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Springstead's Ross Sets the Early Tone

45th STATE WRESTLING FINALS

Photo by JOE DiCRISTOFALO

Springstead's 119-pound Cody Ross advanced into the FHSAA wrestling semifinals by beating Austin Baker from Vangaurd Friday at The Lakeland Center.

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By TONY CASTRO SPORTS EDITOR

Hernando Today

Published: February 20, 2009

LAKELAND - Thank goodness freshmen do not subscribe to idle talk.
Springstead High freshman Cody Ross said that before he stepped onto the mats for his initial State Wrestling Finals - it was almost as if there was a sign posted, "Thanks for coming."
Ross happened to draw Class 2A's defending state champion from Naples-Palmetto Ridge, junior Cody Singletary.
Though they had never crossed paths this winter, Singletary came in with impressive credentials at 47-3.
The word at The Lakeland Center was that the 119-pound finale would be between Singletary and Brandon freshman Rossi Bruno.
But so much for idle chatter.
Ross wrecked Singletary via a 12-0 major decision to set the tone for the Spring Hill Eagles on Friday in Polk County.
The 14-year-old Ross proved the first-round win was no fluke as he snuffed Ocala-Vanguard junior Austin Baker via a 16-1 technical fall.
"Before I even wrestled my first match, a lot of people said the finals were already set," explained the 14-year-old Ross, who improved to 42-8. "That first match meant a lot to me. It was my first-ever state match and it was against a state champion. It meant a lot. I thought after two periods, he didn't want to wrestle anymore. He was broken."
What do the two wins represent?
"I'm feeling pretty good right now," said Ross. "But the tournament is not over. I'm ready to come back tomorrow and win states. The wins give me a lot of confidence. I guess coming in as the underdog wasn't so bad."
More importantly, the Eagles went 14-4 overall after the first three rounds at press time to remain in the hunt for hardware. After third rounds, SHS stood in third place with 50 points behind defending state champion Brandon (110.0 points) and second-place Bradenton-Manatee (59.5).

Supporting cast

Ross, sophomore Richie Bliss at 103, sophomore Nick Soto at 125, senior Thad Klenovich at 160 and senior Scott Wern at 189 all finished 2-0 on the day to earn 9 a.m. Saturday semifinal berths.
Bliss did his part by solving Jordan McKenzie from Dixie Hollins, 9-2, before stuffing Fort Lauderdale St. Thomas Aquinas' Andy Ball via a pin in 4:39.
The fall was Bliss' county-best 33rd of the season to improve to 43-3.
"I got a tough Dixie Hollins kid to open the tournament," described the 16-year-old Bliss. "Then I went to the hotel and all I thought about was my second match and then took care of business."
What's next?
"It's only two matches," replied Bliss. "Tomorrow, I've got to start all over and got to keep it going."
Leopards: good, bad round
After two rounds, Hernando High's 5-member contingency stood 5-1 and was 10th in Class 1A team standings.
But in the critical third round, HHS went 0-4.
Junior Daniel Pritz, freshman Zach Pritz, and seniors Max Morrill, James Davidson and Brandon Gunderson all finished 1-1 through three rounds.
Daniel Pritz had extended his county-best win skein 33 victories in a row following a first-round 11-3 major decision over Monsignor Pace's Martans Frazier.
But in his second winner's round match, South Fort Myers senior Wesley Diaz utilized a two-point reversal with 10 seconds left to pull out a pulsating 5-4 win over Pritz.
Zach Pritz's 12-match win streak also ended in the second round when Starke's Billy Brooks decisioned him, 10-5.
Nature Coast, which is also competing with Hernando in Class 1A, saw sophomore Tyler Forand and junior Scott Cronin split its first two matches at press time.

