Yeah, we lost last year. But admit it. Isn't the Reynolds-Greenville rivalry a lot more interesting and fun when Greenville has a competitive team? ChatGPT was not used to create this report so all mistakes are authentic, not artificial. Keep reading for the full preview.
Overview
Coming off an extremely competitive weekend, the 10-3 Raiders head up the road for the 61st contest with our next-door rivals, the 19-1 Greenville Trojans. Reynolds will try to rebound from a 1-3 weekend against some of the top teams in the state. Greenville is well rested after last competing on January 14 where they won the Northwestern Wildcat Duals Tournament.
A big question is whether wrestling and both winning and losing against top competition makes the Raiders more prepared than winning and building confidence with mostly regional competition, as does Greenville.
A few possible influences might determine the outcome. First are the individual matchups. The even-odd disc flip before the match might be important in helping the coaches determine where to attack weaknesses or counter a top kid with one of their own.
Next, which team will earn the most bonus points? This bit the Raiders last weekend. Reynolds won 27 individual matches against 25 losses at the Ultimate Duals but was on the low end of pins with 8 for, versus 13 against. This was especially evident versus Brookville where they won 7 of the 13 weight classes but fell a point short of victory! Greenville has shown some pinning capabilities, so bonus points must be considered as a potential factor in the outcome.
Family Matters
What is more defining for a next-door rivalry than the possibility of a cousin-wrestle-cousin match? How about that same scenario in two weight classes!
Perhaps the most impactful all-in-the-family contest of this series was in 1968 when Bob "Bear" Loveless had to pin his cousin to earn a 21-20 victory (The Bear has said that he had no personal joy in winning that way). Last year, we saw the Luke & Vito Gentile contest which Vito won 4-3 in a last second escape.
The Gentile clan has increased the odds with two possible family matchups. If they conducted their own personal preview during the family Christmas dinner, they aren't telling who won.
A Rudy-Tino Gentile matchup at 145 lbs. seems the most likely of the matchups as both have wrestled at that weight class all season. However, the Luke-Vito rematch is not as probable since Luke has competed at 152 several times this season while Vito is an exclusive 160 pounder. Luke and teammate Hayden Robertson have alternated at 152 and 160 lbs. More recently, Luke has been in the lighter weight class and Robertson at 160. It seems to come down to Coach Reynolds' decision if there is a second Gentile showdown on Wednesday.
Match History
Reynolds holds a 50-10 lead in head-to-head matches with Greenville, who last year snapped a 23 series-match losing streak. I have not been posting the complete match history for other teams but as with everything else versus Greenville, this match is a special case. Here is a listing of all 60 previous matches.
Year Coach W/L Score
1962 Lineman L 6-33
1963 Lineman L 16-28
1964 Lineman L 12-30
1965 Lineman L 12-35
1966 Lineman W 20-17
1967 Lineman L 22-24
1968 Lineman W 21-20
1969 Lineman W 35-13
1970 Lineman W 21-20
1971 Lineman W 23-17
1972 Lineman L 15-30
1973 Lineman W 25-16
1974 Lineman W 20-17
1975 Lineman W 31-19
1976 Lineman W 37- 9
1977 Lineman W 32-11
1978 Reichard W 29-15
1979 Reichard W 27-22
1980 Reichard W 26-16
1981 Groover W 29-16
1982 R.Taylor L 27-28
1983 McClimans W 30-18
1984 McClimans W 28-19
1985 McClimans L 24-26
1986 McClimans W 38-14
1987 Hills W 49-12
1988 Hills W 61- 6
1989 Hills W 34-28
1990 Hills W 35-21
1991 Hills W 47-12
1992 Hills W 65- 4
1993 Hills W 53-18
1994 Hills W 32-27
1995 Hills W 27-26
1996 Hills W 26-23
1997 Hills L 19-24
1998 Hills W 42- 3
1999 Hills W 34-15
2000 Hills W 43-11
2001 Hills W 46- 6
2002 Hills W 41-13
2003 Hills W 49-15
2004 Hills W 63- 3
2005 Hills W 49-15
2006 Hills W 42-13
2006 Hills W 49- 6
2006 Hills W 56-10
2007 Hills W 42-22
2007 Hills W 42-22*
2008 Hills W 47-14
2012 C.Taylor W 51-16+
2014 C.Taylor W 45-13
2015 C.Taylor W 48-21
2016 C.Taylor W 38-24
2016 C.Taylor W 47-19
2019 C.Taylor W 55-10
2019 C.Taylor W 84- 0
2020 C.Taylor W 70- 6
2021 C.Taylor W 40-15
2022 C.Taylor L 24-36
* Reynolds' 600th win
+Reynolds' 700th win
War Stories
Ranked Wrestlers & Key Matchups
Greenville Trojans Team Record
Greenville Roster
Reynolds Raiders Team Record
Reynolds Roster
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