Brother Martin captures Trey Culotta Invitational wrestling title

Pat Mashburn, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune, December 22, 2012 8:26 p.m.

Daniel Albrecht and Ross Brister accept the team trophy along with the rest of the Cruaders. - (Pat Mashburn)

Brother Martin welcomed 12 teams from four states for its annual Trey Culotta Invitational, and after two days of wrestling, in which the Crusaders sent competitors to eight of the 14 weight class finals, winning seven for a tournament record 909 points and the team title.

Catholic High of Baton Rouge was second with 674 points, followed by Vestavia (Ala.) (657), Shawnee (Okla.) (655), Jesuit (618), St. Paul’s (506), East Ascension (388), St. Thomas (Houston, Tx.) (356), Fontainebleau (339), Houston (Ala.) (248), Mandeville (216) and Shaw (129).

Brother Martin’s Ross Brister, the 285-pound weight class champion, was selected as the winner of the Trey Culotta Memorial Award while Catholic High’s Brandon Luckett, the 160-pound champion was named the Outstanding Wrestler. Both were top seeds in their respective classes and finished without a loss.

Brister’s unblemished record was certainly earned, especially in the championship where he defeated Jahaad Jackson of Vestavia on a 4-3 decision in double overtime.

“I thought we wrestled very, very well and we showed up to wrestle hard in the finals,” Brother Martin coach Robbie Dauterive said. “Our guys are well conditioned and work hard. This team has a strong desire to keep getting better. I know this won’t be our best tournament, because our best will be the last one.”

Mason Mauro won the first of Brother Martin's four straight titles Saturday, defeating the top seed in the 106-pound class, Alex Betteridge of East Ascension on a 10-8 decision.

“He was stronger than me, so I had to have better position,” Mauro said. “My technique was what I had to rely on, and not make any serious mistakes.”

Taylor Gambrill followedwith a pin of Shawnee’s Bryce O’Connor in the 113-pound class and then it was Paul Klein’s turn in the 120-pound class, edging another Shawnee competitor, Michael Smith, on a 3-0 decision. Austin Meyn finished the run, taking the 126-pound title with a narrow 2-1 decision over top-seed Brennan Taylor of Catholic High.

St. Paul’s had a streak of its own on the heels of the Crusaders, as Connor Campo remained unbeaten against in-state competition, pinning Matthew Mire of Catholic High in 3:07.

“During the match, I was feeling pretty good and never lost focus,” Campo said. “I felt like something had to happen soon, since he (Mire) wasn’t doing much.”

Campo's Teammate David Englehardt was next up in the 145-pound class, and continued his comeback from injury, with the 145-pound title, dominating Vestavia’s Will Knox on a major decision, 16-3.

“I was out for a while with a concussion, but I had been training hard with my teammates,” Englehardt said. “That was important, because it has made all of the difference in the world.”

Brother Martin had three more wrestlers win titles: Daniel Albrecht (170), Kyle Delaune (182), and Brister (285).

Jesuit’s Manny Armour had pins in three consecutive matches in the championship round, ending with a victory over Gage Humphrey of Shawnee in 3:53.

There will be little time to enjoy the holidays as many of the local teams head to Baton Rouge next weekend (Dec. 28-29) for the Deep South Bayou Duals at the Centroplex.

Individual Weight Class Final Standings

106 pounds - 1. Mason Mauro, Brother Martin; 2. Alex Betteridge, East Ascension; 3. Nicky Charles, Jesuit; 4. Stephen Rumney, Brother Martin; 5. Matthew Paugh, Vestavia

113 pounds - 1. Taylor Gambrill, Brother Martin; 2. Bryce O’Connor, Shawnee; 3. Jake Bernard, East Ascension; 4. Ben D’Antonio, Jesuit; 5. Andrew Munn, St. Thomas

120 pounds - 1. Paul Klein, Brother Martin; 2. Michael Smith, Shawneee; 3. Hayden Hill, Vestavia; 4. Patrick Munn, St. Thomas; 5. Phillip Natua, Catholic High

126 pounds - 1. Austin Meyn, Brother Martin; 2. Brennan Taylor, Catholic High; 3. Quinn Perret, St. Paul’s; 4. Wade Nash, Unattached; 5. Jeremy Strong, Vestavia

132 pounds - 1. Connor Campo, St. Paul’s; 2. Matthew Mire, Catholic High; 3. Mason Williams, Brother Martin; 4. Max Hopkins, Vestavia; 5. Garrin Pellegrin, Mandeville

138 pounds - 1. James Claitor, Catholic High; 2. Mike Bernard, East Ascension; 3. Morgan Paugh, Vestavia; 4. Trey LeBlanc, St. Paul’s; 5. Daniel Evans, Brother Martin

145 pounds - 1. David Englehardt, St. Paul’s; 2. Will Knox, Vestavia; 3. Patrick Hoppe, Brother Martin; 4. Corey Todd, Shawnee; 5. Reid Burns, Catholic High

152 pounds - 1. Daylan Stuteville, Shawnee; 2. Dominic Iovenitti, St. Paul’s; 3. Joe Timberlake, Vestavia; 4. Kevin Morgan, Catholic High; 5. Jordan Giroir, Brother Martin

160 pounds - 1. Brandon Luckett, Catholic High; 2. Ricky Regas, St. Thomas; 3. Devin LeBlanc, Brother Martin; 4. Jordan Peterson, St. Paul’s; 5. Matt Daniel, Brother Martin

170 pounds - 1. Daniel Albrecht, Brother Martin; 2. Jimmy Brown, Jesuit; 3. Travis Bradford, St. Thomas; 4. Jack Ingalls, Mandeville; 5. Ethan Eisenhardt, Fontainebleau

182 pounds - 1. Kyle Delaune, Brother Martin; 2. Gage Grush, Jesuit; 3. Walker Smith, Shawnee; 4. Aaron Gambino, Unattached; 5. John Brands, St. Paul’s

195 pounds - 1. Manny Armour, Jesuit; 2. Gage Humphrey, Shawnee; 3. Caleb Suttton, Catholic High; 4. Yehia Riles, Brother Martin; 5. Daniel Priola, Fontainebleau

220 pounds - 1. Dalton Campbell, Vestavia; 2. Josh Tapia, Brother Martin; 3. Dom Carmello, Jesuit; 4. Miles Nash, Catholic High; 5. Garrett Kuglemann, Fontainebleau

285 pounds - 1. Ross Brister, Brother Martin; 2. Jahaad Jackson, Vestavia; 3. Connor Karwarth, East Ascension; 4. Jack Reidy, St. Thomas; 5. Ryan Goodfox, Shawnee