Month: October 2018

Liam Davis (Clay WC) 11-under 85
TF Braeden Heinz CO 15-0
DEC Braylon Reynolds IN 5-0
DEC Carter Chunko PA 7-0
DEC Jarrett Smith MI 8-2
Final: L-DEC Michael Romero CA 2-0

Ethan Pickren (South Walton) HS 138
DEC Cameron Lucero CO 7-6
DEC Rhett Newton MI 3-1
L-DEC Aidan Medora WI 12-5
DEC Wyatt Kirkham FL 1-0
L-DEC Ed Scott PA 7-1

Peyton Hughes (Fleming Island) HS 138
L-TF Jacob Ealy PA 15-0
FALL Ian Eckert FL 2:20
DEC Shamar Schand CT 5-4
L-DEC Nicolas Coy PA 7-0

Riley White (Matanzas) GIRLS 115
VFA 8-2 Audrie Lee VA
L-VSU Riley Dalrymple NY 10-0
VFA 8-4 Addison Messerly KY
L-VPO 8-0 Anya Knappenberger MD

Ian Eckert (Matanzas) HS 138
L-DEC Steven Storm PA 8-2
DEC Ramon Perez NY 3-2
L-FALL Peyton Hughes FL 2:20

Lawrence Russo (Matanzas) HS 132
L-MD Ezekiel Washington OK 13-4
FALL Charlie Treston NJ 3:47
L-DEC Mason Clarke RI 3-1

Brooks Dyer (Florida High) HS 113
L-MD Pacey Najdusak OH 10-2
L-DEC Lucian Brink OH 5-4

Caleb Bower (Matanzas) HS 126
L-FALL Brandon Larue NJ :47
L-MD Domonic Baker VA 14-1

Ethan Vugman (Clay WC) MS 75
L-FALL Jackson Blum MI 2:51
L-DEC Andrew Binni PA 10-8

Gunner Ivey (Clay WC) MS 112
L-DEC Bryson Vaughn PA 9-2
L-MD Christopher Bacchioni NJ 9-0

Josh Bower (Matanzas) HS 132
L-FALL Ryan Sokol MN 2:28
L-DEC Ricky Roberto GA 2-0

Nicholas Vugman (Bartram Trail) HS 132
L-DEC Mark Montgomery NJ 7-3
L-DEC Frederick Junko PA 6-0

Reid Hampton (Episcopal) HS 152
L-FALL Cooper Noehre IN 1:00
L-MD Brevin Cassella MA 8-0

Shaun Culbreth (Matanzas) HS 113
L-MD Ethan Fernandez NJ 11-0
L-MD David Panda MD 13-0

Stanley Hollenbach (Fletcher) HS 285
L-DEC Nathan Hoaglund PA 7-2
L-FALL Blake Larsen OR 2:39

Please support our independent journalism by going here and donating to our website: https://www.gofundme.com/north-florida-matmen

We have a schedule that was sent to us, but it had some incorrect info. When we asked about it, clarification on one part was given but we’re still waiting to see if they’re going to fix another date. When that school does, we’ll post it.

TurkeyNWrestling is proceeding apace. With fair winds and calm seas, we finish off 1A-District 1’s first draft (UPDATE: Done!) and that should allow us to wrap 3A-District 1 before the end of the weekend. We’ll then start sending our projected returners lists to coaches in order to get those as accurate as possible, given transfers out and in.

We’ll also, early next week, be sending individual emails to coaches for schedules (except to the Panhandle; I think school actually is only being considered for return next week, and maybe that’s not even true in all cases, so I’m going to hold off a couple more weeks on that for those guys).

Readers, this is a collaborative process, too. If your school’s schedule is known to you but you don’t see it on our master list, get with your coach about it. He’s got multiple ways to get in touch with me. Or, if it’s posted somewhere, shoot me an email at nefloridamatmen@gmail.com and let me know about it yourself.

Hopefully, more #NextLevel rosters will be posted — who knew that college sports information directors were so busy? — and we’ll be able to post a more complete schedule there, too (UPDATE: We put two more kids on Friday).

