Eagles: Loaded Brandon next

Class 2A's No. 1-ranked F.W. Springstead Eagles will complete their regular-season schedule in grand style with a trip to the state's premier program this weekend at Brandon High for its two-day, 31-team 27th annual Tony Ippolito Memorial Tournament.

Brandon, which bumped up to Class 3A last winter, continues to be the program other Sunshine State teams attempt to copy.

The legendary program under Head Coach Russ Cozart has raised a state-record 19 state championship banners, including a gaudy nine in a row.

The Hillsborough County-based Eagles have also produced the most individual state champs (76) and have had as many as six state champions in one meet five times.

By comparison, Hernando County's four mat programs have combined for 32 state champs in 30 seasons.

This weekend's Ippolito Tourney is a bit watered-down. There are no out-of-state teams, no Miami-South Dade, no Miami-Braddock, no Fort Lauderdale-St. Thomas Aquinas, no Lakeland-Lake Gibson, no Kissimmee-Osceola.

Of last season's top 13 3A teams only Brandon and 13th-place Bradenton-Manatee are at Ippolito.

Of the top 11 teams in states in 2A last winter, only Springstead is at Ippolito.

Of Class 1A's top 30 teams at states last winter, only Green Cove Springs-Clay (fourth in 2010) and Tampa-Jesuit (sixth) are at Ippolito.

Regardless of the field, the meet begins Friday at 4 p.m. across nine mats

Saturday's action begins at 10 a.m. Consolation finals are expected to be at 5 p.m. The tourney finals are set for 6:30 p.m.

Brandon has dominated this tournament, winning 24-of-26 times. BHS hasn't lost this meet since 1993.

Last winter, the Hillsborough County crew amassed a staggering 373 points while Springstead finished second with 11 placers with 274 points.

SHS finished third in 2009 (10 placers) and 2008 (eight placers).

Typically, Brandon utilizes this meet as a steppingstone for its conference championship meet the following weekend.

"We've had a great season," described Coach Cozart. "We went up to Minnesota and finished second in the national tournament, losing only to the No. 1 team in the country. It was good for us because it showed us where we're at.

"It's getting close to the state series and we're revving up for our tournament," added Cozart.

How's the field?

"We've got a couple new teams in Fort Pierce-Central and Wellington coming in," said Cozart. "We're looking for two days of exciting wrestling."

Another huge consideration at this point is health. Cozart admitted health-wise Brandon is 100 percent.

There are several possible championship matches that could pit Brandon wrestlers against Springstead.

"You want those type of matches. Those are matches that enable you to be sharp at states," explained Cozart. "Springstead's got a great team this year and some good individuals. A few of their guys came close (at Cougar Inv.), so they're itching to wrestle again. That's what the fans want to see. You like to see state champs versus state champs. Those matches are for bragging rights."

Springstead enters minus Colon

The Spring Hill club will enter the Hillsborough County event with a 13-man squad. According to seventh-year SHS Head Coach Eric Swensen, freshman Jacob Harris at 189 pounds will again not compete this weekend. He did not compete in last weekend's tourney win at Flagler.

Plus, the Eagles will be minus senior Sammy Colon at 145. Colon (29-10 won-lost) injured his hand at Flagler and will not be competing this weekend. Colon will be replaced by sophomore Joe Russo.

"The field may not be as deep, but you've got Brandon and that's all that matters," said Swensen on the eve of the tournament. "And anytime you have 29-30 teams, you're gonna get some good matches. Everybody coming has a few good guys."

What are Springstead's goal?

"Our (five) seniors have big goals," said Swensen. "Guys like Soto, Toms, Landgraff are looking for tremendous wins at Ippolito. We look forward to having those tough matches with the Brandon guys. We know it's gonna be tough. Our guys have been beating each other up in preparing for Ippolito."

SHS won 51-of-66 matches last winter at Ippolito. Without Colon, SHS will return eight grapplers with experience at Brandon.

Senior and two-time state champion Richie Bliss at 103 is 10-0 lifetime with eight pins at Ippolito. Bliss (33-1) is seeking his third straight gold medal at Brandon.

Junior and defending state champion Cody Ross at 140 is 9-2 lifetime at Brandon. Ross (34-1) won last year's tournament and placed fourth as a freshman.

Senior and state placer Shawn Landgraff is 11-4 lifetime at Brandon with seven pins. Landgraff (34-1) finished third as a sophomore and second as a junior. He's expected to tangle with Brandon's defending state champion Clark Glass in the 152-pound final.

Junior Sean "Buddha" Redman at 125 has also placed twice at Ippolito finishing sixth as a freshman and fourth last winter. Redman, who comes in 20-4 this winter, is 7-5 lifetime at Brandon.

