THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, February 29, 1996 TAG: 9602290464
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY PAUL WHITE, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHESAPEAKE LENGTH: Long : 124 lines
He's won more matches than anyone in the 48-year history of Virginia high school wrestling. One wrestling periodical calls him the best 130-pounder in the country.
And the seemingly effortless way Great Bridge's Carl Perry flows from move to move, as though his opponent was a co-star in a how-to guide on the art of the technical fall, has drawn the awe and respect of teammates, opponents and wrestling fans everywhere.
Well, almost everywhere.
``This guy?'' Matt Perry exclaimed as he sized up his 5-7, 130-younger brother upon entering their Chesapeake home. ``Hey, he may be No. 1 in the nation, but he's only the third-toughest guy in this house.''
The secret to whipping Carl Perry? Older brothers Matt, 23, and Adam, 20, aren't telling, and no one else seems to be able to figure it out. When the Wildcats' senior and returning state champion takes the mat Friday in the Group AAA state tournament at Oscar Smith, he'll be riding an 86-bout winning streak.
``I love what I've accomplished,'' said Perry, who will wrestle on scholarship at Illinois in the fall. ``But I won't get cocky or big-headed about it, because I'll never get to the point where I'm satisfied.''
When Steve Martin brought his Iowa-style of wrestling to Great Bridge in 1992, he envisioned a disciple who, already refined in the slick, technical moves preached by former coach Wayne Martin, would master snarling, in-your-face Iowa aggressiveness, be able to launch offense from any position on the mat and develop into a devastating wrestling force.
In short, he envisioned Carl Perry.
Perry, in turn, has delivered a 158-14 four-year record, high school All-American honors and a third-place finish at the USA Wrestling Junior National Championships.
But while Perry may be seen as the golden child conceived from the marriage of the two wrestling styles, that doesn't fully explain his dominance. After all, if the convergence of the two systems was the key, the Wildcats would win 14 state titles this weekend.
Rather, it took Perry's own athleticism, work ethic and fierce competitive streak to take Martin's grand design to the next level.
Great Bridge wrestlers love to boast that no one outworks a Wildcat, but it can be argued that Wildcats have more work to do. Few of them, according to Steve Martin, are blessed with a lot of natural athletic gifts.
``We don't get the good athletes here,'' the coach said. ``You look at our guys, and maybe only two or three of them are what you'd call really good athletes.''
No one disputed Perry's talents, though. He played quarterback for his junior-high football team and was a shortstop in baseball. As for wrestling, Great Bridge Junior High coach Davey Davis said Perry, as a third-grader, was already beating some of his seventh- and eighth-graders.
Great Bridge High School's football and baseball coaches were eagerly awaiting Perry's arrival when he entered the ninth grade, but Perry gave up both to pursue wrestling full-time.
``I really liked baseball, but I felt like wrestling was my best chance to get a scholarship,'' Perry said. ``That was my main goal.''
Perry had established his work ethic even before arriving at Great Bridge. Davis remembers the day he overslept a Saturday morning workout, then turned up at the gym an hour later to find the eighth-grade Perry running practice.
``He was the type of kid you could turn your practice over to, anyway,'' Davis said. ``So I just sat back and watched.''
Even today, with his reputation and college future secure, Perry still attacks practice with almost maniacal zeal.
``He's definitely the most intense person in the room,'' Great Bridge 145-pounder Stacey Woodhouse said. ``I'm bigger than he is and he still kicks my butt.''
As for his competitiveness, Perry, can charm folks with the toothy smile of a Magic Johnson, addresses adults as sir or ma'am and insists he's sincere when he says ``good luck'' to each opponent during the pre-match introductions. But he can be ruthless once a bout starts, particularly if he gets ticked off.
In a match against Poquoson's Eddie Keaton last season, Perry, feeling he'd been poked in the eye, went into a rage against the Islanders' returning Group AAA state runner-up, grinding his face into the mat, shoving him out of bounds and roughing him up after the whistle. Six penalty points later, Perry had his victory over a bloodied Keaton.
``Don't let that nice stuff fool you,'' Matt Perry said. ``He's out there to win. We're all like that. We're not poor sports, but we're not good losers, either. We plan on winning every time out.''
Added Carl: ``I want to beat you 100-0 if I can.''
The combination of Perry's intangibles - which he says includes a ``strong faith in Jesus Christ'' - and the Great Bridge coaching clicked instantly. He finished third in the state at 119 as a freshman, then improved to among the state's 119-pounders the following year despite going 1-5 against Western Branch's Chris Viola.
``My sophomore year was the toughest,'' Perry said. ``Five losses to the same guy? That was tough.''
Frustrated, Perry took a rare summer off from competing and cutting weight. When his junior year rolled around, Perry said he felt like a different wrestler.
``I seemed fresh, strong,'' he said. ``Taking that time off was just what I needed.''
Perry hasn't lost a high school match since. He went 42-0 last season despite a midseason tear of cartilage in his right knee.
Then again, a high threshold of pain has always been part of the Perry package. At age 7, he once played a complete baseball game with a broken collarbone.
Forty-four more victories have followed this season, all but one by fall or technical fall. And while it would appear almost impossible to go out Friday and top the the performances he's turned in so far, Perry seems ready to give it a try.
``It's exciting because these will be my last high school matches,'' Perry said. ``My last time in a Great Bridge singlet. I want to go out with a bang.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo by L. TODD SPENCER/
Great Bridge's Carl Perry became the winningest wrestler in Virginia
history by competing with a maniacal zeal. ``I want to beat you
100-0 if I can,'' said Perry, whose final high school matches come
this weekend in the state tournament at Oscar Smith.
Color photo by L. TODD SPENCER/
Great Bridge star Carl Perry, shown taking down Kellam's Jason
Boswell, carries an 86-bout winning streak and a 158-14 record into
Friday's state tournament.
by CNB