We’ll be following along some with Super 32, too, though I would urge you to check out Brant Parsons’ page. He covers the whole state, and with more immediacy than I can.

Still turning over a crazy idea I have in my head. Don’t know how much I want to do with it this year, but I think it’s definitely going to happen in 2019-20 — and maybe in limited form still this year.

Please support our independent journalism by going here and donating to our website: https://www.gofundme.com/north-florida-matmen

We got our 44th set of dates this afternoon before I ran out to run errands and, probably like several of you, put a small amount of income into tonight’s drawing.

Stanton’s email means there are six of seven teams in hand for 2A-District 3 — looking at you, district champ Ridgeview — and we’re close to 60% complete.

The 2A Blue Devils will begin the season with a weekend IBT, competing in Terry Parker’s Arlington Optimist Invitational, a two-day event on December 7-8. Stanton will then host its first of two home events on the year, a tri-meet that also includes Baldwin and Fernandina Beach, on the 13th. The Blue Devils will then close out 2018 with a short trip up north to Yulee for the two-day Yulee Duals on the 21st and 22nd.

FHSAA tournament action will be Stanton’s first event in January, with the 2A-District 3 dual team district tournament at Ridgeview on the 9th. Next for the Blue Devils will be Terry Parker’s two-day Army Duals on the 11th and 12th, followed by a Gateway Conference tri-meet at Wolfson, which will also include Paxon. Stanton will take part in the Gateway Conference meet, a two-day IBT, on the 18th and 19th, and will stay in Gateway action with a dual meet at Robert E. Lee on the 23rd. The month will conclude with a two-day appearance back at Terry Parker for the Parker Duals.

Stanton has three regular-season events in play for February. First up will be the Westside Duals on the 2nd, a one-day roundrobin tournament, followed by a road tri-meet at Keystone Heights along with Bradford. The regular season will conclude with a Senior Night home dual against Gateway Conference and district rival Englewood.

So that’s 44 teams in hand. Which one will be 45? We’ve got three districts out there with just one team left and another one with just two. Let’s complete a couple of these, guys, with YOUR SCHOOL…

Please support our independent journalism by going here and donating to our website: https://www.gofundme.com/north-florida-matmen

Every so often, I want to reach out and say thank you to those who have pitched in and helped us out with a donation to our site. We have two such to thank:

• The Hollenbach family. Parents of Stanley and Ethan, thank you very much for your support!
• To a 1A coach (whom I will keep anonymous; I really and honestly don’t play favorites, but he kind of is one of mine, even before today).

Hopefully, there will come a day where we do not have to fund-raise this way (any entrepreneurial types that have ideas on this and can help us to move to an advertising base, I would be very grateful!)

Thank you again to those who have donated before. If you’ve thought about it, now’s a good time. Times get a little lean over the summer and the senior year gets pricey in very unexpected ways. We put in, even during the off-season, 50-60 hours a week on the site.

Please support our independent journalism by going here and donating to our website: https://www.gofundme.com/north-florida-matmen

Our third email “blast” sent to coaches has resulted in a flurry of email, several little changes to the schedule, and the first of what should be a few schedule submissions. Bartram Trail is our sixth set of dates out of 2A-District 4 — looking squarely at you, Paxon — and 43rd overall.

The Bears open with a home dual on December 5 against county and district rival Ponte Vedra, then will hop on 210 over to 95 for a short road-trip to Matanzas for that district rival’s one-day duals tournament, the Matanzas Duals, on the 8th. Bartram will stay in duals for the rest of the month, competing in Orange Park’s Raider 6-Way on the 14th, a rare Friday night dual tournament, and then going back to Clay County for the St Johns River Conference tournament on the 21st and 22nd at the Clay County Fairgrounds, hosted by Fleming Island.

Bartram’s first IBT of the season will kick off January, as the Bears will travel to Lake Mary for that school’s Tournament of Champions, a two-day IBT event with a lot of Orlando-area firepower, on the 4th and 5th. The Bears also plan to send wrestlers to Episcopal’s one-day IBT, the Rob Bierbaum Invitational, on the 5th. FHSAA 2A-District 4 team duals are set for the 12th at Nease, with the possibility of region quarters/semis on the 17th. The next regular-season event — and last one for the month — will involve a trip to Lincoln’s one-day IBT, the Trojan Invitational, on the 19th.

