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Coach: 'It Was A Shock'

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By DAREK SHARP, The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 12, 2008

PLANT CITY - His team's performance at the Graves Invitational was encouraging, but Durant High wrestling coach Dennis Kitko left the event feeling bummed out.

Not because of the Cougars, however.

The tournament, dubbed Challenge the Streak, lived up to its name. For the first time since 1973, Brandon was defeated in a dual meet. In front of about 2,000 fans Jan. 5, fellow state power South Dade defeated the Eagles 32-28 in the tournament final.

"I was just in shock," said Kitko, one of the top performing wrestlers in Brandon history. He and many other former Eagles were there for the dramatic match-up.

"The things that always fall Brandon's way, the close matches, went South Dade's way," he said.

South Dade jumped ahead 22-3 and it was too much for Brandon to overcome, though the victory was not clinched until the next-to-last bout.

When South Dade secured the historical win - the first defeat for Brandon in 468 dual meets - longtime Eagles coach Russ Cozart was outwardly fine. He darted across the mat to congratulate the South Dade coaches.

Kitko had his own ideas on how Cozart must have felt.

"Deep down, I'm sure it was killing him to lose," he said. "But by the same token, that's a big burden off his shoulders. There's got to be so much pressure that went with the streak."

All three of the other semifinalists were considered a candidate to beat Brandon. In the semi against Manatee, the Eagles trailed 18-14 and were losing 7-4 in the heavyweight match before they turned it around. South Dade had to win the last three matches of its semifinal against Palmetto Ridge to earn the chance to beat Brandon.

Durant took on Palmetto Ridge, losing 54-9 Jan. 4.

"Hey, they're used to beating people by 65 to 70 points. We were in some of those matches, and I was actually very pleased with how we did against them," Kitko said. Plant City was blanked 79-0 by Palmetto Ridge in the Raiders' first-round match. Plant City would also take on Jesuit and Sickles, losing both matches but by much closer scores.

The Cougars recorded some impressive wins at the two-day event. Durant started off by beating Jesuit 47-22. Then came the loss to Palmetto Ridge.

On Jan. 5, Durant defeated Alonso 41-25 and lost to Camden County (Ga.) 33-30. In the seventh-place final, Durant defeated Parkland Douglas 43-30.

Palmetto Ridge topped Manatee 34-27 for third place, and fifth went to Springstead over Camden County.

This weekend, the Cougars are headed to yet another talent-laden event at Flagler Palm Coast High. Kitko is loading up on the tough competition for a reason.

"We have some wrestlers who have, say, a record of 20-8, where if we had the schedule we did last year, they would probably be 27-1," Kitko said. "These guys have faced such great competition that I think, and I hope, that it will show come regionals. We've already seen most of the best wrestlers in the state."

Reporter Darek Sharp can be reached at dsharp@tampa trib.com.

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