Nov. 24, 2004: The Spectrum

Kittrell's Return Spells SC Wrestling Victory
by Brad Plothow

ST. GEORGE — Wane Kittrell's re-inauguration as Snow Canyon's wrestling coach was a little wacky Tuesday night. There were weight challenges, fights and forfeits, but it all culminated with a 47-32 non-conference win over Enterprise.

Kittrell was SC's first wrestling coach when the school opened in the early 1990s, but he had a hiatus before replacing last year's coach, who had the difficult task of turning out junior varsity and varsity teams from a pool of only about a dozen wrestlers.

The Warriors had better turnout this season, but Kittrell still faced some early-season kinks, as several grapplers didn't make weight, causing some last-minute shuffling.

"Tonight was a measuring stick for us to see where we're at and where we need to improve," Kittrell said. "We've been practicing for a couple weeks or so, and it's time to see where we're at. We're still making mistakes ... but our kids fought hard."

The Wolves handed the Warriors 24 points via forfeitures, but SC's grapplers still had to earn the win. Enterprise's middleweights put on a torrid display, nabbing three straight victories by fall before Kittrell's troops rallied.

SC's Kinley Lounsbury - one of the Warriors' few returners from last season -- set up a Warriors rally that transformed a 24-27 deficit into a 42-27 advantage for SC.

In the second round of his bout with Rye Fitzwater, Lounsbury rolled the Enterprise grappler into a pin to nab a six-point win, which was followed by 12cons ecutive Warriors points.

"Me, Kyle (Coop) and Tyler (Hathaway), we work with each other in practice, and we push each other," Lounsbury said of his fellow upper-middleweights. "We had a couple problems with (making) weight, and our vasrity kinda disappointed us today, weight wise. Our first-year kids stepped up."

Following Lounsbury's bout, Hathaway used his legs to pin Colby Hulet late in the third round, and Coop -- wrestling up from his usual 171-pound spot --dispatched Levi Gardner by rolling him into a pin with under 30 seconds let in the bout.

Ryan MacPherson's matchup with Enterprise's Ryan Bliss was cut short when the two started throwing haymakers at one another, after Bliss was called twice for using an illegal move. The official and coaches intervened to quell the feud, though, and each team was docked a point for unsportsmanlike conduct.
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