No bloody way for
Parkside's Brodie
Cobie, Murray, Gutmanis, also take gold at WOSSAA wrestling
By Rob J. Ross
Friday, February 17, 2017
LONDON, Ont. - Bloodied and almost defeated, Payton Brodie could have thrown in the towel.
Instead, the Parkside Stampeder took that towel to wipe the blood from her bloody nose, and facing an 8-0 deficit returned to the mat.
Moments after pinning Beal's Paige Baynhan, Brodie stood as the gold medal in the girls' 61-kg class, at the Western Ontario Secondary School Athletic Association (WOSSAA) wrestling championships, held at London Beal high school.
"I was really surprised. I didn't think that would happen. I thought I was done," said the grade 11 student. "She was my hardest opponent and I knew going into the match that she could beat me. As soon as I pinned her, I was like, oh my gosh"
The momentum was all Baynhan's while Brodie tended to her nose at break. But with a goal of competing at OFSAA, she wasn't about to surrender.
"I was like, I'll just try my hardest. If I don't win, I'll still come second (pending a challenge)," she said. "I bridged, grabbed her head, sat there and held her on her back."
This match and her overall performance at WOSSAA, earned her the award for most outstanding female wrestler. Hunter Tandy, from Tillsonburg Glendale was the boys' winner.
Brodie will be making her OFSAA debut, a year after losing challenge match at WOSSAA and finishing third. She attended OFSAA as an alternate but no one dropped out.
"It's a big step for me because I worked two years for this."
Grubb joins five fellow Parkside wrestlers, who advance to the OFSAA championships in Brampton, March 1-3.
From WOSSAA, the top two in almost each division qualify for the provincial high school event. The girls' weight classes of 41, 83 and 115 kilograms, send three competitors.
Cobie Gregory is the girls' 44-kg class champion, going undefeated while team-mate Maddie King was the runner-up in the division.
"My goal was to pin everybody, but I didn't pin Maddie because she was my team-mate. I just checked her. She's my partner so she knows everything I'm good at," said Gregory, who went 4-0, with three pins. "I felt confident. My first match I was nervous because I get those first match jitters."
Gregory won WOSSAA at 44-kg a year ago and advanced to the top eight at OFSAA.
"I'm wrestling a lot better this year. I think a lot more in a match. Before I kind of went out and just wrestled. I didn't understand. Now I'm thinking more and I know a lot more moves."
Duncan Murray (72kg) won his golden medal match, while Ryan Asher (57.5-kg) and Gavin Eldridge (54-kg), were runner-ups in their respective boys' weight divisions.
Placing top six for the Stamps were Ross McCaffrey (41-kg), third; Nathan Utterlinde (72-kg), third; Cameron Zimmer (64-kg), fourth; Luke Penner (47.5-kg), fifth; Cole Moore (83-kg), fifth; Jarod Gonzales (83kg), fifth; Brady Johnson (130-kg), fifth and Daniel Rattray (77-kg), sixth.
The Parkside boys finished third as a team, while the ladies were fifth, helping Parkside to fifth overall.
Any weight class with five or less athletes compete in a round robin.
More than five are in a double knockout bracket. The third place finisher has the opportunity to challenge the loser of the gold medal final, if they haven't previously fought.
The Central Elgin Titans have three heading to OFSAA.
Rod Gutmanis won his 95-kg gold medal match, Ryan Barney lost in the 83-kg final and Delaney Johnson (girls' 67.5-kg) finished second in her pool.
Other Titans placing top six were Seth Kuiper (89-kg) just missing a berth placing third and finishing were in their classes were Stephanie Byerson-Butler (girls' 57.5-kg), Tyler Thomas (61-kg) and Dalton Holt (72-kg).
The Arthur Voaden Vikings will be represented at OFSAA, by Cadence MacLeod, after her second place result in the girls' 83-kg division, behind champion Alex Cooper, from St. Joe's.
Vikings' Brianna Thompson (girls' 77-kg) and Tyler Fox (boys' 95-kg), both placed third.
St. Joseph's defended their WOSSAA girls' team title and were the overall school champions. More on the Rams at WOSSAA team champions .
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