University of Virginia Library

Grapplers Host VMI;
Seek To Avenge Loss

By Bill Edgerton

This evening at University Hall
the Cavalier grapplers defend their
home mat against the VMI Keydets.
After losing last year in Leton
21-14, a victory will be much a
moral booster to the team
has thus far had a rough season.

The loss last year has been
attributed to the weakness in the
heavier weights, and this weakness
has continued to plague the
Cavaliers this year as well. Coach
Edwards feels that the four heavy
weights, Douglas Brown, Mack
Horton, and Dick Opp are all in
better shape than they were for the
Maryland match and their
performance should be much
improved.

The line-up for tonights meet
features the three Moore brothers,
Chris, Tom, and Ted, wrestling at
137, 152, and 160 respectively.
This family trio is expected to be
victorious in each of their bouts
this evening and will probably be
the backbone of the team.

The teams strength, as has been
the case in the past, will remain in
the lighter classes, with John
Pegues, Lew Pavia and John Pittas
carrying the burden with the Moore
brothers.

Concerning the results of the
Maryland match held last week,
Coach Edwards feels that he
Cavaliers were wrestling out of their
league.

The Maryland team remains far
superior to the Virginia team,
primarily because all of its wrestlers
are on athletic scholarships.
Because of this their staff can
afford to be a bit more selective
than the Virginia coaching staff.

Coach Edwards also feels that
the team was a bit out of shape for
the Maryland meet, but that they
have recovered fully now. He is also
a bit more confident about facing
VMI because its team, like the
Virginia team, is not made up solely
by boys on financial aid.

It seems that Virginia has
definitely been suffering from the
losses in the heavy weight classes.
This in itself is not an uncommon
weakness for a team to suffer. In
general, as the weight classes
increase, the amount of skill
involved decreases, and in reality
there is much less to work with.

This trend is best exemplified by
the heavy weights. In this class
there is no limit to the size of the
contestants and the match is no
longer one of skill between two
contestants, but a contest between
the two teams to see which can
produce the strongest, or biggest
wrestler. With any luck the
Cavaliers ought to be able to pull it
out in the heavy classes.

The meet tonight should be a
good one and wrestling being the
psychological sport that it is, it
should be an asset to have it here in
University Hall, rather than in the
overcrowded VMI gym as was the
case last year. The first match is at
eight o'clock.

Cavalier Grappler Tom Moore Attempts Escape

Wrestling At 152 Pounds, Moore Seeks Another Victory Tonight