sophomore Championship

March 19, 2010 - PRLog -- VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. – Six returning Freshman Nationals champions headline what is expected to be the toughest field ever in the 5th annual NHSCA National High School Sophomores Wrestling Championships presented by the U.S. Navy, which take place March 23-26 at the Virginia Beach Convention Center.

Four of the six, two-time Tennessee champion Campbell Lewis (125) of Soddy Daisy High, Chris Nevinger (145) of Gainesville (N.Y.) Letchworth High, Dwight Howes (189) of Arvada (Colo.) High and Brian Walker (215) of Huntsville (Ala.) Virgil I. Grissom High, return at the same weight class at which they took last year’s title. Also preregistered at press time: Nick Herrmann (119) of Amarillo (Texas) Tascosa High, the 112-pound champion last year, and Pelal Deeb (135) of Passaic (N.J.) County Technical School, who won at 130.

The quality-packed field includes 42 state champions and 15 wrestlers with two state titles or more. Leading the way are the 119-pound weight class, with five two-time state champions, and the 103-pound class, with eight state champions. Three wrestlers are ranked in WIN magazine’s latest nation al rankings: Zach Bridson of Plaistow (N.H.) Timberlane High (No. 6) and Drew Ferguson of Suwanee (Ga.) Collins Hill High (No. 14) at 103 and Gabriel Moreno of Urbandale (Iowa) High (No. 20) at 140.

The All-American round capped a tournament that saw the Sophomores Championship set another record with 618 competitors from 43 states, nearly triple the number of entries in the event’s first year in 2006. The finals featured an outstanding field, with eight of the 28 finalists owning at least one state title in their careers.

For the first time, the action from all 30 mats will be broadcast live on the NHSCA’s web site, www.nhsca.com. More than 3,000 matches will be wrestled throughout the event, believed to be the first of its kind with 30 different feeds on a single grid.

In last year’s Sophomore Division tournament, Pennsylvania scored 284.5 points to win the state team title, with defending champion New York finishing second with 237 points. California and New Jersey, tied for third place (194.5), with Ohio (156.5) rounding out the top five.

A pair of sophomore standouts from Brandon (Fla.) High, two-time state champion Rossi Bruno (119) and 2009 state champion Kyle Koziel (160), also could return to add to their Freshman Division titles. Also winning Freshman titles a year ago: Thomas Gilman (103) of Omaha (Neb.) Skutt High, an Iowa resident; Jimmy Kloc (140) of Elma (N.Y.) Iroquois High Jason Luster (152) of Saltsburg (Pa.) Kiski School, voted the Outstanding Wrestler; Tory Bennett (171) of Berkeley Springs (W.Va.) High; and Josh Duplin (285) of Westmont (Pa.) Hilltop High.

The National High School Sophomores Wrestling Championships is an open event, and is open to any high-school wrestler completing his sophomore year. More than half of the wrestlers qualified for their high school state tournament at least once. More than one-third are state placewinners, and nearly 20 per cent have won a state title.

The NHSCA continues its involvement in high-profile high school sports events across the board. In addition to a full schedule of wrestling events, the NHSCA conducted its annual 7-on-7 football championships at storied Hoover High School in Hoover, Ala. in July and will host the National High School Basketball Festival at Salisbury, Md. Dec. 26-30. The NHSCA selects Coaches and Senior Athletes of the Year in 20 boys and girls sports, and sponsors more than two dozen national championship events in 11 sports.

In partnership with Navy Special Operations, the NHSCA conducts the Navy SEAL Fitness Challenge in 1,200 high schools throughout America. This serves as a replacement for President Kennedy’s Council on Fitness that was popular in the 1970’s and 1980’s. In partnership with the Pennsylvania Army National Guard, the NHSCA conducts Character and Leadership Workshops and reach more than 800 Pennsylvania high schools and 9,600 athletes and coaches.

The NHSCA also has entered a sponsorship agreement with the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) for the state football and wrestling championships. Check the Web sites of the NHSCA and the PIAA for more details as they are announced.

Founded in 1989, the National High School Coaches Association is a not-for-profit 501c3 service organization providing support and leadership programs for the nation’s 500,000 high school coaches and 10 million high school athletes.


One South Third Street • Easton, PA  18042 •  (610) 923-0900 •  Fax (610) 923-0800  •
E-mail: nhsca@nhsca.com  •  Web: www.nhsca.com