Cape a perfect fit for state wrestling championships

The gym at Cape Henlopen High School erupted Saturday night as Tommy Ott held off Marshall Hobbs of Lake Forest to win the Delaware Interscholastic Athletic Association Individual State Wrestling Championship at 220 pounds.

It was a tense, hard-fought battle that went down to the final second, and the joy it unleashed echoed far beyond the gym. Winning before a hometown crowd could not have been sweeter for an outstanding sophomore who has shown his mettle to battle whatever comes his way.

For Vikings fans, another high point of the championships came as three Cape wrestlers appeared on three mats at the same time, each one wrestling for third place in the state. All three won their matches: Garrett Smith, Justin Lopez and Sammy Mohr came back from early losses to finish third in their weight classes. Two more wrestlers, Austin Smith and Tadeo Gonzalez, placed fourth while Andre Flowers placed fifth.

The championships also offered an opportunity to honor Cape’s first wrestling champion, Willie Vann, who brought home the crown in 1973. Vann passed away Feb. 8, but his achievement was honored in a moving ceremony when former champions Jared Hill and Jon LoBiondo presented flowers to Vann’s family.

Cape’s wrestlers showcased excellence, and so did the venue in which the championships took place. The Cape High gym was packed to the rafters for much of the day Saturday. A well-organized contingent of volunteers kept the event running smoothly, sometimes with five bouts under way at the same time in the center of the gym.

In recent years, the state championships have  been held at St. Mark’s High School, a reasonable choice given the many wrestlers who hail from upstate schools. They’ve also been held at Georgetown’s Sussex Central.

But with all Cape Henlopen has to offer – a new, updated facility, plenty of free parking, a wide array of hotel accommodations and restaurants to suit all tastes and budgets, to say nothing of Cape Henlopen State Park, miles of ocean beaches and hundreds of outlets for shopping – Cape High deserves consideration as the permanent home of Delaware’s high school wrestling championships.