Yellow Jackets ready for conference tournament

by Jonas Pope IV
The Daily Herald Sports Editor
Published/Last Modified on Friday, February 5, 2010 12:47 PM EST

ROANOKE RAPIDS — Five teams will take to the mat Saturday at 9 a.m. for the Northern Carolina Conference Wrestling tournament.

Anthony Gainey | The Daily Herald Roanoke Rapids wrestler’s Kyle Pratt, left, and Bobby Jones compete during a practice earlier this season.


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For the second season Roanoke Rapids High School will host the event as five teams will battle it out for the NCC title. Joining the Yellow Jackets will be Bunn High School, North Johnston, Franklinton and Louisburg.

There will be plenty of action going on at once with two mats in the gymnasium. Every team will wrestle four matches, two on each mat while one team sits and waits. North Johnston comes into the tournament as the top team with Franklinton second. Saturday morning the teams will draw out of a hat to decide who will wrestle each other.

Roanoke Rapids has 12 wrestlers who will participate in the tournament. There are 14 classes in NCC wrestling. Yellow Jackets Head Coach Ed Nelson is confident his guys will fair well.

“I think a lot of our kids have a good chance,” Nelson said.

The veteran coach noted Kyle Pratt (135lb class) is having a good year and should contend for a title along with Alex Hawkins (215lb) and Chase O’Brien (119 lb). “The conference is pretty evenly matched and we have some other kids who have a pretty good chance,” Nelson said.

For fans who have never been to a high school wrestling match, Saturday will be the perfect opportunity to take in some matches. The scoring for wrestling is a little tricky for first timers to figure out, but the intensity level is high and the action is non-stop. “It’s very exciting,” Nelson said. “Our conference is very competitive, I think all five teams on any given day can beat the other team.”

Copyright © 2010 Roanoke Daily Herald

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