CHS Wrestling 1998/99 Summary
Calvert High School Wrestling
1998/99 Season Summary
Updated - 03/07/99
Chopticon Braves Invitational Tournament December 4-5, 1998:
Calvert scored a runaway first place victory at the Chopticon Tournament for the first time. The team scored 173.5 points with second place Chesapeake nearly 40 points back with 134.5. The team had eight wrestlers in the semi-finals: 103 - Justin Britain, 119 - Buck Sampson, 125 - Dustin Little, 130 - Justin Holman, 135 - Blaire Surgent, 145 - Jason Poore, 160 - Scott McAdoo and 189 - Paul Sheran. Nine wrestlers finished in the top six with three champions, three third places, two fourths and one sixth. In all, the team was 36-19 with an impressive twenty pins. (Click here to read a summary of the notable results from this tournament.)
McDonough Dual Meet - December 8, 1998:
Calvert traveled to McDonough and won 40-20, in their first dual meet of the season, which avenged one of their three conference losses from the previous year. Highlights included: Clinton Parker won the first varsity match of his career by the score of 10-7. Blaire Surgent scored a pin in 0:32 to go 5-0 for the season. Jason Poore won 16-5 and raised his record to 5-0. Scott McAdoo kept his pinning streak alive with his fifth pin in five wins. Randy Barletta won his first match of the year (a pin at 3:45) and was named the Outstanding Wrestler in the process. Paul Sheran defeated Zac Cox (a rematch of the 1998 SMAC finals) by the score of 9-4 and also improved his record to 5-0. Congratulations guys!
Elanor Roosevelt Dual Meet - December 12, 1998:
The first home meet of the season started out as a disappointment when it was discovered that Laurel High School, who was to be a part of a tri-meet this day, had not put us on their schedule. This means that Calvert will now be one meet short for the season as the rules state that once the season begins, no changes can be made.
Now for the good news, Calvert rolled over Roosevelt by the score of 72-6. I think that a new record was set in process by scoring 11 pins along the way. (Note: The team has twice scored the same or more points in the past, but I believe it was with the aid of more forfeits.)
There was only one forfeit in this meet and that was at 112. Otherwise, every wrestler got a pin right up through the heavyweight match. It was 72-0 going into that match and I know that everyone was hoping for the first 78-0 match that they (or at least, I) had ever seen. Many of the pins not only came in the first period but were also in the first minute. Possibly the most noteworthy was Blaire Surgent, wrestling at 140 for the first time, pinning Roosevelt's #1 wrestler in less than a minute. Jeremiah Cleman was voted the Outstanding Wrestler.
The team is now 2-0 and preparing for archrival Lackey on Tuesday.
Lackey Dual Meet - December 15, 1998:
Tonight Coach Kistler beat Lackey for the first time, 53-18. Calvert continued on their pinning ways by scoring seven falls out of ten wins (five of which were in the first period). The biggest win of the night came from Randy Barletta at 171. Randy was trailing 4-0 late in the third period when he reversed his opponent, locked on a far side cradle and pinned him at 5:40. Other highlights included: Blaire Surgent, Jason Poore and Paul Sheran all remaining undefeated at 7-0. Freshman Max Buff (112), pinned in twenty-two seconds of his first varsity competition and Scott McAdoo scored his seventh pin in seven wins. Dustin Little was named the Outstanding Wrestler.
The team is now 3-0 on the season and competes next at home on Thursday 12/17 in a tri-meet against LaPlata and St. Mary's Ryken.
LaPlata Dual Meet - December 17, 1998:
The team improved it's record to 4-0 this evening with a 44-21 home victory over LaPlata. The winning continued for our undefeated wrestlers; Blaire Surgent, Jason Poore and Paul Sheran each of which is now 8-0. Scott McAdoo was voted the Outstanding Wrestler as he scored a 13-3 major decision over David Young. Young placed third in the 1998 state tournament and, at 10-0, was ranked #3 among all 160 pounders in the state. Scott's pinning streak was broken, but I don't think he minded.
St. Mary's Ryken Dual Meet - December 17, 1998:
After a short rest while LaPlata and Ryken wrestled a close meet, Calvert kept everything moving with their fifth win of the season by defeating Ryken 51-15. Justin Brittain, who is now 9-1 on the year, was voted the outstanding wrestler.
