4th Annual
Virginia vs. Maryland
Senior All Star Match

Saturday March 13, 1999
Hayfield H.S., Alexandria, VA

Virginia 40 -- Maryland 20

Virginia brought a host of its top wrestlers to this annual affair pitting seniors from both states in a final DC area production. This meeting was a big event for Virginia seniors who are tuning up for the "Dream Team Classic" scheduled to be held in their state this year.

Unfortunately for Maryland, snow during the week caused the postponement of another Maryland Senior wrestling event to the night before, resulting in the loss of four top ranked Maryland wrestlers from its lineup. The Maryland wrestlers who did attend appeared to be fatigued late in their matches, and this likely led to their losses in at least two weight classes.

One thing that does stand out in this annual match-up, the top ranked seniors, regardless of their state, can handle their own against the best from any other state.

Individual Matches

103 Adam Canady (Douglas Freeman - #4 AAA) VA maj. dec. Matt Levine (Quince Orchard - unranked) MD 10-1
Adam dominated this match keeping Matt under control throughout with a tight arm bar that Matt was unable to counter.

112 Donnie Pereira (Stonewall Jackson - #1 AAA) VA dec. Chris Knox (Calvert Hall - #1 Maryland) MD 7-4
This was a very exciting match. Donnie caught Chris with a throw to his back for 5 at the beginning of the first period and Chris could never come back. Fatigue started to show on Chris in the third period as a result of his tough matches at the Maryland Senior Classic the previous night.

119 Fabian Harper (Deep Creek - #4 AAA) VA maj. dec. Matt Pandullo (Meade - #1 tie Maryland) MD 14-4
Matt was considerably smaller than Fabian, and the size advantage helped. He clearly was able to muscle the smaller Pandullo who penetrated deep on several shots only to be powered back.

125 Brandon Claderwood (Broad Run - #2 AAA) VA pinned Jesse McKeever (Lackey - unranked) MD
Shown on the left, Jesse took control early on and it looked to be clear sailing for him. This match was clearly in the bag for McKeever who was well ahead in the third period, then ran out of gas and got caught napping. Jesse came up on both knees with his head up and was immediately pancaked to his back. Jesse was another Maryland wrestler who suffered from matches the previous night. He had two tough matches late in the evening at the Maryland Senior Classic, both against strong opponents.

130 Vaymond Dennis (Hammond - #3 Maryland) MD dec. Stacy Menefee (Franklin County - #8 AAA) VA 12-6
Shown on the left in the third period, this was one of the more exciting matches that went back and forth until Vaymond started to pull away in the third. Vaymond, who was a Maryland state champ in 1998, is both strong and relentless. He moved continuously and used a very quick snap and spin to take Stacy to the mat.

135 Adam Britt (Atlee - #1 AAA) VA tech. fall Chris Kehne (Walkersville - unranked) MD 21-6
This match was Adam's all the way. Although not facing one of Maryland's top ranked wrestlers at this weight, Adam clearly showed why he is one of Virginia's best. He was able to take Chris to the mat at will using a variety of techniques.

140 Kurt White (Atlee - #2 AAA) VA dec. Timur Chabuk (Albert Einstein - unranked) MD 12-10 ot
This match went to the wire as a real knock down drag them out battle of state runner-ups. Timur was up 6-2 in the third period when he seemed to get tired and Kurt quickly went to work with successive takedowns to tie the score at the buzzer. In OT it was the same story as Kurt quickly scored on a double.

145 Drew Robertson (DeMatha - #1 Maryland) MD maj. dec. Andrew Shuler (Brookville - #1 AA) VA 18-8
Billed as the big match between two #1 state ranked wrestlers, Drew clearly showed why he is also one of the nations best wrestlers. He used various attacks to take his opponent to the mat at will. His big move was an outside single which he switched to a "dump" if needed for the takedown. Once on the mat, Drew took control with power moves to force Andrew to his back. Drew is currently ranked by the Washington Post at the #1 metro area wrestler in his weight class.

152 Paul Boettcher (Archbishop Curley - #2 Maryland) MD maj. dec. Ben Summerlin (Brookville - #1 AA) VA 15-5
Although only #2 in Maryland, Paul is easily one of Maryland's class wrestlers. He has both technique and focus. In this match Paul was clearly in control using a cross body ride to continuously turn Ben to his back. Paul began to weaken in the third period but not enough for Ben to turn the tide.

