WRESTLERS SPLIT SQUAD COMPETES IN TWO WEEKEND EVENTS
Dowdy places in Beast of East; team comes in fourth at Kearny

December 19, 2010

Coach Solomon Fleckman is looking to get everyone involved before the season swings into high gear in the next couple weeks.

He did that this past weekend by sending a select few of his wrestlers to the prestigious, two-day Beast of the East Tournament in Delaware. The rest of his squad competed in the Kearny Invitational on Saturday.

“It’s all part of team building,” explained Fleckman. “Going to two places allows us to get more wrestlers time on the mat and hopefully be a confidence booster to some guys who aren’t usually in the lineup.”

Fleckman got solid efforts out of Chris Dowdy (145 pounds), Whitney Forte (130), Isaiah Cromwell (189) and Jawan Jones (103) at the Beast of the East.

Dowdy wound up as the only place-winner on the day, coming in eighth after making it all the way to the quarterfinals. Jones and Cromwell made it to the pre-quarterfinals before being relegated to the wrestlebacks.

Jones and Forte fell one bout short of reaching the medal round. Forte lost in the first round on Friday, but battled his way back in the wrestlebacks for five victories before finally being eliminated.

“This was big for Whitney and Jawan knowing that they can compete at this level,” said Fleckman.

In the Kearny Invitational on Saturday, the Gray Bees placed fourth in the team standings after winning the title with a full squad the year before.

Eli Feliciano claimed the title at 171 pounds, while Xavier Pearson (189) and Chris Reynolds (Hwt.) had runners-up finishes. It’s the second straight finals berth for Reynolds, who won the Caruso title at SBP two weeks ago.

Don Tai Garner placed third at 130, Se’Maj Reavis-Tyler finished fourth at 140 and Chigozie Osuji and James Peace each came in fifth at 135 and 145, respectively.

To view photos of the Kearny Invitational, please visit Mike Scanlan’s website.