There’s three regular-season dates planned in February for the Bears, two of those being their traditional stops at the Rotary IBTs, first the Flagler Rotary at Flagler Palm Coast on 1st and 2nd, and then the Green Cove Springs Rotary at Clay on the 8th and 9th. Bartram Trail will wrap up the regular season with an away dual at Buchholz on the 13th.

So that’s 43 schedules in hand. Which school is going to be NEXT??

Please support our independent journalism by going here and donating to our website: https://www.gofundme.com/north-florida-matmen

We did not have first names for the Outsiders kids. They’re still rolling up the mats here, but we have complete by-round results. If we could not tell the final outcome, we used the term “def.” rather than the actual outcome. Not all bout sheets were fully filled out.

Group 1: Hudson Coots (SGAC) 5-0, Carter DeLosSantos (Oakleaf) 3-1, Luca Ray (unattached) 3-1, Harrison Riccobono (Cacique) 2-2, Jake Shaffer (Oakleaf) 2-3, Kara McKeel (Oakleaf) 2-3, Vincent Myers (Nease) 2-3, Holden Coots (SGAC) 1-4, Shian Gustilo (Oakleaf) 0-3.
Rd 1: Hu. Coots p. McKeel; Myers md. Ray, 13-4; Ho. Coots d. Gustilo, 19-13; Riccobono md. Shaffer, 13-1.
Rd 2: McKeel d. Gustilo, 12-7; Hu. Coots p. Myers; Shaffer p. Ho. Coots; DeLosSantos p. Riccobono.
Rd 3: McKeel md. Ho. Coots, 9-1; Hu. Coots def. DeLosSantos; Myers p. Shaffer; Ray p. Gustilo.
Rd 4: Hu. Coots p. Shaffer; DeLosSantos p. Ho. Coots; Ray p. McKeel; Riccobono d. Myers, 7-3.
Rd 5: Ray p. Ho. Coots; Shaffer d. McKeel, 10-6; DeLosSantos md. Myers, 15-2; Hu. Coots tf. Riccobono, 19-1.

Group 2: Corbin Welling (Devil Dogs) 4-0, Eli Jolicoeur (Suwannee) 4-1, Ty Tillman (Monsta) 3-2, Isaac Santos (Outsiders) 2-3, Parker Woods (Yulee) 1-3, Christopher McKeel (Oakleaf) 0-5.
Rd 1: Tillman def. Woods; Santos p. McKeel; Welling dec. Jolicoeur, 5-1.
Rd 2: Welling p. McKeel; Jolicoeur p. Woods; Tillman d. Santos, 8-4.
Rd 3: Welling p. Tillman; Jolicoeur p. McKeel; Santos md. Woods, 14-5.
Rd 4: Welling p. Santos; Woods def. McKeel; Jolicoeur p. Tillman.
Rd 5: Tillman p. McKeel; Jolicoeur p. Santos.

Group 3: Ethan McCullough (Devil Dogs) 3-0, Hunter McCullough (Devil Dogs) 2-1, Cole McCullough (Devil Dogs) 1-2, Wyatt Leduc (Clay) 0-3.
Rd 1: H. McCullough md. Leduc, 8-0; E. McCullough d. C. McCullough, 5-3.
Rd 2: C. McCullough d. Leduc, 9-2; E. McCullough d. H. McCullough, 5-4.
Rd 3: H. McCullough def. C. McCullough; E. McCullough def. Leduc.

Group 4: Tristan DePhillips (unattached) 3-0, Anthony Santos (Outsiders) 2-1, Tristan Mirgeaux (Cacique) 1-2, Sofia Montijo (Oakleaf) 0-3.
Rd 1: DePhillips p. Santos; Mirgeaux p. Montijo.
Rd 2: DePhillips md. Mirgeaux, 16-4; Santos p. Montijo.
Rd 3: Santos p. Mirgeaux; DePhillips p. Montijo.

