News Articles Off The Web
from the poststar Feb.
16 ,2000Sorting out the regular season, awards-style
On Wrestling
By TODD DYBAS
In the wake of the ESPN-bathing-in-self-love, also known as the ESPY's, I have
decided to hand out a few random awards of my own before the postseason begins.
This wrestling season yieled few surprises in the area. Corinth went undefeated
in the league and won the Wasaren title again. Queensbury had the depth and just
enough to edge out Hudson Falls for the Foothills Council title again. Both the
Spartans and Tigers are favorites to bring home the Class B and C team titles
again. Warrensburg had a great year and Schuylerville came on strong at the end
of the season. Independent Hadley-Luzerne finished 7-4, but lost sqeakers to
Schuylerville, Salem and Glens Falls by a combined eight points.
Keep in mind, some of these are in good fun.
Dynamic duo: Scott Latterell and Bryan Steele, Hudson Falls. Latterell (29-0) at
135 has been a force the entire year. Too quick for taller opponents and too
strong for smaller ones, Latterell will try to make another run at the state
title this year after finishing fifth a year ago. Steele (27-1, the one being a
disqualification for a slam) is as much of a lock as Tiger Woods at the inane
ESPY's. Steele often has to chase down his opponent -- if he gets the chance to
face anyone -- before he can pin him. Steele looks to avenge his loss in the
state finals from a year ago.
Dual of the year: Hudson Falls at Queensbury. The match had some wrinkles, but
some things stayed the same and Queensbury wrapped another Foothills title.
Unfortunately, the referee had to make the final call that day.
Best entrance: Corinth Tomahawks. The Tomahawks bust into their dark gym through
a side door to the mesmorizing tune, "Voodoo" by a band called
Godsmack.
Best rollicking return: Jack LaBombard, Schuylerville. "He's at
Schuylerville now?" a stunned fan asked another at the Queensbury/Hudson
Falls match. LaBombard has his team wrestling extremely well at the end of the
season in preparation for Sectionals. Rumor has it that there was a waiting list
to get a piece of the old coach in a dual meet now that he was out of Queensbury
and down at Schuylerville.
Best unsung season: Sherman Trinkle, Cambridge. Trinkle (29-1) has put together
a great year at 160. Trinkle will face tough competition in the Class D
tournament Saturday. Honorable mention: Zach Waite (21-9), Salem, and Jesse
Williams (23-2), Schuylerville.
Deepest roster: Queensbury. The Spartans, surprise, surprise are loaded with
depth. Queensbury did not get any No. 1 seeds in the Class B tournament, but has
wresters among the top five seeds in nine different weight classes.
Most coaches on one team: Hudson Falls. These guys need their own bus.
Hottest gym: Whitehall. There were hardly any beverages left at 3:30 in the
afternoon. The tournament finished at 9 p.m.
Biggest surprise: Warrensburg. The Burgers looked like they were going to be
good at the beginning of the season, but few thought they would pose such a
threat to incumbent Corinth.
Best facial hair on a coach: Mark Trapasso, Warrensburg. Trapasso must hear a
variety of "Stone Cold" references because of his shaved head and
goatee.
Best match: Tough call. Ben Brewer of Hudson Falls and Adam Thorpe of
Queensbury, more because of the circumstances than the action.
Best name for a wrestler: John Payne, Queensbury.
from the poststar Feb.
4 ,2000Queensbury wins Empire State Duals
QUEENSBURY -- A week that started for the Queensbury wrestling team with a
thrilling Foothills Council win over Hudson Falls ended with a first-place
finish in the Empire State Dual Meet Tournament Saturday at Queensbury High
School.
The Spartans went 3-1 on the day, falling only to Gouverneur. Gouverneur and
Suffern also went 3-1, but Queensbury won first place based on tiebreakers.
Gouverneur was second and Suffern was third.
Hudson Falls was 2-2 on the day, winning its final two duals. Kingston was 1-3
and Franklin 0-4.
