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By ADAM ADKINS, The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 5, 2008

BRANDON - History will be made today. The only question is if Brandon's wrestling team will be smiling when it's finished.

The first day of the sixth annual Jim Graves Challenge the Streak Dual Meet Tournament played out according to plan Friday, with the top four seeded teams - Brandon, Naples Palmetto Ridge, Homestead South Dade and Bradenton Manatee - advancing to today's semifinals.

So, against the toughest competition Brandon has seen in years, the Eagles' national record winning streak - which stands at 458 after two victories Friday - will either continue to grow, or, as many think could happen, finally will come to an end.
Manatee coach Andy Gugliemini, whose team will get the first crack today at The Streak in the noon semifinals, admitted it was probably going to be tough to sleep Friday night. Longtime Brandon coach Russ Cozart, on the other hand, said he would have no such trouble.

"Oh, I'll sleep. When I get tired, I go to sleep," Cozart said with a smile.

There were plenty of reasons Friday for the Eagles to smile. They breezed through each of their two duals, defeating Sickles 80-0 in the first round before rolling past Parkland Douglas 65-7 in the quarterfinals, losing just two of 28 matches in the process.

But Brandon wasn't the only team that looked good.

Manatee, the last team to defeat Brandon (Feb. 20, 1973), easily defeated Chamberlain in its first match, and the Hurricanes had an impressive showing against a tough Springstead squad in the quarters, winning 52-18.

The win over Springstead had Gugliemini and his wrestlers pumped to the point they would have liked to get the Eagles on the mat right then, but knowing they'd get a shot at The Streak today was enough to hold the Hurricanes over for the night.

South Dade and Palmetto Ridge also were impressive Friday. South Dade downed Venice (62-12) and Camden County, Ga., (57-9) to reach the semifinals, while Palmetto Ridge defeated Plant City (79-0) and Durant (54-9). Those teams also square off at noon.

Wrestling begins today at 10 a.m. with the consolation rounds. Wharton and Jefferson withdrew Friday from the 16-team field.

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