Group 5: Dean Wright (Fla High) 2-0, Anthony Brady (Fla High) 1-1, Cade Newton (Oakleaf) 0-2.
Rd 1: Wright md. Newton, 9-1.
Rd 2: Brady md. Newton, 10-1.
Rd 3: Wright def. Brady.

Group 6: Brooks Dyer (Fla High) 5-0, Abdiert Escobar (Oakleaf) 4-1, Gabriel Guzman (Ridgeview) 2-2, Emil Ganim (Fla High) 2-2, C. Fargnoli (Outsiders) 1-4, Preston Turner (Ponte Vedra) 1-3, Avery Miller (Oakleaf) 0-3.
Rd 1: Dyer md. Guzman, 9-0; Ganim p. Fargnoli; Escobar d. Turner, 9-2.
Rd 2: Guzman p. Turner; Fargnoli p. Miller; Dyer md. Escobar, 16-8.
Rd 3: Escobar d. Guzman, 7-5; Dyer p. Fargnoli; Turner md. Ganim, 13-2; Dean Wright (Fla High) p. Miller (exhibition).
Rd 4: Escobar p. Fargnoli; Ganim p. Miller; Dyer p. Turner; Guzman tf. Anthony Brady (Fla High), 19-2 (exhibition).
Rd 5: Guzman p. Fargnoli; Escobar p. Ganim; Dyer p. Miller.

Group 7: Chance Marsh (Outsiders) 5-0, Marcus McGhee (Oakleaf) 4-1, T. Doyle (Outsiders) 4-1, Braxton Abbott (Monsta) 2-3, Raider Morelli (Vipers) 2-3, Michael Ventre (Belleview) 2-3, Hunter VanVactor (Clay) 1-4, James Richie (Ponte Vedra) 0-5.
Rd 1: Marsh md. Richie, 12-1; Morelli d. VanVactor, 7-4; McGhee def. Doyle; Abbott tf. Ventre.
Rd 2: Morelli p. Richie; Doyle p. Ventre; Marsh md. McGhee, 15-3; Abbott md. VanVactor, 14-5.
Rd 3: Ventre d. Richie, 11-9; McGhee p. Abbott; Marsh def. Morelli; Doyle md. VanVactor, 13-2.
Rd 4: Marsh tf. Abbott, 16-0; Doyle p. Richie; McGhee p. Morelli; VanVactor p. Ventre.
Rd 5: Doyle def. Abbott; Marsh tf. VanVactor; Ventre p. Morelli; McGhee p. Richie.

Group 8: Timothy Jolicoeur (Suwannee) 5-0, Colin Brown (Creekside) 3-1, K. Hopper (Outsiders) 3-2, D. Fredericks (Outsiders) 2-2, Morgan Cole (Belleview) 1-4, Dietrich Woods (Yulee) 1-4, Ali Baghalan (Cacique) 0-2.
Rd 1: Jolicoeur d. Hopps, 7-0; Fredericks p. Woods; Cole d. Baghalan, 13-6.
Rd 2: Hopps p. Woods; Jolicoeur def. Fredericks; Brown d. Cole, 6-4.
Rd 3: Woods def. Baghalan; Jolicoeur def. Brown; Hopper p. Cole.
Rd 4: Jolicoeur p. Cole; Hopper p. Fredericks; Brown p. Woods.
Rd 5: Brown def. Hopper; Jolicoeur tf. Woods, 17-2; Fredericks tf. Cole.

Group 9: Gavin Riccobono (Cacique) 5-0, Rocky Yarbrough (Belleview) 4-1, Owen Bronson (Oakleaf) 2-2, Trey Martinez (Oakleaf) 1-3, Jack Shewey (Ponte Vedra) 1-3, J. Burnett (Outsiders) 0-4.
Rd 1: Riccobono p. Bronson; Yarbrough p. Burnett; Shewey d. Martinez, 3-0.
Rd 2: Riccobono p. Martinez; Yarbrough p. Shewey; Bronson p. Burnett.
Rd 3: Riccobono d. Yarbrough, 3-2; Bronson p. Shewey; Martinez def. Burnett.
Rd 4: Yarbrough p. Bronson; Riccobono tf. Shewey.
Rd 5: Yarbrough p. Martinez; Riccobono d. Burnett, 12-5.