Queensbury started the tournament with a 58-13 win over Franklin. The Spartans
got pins from John Payne, C.J. Sullivan, Justin Ryan, Tony Osborne and Adam
Thorpe. In its second round, Queensbury edged Suffern 36-34. Queensbury won the
first five matches, but Suffern won six of the next seven. But Thorpe recorded a
pin at 215 to clinch the win. Payne, Joe Whitaker and Matt Jabuat also recorded
pins.
In the third round-robin dual, Queensbury fell to Gouverneur 38-36. Gouverneur
recorded a pin in the 275-pound match to win.
Queensbury defeated Kingston 57-24 in the final round. Payne, Whitaker, Chris
Bowman, Justin Ryan, Andy Mija and Jabaut all recorded pins.
For the day, Payne (96 pounds) and Thorpe (215 pounds) went 4-0. Payne was named
Queensbury's most outstanding wrestler.
For Hudson Falls, the day started with two defeats.
In round one, the Tigers fell to Suffern 35-34. Suffern recorded a pin at 275
pounds to win the match. Corey Barber, David LaFay, Scott Latterell, Ryan
Barber, Matt Ryan, Ben Brewer and Bryan Steele all won.
In round two, Hudson Falls fell to Gouverneur, 45-32. Hudson Falls made the dual
close by winning the last three matches. LaFay, Latterell, Brewer, Steele and
Mike Wolfe won.
Hudson Falls got in the win column in round three, beating Kingston 37-32.
Hudson Falls was down in the dual, but won the final four matches -- Brian
Howard, Brewer, Steele and Wolfe -- to get the victory. To wrap up the day,
Hudson Falls downed Kingston 59-24. Cory Barber, Mike Hogan, LaFay, Jason
Langlois, Latterell, Ryan Barber, Howard, Brewer and Steele won.
Brewer (189 pounds) was named Hudson Falls' most outstanding wrestler after a
4-0 day. His final win was a pin in eight seconds.
Steele and Latterell also went 4-0 for Hudson Falls.
Empire State Dual Tournament
Round 1
Queensbury 58, Franklin 13
96 -- Payne (Q) pinned Nichols, 1:07
103 -- Judkins (Q) by forfeit
112 -- Viault (Q) def. Wright, 9-0
119 -- Sullivan (Q) pinned Shaugnessy, 3:05
125 -- McNally (F) def. Bowman 13-4
130 -- Arduino (F) def. Whitaker, 7-4
135 -- Ryan (Q) pinned McNally, :45
140 -- Mija (Q) def. Goivenella, 11-0
145 -- Jauat (Q) def. Slavin, 9-1
152 -- Colvin (Q) def. Cronin, 13-4
160 -- Cox def. Krouchen, 9-6
171 -- Osborne (Q) pinned Arduino, 3:16
189 -- Baird (Q) def. Doyle, 6-0
215 -- Thorpe (Q) pinned Colsace, :58
275 -- Royani (F) by forfeit
Suffern 35, Hudson Falls 34
96 -- Barber (HF) pinned Schafer, 5:20
103 -- DeStefano (S) by forfeit
112 -- Wetzel (S) def. Hogan, 7-1
119 -- LaFay (HF) def. Horton, 7-0
125 -- Wilder (S) def. Dudley, 4-2
130 -- Hazelton (S) def. Langlois, 13-2
135 -- Latterell (HF) def. Pietro, 7-3
140 -- Betty (S) def. Bigelow, 7-3
145 -- Barber (HF) tech. falled Levy, 1:30
152 -- Ryan (HF) pinned Ourelio, 1:21
160 -- Eisenstat (S) def. Benedetti, 12-1
171 -- DeStefano (S) tech. falled Howard, 5:10
189 -- Brewer (HF) def. Califano, 2-1
215 -- Steele (HF) by forfeit
275 -- Seeman (S) pinned Wolfe, 2:22
Round 2
Queensbury 36, Suffern 34
96 -- Payne (Q) pinned Schafer, 1:36
103 -- Judkins (Q) def. DeStefano, 6-1
112 -- Sullivan (Q) def. Wetzel, 13-8
119 -- Viault (Q) def. Horton, 7-5
125 -- Whitaker (Q) pinned Wilder, 2:47
130 -- Hazelton (S) pinned Bowman, 1:24
135 -- Salpietro (S) def. Mija, 4-2
140 -- Jabaut (Q) pinned Betty, 4:49
