Beaver Area wrestlers continue their (mostly) winning season. January 5 and 6 the wrestling team traveled to Freedom High School for MACs to compete against other county schools, but sadly their post-season playoff run was dashed by the Hopewell Vikings.
The boys did extremely well in the MAC tournament with five wrestlers placing. Senior Dom Reagan placed sixth, senior George Peroni placed third, junior Alec Coulter placed fifth, junior John Hall placed third, and sophomore Brady Earhart placed second—a great showcase of the team’s talent!
Hall commented, “I felt ultimately the team could have placed way higher. We placed 11th or 12th out of 16 teams. Every tournament and match I see improvement out of everyone. We just have got to keep putting the work in.”
Later in the week, January 9, the boys took on Blackhawk at 7 p.m.
The boys took the win 40-32 and managed to clinch a wild card playoff spot. Peroni, Hall, senior Chuckie Bates, and sophomore Mark Ramer all pinned their opponents despite a tough loss for sophomore Brooks Miller.
Up next was the team’s top competitor: the Freedom Bulldogs. The match was home at 7 p.m. January 16. The team was hoping for a large crowd to cheer them on, but sadly few students showed their school spirit.
“It’s going to be lit,” confidently remarked Coulter before the match.
Unfortunately, that confidence wasn’t enough to carry the team as the Bobcats fell to the Bulldogs.
January 23 the boys took on Hopewell at home for they much-anticipated playoff wild card match. They unfortunately lost 42-33. And that means the team will sadly not be going further in the playoffs this year.
While the team lost, at least the more experienced wrestlers did quite well.
Peroni and Earhart both pinned their opponents. Reagan won 2-0 and Coulter won 4-1. Unfortunately, junior John Hall was sick and unable to compete, while senior Justin Dudek won on a forfeit.
“It was a good match, but the team is sad to not make playoffs,” said Peroni.
While they may be out of the playoff hunt, there’s still a bit of tournament wrestling left for the Bobcats. Be sure to read the next ECHO to find out how they did.