Group 10: Sean Arnold (Cacique) 5-0, Christopher Stiltner (Clay) 3-1, Dean Ganci (Orange Park) 2-1, C. Clark (Outsiders) 2-2, Alex DeAlmeida (Ponte Vedra) 1-4, C. Gabriel Navarro (Stanton) 0-5.
Rd 1: Arnold tf. Ganci, 17-2; DeAlmeida p. Navarro; Stiltner d. Clark, 4-0.
Rd 2: Ganci p. Navarro; Arnold d. Stiltner, 8-2; Clark def. DeAlmeida.
Rd 3: Ganci d. DeAlmeida, 11-5; Stiltner def. Navarro; Arnold p. Clark.
Rd 4: Arnold def. DeAlmeida; Clark def. Navarro.
Rd 5: Stiltner def. DeAlmeida; Arnold p. Navarro.

Group 11: Porter Bryant (Outsiders) 5-0, Garrett Herrin (Outsiders) 4-1, Logan Gilbert (Oakleaf) 3-2, James Smith (Bradford) 2-3, Zachery Newsome (Monsta) 1-4, PJ Simon (Cacique) 0-5.
Rd 1: Herrin def. Simon; Smith p. Newsome; Bryant p. Gilbert.
Rd 2: Gilbert p. Newsome; Bryant p. Simon; Herrin d. Smith, 4-2.
Rd 3: Newsome def. Simon; Gilbert p. Smith; Bryant md. Herrin, 8-0.
Rd 4: Gilbert p. Simon; Bryant p. Smith; Herrin d. Newsome, 4-2.
Rd 5: Bryant p. Newsome; Smith p. Simon; Herrin d. Gilbert, 3-2.

Group 12: Jacob Satterfield (Cacique) 4-0, Cameron Broughton (Oakleaf) 4-1, Da’Veyon Brown (Monsta) 2-2, Grant Kelsey (Stanton) 2-3, J. Cash (Outsiders) 1-3, Jesse Bragdon (Monsta) 0-4.
Rd 1: Brown p. Cash; Broughton p. Kelsey; Satterfield p. Bragdon.
Rd 2: Satterfield d. Broughton, 5-1; Brown def. Kelsey; Cash p. Bragdon.
Rd 3: Satterfield tf. Brown; Kelsey p. Bragdon; Broughton tf. Cash.
Rd 4: Broughton d. Brown, 4-0; Satterfield p. Kelsey; Cash p. Bragdon (exhibition).
Rd 5: Kelsey def. Cash; Broughton p. Bragdon.

Group 13: David Parkes (Oakleaf) 3-0, Reid Hampton (Episcopal) 2-2, Micah Perdue (Fla High) 1-1, Jason Amato (Viper) 1-1, Rett Maritato (Ponte Vedra) 0-3.
Rd 1: Perdue d. Maritato, 4-3; Amato p. Hampton.
Rd 2: Parkes ID over Amato; Hampton d. Maritato, 7-5, SV.
Rd 3: Hampton p. Perdue; Parkes p. Maritato.
Rd 4: Parkes def. Hampton.

Group 14: Zabriel Allen (Seminole) 4-1, W. Blount (Outsiders) 4-1, Noah Perdue (Fla High) 4-1, Pablo Oliva (Suwannee) 2-3, Luca Fiannaca (Clay) 1-4, S. Hooks (Outsiders) 0-5.
Rd 1: Fiannaca p. Hooks; Perdue p. Oliva; Blount d. Allen, 8-6, SV.
Rd 2: Oliva p. Fiannaca; Allen p. Hooks; Perdue p. Blount.
Rd 3: Allen def. Perdue; Oliva p. Hooks; Blount p. Fiannaca.
Rd 4: Blount p. Oliva; Perdue p. Hooks; Allen p. Fiannaca.
Rd 5: Allen p. Oliva; Perdue p. Fiannaca; Blount p. Hooks.