145 -- Colvin (Q) def. Levy, 7-5 (ot)
152 -- Ourelio (S) def. Cox, 7-0
160 -- Eisenstat (S) by forfeit
171 -- DeStefano (S) def. Osborne, 14-6
189 -- Califano (S) pinned Baird, :57
215 -- Thorpe (Q) pinned Perez, 2:40
275 -- Seeman (S) pinned Williams, 1:04
Gouverneur 45, Hudson Falls 32
96 -- Denesha (G) pinned Barber, 1:04
103 -- Foster (HF) by forfeit
112 -- Hartle (G) tech. falled Hogan, 2:43
119 -- LaFay (HF) pinned Sleeman, 5:48
125 -- Tyler (G) pinned Dudley, 1:42
130 -- Slate (G) def. Langlois, 11-3
135 -- Latterell (HF) tech. falled Cota, 2:24
140 -- Smith (G) pinned Bigelow, 1:34
145 -- Slate (G) dec. Barber, 4-0
152 -- Stone (G) pinned Ryan, 2:56
160 -- Gates (G) dec. Benedetti, 5-1
171 -- Scott (G) pinned Howard, :31
189 -- Brewer (HF) def. Benson, 7-3
215 -- Steele (HF) pinned Liscum, :54
275 -- Wolfe (HF) tech. falled Mullin, 5:32
Round 3
Gouverneur 38, Queensbury 36
96 -- Payne (Q) by forfeit
103 -- Denesha (G) def. Judkins, 8-3
112 -- Harlte (G) tech. falled Sullivan, 4:47
119 -- Viault (Q) pinned Sleeman, 3:20
125 -- Tyler (G) def. Whitaker, 13-5
130 -- Bowman (Q) pinned Slate, 3:45
135 -- Smith (G) def. Ryan, 6-4
140 -- Mija (Q) tech. falled Hall, 3:27
145 -- Slate (G) tech. falled Jabaut, 4:00
152 -- Storie (G) def. Colvin, 11-2
160 -- Gates (G) by forfeit
171 -- Osborne (Q) def. Scott, 6-0
189 -- Baird (Q) def. Benson (G), 13-7
215 -- Thorpe (Q) pinned Liscum, 1:55
275 -- Mullin (G) pinned Williams, 2:18
Hudson Falls 37, Kingston 32
96 -- Barber (HF) tech falled Backofen, 2:28
103 -- DiMuzio (K) by forfeit
112 -- Colon (K) def. Hogan 11-3
119 -- Mima (K) tech. falled LaFay, 3:31
125 -- Stellar (K) def. Dudley, 3-0
130 -- Schleede (K) def. Langlois, 6-4
135 -- Latterell (HF) def. Snyder, 20-8
140 -- Bigelow (HF) def. Street, 10-7
145 -- Barber (HF) pinned Marzano, 1:59
152 -- Saver (K) pinned Ryan, 2:34
160 -- Backofen (K) def. Benedetti, 11-3
171 -- Howard (HF) def. LePine, 9-2
189 -- Brewer (HF) def. Betell, 7-0
215 -- Steele (HF) def. Weber, 14-0
275 -- Wolfe (HF) by forfeit
Round 4
Hudson Falls 59, Franklin 24
96 -- Barber (HF) pinned Nichols, :23
103 -- Foster (HF) by forfeit
112 -- Hogan (HF) def. Wright, 9-5
119 -- LaFay (HF) def. Shaugnessy, 9-0
125 -- McNally (F) tech. falled Dudley, 15-0
130 -- Langlois (HF) by forfeit
135 -- Latterell (HF) pinned McNally, 1:54
140 -- Giouedelli (F) pinned Bigelow, 3:54
145 -- Barber (HF) def. Slavin, 8-0
152 -- Ryan (HF) pinned Cronin, 1:50
160 -- Krouchen (F) by forfeit
171 -- Howard (HF) pinned Ardvino, 1:37
189 -- Brewer (HF) pinned Doyle, :08
215 -- Steele (HF) tech. falled Colles, 2:17
275 -- Rowani (F) pinned Wolfe, 4:34
Queensbury 57, Kingston 24
96 -- Payne (Q) pinned Backofen, :56
103 -- Judkins (Q) def. DeMuzio, 8-5
112 -- Sullivan (Q) def. Colon, 16-3
119 -- Mina (K) pinned Viault, 3:14
125 -- Whitaker (Q) pinned Stellar, 1:36
130 -- Bowman (Q) pinned Schleede, 4:23
135 -- Ryan (Q) pinned Snyder, 4:39
140 -- Mija (Q) pinned Street, 5:16
145 -- Jabaut (Q) pinned Marzano, 3:31
152 -- Saver (K) pinned Colvin, 1:00
160 -- Backofen (K) by forfeit
171 -- Osborne (Q) def. Menges, 11-3
189 -- Betell (K) pinned Baird, 2:23
215 -- Thorpe (Q) def. Weger, 6-3
275 -- Williams (Q) by forfeit
Team Standings
Queensbury 3-1, Gouverneur 3-1, Suffern 3-1, Hudson Falls 2-2, Kingston 1-3,
Franklin 0-4.
