Eric wins the State Championship

"It was by far the best match of the tournament. And it will always be the match that defines the legacy of Eric Hawes, the first state champion in Warren County Wildcats wrestling history.

Hawes' late come-from-behind victory against Brian Lyttle for the 119-pound championship brought an estimated crowd of nearly 6,000 people out of their seats and into a frenzy.

Anyone who witnessed Hawes' victory...at the Group AA state wrestling tournament at the Salem Civic Center knows what I'm talking about. It was the moment that any true sports fan live for - the raw emotion, the intense pressure, the sheer ecstasy of achieving something so magnificent in such a stunning and electrifying way."(Quoted from The Warren Sentinel, March 8, 2001)