WTG

First off, happy holidays to the JKDU family!

Second, like a proud daddy One of my students (Basil from the park photos) made the Cleveland news paper. Here it is:

Pat Galbincea
Plain Dealer Reporter

Basil Bilokonsky could run for mayor of North Royalton today and win.

The Bears' senior 145-pound wrestler was the unlikeliest hero last night in North Royalton's 30-28 victory at Brunswick.



Well, even if he couldn't win a race for mayor, he did win the match for the Bears with a comeback 9-8 decision over Brunswick senior Vince Norcia.

Let's set the scenario. The Blue Devils, entering undefeated in duals, had a 28-27 lead going into the final match at 145 pounds. High school has adopted the collegiate mode of starting a match with a blind draw for weight classes.

The Bears (3-2) got pins from seniors Zach Flynn (152) and Steve Friedman (171), sophomore heavyweight Vince Urbanski and freshman Jesse Oberdove (119), and a key 7-1 decision from junior Steve Kuzma (215) in building up a 27-16 lead.

Kuzma beat senior Nick Wenzel, who was 9-1 this season, on Wenzel's mistakes. Kuzma nicely countered a misapplied bear hug and a Japanese whizzer for six of his points.

Brunswick (6-1) ended up winning eight of the 14 bouts with a pin from undefeated senior Bryan Kmetz (189) and decisions from sophomore Mike Banks (125), juniors Dan Weinmann (103) and Sean Spellacy (130), and seniors Tom Cika (112), James Rundle (135), Jerrod Rundle (140) and Scott Kock (160).

Banks had provided Brunswick with a spark by beating sophomore Brandon Taylor, 11-10. Taylor had an 8-1 lead late in the second period.

Banks brought the boisterous crowd to its feet when he trapped Taylor in a late cradle - Taylor's own pinning hold - to win.

Bilokonsky faced Norcia, who is 4-1 on the season. Norcia quickly took him down.

Bilokonsky then used a Peterson roll to grab a 4-2 lead. Norcia escaped late in the first period, then got a reversal to lead, 5-4.

Norcia got an 8-7 lead in the final minute with a takedown, but the unorthodox Bilokonsky reversed him in the final 40 seconds and rode him out.

"Was this a good match or what?" relieved Bears coach Paul Oberst asked. "This was a big match for us. Brunswick is awfully tough."

Bilokonsky was lucky to be wrestling. He said he was in a car accident Monday, then got a touch of flu Wednesday.

"It's ambiguous whose fault it was in the accident," Bilokonsky said. "But I wasn't wearing my seatbelt and I busted my head open when I hit the windshield.

"Then getting the flu . . . after the first period, I knew I wasn't ready for a war like this."

How about his ease in getting a Peterson roll, something he appears to have mastered?

"I must have hit that eight times in five matches this year," Bilokonsky said. "But this was the first time someone has taken me down this year. I had a 13-0 advantage in takedowns before tonight.

"I knew something had to be done, and that's what kept me going. I was wasted at the end, but I couldn't have lived knowing I let the team down."

Brunswick coach Mike Koshar said the Bears' pins hurt the Blue Devils.

"Tony Spicel tried a junior high move against Flynn, and those don't work in senior high," Koshar said. "Wenzel got too greedy on that bear hug, and instead of getting a takedown, he got rolled on his back.

"When you win 8 of 14 matches, you don't expect to lose."


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I love that they called him unorthodox LOL! That's the JKDU!

Again, Merry Christmas!

-Rick

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White Tiger Gym "Truth through experience..."