from the poststar
Feb. 1 ,2000Queensbury wins again
By TODD DYBAS
dybas@poststar.com
QUEENSBURY -- The referee's hand slapped the mat and all of a sudden the
Queensbury lead was cut to 29-21. Bryan Steele had done his job and trotted off
the mat with a clenched fist.
Enter the captains: Ben Brewer from Hudson Falls and Adam Thorpe from
Queensbury.
This is the scenario Hudson Falls thought would give them a very good shot at
winning the match. Thorpe had been in this situation before -- and liked it.
The two "Goliaths" as Hudson Falls coach George Chickanis called them,
locked up in stalemate after stalemate.
Brewer grabbed an escape point, then one for Thorpe. Brewer was warned for
stalling and the match went to overtime. As the two were locked up and drifting
out of the circle the referee whistled Brewer for stalling again. Thorpe won the
match 2-1 to guarantee Queensbury a win over Hudson Falls for the 23rd straight
year.
"Ever since the end of last year I've always known that it was going to
come down to me to win the match," Thorpe, who won at 275 last year to beat
the Tigers by four points, said. "I like that it comes down to me."
Queensbury's 32-27 win over Hudson Falls Wednesday all but secured another
Foothills Council championship for the Spartans who have one league match left.
Once again Hudson Falls will stand as second-best in the Foothills by just a few
points.
"The whole team fought tough," Hudson Falls captain Scott Latterell
said. "It's pretty bad, four years in a row and always come up just
short."
The packed wooden gym at Queensbury was rather sedated through the first five
matches as the Spartans built a commanding 20-3 lead, before Latterell stepped
to the mat.
The undefeated senior immediately sent Queensbury's Andy Mija to the mat and had
him in major trouble early. Mija, who had recently beaten previously-undefeated
Greg Girard of Glens Falls, continued to fight and staved off the pin and nearly
rallied for the win.
A dejected Latterell tossed his head gear and shook his head as he left the mat
with a 12-9 win and laid on his back gazing at the gym's roof.
"I thought I had him pinned a couple of times," Latterell said.
"I gassed out a bit because I was sucking weight all day."
Latterell's mood took a sweeping change when he looked up to see Ryan Barber
roll Queensbury's Justin Ryan into a quick pin. Hudson Falls still had life and
its plan to get to the big three down the stretch was intact. Even the usually
sedated Latterell and Chickanis pumped their fists knowing the Tigers had new
life.
"Our whole team fought tough," Latterell said.
In the last three matches, down 29-15 Hudson Falls had worked itself into a
position to grab the win. The Tigers thought they had a great shot at two pins
and a win in the middle, but Thorpe would not allow that.
"It is unbelievably satisfying to beat them again," Thorpe said.
"I have never lost a dual meet with them.
"We went 110 percent. One hundred percent heart and 10 percent skill."
