Freshman Marry State Champ

                                                                              By Bill Mullaly

The winter sports season at Hudson High School has ended with the conclusion of the state tournaments and what a final weekend it was. Hudson Tiger freshman sensation Derrik Marry won an individual state championship at 125 pounds with a perfect 4-0 weekend at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Marry is the first freshman to ever win a state title at Hudson and he did it in dramatic fashion. The Tigers had eight wrestlers at the Palace and four of them placed in the top eight earning medals and recognition. The weekend didn't go so well for the competitive cheerleading team as they placed third at the state finals meet behind champion Breckenridge and Pewamo-Westphalia. Here is a look at what happened over the weekend.

Marry First, Smith Second

Marry won the 125-pound weight class with four wins. His first win was by a 7-2 score and then the big win came over a wrestler from Hesperia as he beat the Zeerip kid who was 55-1 entering the match. Marry somehow upset Zeerip with a win by a 7-6 count to get into the semifinals. Then he beat a kid from Byron by a 10-9 score to make the finals where he took on archrival Nate Elston of Addison who had beaten Marry three times this season. Not this time. Marry won a hard-fought 5-4 decision to claim the state championship and he could be just the second freshman in Lenawee County history to ever win a state title as a freshman. His dad head coach, Scott "Scooter" Marry, was thrilled for his son. "He has been working for this since he was six years old," said Scooter. "He won his four matches and he beat the guy in the circle and that is all that matters. There are at least three other kids who are probably wondering how Derrik won and they didn't. Derrik got it done when it counted and he took one match at a time."

Marry had beaten Elston at the district final so he knew he could beat the Panther despite three losses to him earlier this winter.

Marry is the first Tiger to win an individual crown since senior James Jones won a title in 1998. Marry ends the season with an overall mark of 47-13. "It was like a dream come true and I didn't believe it," said Derrik after the final win. "When I beat the Zeerip kid I thought why stop now and I just kept going. Elston is very tough but I was able to beat him and I gained a lot of confidence against him by beating him three weeks ago. I took the matches one at a time and luck was on my side. This is a great feeling and I'm very happy." He should be as winning a state final is very hard to do and congratulations go out to Derrik Marry freshman state champion!

Taylor Smith was a runner-up at 103 pounds as he just narrowly lost his final match. He won three straight bouts and was within inches of winning his final match falling 8-7 in the finals. "Taylor had a great year and a great weekend and just missed winning it all," said coach Marry. "He had the kid on his back and almost got a near-fall that would have given him the win. It was so close and disappointing as he almost won it all." Smith ends the season with a mark of 51-3 for the best record on the Hudson team and he is just a junior. He was fourth last year at 103. Look for him to win it all in 2008.

Junior Kyle Hillard was fourth at 171 as he won and then lost. He came back with three straight wins before falling to end the year at 40-19. The final placer was sophomore Kevin Vanderpool who was sixth at 112 pounds. He won twice and then lost twice to finish up 38-19. Other Tigers at the state meet were freshman Zeb Hilyard at 103 pounds and he won then lost twice to end up 36-11. Sophomore Byeongjik Kim wrestled at 130 pounds and he lost twice to finish up 34-24. Senior Josh Butts returned to the state meet after qualifying as a freshman and he lost, won and then lost to end up 34-10. The final Tiger was Gabe Elliott who lost, won and then lost to wind up the year at 37-20. "We had a great year and the boys made a real good showing at the state finals," said coach Marry.         

Cheerleaders Take Third

The Hudson competitive cheerleading team was hoping for more but the high expectations didn't result in a win at the state finals. Hudson went in ranked number two behind Breckenridge the defending state champions and the Lady Tigers couldn't get it done at the Delta Plex in Grand Rapids. In round one Breckenridge scored 199 points to 192 for P-W and 195 for Hudson. Round two also went to Breckenridge as they scored 219 points to 212 for P-W and 205 for Hudson. The Lady Tigers were down 18 points to the eventual champions and they were down four points to eventual runner-up P-W. Hudson needed a spectacular round three and didn't get it however in ending up third overall. Breckenridge came back with a 303 in round three for a total of 721. P-W ended round three with 296 for a total of 699 and Hudson had a score of 287 in round three to end up with 687 points. In round three Hudson had trouble as they had a girl fall in round three and that hurt the team score and most likely put Hudson in second place. Michigan Center was fourth this year with 654 points as they did the best of any other local school.

The girls had a great year and the expectations were high but unfortunately things didn't go the way they hoped they would this March.

Tiger Basketball Standout Aubrey Laughlin

The Basketball Coaches Association of Michigan (BCAM) has selected Lady Tiger basketball standout Aubrey Laughlin to its all-state team. Laughlin was a third team selection for her exploits on the hardwood this past fall. Laughlin was named to the Associated Press (AP) honorable mention team earlier this year. She was also named the Lenawee County Player-of-the Year for the fall of 2006. Laughlin is just a sophomore and still has two more years of eligibility left in her already stellar high school hoops.  

Derrik Marry atop the state podium

DERRICK MARRY struggling hard for the win at the State Championships last weekend. The Freshman took the title in the 125-lb. class.

HAPPY TIME: Freshman Derrick Marry is congratulated by his father, Tiger Wrestling Coach Scott Marry, for winning the 125 pound class state individual wrestling championship last weekend.   Submitted photo.