can also be the worst. I'm talking about the sound of the referee's hand pounding the mat to indicate a pin. Two weeks ago (prior to the sidelining of the Cubscout due to ringworm), he was the one on the top getting two pins in one tournament. Today, he was the one on the bottom...getting pinned.
Today's tournament was double elimination. It was at a big school to our west (we had been going east). All the city wrestlers were there. I knew the competition would be stiff, but the Cubscout had been doing really well. The first indication of trouble was when we were walking up to the school where the tournament was taking place, and he started to get really quiet (that's how he rolls...quiet = nervous). Then, he asked to go to the bathroom before weigh-in. He wasn't nervous about weighing in (he had been moved up a weight class so there was no doubt he would make it). About two matches before his, he looked like he was about to cry.
Then, the first match began. That kid was GOOD! The Cub didn't really even know what hit him, and he was pinned within 1 minute. So, he came off the mat upset and with a new slot in the losing bracket. The next match came around and it started to look a lot like the first. This time, though he didn't get pinned, but the referee called the match at 15-0. It was horrible. But, it was one of those situations where even though I wanted to cry, I had to be strong so he wouldn't be any harder on himself than he would be already.
I am really proud of the Cub. I have seen a lot of poor sportsmanship and that's never him. Kids have quit after a bad tournament, but he won't. He does it because he loves it and wants to try again. And that's all I can ask.
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