Bowie Dual Meet - December 21, 1998:
The Cavaliers traveled to Prince George's County for the first time since they won the 3A/4A Southern Regional last season to compete against the Bowie Bulldogs. Bowie had a great turnout of fans and the excitement was high for them due to their defeat of Northern High School the previous week. They were no match for Calvert though as the Cavaliers rolled to 6-0 by the score of 43-19.
Freshman Max Buff wrestled his second varsity match (excluding a forfeit he received against Roosevelt) and won by the score of 6-1. Tony Roberts stepped in for the injured Ed Vermillion at 145 and did a great job by scoring a second period fall and earning the Outstanding Wrestler award. Justin Brittain (10-1), Blaire Surgent (10-0), Jason Poore (10-0), Scott McAdoo (10-1) and Paul Sheran (10-0) each got their tenth win of the season.
Calvert will now take a holiday rest as their 1998 competition is complete. At this point, the team looks very strong with a 6-0 dual meet record, a dominating first place win at the Chopticon Tournament, three undefeated wrestlers at 10-0 and two others at 10-1. They have outscored their dual meet opponents by the combined score of 303-99 (an average of 50-16) with no one being closer than 20 points. The future looks very bright!
Competition resumes at Patuxent on 01/05 and then it's tournament time again with the Northern Tournament coming on 01/08-09. Happy holidays, everyone!
Patuxent Dual Meet - January 5, 1999:
Calvert visited Patuxent for what turned out to be a disappointing outing. Calvert won by the score of 39-28 but was sloppy and unaggressive at times.
Justin Brittain (11-1), Blaire Surgent (11-0), Jason Poore (11-0), Scott McAdoo (11-1) and Paul Sheran (11-0) each got their eleventh win of the season with all but Paul scoring first period falls. Paul won a 4-2 decision over a tough Sean O'Connor (normally a heavyweight, O'Connor came down to 189 specifically to wrestle Sheran). Blaire Surgent was named the meet's Outstanding Wrestler.
The team is 7-0 in dual meets but now it's tournament time with back to back tournaments coming up before the next dual meet. First is the Northern Tournament on January 8-9 and then the South River Tournament the following weekend, January 15-16.
Jason Poore won his 98th career victory tonight with a pin at 1:17 of the first period. I want to invite everyone to come out and watch Jason go for number 99 and 100 at the Northern Tournament!
Northern Patriot Classic Invitational Tournament - January 9, 1999:
This year's tournament at Northern High School, the Patriot Classic, was shortened by the weather to a single day. This caused a change in the rules that had a definite effect on the team scoring. The changes consisted of the first round being single elimination while the quarter-final round was the first to include the possiblity of wrestle-backs. However, any wrestler that lost in the quarter-final round could finish no higher than fifth. And the semi-final losers went directly to the consolation finals for third.
Calvert ended up placing third with a team score of 163 points behind Damascus (196.5) and Magruder (169). Paul Sheran was unable to wrestle due to a knee injury and it is widely believed that if he had, Calvert would have won the tournament. Even without Paul, Calvert still had four finalists; Buck Sampson (119), Blaire Surgent (135), Jason Poore (140) and Scott McAdoo (160). Of these, both Blaire and Scott were champions of their division. Of special note: Jason Poore won his 100th career victory for Calvert. (For more detailed information on the tournment click here.)
South River Seahawk Invitational Tournament - January 16, 1999:
Calvert finished tied for second with Owings Mills at 165 points. The winner, Kent County, was not very far ahead with 169 points. For the second time, weather was a factor with the tournament causing the same rules as those used for the Northern Tournament (see above) to be in effect.
Again Paul Sheran was unable to wrestle but this time, there was no doubt that Calvert would have won the tournament had he been able to perform. However, the team did very well with five finalists this time; Justin Brittain (103), Buck Sampson (119), Blaire Surgent (135), Jason Poore (140) and Scott McAdoo (160). Blaire, Jason and Scott were champions. (For more details click here.)
