Martial arts students from several branch schools of Graves Institute of Self Defense traveled to Ellsworth to compete in a karate tournament hosted by Grand Master Dennis Tracy.
Area students competed in point sparring, ju-jitsu and power impactor divisions all of which were set up by height, weight and belt levels to assure fairness. Of the 23 Graves students that entered various events, many won multiple awards and in all a total of 37 trophies made the trip back to Aroostook County.
Winners from Presque Isle and Caribou classes included Sensei Jay Peavey of Mars Hill with a first place in black belt fighting and twin brothers Dustin and Dylan Coty of Caribou, each with thirds in ju-jitsu.
Duel trophy winners were Malcom Grant, with a pair of firsts in point sparring and ju-jitsu; Peggy Campbell, with a first in ju-jitsu and a second in fighting; Matt Coty with two first place finishes in brown belt point sparring and ju-jitsu; and Chad Caverhill with a first- and second-place trophy, respectively, in ju-jitsu and sparring.
All of the area martial artists enjoyed the camaraderie and competition and are anxiously looking forward to the next tournament.