Queensbury 32, Hudson Falls 27
96 -- John Payne (Q) dec. Matt Foster 12-2
103 -- Damian Kilmartin (HF) dec. Brain Judkins 8-1
112 -- C.J. Sullivan (Q) dec. Mike Hogan 9-0
119 -- Travis Viault (Q) dec. Dave LaFay 5-3
125 -- Joe Whitaker (Q) tech. fall Josh Dudley 19-4
130 -- Chris Bowman (Q) dec. Jason Langlois 7-2
135 -- Scott Latterell (HF) dec. Andy Mija 12-9
140 -- Ryan Barber (HF) pinned Justin Ryan
145 -- Matt Jabaut (Q) dec. Andy Bigelow 6-2
152 -- Matt Ryan (HF) dec. Zach Colvin 9-6
160 -- Sage Cox (Q) dec. Adam Benedetti 8-3
171 -- Tony Osborne (Q) dec. Brian Howard 4-0
189 -- Bryan Steele (HF) pinned Chris Baird 1:07
215 -- Adam Thorpe (Q) dec. Ben Brewer 2-1 OT
275 -- Mike Wolfe (HF) pinned Rob Williams 2:54
from the poststar Jan.
21 ,2000Queensbury defeats Glens Falls
QUEENSBURY -- Adam Thorpe pinned his opponent in 59 seconds as Queensbury
defeated Glens Falls 71-12 in Foothills Council wrestling action on Saturday.
The featured match saw Andy Mija of Queensbury win a 3-2 decision in the
135-pound weight class, over Greg Girard with a takedown late in the third
period.
Chris Bowman, Matt Jubutt, Eric Lendrum, Sage Cox, Tony Osborne and Thorpe all
registered falls for Queensbury.
The quickest pin of the match was a 33-second gem by Anthony Catoggio of Glens
Falls over Robert Williams in the match's final bout.
Josh Hunt got the other pin for the Indians at 119.
The Spartans improved to 7-3 on the season.
Queensbury 71, Glens 12
96 -- John Payne (Q) won by forfeit
103 -- Brian Judkins (Q) won by forfeit
112 -- CJ Sullivan (Q) won by forfeit
119 -- Josh Hunt (GF) pinned Travis Viault, :50
125 -- Chris Bowman (Q) pinned John Diamond, 1:48
130 -- Joe Whitaker (Q) tech fall over Jeff Bombard, 5:48
135 -- Andy Mija (Q) dec. over Greg Girard, 3-2
140 -- Matt Jubutt (Q) pinned Josh Kalafchi, 2:55
145 -- Zack Colvin (Q) dec. over Justin Finn, 23-11
152 -- Eric Lendrum (Q) pinned Will Morgan, 1:42
160 -- Sage Cox (Q) pinned Stephen Douglas, 2:28
171 -- Tony Osborne (Q) pinned Nick Fair, 2:55
189 -- Chris Baird (Q) dec. over Matt Boyce, 7-5
215 -- Adam Thorpe (Q) pinned Chris Chagnon, :59
275 -- Anthony Catoggio (GF) pinned Robert Williams, :33
from the poststar Jan. 8 ,2000
Pushing through
Queensbury wrestler Eric Lendrum overcame a rebuilt knee and his own doubts
By TODD DYBAS
dybas@poststar.com
His body was in motion, but his right leg was stuck in the mud.
Eric Lendrum had hit a rut while riding his brand new dirt bike. He felt the
bike sliding out from under him, and his first instinct was to stick his leg out
to save it. As momentum carried him forward, Lendrum's leg stayed planted in the
fall mud, and his knee twisted.
He saved the bike, but his knee was a different story. An MRI showed Lendrum had
torn his anterior cruciate ligament in half, and surgery would be needed.
The incident was one of many obstacles for Lendrum in an up-and-down ride in
athletics. He would excel, then get sick. Quit, then yearn to come back, only to
be hindered by the knee injury. The inability to be athlete he was frustrated
him as he damaged the knee repeatedly. He went on to rehabilitate the ligament
and his outlook on wrestling.
He's back this season as a junior, leading the team in pins while trying to help
Queensbury win another Foothills Council title. But dealing with the injury
taught Lendrum a lot about sports.
At the age of 16, he came to realize that being afforded the chance to win was
the most important thing.
