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Beat the Streets Philadelphia Sponsors Youth Takedown Tournament at Drexel

BTSPhilly   |   Dec 19, 2011

Beat the Streets Philadelphia sponsored a Takedown Tournament prior to the Drexel University vs. University of Virginia dual meet on Sunday 12/18 in the Daskalakis Athletic Center on the campus of Drexel University.  Over 100 kids from 6 of the programs sponsored by BTS Philadelphia were in attendance for the event.  The wrestlers we broken out into groups of 4 based on age and weight and had a chance to compete in a round robin takedown tournament with medals awarded to students based on their placing in the tournament.  For many of the wrestlers it was their first experience competing against opponents from another team and it provided them valuable experience prior to the start of the BTS Philadelphia Youth League which begins on the weekend of 1/7 and 1/8. Many members of the Drexel wrestling team assisted with running the event and our students had a chance to interact with them throughout the day which is an invaluable experience for our student-athletes.  We are extremely appreciative of the time those college wrestlers spent with our kids because it provides positive role models for our young student-athletes.  Drexel’s Head Coach Matt Azevedo was extremely gracious to allow BTS Philadelphia to host this event in their impressive athletic center and Assistant coaches Zach Sheaffer and Todd Schavrien were extremely helpful with ensuring the event ran smoothly. Following the completion of the Takedown Tournament our student-athletes had lunch and were able to stick around to watch the college match between Drexel and Virginia.  This provided an excellent chance for our student-athletes to watch extremely high level wrestling in a tremendous environment.  They cheered on the hometown wrestlers from Drexel and several of the wrestlers even had a chance to wrestle in exhibitions during the intermission after the 157 pound match in front of all of the fans.  It was a great experience for those wrestlers as they received a warm welcome from the fans and put forth an impressive effort for all in attendance.  The overall experience for the kids will certainly encourage them to push themselves as they are continue to improve as young wrestlers. Check out the coverage of the event on FloWrestling.org by going to the following links: http://www.flowrestling.org/coverage/247608-Drexel-vs-Virginia/video/543728-Beat-the-Streets-kids-Takedown-Match-during-Halftime http://www.flowrestling.org/coverage/247608-Drexel-vs-Virginia/video/543737-Chris-Hanlon-and-Beat-the-Streets-Philly-exposing-his-kids-to-College-Wrestling You can also check additional video coverage on our site at the following link: [ NEED LINK TO VIDEO ] It is only through the generosity of our donors that BTSP is able to support individuals and wrestling programs throughout inner city Philadelphia, Camden and Gloucester City in an effort to develop not only solid wrestlers, but more importantly well-adjusted and motivated individuals. You can make a donation by going to: Donate Now