INDIAN HEAD -- For those wondering how the Hammond and Oakland Mills wrestling squads rank against each other this season, a clear picture was provided last night.
Like most years, they are close. Last night at Lackey Invitational Tournament at Charles County's Lackey High, Hammond placed sixth (104 points) and the Scorpions eighth (83).
"Recently, Hammond has surfaced as a very strong team in the county," Oakland Mills coach Steve Carnahan said. "I'm pleased with how we competed with them here. But there's still a whole lot to prove when we butt heads with them later in the season."
Overall 17 schools competed. The top five were McDonough (175), Quince Orchard (160), Lackey (144), DeMatha (140) and Wheaton (108).
Oakland Mills placed two wrestlers in the finals, and senior Adam Seidman captured the 140-pound class over Wheaton's Giscard Grant, 2-1. At 152, the Scorpions Geoff Henderson was manhandled by McDonough's Chris Henderson, 15-4.
For Seidman, who finished second in the tourney last year, it was his 103rd career victory. His points came on a second-period reversal. Grant's escape put him within one, but the third period went scoreless, as Grant failed to lunge with time running out.
"I knew that he was going to try and stick his legs in between mine," said Seidman of his reversal, "but I got guys from McDonough who told me when he tries that I should come in and grab them and spin out."
In the third period, "It seemed to me that he wasn't going to shoot so I wasn't if he wasn't," Seidman added.
Momentum changed several times in the 152-pound bout. Henderson's reversal put him ahead 4-3 in the second period, but Hawkins countered with an immediate reversal of his own. Hawkins two back points at period's end provided him a 7-4 edge.
Next, Hawkins nearly recorded a pin and instead was awarded five back points to solidify the win.
"I figured I was too far behind after he scored the third-period back points, so I tried some drastic moves," Henderson said.
Hammond was boosted by third-place finishes from seniors Erin Woodward (152) and Pat Brennan (189). Woodward, who weighs just 144, defeated Quince Orchard's Chad Dorfman, 3-2, and Brennan tallied his seventh pin against one loss this season against Leonardtown's John Butler.
Fourth-place finishes went to Hammond's John Motley and Oakland Mills Yuri Freeman. Freeman's finish was particularly disappointing. He led 6-4 with 10 seconds left but Thomas Stone's Ben Barrows' reversal caused sudden death, when he won on a takedown.
"All I needed to do is hold for 10 more seconds," Freeman said. "I tried to pull his legs and I messed up. He reversed me."