Toccara Montgomery

02/10/02

Since appearing in the magazine's pages on November 4 (Going to the Mat), Toccara Montgomery has been busy wrestling matches - and awards - away from U.S. and international competitors.

The 19-year-old Montgomery, of Garfield Heights, recently was named the 2001 International Women's Wrestler of the Year by FILA, the sport's worldwide governing body. She is the first female wrestler from the United States to receive the award.

Montgomery also was honored as the Women's Wrestler of the Year by the U.S. Olympic Committee and is one of 14 first-round finalists for the prestigious Sullivan Award, given in April to the nation's most outstanding amateur athlete.

The honors come after a year in which, at 18, Montgomery won her first U.S. championship and then became the youngest American woman to qualify for the senior World Championship team. She won the silver medal at the world championships in Sofia, Bulgaria, in late November.

Edited by Janet Birch

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2 LAND O' LAKES GIRLS WIN CROWNS

The Tampa Tribune 2/8/02

No program in Pasco County can boast five state wrestling champions in
the past three years except Land O' Lakes.

Two champs were crowned Saturday as Jessica Worthington and Dana
Kearney took home the gold at the Florida Girls State Wrestling Championships
at Kissimmee Gateway High. The Gators finished fifth out of 32 teams.

Kearney's title at 124 pounds makes her the county's first two- time
state wrestling champ. Worthington's title at 132 is her first after
finishing second last year.

Although girls wrestling isn't recognized as a Florida High School
Activities Association sport, Land O' Lakes coach Brett Murray said the
girls worked as hard for their state title as the guys do.

What makes them work as hard is wrestling against guys all season.

"Some teams have their girls just wrestle girls," Murray said. "Our
girls get used to the strength of the guys and it makes them much better."

Worthington lost in the state finals last year 6-4 and the loss pushed
her in the off-season.

She wasted little time in the finals, pinning Rachel Martinez of Lyman
in 57 seconds.

"It was tough losing last year," Worthington said. "I wanted it more
this year."

She proved that in the semifinals with a pin of Edgewater's Jennifer
Guillen in 5:50. Worthington trailed 7-1 in the first period, rallied to take
the lead late and got the pin.

"I didn't want the same thing to happen like last year," Worthington
said. "I knew I had to step it up."

Worthington wrestles on the Gators' varsity boys team and will compete
today in the 130-pound weight class in the Class 2A-District 6 tournament at
River Ridge.

"I'm a lot more confident going into districts," Worthington said.

Kearney's wrestling season ended with her state title and she is
preparing for softball season.

Hudson placed 11th with Tania Trentecosta finishing fourth at 120,
Rachel Boyko fifth at 107 and Michelle Berger fifth at 112.

There's no chance the FHSAA is going to sanction girls wrestling next
season, but Murray said he could field a full team if it did.

"With the quality of girl wrestlers in this county, we could put
together an all-star team," Murray said. "We would be pretty tough."

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Parmeter plans on defending state title

By Mike Connors staff writer 2/6/02

Listen to Ashley Parmeter explain her goals and it isn't difficult to figure out where her success comes from.
Parmeter, a Vero Beach sophomore wrestler, won the state title in the 102-pound class on Saturday in Kissimmee. But it didn't take long for her to realize the thrill won't last forever.

"I just hope to defend it now," Parmeter said Monday. "I don't want anyone taking it away from me now."

Parmeter admitted to being nervous before the first of her three matches Saturday. Though she'd finished second at the state in 2001, only three girls competed in her 95-pound class. This year, there were nine, most of whom she had never wrestled.

Her confidence rose after she won her first match 11-9. It climbed after she pinned her second opponent in 39 seconds.

But in the finals she drew Sara Elcombe of Kissimmee-Gateway, one of the top girls programs in the state. Vero Beach is a second-year program that finished fifth last year and third Saturday.

Parmeter pinned Elcomb.

