Date: Fri 02-Apr-1999

Publication: Bee

Author: KIMH

Quick Words:

Amanda-Morici

Full Text:

Amanda Morici Earns All-American Status As Female Wrestler

BY KIM J. HARMON

LAKE ORION, MICH. -- The 1998-99 wrestling season began with Amanda Morici

hoping for a spot on the Newtown High School varsity team. It ended with her

being named an All-American.

Amanda earned that All-Anerican status by finishing seventh in the 136-pound

weight division at the US Girls High School Wrestling Nationals in Lake Orion,

Michigan, last weekend.

She was 6-2 for the weekend.

"Oh, god, it was like the Olympics," she said. "There were girls from Hawaii

there and they brought chocolate macadamia nuts and pineapples. We were all

together and it was a lot of fun."

Amanda, who finished second in the Northeast Girls' Wrestling Tournament a

couple weeks ago, was seeded 7th at the Nationals. She wrestled five matches

on Saturday, the first day of competition, and won four of them.

But she did lose the first.

"I lost that first one in overtime by stalling," she said. "It was all my

mistakes. That girl didn't score any points of her own."

She came back by winning those next four matches, though -- three of them by

pins. At that point, All-American status for the Newtown wrestler was all but

assured heading into Sunday competition.

She had trouble at the beginning again, losing the first match of the day.

"It was a really good match," Amanda said. "Points were going back and forth

and the scorer said I won, but they took away some back points and I lost."

She won the final two matches of her weekend, both by pins, and with the

seventh-place finish comes the All-American label, which will also be written

up in a national wrestling magazine.

"It was crazy," said Amanda. "Being by myself here, I didn't realize there

were so many girls who wrestled and wanted this as much as I did."

There were more than 300 wrestlers from 42 states at the Nationals and Amanda

owes her appearance -- and her success -- to a number of people who helped her

get there.

"I owe a lot to my coach -- Alan Potter," said Amanda. "He worked hard to get

donations. And I owe a lot to the Blue & Gold Booster Club, Pat Kearn, Chris

Vanghele, Mrs Frances Potter, Anne Godfrey, Gary and Deana Glisan, coach Brad

and coach Brian -- they all made it possible. It was a great experience for

me. "