Southfield

Southfield High wrestling falls in team regional final

By Christian Davis
C & G Sports Writer

» click to enlarge « Photo by Deb Jacques Southfield High’s Ken Daniels works on flipping his Warren Lincoln opponent over in a D-2 regional final. Photo by Deb Jacques Southfield High’s Ken Daniels works on flipping his Warren Lincoln opponent over in a D-2 regional final.

Southfield High wrestling went the furthest this season in the postseason than any other team in school history.

The Blue Jays eventually fell to Warren Lincoln 56-9 Feb. 13 at Madison Heights Lamphere in a Division 2 regional final.

“We wrestled very tough. As expected, we had to wrestle six minutes and not get pinned,” Southfield coach Vernon Burden said. “Warren Lincoln is very tough and has a really solid lineup. We lost six matches where we had a chance to win at the end. If we win those matches, who knows how the meet would’ve broken down.

“But I’m very proud of my guys.”

Southfield beat Auburn Hills Avondale 45-32 in the semifinal to advance.

The Blue Jays end the season 26-3 overall, and until the loss to Lincoln, hadn’t been on the losing end since Dec. 2.

“We wrestled great. We saw some good teams during that period, also. I believe four district champions,” Burden said. “When it came to team meets, the seniors really stepped up, and when teams saw us (at 119 through 152 pounds), they ran into a lot of trouble.”

During the regular season, Southfield won the Oakland Activities Association Blue Division for the second year in a row and third time in four seasons.

The team says goodbye to seniors Delando Davis-Wright, Jason Holmes, Ken Daniels, DaQuan Taylor and Deangelo Haggen.

Davis-Wright and Daniels have qualified for the individual state final Feb. 28 at The Palace of Auburn Hills.

“I’m very proud of these (seniors) and happy to share so many memories with them,” Burden said. “It’ll be hard to replace these guys in the lineup. They have done a great job of representing the program in the school and community.”

You can reach C & G Sports Writer Christian Davis at cdavis@candgnews.com or at (586)498-1062. Follow Christian on Twitter.