Group 15: Chauncy Riggsby (Fla High) 3-0, Kirill Kim (Cacique) 2-1, D. Dozier (Outsiders) 1-2, Hayden Smith (Outsiders) 0-3.
Rd 1: Riggsby p. Dozier; Kim p. Smith.
Rd 2: Dozier p. Smith; Riggsby p. Kim.
Rd 3: Riggsby p. Smith; Kim p. Dozier.

Group 16: Johnathan Potter (Belleview) 4-0, T. Dozier (Outsiders) 2-1, Noah Stubblefield (Monsta) 2-2, S. Sanders (Outsiders) 1-2, Michael Porchiazzo (Bradford) 0-4.
Rd 1: Dozier p. Stubblefield; Sanders p. Porchiazzo.
Rd 2: Potter p. Dozier; Stubblefield p. Porchiazzo.
Rd 3: Potter p. Porchiazzo; Stubblefield p. Sanders.
Rd 4: Potter p. Stubblefield; Dozier p. Porchiazzo.
Rd 5: Potter p. Sanders.

Please support our independent journalism by going here and donating to our website: https://www.gofundme.com/north-florida-matmen

We quietly did some behind-the-scenes work to shore up our results page from last year. Our statewide results had only been “complete” (complete as in what Brant had reported to him and what I dug up on Track in a school-by-school search, which is exactly as much fun as it sounds) through Week 8 of the season. After which, personal stuff got in the way and I just focused on what I could focus on, which at that time was not very much.

So this week we fixed that with more duals from Weeks 9-11. I don’t know how many duals we posted from the statewide scene, but let’s just go with “a lot.”

I am emailing another blast email to the coaches on Monday. We have the first draft complete on six of our 11 TurkeyNWrestling previews. We are in need of about 30-odd schedules. While the Gulfside coaches scramble to recover from Michael, and I’m perfectly happy with giving them a pass on that front for some time yet, they’re not the only ones who need to send theirs in. I’m missing more than I would like from this side of the state, too. If you want to know if your favorite team is in or not in, I list who’s in by alphabetical order and who’s not in by district. No districts are complete. Two are very close (down to just one team), and two more have just two left.

Please support our independent journalism by going here and donating to our website: https://www.gofundme.com/north-florida-matmen

Englewood’s dates were the ones sent over by Brant on Tuesday morning. The Rams are the fifth team in 2A-District 3 that we have in hand.

Englewood will open the season on December 7-8, the first weekend of the year, with its traditional appearance in Terry Parker’s two-day IBT, the Arlington Optimist Invitational. The Rams go to another tournament for their first duals action of the competitive season, with a trip to Orange Park for a rare Friday duals event, the Raider 6-Way, on the 14th, and will complete their December itinerary with a road tri-meet at Gateway Conference rival Wolfson, at which Creekside will also be in attendance.

The Rams will kick off January with FHSAA dual team district action, as 2A-District 3 will congregate at Ridgeview on the 9th. From there, Englewood will go back to Terry Parker for the Braves’ annual two-day tournament, the Army Duals, on the 11th and 12th. They’ll be in IBT action on the 18th and 19th along with the rest of the Gateway at Sandalwood, and back at Parker on the 25th and 26th for another two-day tournament, the Parker Duals.

There are three regular-season events on the docket for February, starting with the Rams’ lone home meet of the season, a single dual against Robert E. Lee on the 6th. That weekend, on the 8th and 9th, Englewood will compete in Sandalwood’s inaugural Bell-Raulerson Invitational, a two-day IBT. The regular season wraps with the Rams on the road at Stanton for a single dual on the 13th.

That’s 42 schedules in hand, with (at most) 33 to go. Which team will be next? Will it be YOUR TEAM??

Please support our independent journalism by going here and donating to our website: https://www.gofundme.com/north-florida-matmen

We got two schedules today, one overnight from Brant and another one that we saw posted on Facebook today. We have a question out to a tournament host on one of them, so we have gone ahead with our Facebook-viewed team.

That’s Bradford, our sixth team in 1A-District 4 (just FSDB still out, and they have a new coach with a familiar name coming back). The Tornadoes are headed up by Stewart Roberts, who has been an assistant the past couple seasons. Bradford is our 41st schedule overall.

