Sports - January 2004

20 and counting for the Rebels

By JOHN MARK BROOKS, Staff Writer

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The West Lincoln Rebels did what they know how to do in their rematch against the Newton-Conover Red Devils on Tuesday night— win.

The Rebels’ unblemished record went down last Saturday at the Cavalier Classic hosted by East Burke at the hands of the Red Devils, who were 18-0 at the time.

Head coach Butch Ross  was happy to avenge their only loss, but said beating them was more important to their standing the Midwest 2A Conference.

“It was good to win the match especially since they were the ones, along with us and Bandys who were picked to win it in the Midwest 2A Conference,” he said.

The Rebels now are 20-1 on the season and Ross believes they are peaking at the right time.

“I think they’re still improving, but they’re actually where I thought and hoped they would be,” he said.

West Lincoln is now 2-0 in the conference and will face East Rutherford tonight, weather permitting.

“I expect them to be a quality team and they’re well coached and a well-disciplined team,” Ross said of the Cavaliers.

The same could be said for the Rebels led by Antonio Rojo, a heavyweight wrestler, with a record of 25-2 on the season.

“He’s been real strong in the lineup and kind of an anchor there in the heavyweight class. You pretty much know he’s going to win,” Ross said.

John Harkey, who wrestles in the 103 pound weight class, is 24-6. Ross said he came up big against Newton on Tuesday.

“The kid from Newton had beaten him twice earlier, but John decided it was time for him to beat him and it was a big turning point in the match,” he said.

Zeb Elmore, in the 130 pound weight class, is 23-2. Ross said he doesn’t expect him to lose often either.

“He’s really wrestling well and is real strong on his feet. You know he’s pretty much going to win when he goes out there,” he said.

Matt Avery, at 112, is 16-2  and Jeremy Pearson, at 119, is 18-6.

“Both of those kids are real good wrestlers. They go after it when they’re out there and you know they’re going to give you 100 percent when they’re on the mat,” Ross said.

How does Ross see their season shaping up?

“Right now the momentum is with us. When we won the Newton match it gave us the confidence to push us to, hopefully, be conference champions,” he said.

After Friday’s match, the Rebels will continue their quest for the Midwest 2A Conference Championship against the Bandys Trojans on Tuesday.

“It gives us the edge going in Tuesday against Bandys. Hopefully, we can beat East Rutherford and Bandys and then we’ll be in the driver’s seat to win the conference,” Ross said.

Although Ross’ resume speaks for itself, he points to good athletes and the community support being the reason the Rebels are so successful.

Part of that support has come from Jeff “Biscuit” George, who’s been an assistant to Ross for over 10 years.

“He’s there everyday, he works hard and really loves wrestling. He’s a big help to the program,” Ross said.

The coach feels that many wrestlers on his team are responsible for their overall success. Daniel Scronce 19-4, Dustin Hester 20-6, Keane Steele 18-6 and Daniel Soto 17-8 have been instrumental for the Rebels.

“They’re just good solid wrestlers. When you put them out there you can depend on them to give you 100 percent and go after the people,” Ross said.

The main cog in the Rebels’ engine is the wrestling and leadership provided by a few seniors: Steele Barber 24-4, Will Bess and Brent Gates. Ross says they are crucial to their success.

“They’ve done a good job leading by example for us all season,” he said.

© 2001 Lincoln Times-News  

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