"At first it was hard to believe," Parmeter said. "I was shocked, but I was so happy."

Watching Parmeter's matches with a smile was Vero Beach coach Sam Cassara.

"Ashley is the girl who became our most dedicated wrestler," Cassara said. "She focused all year. Then she got out there and worked her magic."

Parmeter's magic earned her a trip to the national championships March 22-23 in Michigan. Ericka Duffy, a senior who finished second in the 120-pound class, Bridget Boger, who finished fourth at 167 pounds and Sierra Thornton, who finished third at 112, also are expected to compete in Michigan.

Cassara believes Parmeter and Duffy have strong chances to finish in the top six, though he said all four are capable of placing.

"They came out last year and really blossomed at the end," Cassara said. "Then they came out the first meet this year and it was like they were continuing on perfectly. And they kept going further and further."

Duffy finished 13th there as a sophomore and plans on using her finish at the state

a loss to the sixth-ranked girl in the nation

as motivation this time.

"I learned last time that there are girls a lot tougher than I am," Duffy said.

The girls will train with each other during the week, then practice on weekends with other wrestlers from throughout the state. Cassara believes that if they wrestle with the effort he saw on Saturday anything is possible.

"The biggest thing was the competitive spirit they had," Cassara said.

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Lady Panthers wrestling best in state

By Rick Pedone
News-Gazette Staff Writer

The Gateway girls wrestling team won its second consecutive state championship Saturday over a field of 19 teams at the Panther gym.

The closest challengers to Gateway (165.5) were Ocala Forest (148), Vero Beach (93) and Lyman (78). Osceola (27) was 13th.

Four Lady Panthers won individual championships. Senior Naomi Santiago (167-over weight class, 20-1 record) won for the second consecutive year. Also winning titles were sophomore Candice Pellerin (116, 22-1), freshman Lauren Pedrosa (140, 14-4) and junior Shannon Gidus (154, 11-1).

Pedrosa, who began wrestling in middle school last year, won her championship despite a broken pinky finger on her left hand.

“I know I have to get it fixed, but I said, ‘No way until state is over,’” she said. “I’m very proud that we were able to win the team championship. Forest was close. They’re a real strong team.”

Pedrosa defeated Grace Talmadge of Lyman, 8-6, for the championship.

Santiago pinned Yzrose Ambroise of Forest in 1:22 to earn her second state crown. She is one of four seniors on the team.

Pellerin won by technical fall, 17-2, for her first state title after placing third last year.

Gidus, a team manager until December, pinned Forest’s Cherish Bielenberg in 2:48 for the clinching points.

“Shannon sealed it for us, although it was a team victory, because she was going head to head with the second place team (Forest),” said Gateway Coach Michael Glassburn. “After she won, it didn’t matter whether Naomi won, or how she won.”

Sarah Elcombe, a 100-pound freshman and the sister of Gidus, was a runner up for Gateway.

Placing third was senior Courtney Pellerin, Candace’s sister, at 124 pounds. She won her consolation final by pin at 1:55.

Also third was senior Michelle Puig at 165 pounds.

Vanessa Cruz was fourth at 112 pounds.

“It was a close tournament, and we knew it would be,” said Glassburn, in his first season as the Gateway coach. “I’m real happy with the way the girls wrestled. They did a great job.”

With 11 of 15 wrestlers returning, there is a good chance that Gateway will remain among the state’s top teams.

“We’ll start our club program soon and we’re hoping to get a lot more girls into the program,” said Glassburn.

The Florida High School Activities Association does not officially recognize girls wrestling, but support for the sport is growing, said Glassburn.

“We’re going to try and get it recognized next year,” he said. “We have a lot of people working for it.”

The FHSAA recognized girls flag football and boys volleyball as spring sports for the 2002-03 school year.

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Wrestler remains cheerful
The Press - Enterprise 2/8/02

HEMET

The pain for Layne Allred started as soon as she heard her knee pop.
But she figured she could work through it, just as she'd done in the past.

