SIDELINES NOTEBOOK
TRAC, NBC debut wrestling tournaments
2/9/2012League wrestling tournaments are in the spotlight on Saturday, with one notable absence.
For the first time since 1960 there will be no City League wrestling champion determined.
The six Toledo Public Schools members who now compose the CL dropped their entire wrestling programs -- from seventh grade through high school varsity -- prior to the 2010-11 school year.
What may have been the final CL wrestling tournament, at least for the foreseeable future, was held last year at Clay.
The host Eagles took their third straight crown, competing against just four other teams -- Central Catholic, St. Francis de Sales, St. John's Jesuit and Whitmer. Those five schools now compete along with Findlay, Fremont Ross and Lima Senior in the new Three Rivers Athletic Conference.
The TRAC will stage its first tournament Saturday at Central Catholic, with first-round matches beginning at 10 a.m., and the finals to start at 5:30 p.m.
Clay, the top-ranked Division I team in northwest Ohio, and rated No. 6 in the Ohio coaches poll, is favored to extend its league-title streak to four years as the clear-cut team to beat. The Eagles had eight individual winners in the 14 weight divisions in the 2011 CL tournament, easily topping runner-up Central 285.5 to 204.
In the Northern Lakes League, Perrysburg enters as defending champion and is the favorite to repeat Saturday at Southview.
First-round matches will start at 10 a.m., and the finals will begin at 4 p.m. The Yellow Jackets had four individual champions last year, outpointing runner-up Springfield 172.5 to 165.5.
Rossford, no longer an NLL member, will be the host site for the first Northern Buckeye Conference tournament. Opening-round matches begin at 11 a.m., and the finals will be at 5 p.m.
Rossford, which left the NLL, and Fostoria, which left the Northern Ohio League, joined six former members from the now-defunct Suburban Lakes League to form the new NBC.
Perennial SLL power Elmwood won that league's final three championships, and are favored in the inaugural NBC tilt. The Royals had six individual champs last year to top runner-up Genoa 193 to 180.5.
Bryan will host the Northwest Ohio Athletic League tournament, where Division II state-power Wauseon bids for its third straight championship.
It begins at 10 a.m., and will continue until complete. No specific time for the finals has been set.
Last year Wauseon had six champions and rolled up 241 points to easily top runner-up Archbold (184.5).
The Indians are again favored, but expect to get strong challenges from Archbold, Delta, and Liberty Center.
The Ohio Wrestling League championship tournament -- which includes Toledo Area Athletic Conference members Cardinal Stritch, Gibsonburg and Northwood -- will be held Saturday at McComb beginning at 9 a.m. Arcadia won last year's team title, edging McComb 149-148.
College match at Clay
College wrestling will come to the high school stage Feb. 19 when Clay plays host to a match between 10-time defending Mid-American Conference champion Central Michigan and the Big Ten's Purdue.
The event is designed to help spark interest in wrestling in northwest Ohio, according to Clay coach Ralph Cubberly, who said that Central Michigan gave up the scheduled home match to come to Clay.
Admission for the 2 p.m. match is $6 for adults, $4 for students.
HOCKEY
NHC playoffs
With regular-season titles having already been decided in the Northwest Hockey Conference, playoff titles will be up for grabs in the Red, White, and Blue divisions beginning Friday at Sylvania's Tam-O-Shanter and the Ice House.
Northview ran the table in winning the NHC's upper-level (Red Division), regular-season title, posting an 8-0-0 mark and outscoring its four divisional foes 35-12.
Coach Mike Jones' Wildcats earned a first-round playoff bye and will open with a semifinal game 7 p.m. Saturday at Tam-O-Shanter against the winner of Friday's 7 p.m. game between defending state champion St. Francis (2-5-1) and Bowling Green (0-8-0) at Tam-O.
The other Red semifinal pits No. 2 seed St. John's (6-2-0) against No. 3 seed Findlay (4-4-0), Saturday at 9 p.m. at Tam-O-Shanter.
The mid-level White Division was subdivided into four-team National and American groupings this season, with Anthony Wayne (7-3-0) placing first in the National, and Bedford (9-1-0) taking the top American spot.
Bedford and fellow Michigan entry Monroe Jefferson (6-2-2 in American) will each skip the White Division playoffs in order to pursue their commitments in other Michigan-based leagues.
Thus, Anthony Wayne will be the top seed for the six-team White playoffs. The Generals will open with a semifinal game 9 p.m. Saturday at Tam-O against the winner of Friday's first-round game between Clay (1-9-0) and Whitmer (4-6-0), which will be played at the Ice House at 7:30 p.m.
Maumee (6-2-2) earned the No. 2 seed, and will begin with a 7 p.m. Saturday semifinal against the winner of the first-round game between Southview (5-4-1) and Perrysburg (2-8-0), which is set for 9 p.m. Friday at Tam-O.
Lake (8-0-0) won the lower-level Blue Division title and will be the top seed for a four-team playoff. The Flyers face Ottawa Hills (0-9-0) in a semifinal Friday at 7 p.m. at Tam-O. The other semifinal pits Springfield (5-3-0) against Fremont Ross (4-5-0) at 9 p.m. Friday at Tam-O. The Blue Division championship game will be held Saturday at 5 p.m. at Tam-O.
SWIMMING
Sectionals begin
The road to the state swimming and diving championships begins Saturday with sectional competition.
The Division I sectional will begin at 5:30 p.m. Saturday at Fremont Ross where 16 boys teams will compete, including two-time defending state runner-up St. Francis. The girls event features 20 teams, including favored St. Ursula.
Division II meets are set for Napoleon, Oak Harbor and Ayersville, with competition at each site starting at 11 a.m. Saturday.
All D-I and D-II swimmers and divers look to qualify for districts Feb. 15-18 at Bowling Green State University.
HALL OF FAME
Port Clinton to induct 4
The Port Clinton High School athletic hall of fame has announced four inductees.
Joining the hall will be Dr. David Bodie (Class of 1990), Cal Colston (1958), Jessica Drusbacky (2000), and Fred Entenmann (1993). They will be honored at a banquet on May 19 at 5 p.m. at the Port Clinton Elks Lodge. Ticket sales will be announced at a later date.
Bodie is a record-holding swimmer who continued swimming at Denison University, receiving Division III All-American honors and participating in several D-III national meets. He serves as team physician for the Redskins football team.
Colston, a longtime Port Clinton athletic booster trustee and school-board member, played a major role in the 1988 renovation of the football stadium, and the creation of the school's PCTV.
Drusbacky is a record-holder regarded as one of the top female swimmers in school history and competed for Ohio Wesleyan.
Entenmann was part of the Sandusky Bay Conference championship basketball team in 1992-93, and was the Sandusky Bay Conference player of the year. He later excelled in a four-year career at Division I Stetson University, where he was the Hatters' leading scorer as a senior.