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Vanderbilt Orthopaedics Cool Springs Presents Athletes of the Month
Brentwood High School
 | Photo by Ashley Bone
Alex Pastina
|  | Photo by Ashley Bone
Blake Thomas
|  | Photo by Ashley Bone
Taylor Reece
|  | Photo by Ashley Bone
Weldon Garlington
|  | Photo by Ashley Bone
Joe Blair
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Alex Pastina
Senior Alex Pastina is a mat girl and team captain on the BHS squad which cheers for the Bruins wrestling team.
Rather than standing and cheering, she said a mat girl cheers while sitting.
Pastina said it’s the perfect sport for her since she cannot do flips.
“The best part is the wrestling tournaments,” she said. “We get to score the matches during the tournaments. If it wasn’t for being a mat girl, I wouldn’t know a thing about wrestling.”
Pastina, a mat girl since the sixth grade, said during her last year on the team, she strives to make the experience fun for the underclassmen.
In addition to cheering, Pastina plays lacrosse and she’s on the school’s yearbook staff. She hopes to attend the University of Georgia or Centre College in Kentucky in the fall.
Alex Pastina is the daughter of Denise and Chris Pastina.
Fun Fact: “I have a younger brother who is a freshman and plays baseball,” she said, adding they are very close. “I’ll miss watching him grow up when I leave high school.”
Blake Thomas
Senior Blake Thomas hopes to win a state wrestling title during his last year on the Bruins wrestling team.
He is currently undefeated this season in the 112-pound weight class.
He placed fourth in state his sophomore year and placed second in state last year.
“My goal is to get a state title since I’ve never had one before,” he said
Thomas said wrestling is definitely a sport where you have to stay in shape.
“It’s a team sport but you have to rely on yourself a lot,” he said.
As a team captain Thomas tries to keep his younger teammates motivated.
“I encourage them because wrestling can be a lot of fun,” he said.
Thomas hopes to wrestle in college and is looking at either Duke University or University of Tennessee-Chattanooga.
Blake Thomas is the son of Phil and Kathy Thomas.
Fun Fact: “I became an Asics All American wrestler at a national tournament last summer,” Blake Thomas said, adding he was ranked seventh nationally in his weight class.
Brentwood Academy
Taylor Reece
Junior Taylor Reece is a 6-foot-1-inch forward/post player on the Lady Eagles varsity basketball team.
She said a big win this season was against Father Ryan High School.
“We also played in two Christmas tournaments and placed fourth in both,” Reece said.
She’s a team captain and said she and the other players have good chemistry on the court.
“My teammates are awesome and we get along real well,” she said. “My goals are to have a winning season and go to state.”
Reece has been a basketball player since she was 5 years old and she also plays on a travel team, Tennessee Team Price.
“My AAU team got second in the nationals,” she said.
Reece is a fan of the Vanderbilt Commodores basketball teams. “Both my parents played basketball at Vanderbilt,” she said.
Taylor Reece is the daughter of Steve and Dana Reece.
Fun Fact: “I’ve been to 37 states and Colorado is my favorite,” said Taylor Reece.
Weldon Garlington
Junior Weldon Garlington is a point guard on the boys varsity basketball team.
He’s played the sport since age 3 and said it’s his favorite sport.
“I like to run and basketball involves a lot of running back and forth,” he said.
Garlington said the season started off a little rough but then they won three games in a row.
“We have a winning record now,” he said.
As a team captain, he tries to be a leader to his younger teammates.
“If someone is down, you try to help them up,” Garlington said. “I like knowing they look up to me. It makes me a better player.”
He added that most of his teammates are also juniors.
“We’ve been playing together since the eighth grade so we have a lot of team chemistry,” he said.
Weldon Garlington is the son of Leon and Laurissa Garlington.
Fun Fact: “I’m known on the team for my singing,” Weldon Garlington said, adding he sings R & B songs in the locker room.
Coach of the Month
Joe Blair
For 11 years, Joe Blair has been the head wrestling coach at Brentwood High School.
Brentwood has had a state medalist every year since 1991.
“I’m proud I’ve been able to keep the tradition going,” Blair said.
Blair began wrestling when he was in third grade in Cleveland, Tenn. He was a team captain his senior year at Cleveland High School when his team won the State Dual Meet Championship.
This season, under Blair’s leadership, the Bruins have another strong and skilled wrestling team.
Blair said the team can fill 12 of the 14 weight classes and he wants to see all the wrestlers qualify for state.
“My most favorite moments are when I’m watching a kid achieve a big goal he sets for himself,” he said. “You can see all the hard work he’s put in pay off and you can share it with him.”
Fun Fact: “Wrestling has taken me overseas,” said Coach Joe Blair. “I was an assistant coach during college with a state All Star team and we went to England and Scotland.”
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