DOWDY LEADS EFFORT IN THE CHRISTMAS CITY TOURNAMENT
Claims only title; Gray Bees finished fourth in team chase
December 30, 2010
One of the main attributes Chris Dowdy has inherited in his time at The Hive has been his poise under pressure.
Even when he finds himself in a precarious position, Dowdy’s composure allows him to escape without much harm.
Such was the case in championship bout in the Christmas City Tournament on Thursday at Bethlehem Catholic in Pennsylvania when Dowdy was caught and got thrown to his back.
But instead of giving in to the dire situation, Dowdy quickly got off his back, regrouped and would up putting on a clinic in the third period and beat Donald-Paul Miller of East Stroudsburg South, 13-6, for the championship at 145 pounds.
“Getting thrown to your back usually shakes a kid up,” said St. Benedict’s coach Solomon Fleckman. “But Chris has a knack for not letting something like that get to him and responded really well by getting out of that situation and dominating the rest of the way.”
Dowdy, who rolled through the first three rounds by pin, wound up winning the Outstanding Wrestler Award for his efforts in the two-day tournament.
“I’ve learned how to fight my and keep my composure in bad situations more than when I first got here,” said Dowdy, a 17-year-old senior. “I’m more in control on the mat than I’ve ever been. I’ve learned to stay calm, cool and collected.”
That was especially apparent when he got under-hooked by Miller and thrown to his back early in the championship bout. Even then, Dowdy still had the wherewithal to only relinquish two near-fall points instead of the typical three when getting thrown straight to your back.
He wound up taking over after that, scoring three sets of near-fall points by setting up his patented power half-nelson that helped secure his victory an OW Award. He won the Christmas City title at 135 pounds last year.
“I was surprised I got the award because I didn’t pin in the final,” said Dowdy, who pinned his first three opponents in a combined time of 4:38. “I’m happy with the result though and looking forward to the rest of the season.”
Dowdy, a National Prep runner-up at 135 pounds last year, hopes to drop to 140 pounds in a couple weeks and finish the season there after opening the year at 152 pounds before cutting to his current weight for most of his matches to date.
“I’ll feel a lot more comfortable; stronger at 140 pounds,” said Dowdy, who placed eighth at 145 pounds in the prestigious Beast of the East Tournament earlier this month in Delaware.
Notes: Isaiah Cromwell (189 pounds) and Vinnie Bellaran (171) each finished second in the tournament after falling to pair of Pennsylvania state placewinners from a year ago in their respective finals.
Freshman Jawan Jones lost to the eventual champion in the semifinals at 103 pounds, but won two wrestleback bouts to finish third.
The Gray Bees, which sent only 10 wrestlers into the tournament, wound up placing fourth in the team standings. The host school, Bethlehem Catholic, captured the title.
