Published: 12:50 AM, Sun Feb 28, 2010
Radford upsets McCall in 189 state final
By Bob Sutton
Special to the Observer
GREENSBORO - Kevin Radford of Pine Forest picked a good time to throw a move to remember at South View's Timmy McCall.
It resulted in a state championship in a Class 4-A upset in the 189-pound weight class of the North Carolina High School Athletic Association wrestling championships Saturday night at the Greensboro Coliseum.
"When I got the move, I didn't think about it," Radford said after his 5-2 decision. "I just had to go with it."
Radford's upper-body maneuver broke a 1-1 deadlock with about a minute remaining, putting McCall briefly on his back. The four points gave Radford some cushion and McCall's escape at the 16-second mark wasn't enough.
McCall, the defending state champion, had won the last three encounters with Radford.
"I've never been able to take him down before," Radford said. "That's the first takedown on him I actually earned. I got it when it counted. . He's the best rival anyone could ask for.
McCall (43-2), who defeated Radford (45-3) a week earlier in the regional final, began the third period with a 1-0 lead. Radford escaped for a tying point earlier in the period.
"I wasn't wrestling smart," McCall said. "I lost it myself. . It's the states. You expect the best out of everybody. Me (not) being at my best is my own problem. I was wrestling well this tournament and I slipped up."
Earlier, Hoke County freshman Dennis Gustafson won the 103 title in 4-A, turning Millbrook senior Keegan Sykes several times for a convincing decision in the final.
Gustafson said he expected to win as he completed a 45-0 season.
"That's what I pretty much came here thinking," he said. "That's my mindset."
Cape Fear senior Blake Norris dropped a 3-2 decision to West Forsyth senior Jake McKay in the 145 final for 4-A.
"I didn't wrestle the way I should," Norris said, referring to his inability to register a takedown in the final period.
Norris was a state qualifier but didn't place last year. He said the second place wasn't good enough after finishing the season with a 39-7 record. "Never is," he said.
Senior Jackie Green of Seventy-First lost a 6-3 decision to Lake Norman's Harrison Honeycutt in the 215 final in 4-A.
Green finished the season with a 49-6 record.
Ethan Morales of Douglas Byrd placed fourth at 112 pounds in 3-A.
There was one Cape Fear region winner in the 3-A championships. Western Harnett's Paul Duggan took the 145-pound state title with a 6-0 victory over Tyrone Mason of Hillsborough Orange.