Hampe

Tonight, county fans can witness a milestone as No. 2 Old Mill visits No. 3 Northeast in what is believed to be the state's first dual-meet clash of defending state champs.The county is the first to share the 1A-2A state crown, won by Northeast (12-1), and the 3A-4A version, held by five-time champion Old Mill (13-2).Last year's 37-13 Northeast loss increased Old Mill's lead to 6-2 in the series. The Eagles won 38-9 in 1977 and 31-21 in 1978 -- Old Mill coach Mike Hampe's first two seasons.

Sixth-ranked Don Patterson (189 pounds, 20-5) pinned Joe Torsella in 3:28, lifting No. 4 Old Mill to a 27-26 upset of No. 2 North Carroll -- and coach Mike Hampe's 200th career victory -- yesterday at Old Mill."

Coach Mike Hampe dug up an old campaign cry of Wayne Hardin when Old Mill was shooting for an unprecedented fifth straight Class 3A-4A championship last season.In the 1960s, when Hardin was Navy's head football coach and going for a fifth consecutive victory over Army, he urged his troops: "Go for five."It worked for Hampe as well as it did for Hardin. Now what will Hampe use as a motivational tool?"Try to get a fix on six," Hampe said, smiling.If his campaign slogan is a bit weak, Hampe's team is not. Old Mill is clearly the class of the county.

Old Mill coach Mike Hampe wouldn't have wanted it any other way.With his team trailing upstart Northeast 179.5-154 after Friday's semifinal round, Hampe knew that the Anne Arundel County championship would come down to the fi- Wrestlingnals last night at South River, which featured five head-to-head bouts between his Patriots and the Eagles.It did. And Old Mill won, giving the Patriots their ninth consecutive county championship."We were very pleased with the situation in the finals because we wanted to go head up with [Northeast]

Old Mill's fifth-ranked Todd Hultgren (152, 21-5) has been the spark to the Patriots' fire.The top seed for this weekend's county tournament, Hultgren sacrificed for the team by wrestling up at 160 pounds all year and still decked 15 opponents. His pin total ties him with sophomore teammate Don Patterson (189, 19-4).Among Hultgren's losses this year are a 10-3 decision to then-top-ranked Kevin Neville (Mount St. Joseph) and a 4-2 loss to third-ranked state champion Johnny Montgomery (Randallstown)

Finally, it's here -- the northern county's mat showdown between No. 3 Old Mill and No. 5 Northeast.The teams will strap on their head gear at 7 tonight at Old Mill, and some two hours later, speculation should end as to which team is better -- Mike Hampe's four-time 4A-3A state champion Old Mill Patriots (11-1) or the once-powerful Eagles (12-0), whose program has been revived by 23-year coach Al Kohlhafer.Old Mill and Northeast are ranked fourth and fifth, respectively, by the Maryland State Wrestling Association.

Enthusiasm for wrestling at Old Mill High has reached epidemic proportions, as students and faculty gear up for the Patriots' charge at an unprecedented fifth straight 4A-3A state title.Team manager Scott Clause started it with the phrase "Drive For Five" on the cover of the team's preseason handbook, and the Patriots (10-0) routinely draw more than 1,000 people for big matches.Coach Mike Hampe only recently began storing statistical information on his home computer, but Clause doesn't let the slightest detail of team exploits escape him.His face buried in his score book after a recent match, Clause scribbled down these tidbits: the Patriots have a dual-meet winning streak of 31-0, and have outscored their opponents by an average of 55.4-10.

Five county coaches with a combined tenure of 74 years were honored Thursday night for their "significant contributions to interscholastic sports."Mike Hampe (Old Mill wrestling), Lynn Pitonzo (Northeast softball), Joyce Stefancik (Severna Park girls soccer), John Brady (Annapolis boys basketball) and Bernie Walter (Arundel baseball) received the Bob Pascal Award at a ceremony at Kaufmann's Restaurant in Gambrills.The award has been given annually since 1984 by the Anne Arundel County Coaches Association.

Old Mill wrestling coach Mike Hampe is a little older and more experienced than Severna Park's Dave Caprio, and their coaching styles entering this year were vastly different.Their styles weren't exactly similar this year, but as a byproduct of the mutual success of their teams, one could see a little of Hampe's demeanor in Caprio and vice versa.Hampe led the Patriots to an unprecedented fourth straight Class 4A-3A state title. Caprio's Falcons finished ninth in the state meet,nearly reversing a 2-12 record by going 9-5 in dual meets this year.