No. 1 Britt pins No. 2 McMullin in less than 30 seconds
Israel Potoczny israel@lebanondailyrecord.com
Jan 14, 2009
With Tuesday’s match having already been decided in Willard’s favor, the heavy weight showdown was for bragging rights.
And rest assured Lebanon still has the top dog.
For the second time this season, Lebanon heavy weight Justin Britt, backed up his No. 1 ranking in Missouri Class 4 against Willard’s Chris McMullen.
McMullen, a two-time defending state champion who is ranked No. 2 in Missouri Class 3, was handed his only loss of the season in districts by Britt last year. Britt then opened the 2008-2009 season by backing up the win on Dec. 6 at the Neosho Tournament.
On Tuesday, Britt made short work of McMullin in the rematch, pinning the senior in 28 seconds.
But according to Britt, the win could have come even earlier.
“I should have had that shot right at the start,” he said.
Undefeated this season at 25-0, Britt became the fifth wrestler in LHS history to reach 100 career wins on Jan. 8 at Camdenton.
He joins Willie McCowan (134, 1996-99), Nathan Rogers (116, 2004-07), Tim Sperry (112, 1992-96) and Jake Starnes (107, 2004-07) as the winning Lebanon wrestlers in school history.
Britt said the biggest difference between his senior season and junior year is experience and confidence.
Britt wasn’t the only LHS wrestler to find success in Tuesday’s 39-27 loss. Trevor Byrd continued his impressive performance at 215 pounds this season.
Last year, he was just 1-4 in varsity matches, primarily wrestling for the junior varsity where he won 16. Byrd said knocking heads on a daily bases with then-senior James Rabe in practice helped prepare him for varsity.
This year, Byrd has already won 25 matches and he improved to 25-4 with a win on Tuesday.
“Last year, I had a great senior in front of me (Rabe), pushing me as hard as I could go ... I’m in the weight room every day with my other teammates and you reap what you sow,” Byrd said.
Lebanon will compete at the Jefferson City Invitational on Friday and Saturday, then return home for a match with Ozark Conference rival Rolla on Thursday.
Tuesday’s match with Willard was the ‘Jackets first home match since its season opener on Dec. 2 against Jefferson City.
“(It was) an awesome crowd tonight,” Byrd said.