(HED) Going nonstop
Before the injury, Lendrum was always on the run. Football, then wrestling, then
track, then kayaking in the summer with a little dirt bike riding thrown in for
good measure.
He started wrestling when he was 5 and had been going full steam since. He was
called up to Queensbury's junior varsity program as an eighth-grader and then to
varsity the next year.
Entering his freshman season on varsity, Lendrum knew big things were expected
of him. His brother Jared was a top wrestler at Queensbury. Lendrum felt good
coming into the season, but he struggled.
"Nobody likes to lose," Lendrum said, "but when something is this
hard and you work this hard, it is even worse when you don't win."
Losing led him to consider quitting the sport.
"I wasn't doing very well and I didn't want to be around it," Lendrum
said. "It's just you alone out there, one on one, no one else can take the
blame for anything."
Lendrum did not quit. He kept working and he turned the corner against rival
Hudson Falls in the Spartans' home gym.
The blue gym was packed and Queensbury had lost every match prior to 125 pounds.
Lendrum was following a match that Hudson Falls had just won 17-1. He saw an
opportunity and seized the opening. Scooping his opponent up and bringing him
straight to the mat Lendrum scored a pin in 1:25 with "the claw," a
move that had taken him so long to perfect. The packed gym went crazy.
Lendrum wound down the regular season with a 10-match winning streak. Then he
caught the flu, which developed into pneumonia.
He was now relegated to the stands during the Section II, Class B tournament, a
tourney he would have been a major player in.
"It was just horrible to sit in the stands and watch something that you
could be doing," he said. "I knew that I was just coming around and
finally just wanted to wrestle because I had the thought in my head I could
win."
The sickness did not leave him until the wrestling season was over and track had
begun. Track almost served as a down time for Lendrum. He did it for fun. As the
spring and summer wore on, Lendrum thought that maybe wrestling wasn't worth all
the work he put in if he wasn't going to win all the time.
He played football in the fall, but he'd decided not to wrestle his sophomore
season.
(HED) Time away
When he hurt his knee on the dirt bike, the week before wrestling started, it
reinforced his decision. While his teammates were upstairs in the wrestling
room, he was hobbling the halls in a brace.
Lendrum was able to walk with it and able to even run, but with pain. All of a
sudden the kid who had been on the go nonstop was barely able to go. Wrestling
was far from his mind.
"That was a tough year," Ken Lendrum said. "It was tough on all
of us because you come home and here is your son with his leg propped up. You
want your kids to succeed in what they want to do."
Surgery was put on hold because the growth plate in Eric's right knee was not
done moving. If they drilled through bone now, one leg would eventually be
shorter than the other. Lendrum would often aggravate the injury by pushing too
hard and trying to do too much with the brace.
While Lendrum dealt with being grounded, he went to a couple of the Queensbury
matches. He didn't pay much attention to what was happening on the mat.
Then one home match, he sat in the stands and watched the pain and emotion and
effort that goes into each wrestling match. He watched his longtime friend Zach
Colvin -- they had been student managers for the modified team together at the
end of elementary school -- and others on the Queensbury team fight it out.
"Then something hit me and made me want to be a part of it," Lendrum
said, but he wasn't able to.
He started track season, and in a pole vault attempt with the brace on, he
landed awkwardly and dealt his knee a final blow.
The doctor was ready to operate almost regardless of the plate movement, Lendrum
said. On May 23, 2000, Lendrum went under the knife.
(HED) Working to get back
One night, less than a week after the operation, Lendrum's father came across
his son yanking on his leg with sweat pouring down his face. Eric was lying on
the floor pulling his leg back and his father was curious as to what the doctor
told him he should be doing to start rehabilitation.
"They told me to do 10, or as many as I could," Eric said.
"How many is that?" his father asked.
"Ninety."
After sitting at home with an ice pack on his knee so often, Eric Lendrum was
ready to move on.
"I wasn't thinking, get better so I could go kayaking, or so I could
wrestle, I was thinking, get better because I was sick of sitting around and not
doing stuff," he said.
