WE ARE WRESTLING-SPECIFIC MEDIA

Fini

The Perry Factor

So why am I starting out with Ernie Perry, III?  He is all of 8-1.  There are some kids out there with over 20 wins and no losses.  Well, let's look at that loss.  It came in Oklahoma at the Mid America Nationals.  Oklahoma State has won 34 NCAA championships.  Oklahoma has several also.  Do you think a few Oklahoma parents might take advantage of in-state residency tuition breaks at either of those universities?  Oklahoma high school wrestling is on a "different level" than most states.  There is the Batmobile, the 1964 Aston Martin DB5 (ejector seats rule!) or the M1A2C Abrams tank...and then there is my 2013 Corolla with a never used blue tooth capability.  Oklahoma is one of the first three. My point is, 4-1 and a fifth-place medal is an outstanding accomplishment at the Mid America Nationals.  Perry's 9-2 loss came to a defending class 5A OK state champion, who lost his next match to a defending class 3A OK state champion who won the 120 lbs. weight class. The guy who beat Perry placed third.  Perry lost too early in the tournament's format to try for third but won his next three matches to place fifth.  Perry should be at the top of anyone's list were he still 0-0.  He has yet to lose to a Louisiana wrestler in his high school career.  He was only 7-0 last year before the state championships.  His finals opponent was 26-1.  He is the only two-time defending Division I state champion in the 2021-22 field.  When someone from Louisiana beats him on the mats, then knock him down from #1 in whatever weight class he wants.  (That he started the season at 120 lbs. probably has more than a few coaches scratching their heads as to the possibility of his going to 113 lbs.) (Truth be told, coach Chase Cox sent me the two photographs.  That's why I led with Master Perry.)

The Elsensohn-Boyer Uncertainty Principle

On November 27th sophomore sensation Jacob Elsensohn of Brother Martin dispatched Teurlings Catholic's Brennan Boyer in 0:32 at the Crusader Duals.  That pushed his record to 18-0.  He is now 24-0, but just barely.  The two met again a week later in the semifinals of the Black Horse Invitational in Tennessee.  Elsensohn prevailed, but only 6-5.  Boyer, down 4-0 to start the third period, chose to start standing.  He took down Elsensohn and tacked on two nearfall points to tie the match.  Elsensohn escaped with 59 seconds remaining and nobody scored before time ran out.  Did Boyer get that much better in a week, or did he just have a bad match on the 27th?  Or did Elsensohn have a bad second match against Boyer.  I do not know.  I did not see the second match, and did not pay much attention to, nor was there time to do so, the first match.  What might the fact that Boyer has only lost to Elsensohn (vs. Louisiana competition) due to the Louisiana Classic seedings.  Will we know significantly more after the Trey Culotta, in which Elsensohn and Perry should be in the same weight class, along with several other good kids also?  Ask a Magic 8-Ball and you should get "Reply hazy, try again" or "Cannot predict now."  In principle, that's uncertainty, kind of..

Bernardo, Chino, Luis and Wiley?

Southside junior Wiley Boudreaux was the 2021 Division III Outstanding Wrestler when he competed for Erath.  In the Spartan Invitational finals, in which East Ascension's Luke Maneckshaw pinned him in the first period, it might have appeared that he had a little catching-up to do now that he was competing for a Division I school.  Since then, Boudreaux has won the Ronnie Suarez SPOT District Tournament at Sulphur and, on a particularly heinous day for 126 lbs. opponents, went 5-0 at the TC Rebel Duals, which included a 9-4 win over previously undefeated Caleb Lavine of Sam Houston and a 5:00 fall over defending Division II state champion Ethan Boudreaux of Teurlings Catholic.  The only wrestler to defeat Ethan Boudreaux this season, and one of only two who did last season (that Perry Factor) came into play, was Brother Martin's Mason Elsensohn. [NOTE 12-18-21:  Lavine moved up to 132 lbs. to face Boudreaux..He is still undefeated st 26 lbs.] Lavine may get a chance against Teurlings Catholic's Coen Begnaud on Saturday at the Jacob McMillan.  Begnaud recently knotted his record at 1-1 against Brother Martin's Hunter Chabert, The two Boudreaux may see each other again at the McMillan. Boudreaux the Shark caught up.  Riff, Tony, Ice, Action, the Concorde, 767s...all Jets best stay away.

Last seconds heroics

At the Zachary Big Horse Open there were more than a few exciting moments.   Two of the bigger ones involved wrestlers from Live Oak.

Senior Eagle Lathan Hirschey has not received a lot of press in the Louisiana Wrestling News - this year or last season - but who has?  He will be watched closely from now on.  He has an 18-4 record, with losses to EA's Jesse Maneckshaw (at 120 lbs.), Catholic's Grant Grizzaffi (only losses to Brother Martin's Richie Clementi), and two to Walker's Kye Karcher.  Karcher beat Hirschey by a close 11-9 win in the Warrior Open finals, and then 10-8 in a dual meet.  The Bronco Open finals were another two-point affair, but this time it was Hirschey who prevailed 6-4, giving the freshman his first setback of the season.  Hirschey was down 4-2 before he reversed Karcher to his back with five seconds remaining.

Dutchtown senior Cole Mire won his second tournament of the season (again fulfilling someone's predictions) at 120 lbs. and freshman teammate Cole Gros suffered his first defeat at the hands of EA's other Maneckshaw, Lucas, who avenged two previous losses.  Holy Cross' Cole Baiamonte won his debut event at 220 lbs.

The 152 lbs. finals stole the show, though.  Top-seeded and undefeated Rayden Ingram of Live Oak was paired against Nick DiGeralamo of Holy Cross, who had an unexpected Spartan Invitational finals loss to Dutchtown's Foster Shank, but since has traded wins with St. Paul defending Division I state champion Grant Nastasi.  the two were tied after the first two periods and after trading reversals in the third, DiGeralamo scored another to take a two-point advantage with a minute remaining.  Ingram stood-up on the Holy Cross wrestler, but rather than just getting, or being allowed, an escape, Ingram turned into DiGeralamo and tripped him to his back, scoring a reversal to tie the match and three nearfall points to win it 13-10.

One hundred and fifty-two pounds should be a fun weight class to watch at the Louisiana Classic, if anyone chooses to stay in it.

We still really do not know anything yet.

[This weekend, alas, will be spent finishing one apartment's rehab, and preparing for another, but much easier, one.  That and my daughter coming in on Monday, and presents to create, buy and wrap, lunch with a nephew.  I had hoped to go to the McMillan or the Ketelsen, but I really cannot afford to do so, timewise.  I have arranged for my daughter and her beau to take me to the Trey Culotta finals, albeit I had to bribe them with dinner at Silk Road afterward.]

Back to Top

©  2021-22 by Louisiana Wrestling News

You may not make electronic copies of these copyrighted materials nor redistribute them to 3rd parties in any form without written permission.