Press Release - Island 15 & Under
Post date: Jan 11, 2011 5:02:56 PM
Alberni Wrestlers compete in Victoria at Island 15 and Under
A group of wrestlers from Alberni made the trip down to Victoria early Saturday morning to compete at the Island 15 and Under, hosted by the Victoria Bulldogs. The tournament had a number of teams coming from the Island and one from Vancouver.
The Island 15 and Under is designed for wrestlers in grade 10 and younger to compete against each other in a variety of weight classes. The young Alberni wrestlers preformed very well and showed once again that Port Alberni has very strong programs. In the over-all team competition Dunn Middle school placed 3rd in the Girls Division and 4th in the Girls Division. A number of Alberni’s experienced wrestlers elected to take the weekend off as they prepare for the Western Canadian Age Class in Kamloops this week.
Coming away with gold medals in the Boys Division were Russell David (51 kg Dunn), Sheldon Haddad (59 kg ADSS), Cole Walton (92 kg ADSS) and Christian Anderson (110 kg ADSS).
Earning silver in the Girls division were Bella Jones (38 kg Neill), Lauren Barker (43 kg Dunn), Bailey Durning (65 kg ADSS), Emma Vanderlee (69 kg Dunn). Earning a Bronze in the boys division were Nolan Badovinac (73 kg Dunn) and Riley Neville (92 kg ADSS). Placing fourth in their weight classes were Kennedy O’Donovan (49 kg Girls Dunn), Isabella Larsen (53 kg Girls ADSS), and Eryk McKenzie (56 kg Boys Dunn). Rounding out the top finishers were Remi Wells (5th at 49 kg Girls Dunn), Micaela Dick (5th 56 kg Girls Dunn), Johannes Kulich (5th 67 kg Boys Neill) and Michel Kurucz (6th 56 kg Girls Dunn).
Dunn Coach Russell Bodnar reflected on the Alberni wrestlers’ performances. “I think we wrestled well. For the most part we brought our intermediate wrestlers to this tournament. These boys and girls represent the future of our program. This tournament is a great stepping stone for those wrestlers who we are grooming to be our future elite and senior wrestlers.”
On Thursday morning over fifty wrestlers and coaches from the Alberni Valley will leave for Kamloops to compete in the Western Canadian Age Class. The tournament will feature wrestlers from BC, Alberta, and Saskatchewan.