That summer he went to Lake Placid to train in kayaking at the Olympic Training
Center. He was surrounded by some of the best kayakers in the country. He
paddled, he ran, he worked on his lungs and legs.
(HED) Back on the mat
Sitting in Dr. Mark Kirchner's office, Lendrum was finally cleared to do just
about anything. A single question came to him. Can I wrestle?
The doctor, who had taken part of Lendrum's hamstring and attached it as a new
ligament, told him he probably shouldn't wrestle, Lendrum said. Too much contact
and there was a small chance the knee would go again.
The first day of practice, Queensbury's wrestlers assembled at the top of the
stairs in a small room across from the pictures of Section II champions of years
past with the words "pain is temporary''' scrawled across the wall.
Queensbury Coach Jim Hubert had gotten word that Lendrum might be rejoining the
crew.
"I was hoping for the best, but I didn't get my hopes up," Hubert
said. "I had a big smile on my face when I saw him."
"I was nervous going up those stairs," Lendrum said. "I didn't
know what to expect, or how people were going to react. I didn't know how good I
was going to be, but I suppose that was the least of my worries."
(HED) All the way back
Lendrum's stance has changed from when he was a freshman, on and off the mat.
The year off made him rusty while everyone else got much better. Now, he had to
contend with an enormous brace that was wrapped and padded and would change his
wrestling style immensely.
When he wanted to throw his leg in 50-50 situations he couldn't. He no longer
led with his right leg either.
"(The knee) has good days and some bad," Lendrum said. "It will
feel great then all of a sudden it will decide it does not want to work hard
today."
But the pain in his knee and the pain of losing are things that Lendrum doesn't
mind feeling now.
"Everybody likes to win, but you can't go at it like that," Lendrum
said. "In the end you are really doing it for yourself and not for the
win."
"Many boys would have bagged it after that injury," Hubert said.
"For Eric it was like a rebirth."
Two weeks ago, Queensbury traveled to Scotia for its second Foothills match of
the season. His teammates had been asking him to do the claw. Lendrum saw the
opening and nailed his opponent with it.
He took his opponent in the air, turned him, and as his coach said "paddled
him to the ground," for a win by fall in 55 seconds.
His teammates met him as he came off the mat, shaking his hand and cheering.
"I think they were more happy to see the move than they were to see
me," Lendrum said jokingly.
His coach was equally as happy.
"We were all saying, 'That's Eric, he's back,'" Hubert said.
Lendrum's parents, who travel to all three of their sons' sporting events, were
elated.
"We really figured there was no chance that he would do this sport
again," his father said. "It was like a gift."
Now, Lendrum is starting over with a new perspective.
"Coach told me whether I become a great wrestler again or not,"
Lendrum said, "it doesn't matter because I am going to be better person
when it is all over.
"I agree with that."
from the poststar dec.31 ,2000
Hudson Falls wins Qby wrestling tourney
QUEENSBURY -- Hudson Falls' wrestlers came into Queensbury's house and
claimed the title at the Queensbury Holiday Festival Saturday. Queensbury
finished second, with Corinth third.
Damian Kilmartin (103), Scott Latterell (135) and Bryan Steele (189) all won
their weight classes for Hudson Falls. C.J. Sullivan won at 112 for the Spartans
and Joey Whitaker won at 130. Queensbury's Adam Thorpe, who was named the
recipient of the Russ Baird Memorial Trophy as the most outstanding senior, won
215 in overtime, 3-2.
Latterell defeated Any Mija of Queensbury in the finals and Kilmartin scored a
technical fall win over Whitehall's Dan Bishop in 5:15.
The tournament was shortened because of inclement weather, leading to only first
and second place being determined. The other matches were not wrestled.
Team Scores
1. Hudson Falls 143 ; 2. Queensbury 132.5; 3. Corinth 126; 4. Shenedehowa 108.5;
5. Schalmont 95; 6. Salem 91.5; 7. Scotia-Glenville 80; 8. Whitehall 53; 9.
Saranac 39; 10. Ausable Valley 33. 10. Shaker 33.
Championship Round
96 --Paul Florio (Scha) def. John Payne (Qby), 6-1.
