Flying Eagles defend dual quad title
Jan. 4—oak hill — A year ago, an exciting finish at the Class AAA Region 3 Quad propelled Woodrow Wilson to its first berth in the state duals championships.
This time, it wasn't that close.
The Flying Eagles ran away with the qualifier on Wednesday with a 3-0 night. They defeated Oak Hill 59-22 and Riverside 56-15 before closing it out with a 51-25 win over St. Albans.
St. Albans finished 2-1 and both teams secured trips to the West Virginia Dual Team State Championships set for Feb. 4 at the State Fairgrounds in Fairlea.
"I thought it was good," Flying Eagles coach Matt Osborne said. "That was the first time we had our whole lineup in. So that was good to see."
Woodrow's dominance came even without a heavyweight.
The dual with the Red Dragons was the most anticipated, with Woodrow ranked sixth in the state and St. Albans eighth. The Flying Eagles dominated from the outset, however, winning the first six matches to take a 36-0 lead. Eight of the matches resulted in Woodrow Wilson pins.
It was a far cry from last year's quad, a win that started to put Woodrow on the state's wrestling map. Heavyweight Jackson Evans' pinfall gave the Flying Eagles a decisive 42-36 victory over the Red Dragons in their home gym.
With no heavyweight this season, Osborne wanted his team to gain separation.
"Those wins that we got were very important," he said.
It was the usual suspects for the Flying Eagles, Garrett Johnson at 106 pounds, J.J. Bailes (132) and Ethan Osborne (157) among them. But there was also 138-pounder Troy Harris put together a 3-0 day, and sophomore Nick Dvorak (150) avenged a couple of losses to Riverside's Blake Lyons.
"I was just wrestling," Dvorak said simply.
What was the difference?
"I thought less," he said with a smile. "That's all I did. Just thinking less."
"Nick Dvorak got a match that he didn't think he could win and he won, so maybe that will give him some confidence," Osborne said. "I hope it did because he needs it. He's a lot better than he thinks he is.
"His thing is he needs to keep wrestling between the whistles. When he figures that out, he's going to be really, really good."
Up next for both Woodrow Wilson and Oak Hill is the West Virginia Army National Guard Duals this Friday and Saturday in Summersville. Oak Hill wrestlers such as Mason Wills, Gabe Truman and Colton Naylor will be looking to continue their solid starts.
Woodrow, meanwhile, has its eyes on continuing to improve toward the ultimate goal the first weekend of March.
"They (his teammates) work super hard. I love them," Dvorak said. "We have hard practices. Matt is a great coach. We just do what he says and get better."
Final scores
Woodrow Wilson 51, St. Albans 25
Woodrow Wilson 56, Riverside 15
Woodrow Wilson. 59, Oak Hill 22
St. Albans 39, Riverside 37
St. Albans 57, Oak Hill 18
Riverside 54, Oak Hill 30
Email: gfauber@register-herald.com; follow on Twitter @gfauber5
