[Stardust]

Trinity wins State with 3 titlists

http://www.courier-journal.com/article/2...002/SPORTS

FRANKFORT, Ky. -- Finally, Richard Brown can exhale.

The Trinity High School wrestling coach was saddled with the highest of expectations -- state championship or bust -- when he took the job after last season and had to deal with a year full of bull's-eyes, Internet hype and everything else that goes with the state's No. 1 ranking.

"It's been such an emotional roller-coaster with the expectations on me as a first-year coach," Brown said. "I've shed a couple of tears today. … It's relief and joy."

Mostly joy after the Shamrocks captured the team title last night at the State Wrestling Championships. An event-record crowd of 4,587 at the Frankfort Convention Center watched Trinity produce three individual state champions and become the first team winner from Louisville since St. Xavier in 2001.

The Shamrocks finished with 222 points, easily outdistancing second-place Union County (182). Ryle was third with 163, followed by Campbell County (141) and Johnson Central (105.5).

Tenth-place Seneca (92.5) was the only other Jefferson County team in the top 10.

Eastern senior Justin Davis was the other Jefferson County champion, taking the individual title at 140 pounds after winning the 135 crown last year. Davis, who was named the meet's Most Outstanding Wrestler, beat Union County's Isaac Thomas 11-5 for the title.

Davis finished with a 21-1 record -- his only loss a disqualification in the regional final -- after missing half the season with a fractured wrist suffered during football season.

"It's just amazing how God works miracles," he said. "With me coming from a fractured wrist and having a cold all State Tournament, it's a blessing."

Trinity was blessed with four wrestlers reaching finals, and three came through with titles.

Freshman John Fahy started the night off right for the Shamrocks, beating Paul Dunbar's Pat Milford on a 15-0 technical fall in the 103-pound final.

Fahy finished with three technical falls and one pin in five State Tournament matches. He entered with five middle-school state championships already on his résumé.

"The nerves and the pressure, I'm used to it," said Fahy, who finished with a 38-2 record. "I was able to just focus in on my match."

Teammate Myron Bradbury, a junior, followed with a 7-0 victory over Wayne County's Luke Troxell in the 112 final. Bradbury (39-4) had pinned his first four opponents in the meet.

"I really wanted to get five," he said. "State champ, though. It's not disappointing. … I never expected to get four pins and a shutout in the final."

Trinity junior Grant Ohlmann lost 6-3 to Campbell County's Dusty Brown in the 145 final, but junior Brad Hitchings gave the Shamrocks three champions by defeating Ryle's Will Hogben 8-1 for the 171 crown.

Hitchings (38-2) credited Brown for the individual and team titles.

"He deserves most of the credit," Hitchings said. "He runs the practices, and he's taught me a lot of what I know. I wouldn't be the wrestler I am without him."

Harrison Courtney, Matt Zarth and Union County's Ervin family also had big nights.

Woodford County's Courtney (38-0) beat Campbell County's Jacob Lee 8-3 for the 160 title and became the state's first four-time champion since St. Xavier's Isaac Knable (1999-2002).

Henry Clay's Zarth (47-2) beat Ryle's Michael Osborne 4-2 for the 119 crown, his third straight state championship.

Union County produced four state champions -- Aaron Carr (125), Caleb Ervin (130), Luke Ervin (135) and Isaac Ervin (152).

Caleb (62-0) and Isaac Ervin (32-0) are brothers, and Luke (54-6) is their cousin. The Ervin family now has produced eight state champions for Union County, starting with Tim Ervin in 1977. Robert Ervin, the father of Caleb and Isaac, won state titles in 1981 and '82 and now is an assistant coach for the Braves.

"It's a dream come true," Robert Ervin said of watching the family capture three titles in one night. "It's an important thing for all of us. They represent their grandmas, their grandpas, their whole family when they go out there. We're really proud of them."

But perhaps no one was more proud than Brown. He was a sophomore on Trinity's 1989 state championship team and won an individual state title (189 pounds) as a senior. His coach then, Kenny Ellenbrand, is now one of his assistants.

After nine years as an assistant to Ed Rudolph, Brown got the chance to be a head coach -- and, again, a state champion.

"This isn't about me," said Brown, also named the state's Coach of the Year. "This is about Trinity High School and all of our wrestlers. I'm blessed to be in this position