Senior and defending state champ Nick Soto at 135 did not compete last winter at Ippolito (swollen knee at Flagler). Soto (36-1) did place second as a sophomore. He's expected to tangle with defending state champion Tyler Liberatore in a much-anticipated rematch Saturday night.

Senior and defending state champ Virgil Toms (33-2) at 130 placed second last winter and is expected to face another Brandon state champion in a much-anticipated rematch with Brandon's Rossi Bruno.

Junior John Dreggors (33-1, 29 pins) at 285 placed runner-up at Ippolito last winter.

Junior Thomas Gupton (33-8) at 160 made his varsity debut last winter at Brandon and finished 3-2, but did not place.

AT A GLANCE
WHAT - 27th annual Tony Ippolito Memorial Wrestling Tournament.
WHO - The individually-bracketed format is expected to feature 29 teams including 24-time tourney champ Brandon.
WHERE - Brandon High's gym, 1101 Victoria St., Brandon, 33510, across nine mats. Admission is $5.
WHEN - Friday, Jan. 21 beginning at 4 p.m. and Saturday, Jan. 22 beginning at 10 a.m.
AT STAKE - Top four teams earn trophies and the top five placers in each weight class earn medals. Two Outstanding Wrestler Awards will also be presented.

2010 Brandon High's Tony Ippolito Memorial Tournament Results
Final Top 10 Team Results:
PL TEAM POINTS
1. Brandon 373.0
2. Spring Hill-Springstead 284.5
3. Ft. Lauderdale-St. Thomas Aquinas 208.5
4. Bradenton-Manatee 191.5
5. Tampa-Alonso 134.0
6. Sarasota 116.5
7. Jupiter 115.5
8. Tampa-Jesuit 114.5
9. Tallahassee-Lincoln 104.5
10. Liberty 102.0

Springstead Individual Results
WGT NAME W L PINS PL
103 Bliss, Richie 5 0 4 1st
119 Redman, Sean 3 2 2 4th
125 Toms, Virgil 4 1 2 2nd
130 Carnes, Scott 2 2 2 -
135 Ross, Cody 5 0 2 1st
140 Zimmermann, Colton 5 0 1 1st
145 Colon, Sammy 4 2 3 4th
152 Landgraff, Shawn 3 1 1 2nd
160 Ellerbee, Thomas 5 2 1 5th
171 Quinn, Casey 4 2 4 5th
189 Gupton, Thomas 3 2 0 -
215 Cox, Kenny 5 0 3 1st
285 Dreggors, John 3 1 2 2nd
TOTALS 51 15 27

01-24-09: Springstead @ 25th Tony Ippolito Tournament
Springstead at Tony Ippolito Wrestling Tourney Results
WGT Name W L Pins PL
103 Bliss, Richie 5 0 4 1st
112 Redman, Sean 4 3 3 6th
119 Ross, Cody 4 2 2 4th
125 Soto, Nick 4 1 2 2nd
130 Urso, Anthony 3 2 1 -
135 Zimmermann, Colton 4 2 2 4th
140 Colon, Sam 2 2 2 -
145 Landgraff, Shawn 5 1 3 3rd
152 Ellerbee, Thomas 1 2 0 -
160 Klenovich, Thad 5 2 2 5th
171 Lorentsen, Jessey 5 1 2 3rd
189 Wern, Scott 6 1 3 3rd
215 Cox, Ken 4 1 2 2nd
TOTALS 52 20 28

Final Tony Ippolito Wrestling Tournament Team Standings
PL TEAM PTS
1. Brandon (BDN) 358.5
2. Bradenton-Manatee (MAN) 254.0
3. Springstead (SPG) 238.0
4. Bloomingdale (BMD) 167.5
5. Tampa-Robinson (ROB) 145.0
6. Tampa-Alonso (ALN) 125.0
7. Gainesville (GNV) 123.0
8. Tallahassee-Lincoln (LIN) 120.0
9. St. Cloud (STC) 95.0
10. Tampa-Jesuit (JES) 90.0
11. Sarasota (SAR) 89.5
12. Naples-Baron Collier (BC) 85.0
12. Plant City (PC) 85.0
14. Tampa-Wharton (WHA) 74.5
15. Bradenton-Bayshore (BAY) 74.0
15. Tampa-Jefferson (JEF) 74.0
17. Liberty (LIB) 72.5
18. Seffner-Armwood (ARM) 58.5
19. Central (CEN) 49.5
20. Cape Coral (CC) 46.0
21. Tampa-Plant (PLA) 44.5
22. East Bay (EB) 43.0
23. Pasco (PAS) 29.5
24. Tampa-Chamberlain (CHA) 27.0
25. Tampa Prep (TP) 27.0
26. Tampa-Middleton (MID) 24.0
27. Tampa-King (KNG) 22.0
28. Hillsborough (HIL) 13.5
29. Wesley Chapel (WC) 10.5

