By ERIKA PICKLES
Dowagiac Daily News

NILES – Brandywine’s varsity wrestling team opened its 2009-2010 season with two dominating victories over visiting Kalamazoo Loy Norrix and Bridgman Wednesday night.
The Bobcats took a 54-21 win over the Knights in their first match, and ended the evening with a 66-18 victory over the Bees. Hartford, who was also on the schedule, did not attend the meet.

Head coach Rex Pomranka said he wasn’t sure what to expect from the squad, but after seeing the performances his wrestlers put on, he knew where his team’s strengths were. He also said he was more than pleased with the effort his guys brought to the mat.

“It’s our middle weights. I knew we would probably be strong in that area, but after seeing it live tonight, I know that’s going to be a big key for us this season. We’ve also got some talent in the lower weights as well,” Pomranka said.

That was evident during both of Brandywine’s matches.

The Bobcats found themselves trailing Loy Norrix 18-6 early in the first match, with the only win coming from AJ Shell at 189, who pinned Tyler Selph in 43 seconds. That lead quickly changed, though, as six Bobcat wrestlers in the lower and middle weight classes, put back-to-back wins on the board, allowing Brandywine to take the lead for good.

Jeff Cornell opened the streak with a win by void at 112. Jimmie Wright (119) tied the match at 18 by pinning opponent Anothony Horton just 27 seconds into his match.

Chanc Ravish (125) gave the Bobcats their first lead against the Knights when he pinned Alex Stump at 3:13.

Other pins came from Justin Batman (130), Ralph Sater (135), Niles High School transfer Matt Bricker (152) and Max Hostetler (160).

Brandywine vs. Bridgman
Bridgman tied Brandywine, 12-12, early in the final match of the evening, but eight of the Bobcats’ 13 wrestlers earned pins, most coming less than 50 seconds into the first round, to secure the win for Brandywine.

“We’ve been stressing pins this year. It’s something we do over and over again in practice and tonight the practice paid off,” Pomranka said.

Wright earned his second pin of the evening just 13 seconds into his match against David Leonardson at 119. Ravish pinned Dustin Zebell 26 seconds into the 125 bout. Adam Earles (135) defeated Grady Smith by pin 29 seconds into his match. Ralph Sater also pinned his opponent, Dustin Long, 42 seconds into the 140 match and Alex Humphrey (145) pinned Josh Long at 56 seconds.

Other Brandywine wrestlers earning pins against the Bee’s included Shell, Bryan Lee (289) and Cornell. Kyle Brennan (171) and Bricker won their matches by forfeit.

“The guys came through and did a nice job. They hustled, they were aggressive and they brought forth the effort they needed to,” Pomranka said.

Although the Bobcats did well in their opener, Pomranka said the true test will come this weekend when they travel to Vicksburg, where they will face Three Rivers, Dowagiac, Portage Central, Mattawan and the host Bulldogs.

“We’ve got a tough mix of D3, D2 and D1 schools to face, but I like it this way. I beefed up our schedule for a reason. We’re a young team. We’ve got some veterans on the squad, but we also have freshman who are starting. I’d rather have these guys face tough competition early in the season because it will pay off in the long run,” Pomranka said.

Also on Wednesday, Loy Norrix captured a 42-39 win over Bridgman.

Loy Norrix…21
Brandywine…54
103 – Void
112 – Jeff Cornell (BW) wins by forfeit
119 – Jimmie Wright (BW) pinned Anthony Horton in 0:27
125 – Chanc Ravish (BW) pinned Alex Stump at 3:13
130 – Justin Batman (BW) pinned Jomo Upton at 3:47
135 – Ralph Sater (BW) pinned Brandon Palone in 0:29
140 – Adam Earles (BW) wins by forfeit
145 – Charles McCall-Lipsey (LN) def. Alex Humphrey, 8-4
152 – Matt Bricker (BW) pinned Antwan Steel at 5:34
160 – Max Hostetler (BW) pinned Chris DeRyke at 5:09
171 – Scott Markley (LN) pinned Kyle Brennan at 1:23
189 – AJ Shell (BW) pinned Tyler Selph in 0:43
215 – Jason Procho (LN) pinned Paul Ropp at 3:28
289 – Mike Burrell (LN) pinned Bryan Lee in 0:49

Bridgman…18
Brandywine..66
103 – Jarrett Anderson (BR) wins by forfeit
112 – Jeff Cornell (BW) pinned Chris Rotondo at 1:06
119 – Jimmie Wright (BW) pinned David Leonardson at 0:13
125 – Chanc Ravis (BW) pinned Dustin Zebell at 0:26
130 – Justin Batman (BW) wins by forfeit
135 – Adam Earles (BW) pinned Grady Smith in 0:29
140 – Ralph Sater (BW) pinned Dustin Long in 0:42
145 – Alex Humphrey (BW) pinned Josh Long in 0:56
152 – Matt Bricker (BW) wins by forfeit
160 – Mitch Hehl (BW) pinned Max Hostetler at 1:12
171 – Kyle Brennan (BW) wins by forfeit
189 – AJ Shell (BW) pinned Dan Schillenger at 2:52
215 – Pat Williams (BR) pinned Paul Ropp in 0:43
289 – Bryan Lee (BW) pinned Cooper Gast at 1:36