SCRIPT KEEPS GETTING BETTER FOR H.-W. COACH TEAM DOCUMENTARY NOW INCLUDES TWO STATE QUALIFIERS.

Byline: Gideon Rubin Staff Writer

Overcoming fear, defying stereotypes, and wildly exceeding expectations.

The elements that figure prominently in Harvard-Westlake of Studio City's remarkable emergence as a wrestling power are the type of storyline ingredients no screenwriter could resist.

Especially if he happens to be the coach.

How students from a prestigious campus - known for producing alumni more likely to be plugged into the latest happenings of the Los Angeles Philharmonic than the most recent NASCAR rankings - were willing to get their hands dirty in the gritty, blue-collar world of high school wrestling is the subject matter of a documentary Gary Bairos is filming.

It's one he hopes to get produced ultimately, even as he coaches the team to unprecedented success.

Despite fielding just nine wrestlers, four of whom are freshman, the Wolverines have stunned the Southland's wrestling community, sending two wrestlers to the state championship meet, which opens at 9 a.m. today at Centennial Garden in Bakersfield.

The two-day meet concludes Saturday, with the championship round scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.

``For those who know what kind of school we are, we're the (wimpy) preps, the soft kids, and it's fun to just say, 'Well, hey, then why'd you lose to me?' '' Harvard-Westlake junior Kenji Porter said.

Porter, who competes in the 215-pound weight class, and senior Jeremy Stuart (160) are the school's first-ever state qualifiers.

They also are among just three of 21 area wrestlers who survived last week's grueling two-day Southern Section Masters meet at Fountain Valley High, known within high school wrestling circles as ``the meat grinder.''

Royal of Simi Valley junior Eric Blackwell (152) also qualified out of the Masters and will advance with Porter, Stuart and 12 area City Section wrestlers - including six from City champion Chatsworth.

The baby-faced Porter (42-4), whose infectious smile doesn't quite fit the typical wrestler's demeanor, probably is the area's best candidate to medal at the state meet, meaning he'd have to finish among the top eight in his weight class.

Despite his initial fears about competing in the sport as a freshman, which are chronicled on the video, Porter's analytical mind and athleticism were among the qualities that made Bairos convince him to stick with the sport.

The lanky Stuart (46-4) surprises opponents with his strength and is ``naturally tough'' according to Bairos.

Bairos began filming his wrestlers when he took over the program four years ago for the purpose of instruction. The idea of developing it into a production documentary came when he viewed footage with players and parents during a banquet.

Bairos now films matches, practices, downtime, anything that illustrates the high school wrestler's experience. He interviews wrestlers after matches - win or lose - asking them to describe their emotions.

``What I really wanted to do out of it is say something about the sport that I love, and that I think is important, and also communicate the validity of the sport by taking kids that wouldn't be your stereotypical wrestlers and seeing how far they've come,'' Bairos said.

While arguing with referees, he still has an eye on the viewfinder. He said several have tried to swat away his video camera during disputes.

``I'm not trying to humiliate anybody,'' he said with a smile. ``I'm just trying to be a voyeur.''

Stuart said being able to see himself on video has served as an aid, especially early in his career, when he was admittedly nervous about competing.

``I kind of watched the movie and saw how I was at tournaments and I was so out of it I didn't want to be part of anything, I didn't want to talk to anybody,'' Stuart said. ``It kind of made loosen up.''

This weekend, Porter and Stuart could make an already interesting movie even more compelling.

``It'll be interesting because all the things we've been talking about over the last three or four years are coming to fruition as far as these kids learning to believe in themselves so they can compete with any kid,'' Bairos said.

Gideon Rubin, [phone]

gideon.rubin(at)dailynews.com

CAPTION(S):

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Photo:

Harvard-Westlake wrestling coach Gary Bairos is filming a documentary about his team, which includes state qualifiers Kenji Porter and Jeremy Stuart, rear.

John McCoy/Staff Photographer

Box:

CIF WRESTLING CHAMPIONSHIP