Billy Montgomery picks his opponent up for a throw to straight to the mat during a tournament Saturday at Stout Gym. Photo by Staff Sgt. Wilson A. Rivera.
Army Strong team wrestles local competition at Bliss meet
Staff Sgt. Wilson A. Rivera, 343rd Mobile Public Affairs Detachment
The Fort Bliss Army Strong wrestling team hosted the first freestyle/Greco-Roman wrestling tournament Saturday at Stout Physical Fitness Center.
Soldiers, Marines, Department of Defense employees and dependents make up the Army Strong team, which competed against more than 135 equally formidable opponents from the El Paso and Las Cruces, N. M., areas.
“It’s a pretty good tournament,” said Chris Harris a Burges High School student. “There are a lot of tough guys (and) I think I could have done better, but I’m happy with my performance overall.”
Harris, like many high school students, continues wrestling after the season ends to stay in shape and looks forward to the next year.
Most of the wrestlers still think they are in folk-style wrestling like in high school, said Army Strong coach Avery Guillermo. Even though there are differences in rules and scoring, the main goal in wrestling is to win by points or pin the opponent’s shoulder to the mat. In freestyle wrestling, both the arms and legs are used to achieve holds and defend from attacks, and in Greco-Roman, a wrestler cannot attack below the opponent’s waist.
Harris said freestyle is a lot different than wrestling high school because of the scoring format and the ability to throw an opponent.
“It’s the beginning of the season, but they have a lot of work they have to do,” said Chief Warrant Officer Derrick J. Worthy, Directorate Combat Developments. “From what I saw as a wrestling official, they were courteous to each other and they did what they were supposed to do – wrestle.”
Cpl. Carlos Muniz, 5th Armored Brigade, Task Force Outlaw, hasn’t competed in wrestling since being part of the Puerto Rico national team more than seven years ago.
“It was a great feeling being able to compete with guys a lot younger than me,” Muniz said. “It made me proud to be able to wrestle on a military installation and being one of the few U.S. Army Soldiers to compete again.”
The Army Strong tournament was just a snapshot of the best wrestlers in the El Paso and Las Cruces, N.M., area, said Eric E. Hildreth, sport director. The event was very successful with some real talented, tough athletes and Soldiers, he said.