The season will begin for the Tornadoes on the first weekend of December, but they’ll be hitting the road for the Orlando area’s Battle for the Blacktop, hosted by The Master’s Academy on the 7th and 8th. Bradford will host Keystone Heights in a home-and-home series, with the Tornadoes’ home date set for the 13th. It will close out 2018 with a trip to Inverness and Citrus HS’ Rob Hermann Hurricane Cup Duals, just before Christmas on the 21st and 22nd.

FHSAA post-season competition will be on the docket to open January, with the Tornadoes joining in on 1A-District 4 team dual competition at Bolles on the 9th. Next up will be the two-day roundrobin Billy Saylor Invitational, hosted by Suwannee on the 11th and 12th. After a possibility of region duals on the 17th, Bradford will road-trip to Tallahassee for Lincoln’s one-day IBT, the Trojan Invitational, on the 19th. Bradford will then host Baker County (and possibly also West Nassau) on the 23rd to wrap up that month.

There are two regular-season events on Bradford’s February itinerary. First of those is Gainesville’s Category V Duals, which has been noted as both a one- and a two-day duals tournament the first weekend. Either way, the regular season will come to an end on February 7, when the Tornadoes will compete in the away half of its home-and-home dual with Keystone Heights.

We have our 42nd schedule, but…which one will be 43? Will it be YOUR TEAM??

Please support our independent journalism by going here and donating to our website: https://www.gofundme.com/north-florida-matmen

So I got a text message last night upon which I had to do some reflecting.

A year ago and change, my world started being rocked with some serious body blows. I have not fully recovered from all of them, but Hurricane Irma was the first of them and, in some ways, the easiest one.

I was lucky. My neighbor across the hall lost all of her possessions. My neighbors, upstairs, who rode out the flooding that ravaged our neighborhood during and immediately after the storm, lost their cars. Insurance made them whole, of course, but none of them are in my building any longer. I rode out the immediate aftermath at my (now ex-) girlfriend’s house (yes, that was another body blow) and I only had to wait two weeks for a new air conditioner and hot water heater. The Fabiani family (God bless them, wherever they are now) came and helped me clean my place.

So we lived like, essentially, 1970s-era Eastern Europeans for a couple of weeks while we waited for First World luxuries.

My son and I were lucky. But even in our state of luckiness/blessedness, with what happened that followed, we very nearly bailed on this state. He’s still not all that happy that we didn’t and I don’t think he’ll come to Florida often once he’s fully on his own after college. I’ve been a wreck this season (hurricane, that is). Eating constantly, poring over hurricane tracks constantly, not sleeping, not working out. And nothing really THAT bad happened to me.

I don’t have many — or, really, any — details on what Michael’s done out west to the 1A-1 and 2A-1 coverage area. I know Tallahassee is climbing back toward recovery. West of that? Not so much. I have seen photos and videos, like so many of you. I’ve seen war zones that looked less blown up.

I know there have been efforts to go out and help. Clay Allen and Florida High sent a delegation just very recently. But Panama City…Marianna…Wewahitchka…and perhaps other places I’ve not heard from yet…all very much in a difficult place right now. A place that I, even as a fellow hurricane disaster survivor and at one time made homeless by one, have not been.

What happens out there, on a wrestling front, isn’t quite a wilderness to me, but it sort of is. I don’t know what the state of play is regarding half the coaches in the coverage area, who’s staying, who’s going, and it’s usually the one area where I have to chase the most results once the season begins. But right now, the people in that area aren’t worrying so much about who beat whom at what weight at districts last year, and whether that guy in Jacksonville is EVER going to make a trip out to cover their tournament.

They’re worried about when the next water truck will show up. If a neighbor can help them clear trees. If (insert Panhandle electric company name here) will fix the power lines. When their insurance company will help them get back on their feet again.

I’d urge you to donate your time, donate your resources. Both good things.

In the meantime, wrestling will still be here; it will still go on (eventually). I’ve already heard that Border Wars is going to be staged as planned. Walton County didn’t get hit as badly. And we are still here to write about whatever happens. Even if we have to chase it down.