Tony Ippolito Wrestling Tournament Finals Results
103 - Bliss (SPG) pin LeFevre (BDN), 1:17
112 - Renkey (BDN) maj. dec. Gray (ARM), 14-5
119 - Bruno (BDN) maj. dec. Ballard (MAN), 15-4
125 - Gregory (MAN) dec. Soto (SPG), 10-4
130 - Glass (BDN) maj. dec. Stewart (MAN), 10-2
135 - Grajales (BDN) pin Boyer (ROB), 4:41
140 - Timothy (BDN) maj. dec. Montero (BMD), 10-1
145 - Cozart (BDN) dec. Dykes (MAN), 11-5
152 - Figaro (BDN) dec. Riley (MAN), 7-1
160 - Figari (BMD) dec. Koziel (BDN), 4-0
171 - Harmer (GNV) maj. dec. Berridge (BDN), 12-1
189 - Ivy (ALN) dec. Ettore (BDN), 4-1
215 - Daniels (MAN) dec. Cox (SPG), 3-2
285 - Benitez (ROB) dec. Posada (PLA), 9-3

Tony Ippolito Wrestling Tournament Consolation Finals Results
103 - Conner (BMD) dec. Popp (JES), 8-6 (OT)
112 - Boudreau (JES) maj. dec. Fulk (MAN), 10-2
119 - Herrera (SAR) dec. Ross (SPG), 5-1
125 - Brown (SAR) maj. dec. Betancourt (LIB), 12-1
130 - Orzech (BAY) dec. Rodriguez (WHA), 8-3
135 - Doran (MAN) pin Zimmerman (SPG), 4:45
140 - Harris (SC) inj. default Brooks (GNV)
145 - Landgraff (SPG) pin Cadoret (CEN), 5:37
152 - Carter (BC) dec. Hawthorne (ROB), 7-5
160 - Cousins (SC) pin Coleman (LIN), 4:50
171 - Lorentsen (SPG) dec. Gazda (BMD), 9-4
189 - Wern (SPG) inj. default Vollick (PC)
215 - Perez (LIB) dec. Douglas (BMD), 11-9
285 - Chattin (SC) dec. Hoelzer (BDN), 3-2
Tony Ippolito Wrestling Tournament Outstanding Lightweight Wrestler Award
Eric Gajales, Brandon
Tony Ippolito Wrestling Tournament Outstanding Heavyweight Wrestler Award
Chris Figari, Bloomingdale

01-18-08: Springstead @ Brandon Ippolito Tourney results
WGT NAME W L P PL
103 Dustin Soto 4 1 2 2nd
112 Schuyler Swanton 5 0 3 1st
119 Skylar Huff 3 2 0 4th
125 C. J. Cook 4 1 1 2nd
130 Nick Soto 4 3 0 6th
135 Shawn Landgraff 3 2 3 -
140 Sean Hughes 1 2 1 -
145 Tommy Ellerbee 1 2 0 -
171 Scott Wern 3 2 0 5th
189 Cesar Acosta 5 2 2 5th
215 Ken Cox 3 2 1 -
285 Carlos Ramirez 5 1 3 3rd
TOTALS 41 20 16

Final standings from 24th annual Ippolito wrestling tournament
Team scores
1. Brandon (BRN) 351.5; 2. Manatee (MAN) 230.0; 3. (SPG) Springstead 182.5; 4. St. Cloud (STC) 181.5; 5. (ALO) Alonso 128.5; 6. (BLO) Bloomingdale 124.0; 7. (SAR) Sarasota 101.5; 8. Tampa Prep (TP) 101.5; 9. (TJ) Tampa Jesuit 89.0; 10. Venice (VEN) 80.5; 11. (CHA) Chamberlain 78.5; 12. Bayshore (BAY) 69.0; 13. Barron Collier (BC) 70.5; 14. Robinson (ROB) 66.5; 15. Central (CEN) 63.0; 16. Pasco (PAS) 61.5; 17. Plant City (PC) 57.0; 18. Armwood (ARM) 56.5; 19. East Bay (EB) 56.0; 20. Middleton (MID) 49.0; 21. Wharton (WHA) 36.5; 22. Gaither (GAI) 36.0; 23. Plant (PLN) 32.0; 24. Ridgewood (RID) 32.0; 25. Hillsborough (HIL) 28.0; 26. King (KIN) 27.0; 27. Cape Coral (CC) 23.0; 28. Sarasota Riverivew (SR) 20.0; 29. Sarasota Booker (SB) 15.0; 30. Wesley Chapel (WC) 12.0.