This past weekend Ivey League Mixed Martial Arts sent a team of students up to the Naga grappling championships.
The team roster consisted of the following students:
*Side-note – Listed next to their name is where they placed at the tournament
Holden Murphy DNP
Marc Julian 1st and 2nd
Laith Hyiali DNP
David Pfeiffer 2nd
Phil Higgins DNP
Chrissy Smith 2nd
Jacob Miller 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 2nd
Michael “Mouth” Garlington 1st, 1st
Brendan “Spike” Bill 2nd
The team did very well bringing back a combined medal count of 12 including 7 golds. Outstanding work Ivey leaguers!
Below is a breakdown of their matches.
Michael Garlington – Mike or as we know him as “Mouth” was on top of his game. Because of this he won both his divisions in gi and nogi.
Mouth was very effective with his takedowns and relentless submission attacks. He won his nogi division by using his favorite technique; the guillotine!
This was the first time Mouth was on the top of the podium and you can be sure that it won’t be the last.
To be honest we all knew it was only a matter of time before Mouth started to win. He trains 6 days a week. He’s by far one of our most dedicated kids in the whole school.
When you work like he does losing becomes less and less of an issue. Take note people…wanna win? Train like Michael Garlington!
Laith Hyiali – Laith is kind of in the same boat as Chrissy, new to the tournament scene but hungry to get better.
Laith didn’t get the results he wanted but like the others, he needs to learn and get better.
As long as you learn and improve losing at a naga isn’t that big of a deal. It’s when you don’t learn that you’ve truly lost. No worries Laith, get back on the horse.
Marc Julian – Marc was simply awesome in his matches, taking first and second in gi and nogi.
He also had the most matches out of everyone. So yeah, it was a long day but in the end a good one.
He won most of his matches with good wrestling techniques and guard passing. Marc also lost a lot of weight thanks to the diet plan laid out by Coach David Miller.
The weight loss of more then 20 pounds made him so much faster and It’s that speed that won for him…a lot.
It’s funny but if you watch him compete in grappling you can clearly see the Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) influence.
He works for good position and would normally be punching from those spots. Whatever the case, it works for him and that in turn works fine for us 🙂
Phil Higgins – For his first tournament back Phil didn’t look bad. He didn’t win any divisions but he showed that he’s still got some pep in his steps.
Phil needs to work more on strategy and tactics. Once that kicks in he’ll be on the winning path.
Holden Murphy – Holden didn’t have the day he was hoping for.
He ended up taking loses early in the tournament and then to top it off broke his finger in his first and only gi match.
So yeah not what Holden or the staff wanted but like I keep saying, learn from your loses.
Chin up young man, good times are coming, I promise.
Jacob Miller – Jacob was without a doubt the star of the tournament. He won 4 gold medals at 4 different age groups!
Not only that but he submitted all but one of his opponents.
That and he finished them with a lot of different types of techniques like the upside down armbar and the cross choke from mount.
His lone loss of the day came at the very end when he wrestled another child about the same age that missed his division and needed a match.
Jacob, being a hard nosed tough kid wanted more matches and took to the mats.
Well you can’t win them all and he lost that one. But all in all he still had a stellar day. It’s easy to see why he’s become the face of the Ivey League youth program.
Spike Bill – Spike started the day on the wrong foot, taking back to back loses in the nogi expert division.
He did however make a comeback in gi and took second place to Team Lloyd Irvin standout Ricco (Can’t remember his last name).
David Pfeiffer – Dave got back to his winning way, well for the most part, by taking second place in the men’s gi white belt division.
After winning 5 straight matches, including choking his first opponent unconscious, he lost in the finals to the same young man that beat him at the Team Lloyd Irvin in-house tournament.
We all know that he didn’t want second place but at the same time he looked great and showed that he’s going to be a force on the BJJ scene.
Chrissy Smith – Chrissy did okay for her first tournament, placing second in the gi division and boy did she learn a lot about competing.
And that’s what it’s all about, learning from your mistakes and getting better. It’s all a part of the process.
Again, thanks to all the students that braved the drive to NJ and competed for themselves and for Ivey League.
I should also say this; no team functions with just one person. The reason Ivey League has done so well is because of more then just me (Danny Ives). Our staff here does a fantastic job and again, the proof is in the pudding.
Thanks so much to the staff! Those people are listed below:
Teresa Ives
Marc Julian
Micheal Murphy
David Pfeiffer
David Miller
Jason Ferrall
Matt Teltoe
Victor Moreno
Scott Keller
Chrissy Smith
Brandon Hundrickson
Rick Engelfried
Jeaneo Binney
Spencer Lipscomb
Brandon Dolezal
Remember, use this experience to get better and learn. You need to always be shooting for the stars and trying to get better!
Next up for Ivey League will be the Virginia Beach Naga in June. Time to step it up!
Below are some photos.
