Bowie senior Zak Adomanis advanced to the 215-pound finals of the Maryland 4A/3A Tournament last Saturday practically on one leg. But in the finals against Patterson's Deshawn Barrett, the pain was too much.
Adomanis was forced to forfeit the final when a gracilis muscle injury he suffered in practice earlier in the week worsened.
"I don't really know how to explain how it felt," Adomanis said. "It's kind of a smack in the face coupled with insane emotional and physical pain."
Adomanis couldn't say which pain was worse. One victory from becoming Bowie's first state wrestling champion in 17 years, he was stricken with pain after tearing the muscle, which is located near the hamstring. He underwent tests Monday that failed to determine whether it was torn from the bone, and may still face a decision about surgery.
"Once I stopped moving [after a flurry of action] and started wrestling from the top, I had to call injury time because it felt like someone was literally pulling on my muscle," he said.
The emotional toll of the injury was just as substantial. Bowie's last state champion in wrestling was Robbie Waldman in 1988.
"I just started to ball right there on the mat," Adomanis said. "I just put months and months into wrestling for this match and I wasn't able to do it."
