For a first-year head coach with a major rebuilding job, Ulric Winesburgh is off to a pretty good start.
His Red Bank wrestling Lions, seeking to replace nine starters from a state championship team, picked up wins four and five Tuesday at Ooltewah, rolling past Tyner 54-12 and the host Owls 39-30.
"From what we had last year to now, we're building off something good," Winesburgh said. "We're almost starting over - there are four or five freshmen starting - but we showed up and wrestled tonight."
The grit he'd been seeking but failed to see at Hixson's Vandergriff duals last Saturday was much more apparent Tuesday.
"From how we wrestled last weekend to this (effort) tonight is a total difference," Winesburg said. "We dug down deep and fought. and even the guys who lost fought - a time or two off their backs."
In the night's third team match, Ooltewah evened its record at 1-1 with a 51-24 decision over Tyner, which dropped to 0-2.
There were numerous forfeits throughout. Tyner and Ooltewah were in their first matches while Red Bank has two starters out with injuries and is looking to fill a couple of other weight classes.
The Lions' double winners were Chris Rice (106), Caden Cline (126), Zach Gee (132), Keith Nowlin (138), Jackson Hash (170) and Jeremiah Welch (285).
They fought back from a 27-12 deficit against Ooltewah in the meet that started at 138 pounds. Cline broke a 30-all deadlock with a pin, and Gee kept Ooltewah from earning a tie with a decision in the final match.
The Owls rebounded against Tyner, building a 30-6 lead through eight matches, much of that advantage coming on pins from Tay Paris (152), Jordan Davis (160), Ethan Retelaff (170) and Victor Bednarski (220). Tyner reduced the gap with back-to-back forfeit wins, but Ooltewah ended the rally with wins from Gavin Howington (126) and Tucker Passons (138).
"Conditioning was a big factor tonight. Not to make an excuse, but the football guys didn't come out until Sunday," new Ooltewah coach J.D. Dunbar said. "It's not that we have a lot of football players, but it's like Bednarski has had nobody to work out with. Conditioning is something we'll get fixed."
The Owls are still working out adjustments, too, to Dunbar's preferred style.
"I'd have to look at the stat sheet to be sure, but I don't know if we got a takedown off of our own offense," he said. "And if you're not impressive on your feet you're not going to win a whole lot of matches."
Like Red Bank, Ooltewah is going through a youth movement.
"Outside of Passons and Bednarski, I've got nine greenhorns," Dunbar said. "These young guys paid their dues in JV last year, but we're still inexperienced."
Contact Ward Gossett at wgossett@timesfreepress.com or 423-886-4765. Follow him at Twitter.com/wardgossett.