The boys varsity wrestling team beat the Wellesley Raiders 45-34 in the Schluntz Gymnasium on Thursday, Jan. 3.
The music boomed from the gym as wrestlers circled the mat, doing cartwheels and reverse somersaults. The Warriors were locked in, focusing on their warm-up as they prepared for the dual meet against the Raiders.
Opponent weight discrepancies were common in the dual meet, with many Warriors wrestling opponents heavier than themselves. Senior Jared Sokoloff, weighing 170 pounds, was called to face a wrestler in a higher weight class, twenty pounds heavier. Other wrestlers, such as captain and senior Jamie Evarts, weighing 165 pounds, and junior Jack Fitzgerald, weighing 157 pounds, were placed to wrestle opponents at least eight pounds heavier.
Despite the difference in weight, Sokoloff had two first-period takedowns. His opponent scored an escape point, but Sokoloff pinned his opponent one minute and 46 seconds into the match, scoring six more points for the Warriors.
“A lot of people had to wrestle one weight [class] up. I knew the kid I was wrestling and I got a few takedowns and eventually got the pin. The meet was back and forth, but in the end, we were able to win three of the last four matches,” Sokoloff said.
Junior Isaac Bitran, weighing 132 pounds, wrestled a hard-fought match with many momentum shifts. Bitran scored a takedown in the first period and had an intense scoreless second period. In the third period, Bitran obtained a near fall as the opponent’s shoulder was on the ground for five seconds. The opponent escaped, but Bitran scored another seven points by the end of the third period. Throughout the match, Bitran gained more points than his opponent and thus won three points for the Warriors, despite not pinning his opponent.
Captain and senior Zeke Kasen wrestled at 113 pounds and won his match 10-1 with a pin one minute and 15 seconds into the first period, scoring six points for the Warriors.
In the first period, Kasen scored a takedown worth two points; his opponent clinched an escape point in response. Kasen then scored an additional six points by achieving two near falls, coming close to pinning his opponent both times before successfully doing so.
Assistant coach Estavan Mulina said the meet was thrilling, with back-and-forth leads between the teams, and was the first home dual meet the team has won.
“It was extremely exciting because we are at home, and a couple of our seniors won matches that were close and could have gone either way,” Mulina said.
Mulina said approaching the match, the team was confident in winning against the Raiders.
“We know we matched up pretty well against Wellesley historically, but there were a few [matches] that were 50-50. Our guys stepped up and took care of business,” Mulina said.
Captain and senior Gabe Thomas, wrestling in the heavyweight class, said he was confident he could beat his opponent, and his match went to plan.
“I had wrestled my opponent a few times before. I was thinking that I might let him up, and if he happened to throw me right back and pin me, we would have lost,” Thomas said. “So, I wasn’t gonna take the chance.”
Kasen said his goals for this season are to incorporate more discipline into the team and keep bringing the team closer together by building a sense of community. According to Kasen, early in the season, the team faced several injuries, such as concussions, bad arms and ankles and a couple of sprains.
“It’s looking pretty good for the team right now, but we had some injuries at the beginning of the season that slowed us down a bit,” Kasen said.
Mulina said one aspect of the season to look forward to is the success of senior wrestlers.
“I am excited to see how the seniors finish out. They have been in the room for four years and peaking at the right times, and we are so excited to see how far they go and hopefully get to the New England tournament and be on the podium,” Mulina said.
Looking to the future, Thomas said he is excited about the team’s potential and cohesion further in the season, with what he anticipates to be their highest performance level in February.
“We are not a dual [meet] focused team; we are a tournament team, and we are still coming into our own,” Thomas said. “Come the postseason with those big tournaments; we are going to be performing well.”