160 Derek Lipoli (Great Bridge - #1 AAA) VA dec. Scott McAdoo (Calvert - #4 Maryland) MD 7-2
Derek is currently ranked #1 in the nation. This was the second meeting between these two, the first time they had wrestled in scholastic style. Although Scott put on a good tough match, Derek was able to control Scott on the mat to come away with the decision.

171 Wes Cummings (DeMAtha - #1 Maryland) MD pinned Ben Frothingham (Robinson - unranked) MD
This time Maryland's #1 nationally ranked wrestler had his chance to show off for the fans and media. Ben was fighting off his back from the beginning but lasted into the second period before Wes put him away.

189 Justin Johnson (North Stafford - unranked) VA pinned Thomas Matthews (Bishop McNamara - unranked) MD
Thomas got carried away with a couple of attempted lateral throws that took him straight to his back. He was able to get out the first time but the second time he was stuck.

215 Jeff Blachly (Arundel - unranked) MD dec. Nick Prieto (Turner Ashby - #3 AA) VA 13-10
Although unranked, Jeff is a tough wrestler with both quickness and strength. This match was a big scoring event but Jeff held the edge throughout, twice catching Ben riding too high.

275 Brian Wood (Herndon - unranked) VA pinned Joel Lorenzetti (DuVal - unranked) MD
Joel scored first on an easy takedown but couldn't do anything from the top. He decided to let Brian up and, unfortunately for Joel, Brian was waiting the second time. Joel shot in with his head down and was immediately thrown to his back for the pin.

To More Match Pictures

Virginia Line-up:

103 Adam Canady (Douglas Freeman) -- AAA 5th Place 36-6
112 Donnie Periera (Stonewall Jackson) -- AAA 1st Place 40-0
119 Fabien Harper (Deep Creek) -- AAA 3rd Place 35-3
125 Brandon Calderwood (Broad Run) -- AAA 1st 40-0
130 Stacy Menefee (Franklin County) -- 5th AAA States 35-4
135 Adam Britt (Atlee) -- AAA 1st 30-0
140 Kurt White (Atlee) -- AAA 2nd 36-2
145 Andrew Shuler (Brookville) -- AA 1st (3x) 39-0
Ben Summerlin (Brookville) -- 2x AA Runner-up, 38-1
160 Derek Lipoli (Great Bridge) -- AAA 1st 41-2
171 Ben Frothingham (Robinson) -- AAA 2nd 27-5
189 Justin Johnson (North Stafford) -- AAA 1st 35-8
215 Nick Prieto (Turner Ashby) -- AA 1st 36-1
Brian Wood (Herndon) -- 3rd NE Region

Coach - Steve Sabo, Herndon HS
Bryan Hazard, Robinson HS

Maryland Line-up:

103 Matt Levine (Quince Orchard) -- 4th Region 3A/4A
112 Chris Knox (Calvert Hall) -- National Prep Champ, 4th Jr Nationals
119 Matt Pandullo (Meade) -- 3A/4A State Champ
125 Jesse McKeever (Lackey) -- 1A/2A 3rd Place
130 Vaymond Dennis (Hammond) -- 1A/2A State Champ, 2nd HS Open National
135 Chris Kehne (Walkersville) -- 1A/2A State Champ
140 Timur Chabuk (Albert Einstein) -- 1A/2A 2nd, 35-6, All-State Academic Team
145 Drew Robertson (DeMatha) -- National Prep Champ (2x)
152 Paul Boettcher (Archbishop Curley) -- Nation Preps 3rd, AAU Nat Champ, Eastern Nat Champ
160 Scott McAdoo (Calvert) -- 3A/4A State Champ, 2nd AAU Grand Nat, 4th JO Games
171 Wes Cummings (DeMatha) -- National Prep Champ (2x)
189 Thomas Matthews (Bishop McNamara) -- 6th State, 3rd St Albans
215 Jeff Blachly (Arundel) -- 3A/4A State Champ
275 Joel Lorenzetti (DuVal) -- 3A/4A 6th

Coach - Bruce Gabrielson, Southern Maryland Wrestling Club
Dick Messier, DeMatha HS