Allred, a Hemet High senior, was trying to establish herself in two
physically demanding activities, wrestling and cheerleading, and she
wasn't going to let a sore right knee keep her down.

"You can't just tell me I can't do something," says Allred.

Last year, Allred became just the second female varsity wrestler at
Hemet High. This year, she planned to double as a club cheerleader, though
she's quick to add, "It's not 'Go, team, go,' it's very competitive."

But the strain of her endeavor led to the injury, suffered this past
summer during a tumbling routine for a San Marcos cheer club, which turned out
to be more serious than she believed.

After a month of enduring the pain, Allred had her knee examined and
found out her anterior cruciate ligament was damaged enough that she needed
surgery.

The recovery process is ongoing and Allred's activities are on hold.

The Bulldogs wrestling team went winless in league dual meets this
season and struggled with a lineup of inexperienced wrestlers. Coach Anthony
Martinez said Allred's absence was felt.

Allred had wrestled since her freshman year and won her first-ever
match against a boy. She earned a spot on the varsity lineup last season, and
although she struggled to defeat boys, she excelled in all-girls
tournaments. She won the 132-pound title at the Williams Cup tournament
in Thousand Oaks and finished fourth at the girls' state wrestling
tournament.

The transition from wrestling to cheerleading was an easy one for
Allred. She had trained in gymnastics and tumbling for more than seven years
and wanted to bring her athleticism to cheerleading. She didn't make the
nationally-recognized Hemet High team, but found a niche with the club
in San Marcos.

She was with the club two months before she was injured.

"I can wrestle, but they said if I tear it (ACL) again, the next
surgery won't be as good and I won't be able to do as much," Allred said.
"Getting full strength in my leg is going to take a long time."

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Half Moon Bay earns PAL title

Fulp-Allen retains 105-pound crown

February 11, 2002

By Richard Motroni
CORRESPONDENT

MILLBRAE -- Only days after taking the dual-meet crown, Half Moon Bay High made the clean sweep official on Saturday by capturing the Peninsula Athletic League wrestling team championship at Mills High Gym with 191 points. Defending PAL champion Terra Nova was second with 172.5 and Hillsdale took third at 149.5.

Half Moon Bay had four individuals capture titles. Sarah Fulp-Allen successfully defended her 105-pound crown against Aragon's Jason Sulay with two takedowns and four near falls in a 19-3 win.

"(Sulay) is a good wrestler who is really good on his feet and I was confident that I could get him off his feet," Fulp-Allen said. "Usually when someone is really aggressive early on, they tend to lose energy in the third round, so my plan was to maintain my energy."

Josh Brown (127) scored a second-round pin over Terra Nova's Jeff Vella, while Sam Temko (147) got a third-round pin against Matt Morrison of Terra Nova. Ben Gammon took a 4-2 lead on an early third-round takedown, then held off a last-second reversal attempt from Hillsdale's Dean Nessel to win the 132-pound division.

Terra Nova had the most champions with six. Vince Nagishbendi (121) battled from a five-point deficit against Half Moon Bay's Daniel Ho to tie the match 7-7 early in the final round. Ho regained the lead with a reversal, only to have Nagishbendi counter with his own reversal. Deadlocked at 9-9, Nagishbendi managed to roll his opponent and scored a late near-fall for a dramatic 11-9 win.

"I didn't know I had the points at first, but then I heard the crowd cheering and I knew," Nagishbendi said.

Matt Schug (173) outlasted Hillsdale's Jeff Lema 5-3, while Matt Faughender (162) defeated Anthony Torre of San Mateo 9-4. Eric Helmstreit (154) used four takedowns to beat Half Moon Bay's Steven Steinhoff 10-3. Bobby Stack continued his dominance of the 142-pound division with a 4-1 win over Nate Rey of Half Moon Bay, while Jimmy Hasset (heavyweight) scored a first-round pin of Tony Matteucci of South San Francisco.