103 -- Damian Kilmartin (HF) def. Dan Bishop (Whit) tech. fall, 5:15.
112 -- C.J. Sullivan (Qby) def. Dan Quinn (Shen), 8-2.
119 -- Jody Ashline (AV) def. Brian Mincher (Shen) WBF, 1:03.
125 -- Bob Florio (Scha) def. Brooks Voorhis (Sco) WBF 2:32.
130 -- Joey Whitaker (Qby) def. Joe St. Pierre (Cor), tech. fall 5:10.
135 -- Scott Latterell (HF) def. Andy Mija (Qby) 14-6.
140 -- Steve Johnson (Sal) def. Chris Holoday (Scha) 12-3.
145 --Dwayne Hash Barberis (Sco) def. Eric Lendrum (Qby) WBF 2:39
152 -- Kyle Bernard (Shen) def. Mark Libertucci (Scha) 5-3.
160 -- Rich Villa (Sha) def. Shawn Watson (Sch) WBF 1:17.
171 -- Nick Valenti (Sco) def. Derman Lewis (Sch) 8-4.
189 -- Bryan Steele (HF) def. Bart Pawlak (Sha) 18-5.
215 -- Adam Thorpe (Qby) def. Jim Reisndorf (Sar) overtime 3-2.
275 -- Jordan Boghosian (Shen) def. Nick LaCroix (Sar) WBF 2:27.
from the poststar dec.11 ,2000
Queensbury finishes fifth at Clyde Cole Wrestling Tournament
OXFORD -- Queensbury finished fifth and Corinth took ninth in the Clyde Cole
Wrestling Tournament in Oxford on Saturday.
Bainbridge-Guilford/Afton was the overall winner.
Queensbury's Adam Thorpe reached the finals in the 215 pound class, losing to
Anthony Chamorro of Sydney in a close 3-1 decision, for a second place finish.
Chris Bowman a newcomer in the varsity ranks for Queensbury, finished fourth in
the 125 pound class.
Tony Osborne took a third place spot for the Spartans in the 171 pound class,
Zach Colvin finished third in the 152 pound class, Justin Ryan was third in the
140 pound class, Joey Whitaker was third in the 130 pound class, Travis Viault
was fourth in the 119 pound class, CJ Sullivan was fourth in the 112 pound
class, and John Payne was third in the 96 pound class.
Corinth finished in ninth place with John Meade taking third place in the 140
pound class, and Tom Delancey grabbed a fourth place finish at 171 pounds.
Nathan Baker also took a third spot for the Tomahawks at 215 pounds.
Bethlehem finished eleventh in the tournament with Andrew Fisher taking third
place in the 103 pound class.
from the poststar dec.
14 ,2000Queensbury 66, South Glens Falls 11
SOUTH GLENS FALLS -- Queensbury started the league season in impressive fashion
with a win over South Glens Falls.
John Payne started things off for the Spartans at 96 pounds with a pin in 1:01.
Travis Viault, Chris Bowman, Joe Whitaker, Andy Mija, Justin Ryan and Chris
Baird all won by pin for the Spartans, who are now 1-0 in the league and 1-0
overall.
Casey Carter got a pin in 40 seconds in the 275-pound class for South Glens
Falls, which is 0-1, 1-1.
QUEENSBURY 66, SOUTH GLENS FALLS 11
96 -- Payne (Q) pinned Peters 1:01
103 -- Naylor (SGF) by forfeit
112 -- Sullivan (Q) def. Brownell 6-4
119 -- Viault (Q) pinned VanSchaick 2:55
125 -- Bowman (Q) pinned J. Brownell 3:07
130 -- Whitaker (Q) pinned Mitchell 1:16
135 -- Ryan (Q) pinned Sweet 1:20
140 -- Mija (Q) pinned Ricardelli 2:48
145 -- Lendrum (Q) by forfeit
152 -- Colvin (Q) def. Hayes 5-4
160 -- Cox (Q) def. McDonald 7-6
171 -- Osborne (Q) def. Starkuhin 11-2
189 -- Baird (Q) pinned Weller 3:09
215 -- Thorpe (Q) by forfeit
275 -- Carter (SGF) pinned Nolan :40