Some final Rochester press about Punahou Wrestling
January 8, 2008 by Jimmy
Filed under The Clash 2008
From Ben Pherson’s article Monday, wrapping up his coverage of The Clash:
Out with a bang
Things went much better for the Punahou School of Hawaii on the final day of competition at The Clash VI.
Punahou lost its opening dual to Goodhue 33-30. A controversial slam call cost Punahou six points, which essentially cost the school the dual.
"It was unfortunate, and our kids were pretty upset about it," Punahou coach Matt Oney said. "But they didn’t hang their heads."
Punahou bounced back with two wins to close the tournament, topping Chaparral of Colorado 45-18 and Creighton Prep 39-34.
Oney and his coaching staff presented gift bags to opposing coaches and tournament organizers. They even presented gifts to officials, after they had finished wrestling, of course.
Oney said the trip was worth every penny.
"We’ve been treated so well, from the second our plane landed," Oney said. "It didn’t matter who it was. This was the trip of a lifetime for our kids."
Punahou’s 2-1 record on Day 2 tied them with Goodhue and Creighton Prep, but the tiebreaker went to Punahou and their wrestlers took home trophies as winners of the Eighth Bracket (29th place).
See the entire article here.