Led by Steve Culpepper, Usual Great Field Marks 20th Hornet Holiday Tournament

By Robin Brinkley, Staff Writer
27 Dec 1998
The Virginian-Pilot and The Ledger-Star, Page 14

If time is the best judge of worth, then the Hornet Holiday Wrestling Tournament should be insured for a million dollars.

This exquisite event - 12 teams from four states on two mats over two days - celebrates its 20th year Tuesday and Wednesday at Deep Creek with another spectacular field.

Top-ranked Great Bridge, No. 2 Deep Creek, No. 4 Cox and No. 10 Kempsville are the big local attractions. Rock Hill, S.C., Cary, N.C. and Paulsboro, N.J. bring different styles and accents that make it a truly regional event.

The tournament is the brainchild of former Deep Creek coach Dave Olah, who coached the Hornets to their only state championship in 1982. Olah turned over the program and the tournament to Steve Culpepper in 1993.

Culpepper competed in the Hornet Holiday tournament in 1980, '81 and '83 (he was hurt in '82). He's never won it, as wrestler or coach, but he brings his best team this year.

Deep Creek is 5-0 in dual meets and placed second in the WRAL Invitational in Raleigh (Cary won) and the Newport News Invitational the past two weekends.

Deep Creek had already been eclipsed by Great Bridge when Culpepper took over in 1992-93 and was soon surpassed by Western Branch. Hickory provides another formidable foe in talent-rich, wrestling-mad Chesapeake.

But Deep Creek is firmly back in the mix thanks to a solid foundation that has taken time to rebuild.

It started four years ago with the formation of a Deep Creek youth league - which Culpepper says is looking for a coach. The youth league has funneled kids to Deep Creek Middle School where Richard Capps, a former two-time state champ, improved on their technique before turning over the program this year to Shane Martin.

"The bottom line is we've had good middle school coaching," Culpepper said. "I'm getting kids at the high school that have technique."

Culpepper has waited too long and worked too hard to squander such an opportunity. He took 14 Hornets, the most ever, to Keith Lowrance's Granby System camp last summer.

Those same kids started working out with the club last March, lifting weights three days a week and drilling two days a week. They reversed that schedule in August.

The results are in the records. Top-ranked David Wiegand is 12-1 at 171, having lost only to a nationally ranked opponent from North Carolina. Fabian Harper is 13-0 at 119, ranked only behind Cox's Bobby Ingram.

They could meet in Wednesday's final.

"Fabian is wrestling the best he ever has," Culpepper said. "He has the best shot of taking out someone like Ingram."

Culpepper has a balanced lineup with juniors Roger Alston (11-2) and Rondell Barnes (11-4) poised to assume leadership roles next year while sophomores Chris Buckner 11-4), Chris Farley (9-3), John Adams (10-3) and Brian Atkins (10-4) and freshman Chris Pogue (12-4) all have winning records.

"I don't think we'll lose a step at all next year," Culpepper said...

Culpepper Ancestry. Steve, descended from a long line of Virginian Culpeppers, is Steven Douglas Culpepper, Jr., grandson of Leroy Norman Culpepper, III, who was the great-grandson of George Washington Culpepper, son of Robert Culpepper, son of Thomas Culpepper, son  of William Culpepper, son of Thomas Culpepper, son of Henry Culpepper, Jr., son of Henry Culpepper, son of John Culpepper, the Merchant, born in Harrietsham, England in 1606.