Turf giants hit the mat

[KFDM COOP]

Turf giants hit the mat

By TERRY CARTER

For The Chronicle

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Giants of high school wrestling entered the fray last week as football ended its run for all but a handful.

Dropping the shoulder pads and helmets and sliding into a singlet and high-top wrestling shoes, Matt Harris of Cinco Ranch and Mike Murray of Cy-Fair are expected to be the marquee athletes for a pair of the Houston area's most talented teams.

Harris made his wrestling debut Friday at Katy Taylor in a dual meet; Murray dove into the 10th annual Doc Hes Classic tournament held in Bryan.

Harris battled Taylor's Rory Dobbs for six minutes before winning by decision. Word had gotten out about Harris' return to the wrestling spotlight, apparently, as a video crew and media photographers covered the dual meet.

After winning the 160-pound state title twice in the final 30 seconds at the 2006 UIL state tournament — the second time occurring after referees waived off the first takedown on a technicality — Harris now has to deal with more notoriety than most state champions. He's a Cinco Ranch senior captain, and a leader in two sports.

He's pretty humble about the 2006 state tournament miracle, saying he was not expected to accomplish much at state as an underdog.

And when he was about to walk on the podium to receive his gold medal and got called back to the mat to face Austin Bowie's Brent Pardinek, the only unbeaten 160-pounder in Texas, Harris stepped up and snatched another victory again with a last-second, 2-point takedown to score a 4-3 state title.

Murray entered last February's state tournament trying to recover from his first loss after 49 consecutive wins at 145 pounds. The weight featured at least six elite grapplers, and Murray paid the price. He dropped a 14-7 quarterfinal decision to Region II champion A.J. Forsythe of Highland Park and placed fifth at state.

On Saturday at the Doc Hes, Murray wrestled at 152 pounds and dominated. He pinned The Woodlands' Bart Kovacs in his 152-pound bracket final and wore down Seven Lakes challenger Jordan Hauser before a late pin in the 152 Super Final between bracket champions.

Murray also powered Cy-Fair to a team championship over Klein, The Woodlands and Cinco Ranch in a competitive boys' race.

Murray wears the frustration of last season's state tournament on his headgear. It motivates him, and he wrestled well Saturday, although the Bobcat will drop to 145 pounds in January.

Klein athlete weighs options

Two-time defending state champion Lindsey Brooks of Klein has dominated her opponents for some time now.

As a result, Brooks earned an invitation to visit Northern Michigan University in Marquette, Mich., as part of a recruiting trip for Olympic hopefuls wishing to attend college and train for wrestling and other winter sports.

Klein assistant coach and Brooks' father, Mark Brooks, said it was 2 degrees when he and his senior daughter stepped outside in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Snow blanketed the ground, and not long into their walk Lindsey tossed a snowball at her dad with a grin.

Brooks is considering her college options. She still throws a mean snowball while having fun off the mat, though.

Upcoming events

With a few duals finishing the pre-holiday action today, dual action will kick into gear again Jan. 3 and 4 with events at Mayde Creek, Klein Collins, Cy-Fair, Cy Springs, Klein and Cy Ridge. Westside will host a quad meet on Dec. 30 with Cinco Ranch and Strake Jesuit competing.

The next major tournaments include the Lone Star Duals and Grapevine Duals as two-day events Jan. 5 and 6. Locally, teams will compete at the Klein Collins tournament on six mats Jan. 6, and at the St. Thomas tourney on five mats.

Boys rankings

1. Cy-Fair; 2. Klein; 3. The Woodlands; 4. Cinco Ranch; 5. Klein Oak; 6. Brazoswood; 7. Katy Taylor; 8. Katy; 9. Cy Ridge; 10. Morton Ranch

Girls rankings

1. Waller; 2. Katy; 3. Katy Taylor; 4. Cy-Fair; 5. The Woodlands; 6. Brazoswood; 7. Klein; 8. Cy Ridge; 9. Houston Lee; 10. Langham Creek

E-mail Terry Carter at [email protected]

[Zedd]

Thanks Coop,

Good stuff. My son wrestles at 152 at Westbrook and he wasn't happy to see Murray moved up from 145 to 152. The kid was feared at 145 and he's apparently put on a lot of muscle in the past year. We'll be running into Cy-Fair and Seven Lakes at least one more time before regionals in February so we'll see how we do. The one to watch at Westbrook is Gerald Moulton at 189 pounds. He went to state last year as a sophomore and is sure make it back this year.

[KFDM COOP]

No problem. Keep us updated.