Thomas Stone Dual Meet - January 19, 1999:
Not only was this the battle of the unbeatens in SMAC but it was also one of Calvert's revenge meets from last year when everything seemed to go wrong and Calvert lost a 39-27 heartbreaker. This year, Calvert came in 7-0 overall and Stone was 6-0. However, it wasn't much of a contest as Calvert won easily by the score of 42-16, raised their record to 8-0 in the process and tore one more item off the "Wall of Revenge".
There was some concern however as four of the regular starters were missing from the line-up. Justin Brittain (103), Tony Roberts (145) and Frank Rinkes (Hwt) were all sick with the flu while Paul Sheran (189) was still nursing his knee. In the end, there was nothing to worry about as the team ended up winning nine of thirteen matches. In fact, the score was 42-4 going into the 171 pound match.
Prior to the meet, Jason Poore was presented a trophy as Calvert's first member of the 100 win club. Jason had won number 100 during the Northern Tournament... tonight he made it 105. Other highlights included:
Freshman Clint Parker started things off by filling in for Justin Brittain at 103 and winning an exciting 15-10 match. At 112, freshman Max Buff did a fantastic job by defeating the #2 ranked 112 pounder in SMAC; Jeremy Harpold. In winning this match (9-5), Max served notice on all of SMAC that he will be a force to reckon with for years to come. Senior Matt Fletcher returned to the line-up for the first time in a month and scored a 3-1 decision to keep things going. Buck Sampson, wrestling up a weight class at 125, then scored the meets first pin when he decked Brian MacFarlane in only 1:32 of the first period. With the score now 15-0 and the real strength of the line-up still ahead, it was obvious that this was going to be an easy win for Calvert.
Stone got their first win at 130 when Dustin Little ended up on the short end of a 14-4 major decision. But at 135 Justin Holman got Calvert back on track by winning an exciting 3-1 overtime bout at the buzzer. With the score now 18-4, Calvert went on a pinning streak over the next four matches to run the score to 42-4. Blaire Surgent (140) increased his undefeated record to 20-0 with a 48 second pin. This was followed by Jason Poore's (145) first period pin in 1:03. Jeremiah Cleman then sealed the meet and won his second Outstanding Wrestler award for the season by scoring a pin at 4:55. Finally, in the 160 pound weight class, Scott McAdoo won his 17th match in a row with a pin in just 24 seconds.
Randy Barletta lost a tough 4-0 decision at 171 before freshman Tim Kassouf stepped on the mat at 189 to fill-in for the injured Paul Sheran. Although Tim lost a tough 3-1 overtime decision, it was clear to all that this freshman has a lot to offer this team in the future. Finally, Matt Smith (Hwt), Thomas Stone's best wrestler stepped on the mat and scored a pin over Calvert's Grail Schroeder.
Westlake Dual Meet - January 21, 1999:
Calvert made it 9-0 tonight with their second biggest win of the year... a 63-9 rout of Westlake. The team had seven pins with the most exciting coming at the end. Heavyweight Grail Schroeder scored a fall at 1:17 of the first period and won the Outstanding Wrestler award in the process. Blaire Surgent won number 99 of his career and positioned himself to become the second member of the 100 win club on 01/26 against Great Mills.
Great Mills Dual Meet - January 26, 1999:
A 52-12 victory over Great Mills marked the Cavalier's tenth win of the season. Blaire Surgent was voted the Outstanding Wrestler as he won his 100th match of his high school career (he is only the second person in school history to do this). Congratulations Blaire!
Chopticon/Leonardtown Tri Meet - January 28, 1999:
Calvert kept the winning streak alive with two victories tonight; 44-18 over Chopticon and then 38-27 over Leonardtown. The team is now 12-0 and has clinched their first SMAC Dual Meet Championship in school history. Outstanding wrestlers were Tony Roberts for the Chopticon meet and Justin Holman for the Leonardtown meet. One bit of sad news; Blaire Surgent's undefeated streak was stopped when he lost to Garrett Black of Chopticon.
Northern Dual Meet - February 2, 1999:
Always the highlight of the season, this year's Northern meet was as exciting as ever (provided you were a Cavalier fan). Calvert dismantled Northern by the most lopsided score ever, 57-3 and, in the process, completed their first ever undefeated season. Northern's only win came in the 171 pound weight class where top ranked Steve Hayden defeated Randy Barletta. The gym was really rocking as it was, by far, the best attended event of the season. But it got really loud when heavyweight Grail Schroeder was on the mat. Everyone really pulls for Grail and he proudly earned his second Outstanding Wrestler award of the season by scoring a pin. What a great way to finish a great evening. Congratulations Grail and to everyone on the team for such a fine season.
