Sunnyside (Tucson, Ariz.) wrestling coach Bobby DeBerry could no longer avoid the question.
For years, he didn't like to talk about the team's winning streak in dual meets, often saying he wasn't sure or that that he had the information back in the wrestling room but not on him.
But when it reached a national level, DeBerry had to fess up. On Jan. 5, Sunnyside beat Rincon and Tucson in separate dual meets to extend its winning streak to 310 to surpass the national record of 309 by Brandon (Fla.) that ended in 1998.
The Blue Devils entered this week's action with 313 straight wins. The closest Sunnyside came to losing over that stretch came this season when it trailed 31-12 against Tucson Ironwood Ridge only to come back and win 32-31.
"To me it's just a bunch of wins, but the kids are happy about being part of something pretty special," DeBerry said. "This goes back a long way and a lot of people are involved in making something like this happen."
Sunnyside, which last lost to Mesa Dobson in December of 1998, continues to dominate despite plugging in young wrestlers the last few seasons.
"There are expectations every year no matter what lineup we send out there," said DeBerry, who coached his sons Kyle, wrestling for Arizona State, and Kory, currently a senior, during the streak. "They've done a good job of understanding what it takes."
The record is for most consecutive wins, but Brandon still holds the record for consecutive unbeaten (wins and ties) at 423 straight matches that ended in 2006. The compiler of these numbers, Cal Johnson at Wrestling USA magazine, said Brandon is now checking into whether or not there was truly a tie along the line to see if that 423 streak should also be the consecutive win record.
Either way, Sunnyside is about as dominant as it gets within its state compared with any program in the country.
