Atchison County brings small-school title back east

Topeka Capital-Journal, The, Feb 28, 2000 by Rick Dean Capital-Journal

P R E P W R E S T L I N G N O T E S

By RICK DEAN

The Capital-Journal

Winning the Class 3-1A state wrestling championship is nothing new to Atchison County coach John Flores, who won two such crowns in his years at Leoti in southwest Kansas.

Nor is winning a state wrestling championship anything new at Atchison County. The Effingham school, after all, won back-to-back Class 4A titles in 1982-83.

But, winning a Class 3-1A title is a completely new experience for schools east of U.S. 81, generally regarded as the east-west divider in Kansas. (Yes, Gypsum, home of 1985 and '86 champion Southeast of Saline, is 10 miles east of 81. But let's not nit-pick.)

In beating oft-crowned small-school champion Hoxie by three points Saturday night in Hays, Atchison County became the first eastern Kansas school to ever win this state's small-school wrestling championship.

"That's really something when you think about the tremendous tradition wrestling has out west," noted Effingham athletic director Duane Feldkamp. "Schools like Hoxie and Plainville just had tremendous followings out there.

"Our's was good too," Feldkamp added, "but it might get even better after this."

Considering that the Tigers did not have a senior in this year's tournament, that's a good bet.

Effingham scored its winning points when Noah Clouse, who won a 4A state title last year in Wichita, handed Minneapolis' Troy Simoneau his only loss of the season, 11-5, in the 189-pound finals. Clouse, only a junior, finished 37-0 this year and is now 68-0 over the last two seasons.

Clouse may have put Effingham over the top, "but every point our kids scored was important in a three-point outcome," Flories noted. The Tigers put three wrestlers in the finals, but Jake Taliaferro and Kurtis Springfield took only their second losses all year in the title matches at 103 and 130, respectively. Branden Clouse, who took his only loss all year when he fell behind in the final 10 seconds of his semifinal match, came back to capture third place at 171, as did Justin Bottorff at 145.

Silver Lake's Josh Reamer completed his domination of the 215- pound division with a pin of Plainville's T.J. Staab in 4:35 of the finals. It was Reamer's fourth straight pin of the meet and capped a 35-1 season.

- After finishing third in Class 6A each of the last three years, Emporia coach Curtis Simons jokingly liked to say he was getting nervous.

"I told people if we finished second again this year, I'd probably lose my job," Simons said factiously.

Not to worry. With Dusty Spaulding leading the way with his fourth state title, Emporia's depth wrapped up its eighth state title even before its four finalists wrestled Saturday night in the Kansas Coliseum. Good thing, too, as only Spaulding emerged victorious in the championship round.

"Dusty gave us a great ending to a great weekend," Simons said. "We brought 12 kids here and every one of them scored, so it was a great team effort. It meant a lot to see someone like Dusty Malone (at 112) come back from a hyperextended elbow that knocked him out for about five weeks and finish second."

Chad Everett, a state champ as a freshman, also finished second to assure himself a top-three finish in each of his four high school seasons.

- After winning a 4A title as a sophomore, Abilene's Dustin Tovar was a disappointed junior after finishing second in last year's meet. But he returned to the top step in his final season when he scored a buzzer-beating escape to beat Goodland's Bryce Bahe 7-6 in the 119 final.

"I didn't want it to go to overtime, so I fought as hard as I could to get away," said Tovar, whose 6-4 lead disappeared when Bahe took him down with only 18 seconds remaining. "Once I got to me feet I felt I had a chance because I'm pretty good on my feet.

"This is a great feeling," he added. "Losing last year made me work extra hard all summer to get back here."

- Perry-Lecompton's Joe Corcoran saw several dreams come to reality this school year.

The first happened when he received a college football scholarship. The running back/defensive back will attend Washburn next year. Another was realized when he was selected to the Kansas Shrine Bowl Game.

Yet another came true Saturday when Corcoran won the 4A 160-pound title with a convincing 14-4 win in the finals.

"This is the biggest thrill right now," said Corcoran, who just missed getting his fourth pin of the match. "This has been a dream since I started wrestling about 10 years ago. Now it's on to track (he's a sprinter). Maybe I can add another state championship there."

CLASS 3A-1A

Team standings

Atchison County 120.5, Hoxie, 117.5, Plainville 98, Norton and Ellsworth 88.5, Eureka, 84, Atwood 83, Oakley 77.5, Herington 67.5, Smith Center 67, Silver Lake 60, Oberlin and Minneapolis 58, Phillipsburg 53, Lincoln 41, Osborne 40, St. Francis 39, Beloit 38, Hill City and Onaga 35, Caney Valley 26, Wichita County 23, Stockton and Ellis 21, St. Marys 20, Hoisington 16.5, Royal Valley 15.5, West Elk 14, Remington 12.5, Wellsville 12, WaKeeney 10, Trego 10, Quinter 10, Hesston 9, Pleasant Ridge 9, Horton 9, Halstead 7, Wabaunsee 7, Marion 6, Central Heights 4, Hillsboro 4, Bluestem 4, Rossville 4, Cheney 3, Rock Creek 3, Immaculata 3, Thomas More Prep 3, Kinsley 3, Troy 2.