Nikolas Hawkins of Robert D. Edgren is considered one of the Far East favorites at 141 pounds, a weight class loaded with talents such as Kadena's James Kinney and Kubasaki's Godfrey Wray. (David Shepherd/Special to Stripes)
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URUMA, Okinawa – When last we saw Matthew C. Perry’s wrestling team on a Far East tournament mat, it was Feb. 15, 2020, and the Samurai came up just short of Yokota for the Division II individual freestyle and dual-meet team titles.
Three years and a coronavirus pandemic-induced delay later, coach Billy Henry hopes that his Samurai can finish what they began lo’ those three years ago at Osan – capture those same team titles in the 2023 iteration of Far East Monday-Wednesday at Nile C. Kinnick.
Perry went unbeaten in DODEA-Japan dual-meet competition until it came up against D-I Kinnick earlier this month.
But led by lighter-weight twins Sebastian and Gregory Campbell, middleweight Kirby Kendrick and heavyweights Maddix Larue and Jayden Santiago, the Samurai are the lone D-II team that fills out a complete lineup. Henry feels that could give his team an edge.
“I feel that the team has worked very hard all year and are ready,” Henry said. “One match, one dual at a time.”
Perry is one of eight Division II teams set to do battle in the Far East, which begins Monday with individual weight-class competition.
That concludes with the weight-class finals starting at 9 a.m. Tuesday, followed by dual-meet competition which ends with the finals at 1 and 2 p.m. Wednesday.
Sabastian Campbell is one of 13 wrestlers in Matthew C. Perry's lineup, the lone team in Far East Division II with a full lineup. (James Kimber/Special to Stripes)
Jeremish Drummer is one of two Kadena wrestlers bearing the nickname "Hulk" headed to Far East at Kinnick. (Emma Rary/Special to Stripes)
Joshua Hernandez is one of Nile C. Kinnick's key wrestlers at 168 pounds. (James Kimber/Special to Stripes)
Heavyweight Anthony Finegan is one of several key athletes on the reigning Far East wrestling tournament Division I champion Kubasaki Dragons. (Dave Ornauer/Stars and Stripes)
While the individual competition is interdivision, the team division totals will be kept separately, as will the crowning of dual-meet champion teams.
And a full lineup does not guarantee instant success in what’s by and large considered an individual sport.
Perry’s southwest Japan rival E.J. King sports its own competitive athletes such as middleweight Joseph McGrath and heavier weights Ashton Wall and Tom Irby. Tate Rannow of Yokota is a threat at 148 pounds, while Nikolas Hawkins of Robert D. Edgren could steal points at 141.
And while it’s been nine years since Osan won a Far East title, it still brings competitive athletes to the table in Edward Kim (180), Kyle Foerst (141) and Samuel Myrup (215). As tiny as Daegu’s lineup is, 122-pounder Match Diehl could cause others problems.
Division I could be a free-for-all, given the relatively full lineups across the board and the competition seen at last week’s Nile C. Kinnick Invitational “Beast of the Far East,” when Kinnick took second.
But the Red Devils enter Far East with a huge hole in the lineup at 158 – “Beast” Outstanding Wrestler Wendell Harrison transferred earlier this week to Hawaii.
“Everything else will be pretty solid,” coach Stan Hovell said of a Kinnick lineup that still features “Beast” 168-pound champion Joshua Hernandez and heavyweight champion Bobby Crisafulli. “We’ll try to wrestle smart, not force anything and stick with what we know.”
One team on the rise is American School In Japan, which went unbeaten in the Kanto Plain Association of Secondary Schools and took the league title for the first time in 16 years. In their 43-19 win Wednesday over Kinnick, all the Mustang seniors closed their regular season with wins.
Humphreys almost ran the table during the Korea regular season, and fills 10 of 13 weight classes with the likes of Guage Flores (122), Drew Wahlgren (129), Steve Gonzales (158) and Dominic Meno (215).
Okinawa, which collectively holds more Division I titles than any other region, with 34, will also bring almost-full lineups to Far East.
Former Kinnick star Joey Wood coaches Kadena and brings a pair of athletes nicknamed “Li’l Hulk” and “Big Hulk,” 108-pounder Josiah Drummer and 180-pounder Jeremiah Drummer, along with 141-pounder James Kinney. But the Panthers must travel without a 168- and 215-pounder.
“We just have to wrestle better,” Wood said. “We have the guys to make it happen. Everybody is going to have to step up and place.”
Likewise, Kubasaki, with its 101-pounder Gwen Pantaleon, 141-pounder Godfrey Wray and heavyweight Anthony Finegan, will be missing wrestlers, at 108, 115 and 180.
It gets back to the fact that there hasn’t been a Far East since 2020, and one key is learning how to develop a program for the long haul, not just a team for one tournament, Kubasaki coach Alex Light said.
“Winning is great, but it’s about developing a culture,” he said.