Class 1A
1st Round:
103 - Travis Laxton (SUW) pin B. Gunderson (HER), 2:37.
103 - Carl Forbes (WAK) pin T. Forand (NCT), 1:47.
125 - Eddie Rickman (JB) dec. S. Cronin (NCT), 10-8.
135 - D. Pritz (HER) major dec. Frazier (MPAC), 11-3.
140 - Z. Pritz (HER) dec. Jordan Williams (SFMY), 6-1.
145 - Morrill (HER) pin Mauricio Paybon (SFMY), 5:23.
171 - J. Davidson (HER) dec. George Terre (EPIS), 8-1.

2nd Round:
103 - B. Gunderson (HER) dec. Victor Fugate (TBC), 8-7.
103 - T. Forand (NCT) pin Brandon Sierra (CSC), 2:14.
125 - S. Cronin (NCT) dec. Ben Donovan (BOLL) 5-4.

3rd Round:
135 - Wesley Diaz (SFMY) dec. D. Pritz (HER), 5-4.
140 - Billy Brooks (STAR) dec. Z. Pritz (HER), 10-5.
145 - John Hamilton (BIK) pin Morrill (HER), 1:28.
171 - Julian Martinez (MPAC) dec. J. Davidson (HER), 7-4.

Class 2A
1st Round:
103 - R. Bliss (SPG) dec. Jordan McKenzie (DH), 9-2.
119 - C. Ross (SPG) major dec. Cody Singletary (PALR), 12-0.
125 - N. Soto (SPG) major dec. Joey Eterno (STA), 9-0.
135 - Steve Saintil (TCST) dec. C. Zimmerman (SPG), 11-4.
145 - Anthony Fischetti (TAT) pin S. Landgraff (SPG), 5:35.
160 - T. Klenovich (SPG) dec. Andrew Winker (FRTWB), 9-7.
171 - J. Lorentsen (SPG) def. Paul Weiss (STA), 6-4.
189 - Wern (SPG) pin Chris Hefner (SATEB), 0:21.
215 - Cox (SPG) dec. Gonzalez (LELY), 9-3.

2nd Round:
135 - C. Zimmerman (SPG) dec. Benile Frazile (CHAR), 9-2.
145 - S. Landgraff (SPG) tech. fall Kyle Coughlin (OLYH), 15-0.

3rd Round:
103 - R. Bliss (SPG) pin Andy Ball (STA), 4:39.
119 - C. Ross (SPG) tech. fall Austin Baker (OV), 16-1.
125 - N. Soto (SPG) dec. Jeff Pitts (MOS), 6-2.
160 - T. Klenovich (SPG) dec. Luke Weiss (STA), 5-3.
171 - Jacob Harmer (GAIN) major dec. J. Lorentsen (SPG), 13-0.
189 - Wern (SPG) dec. Matt Vanscoy (GAIN), 5-1.
215 - Kenny Shaw (DWY) pin Cox (SPG), 1:43.

Springstead's Class 2A, State Individual Results @ Lakeland
WGT Name W L Pins PL
103 Bliss, Richie 2 0 1 -
119 Ross, Cody 2 0 0 -
125 Soto, Nick 2 0 0 -
135 Zimmerman, Colton 1 1 0 -
145 Landgraff, Shawn 1 1 0 -
160 Klenovich, Thad 2 0 0 -
171 Lorentsen, Jessey 1 1 0 -
189 Wern, Scott 2 0 1 -
215 Cox, Ken 1 1 0 -
TOTALS 14 4 2 -

Hernando's Class 1A State Tourney Results @ Lakeland
Wgt Name W L Pins PL
103 Gunderson, Brandon 1 1 0 -
135 Pritz, Daniel 1 1 0 -
140 Pritz, Zach 1 1 0 -
145 Morrill, Max 1 1 1 -
171 Davidson, James 1 1 0 -
TOTALS 5 5 1 -

Nature Coast's 1A State Tourney Results @ Lakeland
Wgt Name W L Pins PL
103 Forand, Tyler 1 1 1 -
125 Cronin, Scott 1 1 0 -
TOTALS 2 2 1 -

Sports Editor Tony Castro can be reached at 352-544-5278 or online at acastro@hernandotoday.com.

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