Young Fontainebleau squad rounding into shape

Pat Mashburn, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune, February 02, 2013 4:04 p.m.

Fontainebleau's Daniel Priola scores a major win for the wrestling program. - (Pat Mashburn, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)

The Bulldogs might be a young squad and considered a work in progress earlier in the season, but a fourth place finish in the New Orleans City Tournament has many others taking notice.

One of the biggest wins by the Bulldogs came in the semifinals of the 195-pound class when Daniel Priola upset the third ranked wrester in the All-New Orleans area, Daniel Relayson by virtue of a 7-5 decision.

“I had to stay on top so I could control the match,” Priola said. “it was important not to let him get up, and lose control.”

Relayson had won four straight meetings this season prior to the battle this weekend.

The progress of the team has Fontainebleau coach Rick Zimmer encouraged about the future.

“We are starting to learn what it takes to be successful on the mat,” Zimmer said. “Also, we’re understanding what it means to wrestle a full six minutes. I’m proud of what we accomplished, but the season isn’t done yet. There’s still plenty to go.”

THE FULL SIX MINUTES: At the beginning of the season, coaches implored their wresters to go a full six minutes. It was due to being in shape and finding out what type of conditioning people were in. Now, with the state tournament less than two weeks away, the message is still the same, but for a different reason. With conditioning catching up among competitors, technique as well as paying attention to details matters even more.

In the city tournament, many matches were won in the final 30 seconds of regulation due to lapses of concentration.

COACHES SUPPORT CITY WRESTLING TOURNAMENT

Robbie Dauterive, Brother Martin - “When I wrestling in high school, the city tournament was a very big deal. If we keep it where it is, I think it can be very big again. There’s no reason to take three weeks for the state tournament.”

Craig Kettleson, St. Paul’s - “This is a very important event, and I’m happy to see it return. What helps is that it brings back an important part of the tradition of wrestling. The New Orleans City tournament is a valuable thing.”

Eric Desormeaux, Holy Cross - “I think is an important part of the sport and it takes the place of a regional. We have a lot of tough, quality wrestlers in the area and this helps see who some of the best are, going into the state tournament.”

Dan Erwin, Hahnville - “It’s good to see the return of the city tournament. There is a lot of quality in this area, and this event will further enhance the sport.

Paul Hattie, Shaw - “This is a very good thing for the city. We have a lot of depth in the metro area and there is a reason why people from this area do well at the state tournament.”

Daniel LeFleur, John Ehret - “I like having it because there’s such a sense of pride in this area and creates more rivalries. It would continue to boost the sport and bring more people out to matches.”