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Show Birch, Bassett are bright spots in Miner mat action in Kamas i trying for early pins, and making good move choices in doing so, he . said. t , Bassett only wrestled one match, against South Summit's Mike Toone at 112 pounds. Toone got the opening takedown, led 4-2 after the first period, and also got the first takedown in the second round. But Bassett quickly reversed him, then pinned him at 2:42 of the match. "He's really comin' along," Schaub said. Bassett is a little inexperienced and needs some polishing, but could do well this season, he contends. Ocey Leavitt had the other victory for Park City Thursday. That came in the 138-pound bracket against Ron Haviland of South Rich. Leavitt took down Haviland, then pinned ,him with three seconds left in the first two-minute period. In his South Summit match, however, Leavitt lost to Troy Prescott on a pin in the second round. Schaub said Leavitt made a poor choice in his second match, using a move that resulted in an instant pin when it failed. At that point Leavitt was trailing only 2-0, and Schaub said he should not have tried such a risky move in so close a match. He said Prescott will most likely be the one to beat at 138 pounds in Region 11. All the rest of the matches were in the loss column for Park City. Freshmen Chad Zierenberg lost twice to South Summit wrestlers. First, in the 98 pound bracket, Zierenberg faced Lynn Thornton of the Wildcats, and was pinned midway through the second round. His other match was an exhibition against Troy Crittenden. In that affair, Zierenberg was pinned very quickly after Crittenden got the opening takedown. Schaub said Zierenberg is at a . disadvantage . because he weighf only 83 pounds, but wrestles in the 98 pound class (the lowest weight class), giving away at least 10 to 15 pounds each match. Brent Adams also wrestled two matches for the Miners. His first battle was with Kirk Crystal of South Summit in the 167 pound bracket. Schaub described Krystal, a new addition to the team, as "a ringer." That was evident as he pinned Adams at the 3:14 mark. Adams then faced Wildcat Dirk Rockhill in an exhibition. Rockhill quickly took down Adams, then pinned him only 1:13 into the first period. Rockhill, a hulk of a kid, about 6 '3" tall without an ounce of fat, will be the favorite in the 155-pound bracket in the region, Schaub said. Matt Burnett and Greg Reid each wrestled once for Park City. Burnett faced off at 126 pounds against Mike Hopkin of South Rich, and started off fast with the opening takedown to score the only points of the first period. But then Hopkin took control, pushing for two reversals and two three-point nearfalls before finally winning the match on points, 10-7. Greg Reid grappled with Russ Robertson of South Summit at 119 pounds. Reid's lack of strength showed again (he has been sick repeatedly this season), and he was pinned midway through the match. The Miners of the mats wrestled yesterday at Altamont, but the press time of this paper precluded coverage. Mike Birch by Randy Hanskat In the second week of Miner wrestling action, Park City faced South Summit and South Rich in a dual match at Kamas Dec. 13. Of the 11 matches wrestled, Miner grap-plers grap-plers won only four, but Park City coach Jesse Schaub said he was impressed with the performances of Mike Birch and Ron Bassett. Birch had two pins, the first coming in an exhibition match against Matt Wilde of South Summit. Wilde was rated at 138 pounds, while Birch was at 132, but Birch made quick work of him, getting the initial takedown and then following with a quick pin. Birch's second match was against Alan Hackford of South Rich, who dropped from the 138-pound bracket the previous week down to 132. But he probably wished he hadn't, as Birch pinned him at 3:04 into the match. Schaub said Birch looks "real strong." The senior team leader is |