3A/4A South Region Dual Meet Championships - February 10, 1999:
Calvert's undefeated record earned them the #1 seed and the honor of being the host (three years in a row) of the 3A/4A South Region Dual Meet Championship. The Cavalier's first opponent was a tough Leonardtown team who came in with a 10-4 record. The score ended up 36-27 but Calvert forfeited the 171, 189 and heavyweight matches once the outcome was set. Buck Sampson was named the Outstanding Wrestler for showing his toughness as he competed, and won, despite having a migraine headache.
In the championship meet, Calvert faced a game Bowie team with a 13-1 record. (The good news was that their one loss during the regular season came at the hands of the Cavaliers.) This time, everyone wrestled (no forfeits) and the score was even better than the first time these two teams met; 49-14. The highlight of the meet was Paul Sheran's return from an injury. Paul's opponent had an 18-4 record coming in but Paul wasted no time in scoring a pin in just 24 seconds. And, for that, Paul was named the Outstanding Wrestler.
Congratulations to everyone on a fine season. You can always look back on this and be proud of your accomplishments.
3A/4A State Dual Meet Championships - February 13, 1999:
Calvert brought their strongest team ever into the state dual meet championships today. The Cavaliers were 15-0 and seeded #2. Their semi-final opponent was perenial power, Arundel and Calvert ended up losing a real heartbreaker by the score of 31-26. Despite winning seven of thirteen matches, the Cavalier's just did not do enough in the pinning department (both giving and receiving). Arundel scored four pins in their six victories while Calvert had only one pin (Jason Poore)and that was the difference. Winners were Justin Brittain, Max Buff (defeating the #5 ranked 112 pounder in the state), Buck Sampson, Blaire Surgent (major decision), Jason Poore, Scott McAdoo (major decision) and Paul Sheran. Jason and Scott both completed the dual meet season a perfect 16-0 in duals (possibly the first time this has ever been done at Calvert).
They may not have won, but everybody kept their heads high and their spirts were good. I had many conversations with people from around the state following the meet and, ironically, I think Calvert will gain more respect in this defeat than they had in all of their previous fifteen wins.
And so, Calvert finishes their fantastic dual meet season with a record of 15-1, by far, their best ever! They outscored their opponents by 465 points via a combined score of 749-284, which averages to 47-18 per meet. Now it's time to move on to the individual competition with the SMAC Tournament, hosted by Calvert, starting on Friday 02/19. Good luck everyone!
SMAC Conference Championships - February 19-20, 1999:
Calvert High School couldn't have picked a better year to be the host of the prestigious Southern Maryland Athletic Conference (SMAC) Wrestling Championships. The Cavaliers literally buried the rest of the field by scoring a school record 212.5 points. The second place team, Thomas Stone, was over 72 points behind with only 140. The team had a combined record of 32-14 with thirteen pins.
It was a weekend of records as Calvert also set school records for most champions with five wrestlers taking home the top prize and for the most place winners with eleven team members placing in the top six of their weight class. There were even some individual records. Scott McAdoo, the 160 pound champion, broke the school record for pins in a season when he got number twenty-one Friday night. Justin Brittain, the 103 pound champion, came right back on Saturday and set a new record by pinning all of his opponents in the tournament. He also tied the old mark of twenty in a season and pulled to within one of Scott. We'll have to wait and see who ends up with the final record as I'm sure that both of these young men still have more pins waiting for them at the region and state championships.
We also had three wrestlers who joined Shawn Poore, a SMAC champion in 1996 and 1997, as two time SMAC champions. Jason Poore, the 140 pound champion, added the name Poore to the record books again along with Paul Sheran, the 189 pound champion and Scott McAdoo as all three won their second straight SMAC titles. In addition to the Poore's, another brother act added their names to the records as Blaire Surgent, the 135 pound champion, won his first SMAC title and joined brother Ahren, a 1997 champion.
