RSS | 
Twitter
| 
Be a fan!
Spencer treads fine line, gets victory
jtuscano@observer-reporter.com
HERSHEY - If you wanted to give an assist for Mitch Spencer's first-round victory in the PIAA Class AA Wrestling Championships, it would go to the treadmill machine at the Holiday Inn in Hershey.
Spencer arrived in Hershey Wednesday three pounds over the required weight of 137, which included a two-pound allowance.
Rate This Story:
1 the lowest - 5 the highest
Current rating:
"It was rough," Spencer said. "That wears you out."
Spencer blames the closeness of the bout on the energy he expended to make weight. Spencer dashed to a 6-1 lead but was outscored, 5-1, in the final two minutes.
"I just cut too much weight," said Spencer. "I took injury time because I had a cramp in my foot. It's still cramping now."
Sounds of success
Alex Dunaway is convinced that music soothes the nerves.
Other wrestlers told him that listening to music before a match helped them to relax and he should try it, too.
So a few weeks ago, Dunaway got an MP3 player and that has had a calming influence on his nerves and, consequently, his wrestling.
His 3-2 first-round victory over T.J. Stanton of Dubois was a nail-biter but Dunaway looked cool, calm and collected in chalking up his 30th win of the season at 103 pounds.
"Sometimes, I think too much about a match," he said. "I just need to relax and it was hard for me. I listen to anything, classic rock, country."
One bit of advice he follows is to not wear the headphones while drilling.
"I saw someone do that and the MP3 player broke," Dunaway said. "Those things cost a lot of money so I take mine off when I drill."
Brownlee hurting
The last two state tournaments have been a nightmare for Canon-McMillan heavyweight Sam Brownlee.
Last season, Brownlee came down with bronchitis the week of the state tournament and went 1-2. This year, Brownlee has been ranked No. 1 in the state but he couldn't keep away from the injury bug.
In the last practice before the tournament, Brownlee injured his right knee. He tried to wrestle on it but two losses were all he had to show for his effort.
"I feel bad for him," said Canon-McMillan coach Chris Mary.
Brownlee, a Southwest Region champion, lost 4-0 to Alex Myers of Hatboro Horsham in the first round and was pinned in 40 seconds by Keith Dahlheimer of Red Lion in the consolations and was eliminated.
Notes
Fastest pin of the first day was by Sean Owen of Clearfield, who stuck Kyle DiGiacobbe of La Salle in nine seconds. ... Twenty-seven WPIAL wrestlers were left in the winners' bracket in Class AAA and 16 remained in Class AA. ... Of the 13 defending state champions, only Cort Choate of Blue Mountain lost on the first day. He fell 4-2 in overtime to Canon-McMillan's Nick Catalano.