Mills' Mike Brahney, as expected, won the 191-pound title over Menlo-Atherton's Jose Luis Causor 5-2. However, teammate Greg Knox's championship in the 217-pound division was a different story. The unseeded Knox raised eyebrows when he defeated top-seeded Kevin Clark of Hillsdale, then went on to win the title match against Aragon's Andrew Dang 9-5.

"Being unseeded was a big motivation for me," Knox said. "I wasn't expecting to make it to the finals, but when I upset the top seed, I knew then I was on my way up."

Jordan Felix of Hillsdale won the 114-pound title match 22-7 against Terra Nova's Brian Redfield, while Aragon's Steve Sweatt (137) outlasted Nick Rey 5-1.

Aragon, which had nine individuals qualify for CCS, also had two champions in the girls tournament, Nina Jacobs (113) and Misty Stalley (190). Also capturing titles were South San Francisco's Linda Villegas (126) and San Mateo's Pamela Gok (146).

WCAL

Serra finished a solid third at the West Catholic Athletic League tournament with six individuals placing in the top three, including two champions. Rojam Raji dominated the 121-pound class, while Armand Sarvarian captured the 154-pound division. Mike Messing (114), Dave Cuevas (162), Matt Howie (173) and Zin Croon (217) all finished third and earned CCS berths. Dom Busalacchi (105), Dominic Vogel (132), Frank Busalacchi (137), Andrew Hutchison (147) and Matt Sisto (277) each took fourth.

Wrestling

PAL TOURNAMENT

At Mills High

TEAM RESULTS

Half Moon Bay 191, Terra Nova 172.5, Hillsdale 149.5, Aragon 104, Mills 66, Menlo-Atherton 49.5, Sequoia 46, South San Francisco 45.5, Burlingame 44, Capuchino 40.5, San Mateo 19.

INDIVIDUAL RESULTS

105--1, Fulp-Allen (HMB); 2, Sulay (A); 3, Cooper (M-A); 4, S.Rodriguez (SSF). 114--1, Felix (H); 2, Redfield (TN); 3, Lopez (SSF); 4, A.Gammon (HMB). 121--1, Nagishbendi (TN); 2, Ho (HMB); 3, S.Nessel (H); 4, Roxas (A). 127--1, Brown (HMB); 2, Vella (TN); 3, Pech (MA); 4, Huckbody (A). 132--1, B.Gammon (HMB); 2, D.Nessel (H); 3, Ferren (B); 4, Nofezinger (TN). 137--1, Sweatt (A); 2, Ni.Rey (HMB); 3, Johal (B); 4, Lemar (Seq). 142--1, Stack (TN); 2, Na.Rey (HMB); 3, Barrazo (Cap); 4, Sequeira (Seq). 147--1, Temko (HMB); 2, Morrison (TN); 3, Garrone (Cap); 4, S.Ratto (A). 154--1, Helmstreit (TN); 2, Steinhoff (HMB); 3, Mussallam (A); 4, Davis (H). 162--1, Faughender (TN); 2, Torre (SM); 3, Thodos (H); 4, Silvera (HMB). 173--1, Schug (TN); 2, Lema (H); 3, Rios (M); 4, Seton (HMB). 191--1, Brahney (M); 2, Causor (MA); 3, Midose (HMB); 4, Grey (H). 217--1, Knox (M); 2, Dang (A); 3, Clark (H); 4, Wright (Seq). Hwt.--1, Hassett (TN); 2, Matteucci (SSF); 3, Barrita (H); 4, Lolokihakanfisi (B).

GIRLS INDIVIDUAL RESULTS

113--1, Jacobs (A); 2, Hugo (SSF). 126--1, Villegas (SSF); 2, Delgado (SSF). 146--1, Gok (SM); 2, Gonzales (H). 190--1, Stalley (A); 2, McNamara (B).

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