As great as it was to have five champions, I personally think that the most telling statistic about this year's championship team was the fact that eleven of thirteen wrestlers placed in the top six. Here's the rundown of place winners:
103 - Justin Brittain - 1st Place
112 - Max Buff - 3rd Place
119 - Buck Sampson - 4th Place
125 - Dustin Little - 6th Place
130 - Justin Holman - 3rd Place
135 - Blaire Surgent - 1st Place
140 - Jason Poore - 1st Place
145 - Tony Roberts - 4th Place
152 - Jeremiah Cleman - 5th Place
160 - Scott McAdoo - 1st Place
189 - Paul Sheran - 1st Place
Click here to read a summary of the notable results from this tournament.
The tournament was very well run and a lot of credit and thanks go out to too many people to mention here. One that does deserve mentioning though is Mr. Dave Taylor, the tourament director. Thanks Mr. Taylor for all your help in running a fine tournament that not only the wrestlers, but the entire Cavalier community can be proud of.
Finally, congratulations to all the wrestlers, coaches and staff on their first SMAC Tournament championshp! If Coach Kistler doesn't get coach of the year honors this year then someone better call the sheriff because a robbery will have been committed.
3A/4A South Region Championships - February 26-27, 1999:
Calvert won their third consecutive 3A/4A South Region tournament title on Saturday. And they did it in record fashion... five finalists and five champions. The team scored 127.5 points to lead second place Northern who had 95. It was a great night for the SMAC as the top eight teams, out of twenty-one participating, were all SMAC teams. It was also a great night for Calvert County wrestling as eight of the thirteen champions were from Calvert County... five from Calvert, two from Northern and one from Patuxent.
Calvert's five champions were 112 - Max Buff, 135 - Blaire Surgent, 140 - Jason Poore, 160 - Scott McAdoo and 189 - Paul Sheran. We also had one wrestler place fourth; 119 - Buck Sampson. All six wrestlers are now qualified and entered into the state tournament which takes place on 03/05-6. (Note: One sad note was our 103 pounder, Justain Brittain, was sick and could not wrestle. Justain was the SMAC champion and #1 seed in the region. He would have, most likely, been our sixth champion.)
The finals were great! It was the battle of the rematches. Starting with Max Buff (only a freshman!), the jinx from last year (four finalist and no champions) was broken. Max defeated Jeremy Harpold of Thomas Stone by the score of 6-4. Max and Harpold had split two earlier matches but this was easily the most important of the three.
Once Max, a freshman, set the pace... it was up to the four seniors that the Washington Post called "The Fabulous Four" to keep the ball rolling:
At 130, Blaire Surgent needed a takedown in overtime to defeat his toughest opponent of the year... Garrett Black of Chopticon. This was the fifth time that these two state ranked wrestlers clashed this year and Blaire now holds a 4-1 record in the series. Black has only four losses on the year and all four are to Blaire.
At 140, Jason Poore had a rematch also with Marcello Nucci. In the SMAC quarter-finals, Jason needed overtime to defeat Nucci. This time, Nucci was leading 8-4 going into the third period. But Jason showed a lot of heart by not giving up and taking it to Nucci for the 12-10 victory.
Scott McAdoo wrestled David Young of LaPlata for the fourth time this season in the 160 pound finals. Like Black from Chopticon against Blaire Surgent, Young has only lost four times this year and all four have been to Scott who won this contest by the score of 5-0. Both wrestlers are ranked in the top six in the state and may very well meet again in the state finals. With this tournament victory, Scott (34-1) has now won thirty-two in a row this season and is only one victory away from tying the school record for most wins in a season at thirty-five.
The beast is back at 189 as Paul Sheran showed that his earlier season knee injury was not going to stop him from making it a five for five night for Calvert. Paul also had a rematch against SMAC runner-up Sean O'Connor from Patuxent. This was the third time that these two had hooked up and Paul has won all three. The score was a rematch too as Paul nipped O'Connor by the score of 3-2 for the second time in a row. Paul is now 21-0 and has a great chance of being the first Calvert wrestler to complete his season undefeated!
Congratulations to each of these wrestlers and to the entire team. Good luck at states!
3A/4A Maryland State Championships - March 5-6, 1999:
The Cavaliers easily had their best showing ever in the state tournament. The team scored 79 points and came in fourth place behind Damascus (112), South Carroll (95.5) and Magruder (81). In all, we had four place winners with Scott McAdoo leading the way as the school's first individual champion. Paul Sheran and Blaire Surgent were runners-up and Jason Poore claimed a third place finish.
Scott came into the tournament ranked #3 in the state and as the #1 seed from the south. He won his title in what was, arguably, the toughest weight class in the tournament. Statistically, the 160 pound weight class was ranked #1 in win percentage, #1 in total wins and #2 in fewest losses. Four of the states top six wrestlers, according to the MSWA March rankings poll, were not only in the tournament but all four made it to the semi-finals. Scott defeated Brad Mann from South Carroll in his opening match by the score of 13-8. He was nervous and made a few mistakes but once he got past that match, he dominated the rest of the field.
In the quarter-finals he defeated the East #2 wrestler, Steve Geoffre of Annapolis by the score of 5-1. The semi-finals was a rematch of the Northern Tournament finals against the West #2 wrestler, Steve Suhaka of Damascus. Suhaka was ranked #6 in the state but he was no match for Scott as Scott won 8-2. The finals was also a rematch, a very special one! The West #1 wrestler, Matt Tao of Wheaton, was the man responsible for Scott's only loss of the year (in the third match of the season at the Chopticon Tournament). Tao, the state's #5 ranked wrestler, was trying to prove that his win over Scott at Chopticon was no fluke. Scott, however, made quick work of Tao by scoring the fastest pin in the finals at 1:40 of the first period.
Scott finished the season with a record of 38-1. Along the way he set three school records: most wins in a season (38), most pins in a season (22) and longest winning streak (36).
Congratulations Scott, Calvert's first ever state champion!
Note: As the keeper of the web page and father of the first state champion, I am going to take a little liberty here to say a few words. Scott is a perfect example of what can be accomplished when you set goals and work hard to achieve those goals. He went from earning his first varsity letter in 1997 to sixth in the state in 1998 to state champion in 1999. Can everyone do this? Probably not, but it can be done... he has proven it. I believe that this is just the beginning for Calvert High School. For any of you wrestlers out there that are reading this, take heart. Believe in yourself, set goals and focus your energy toward the achievement of those goals and you too will find that there are many rewards for those that work hard and persevere.
Paul Sheran and team co-captain Blaire Surgent were both finalists in their respective weight classes. Paul brought his undefeated record of 24-0 and a #3 state ranking into the 189 pound finals against Matt Kunkel of Aberdeen. Kunkel was the 1998 state runner-up and was also undefeated in 1999. Paul gave it everything he had but came up just short in losing to Kunkel by the score of 6-5. Blaire came into the 135 pound finals ranked #3 in the state and with an outstanding record of 34-1. His opponent was the north #1 seed, Kyle Burger of Westminster. Blaire wrestled a great match but couldn't score the takedown he needed in the final minute and lost a heart breaker by the score of 6-5. Despite their disappointment, Paul and Blaire both should be very proud of their state runner-up status as are all of the Cavalier fans.
Our final place winner was co-captain Jason Poore. Jason came into the tournament as the state's #4 ranked 140 pounder with a 32-1 record. Unfortunately, Jason lost in the quarter-finals to eventual champion Anthony Gigliotti of Sherwood. Jason suffered a laceration to his eye during that match that required a trip to the hospital to get stiches. Despite the injury and his disappointment, Jason showed the heart of a champion by coming all the way back through the consolation brackets with four consecutive wins to place third in the state.
Well, that's about it. The season is over but for one exception; the Maryland Senior Classic will be held on Tuesday March 9th. This all-star contest pits the top seniors of each weight class from 1A/2A, 3A/4A and the private schools against each other for state bragging rights. At this time, it is definite that Scott will be representing Calvert on the 3A/4A squad but it is also my understanding that Blaire and Jason may also be invited.
But as a team, the season is over... and what a season it was:
First time SMAC dual meet champions
First time SMAC tournament champions
Second time 3A/4A South Region dual meet champions
Third time 3A/4A South Region tournament champions
Two individual state runner-up placements
And Calvert's first individual state champion
Congratulations to all the wrestlers, coaches and parents on a fine season that will be remembered for a long time to come!
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