It was another good year for the area high school wrestling programs. Two local grapplers — Chris Waslaske of Athol and Spencer Telega of Franklin Tech — won sectional titles, and eight wrestlers in total reached sectional championship matches.
Franklin Tech wound up as the top local team, and the Eagles captured the Suburban League North Division regular-season title outright with an undefeated mark in league action. Their title, the program’s second in as many years, came down to the final league match against Frontier where Tech snagged a 42-36 dual-meet win.
Numbers are down a bit for the Eagles as they look to make it a three-peat, though the program has reached the point where they are always putting multiple top-notch wrestlers on the mats each time out. Frontier should once again be in the mix to challenge for a league crown, and the Red Hawks have a solid core of returning wrestlers back at a variety of weight classes. The teams meet in South Deerfield for what will likely be an important match Jan. 23.
Waslaske is primed for a big season for an Athol team that has several new faces, while Mahar could take a step forward and be in the Suburban North mix with a good portion of its lineup returning.
Mohawk is the lone local team outside the Suburban North, and the Warriors will try and be a factor in the Tri-County League after finishing in a three-way tie for first place there last year with Smith Voke and Pathfinder.
Here’s a closer look at the five area wrestling programs entering the 2018-19 campaign:
COACH: Brandon Jeffery, 1st season
LEAGUE/DIVISION: Suburban North/3
LAST YEAR’S RECORD: 2-5, 10th at CMass
WRESTLERS:Seniors — Chris Waslaske (182), William Braccini (285), Michael Harris (220/285); Juniors — Damian Fields (120); Sophomores — John Hicks (182/195), Logan Wornham (132), Eric Fenton (126/132); Freshmen — Caleb Cox (138/145), Luke Inniss (138/145), Joe Gray (160), Cain Young (170/182), Tim Yelle (120); Eighth-graders — Thomas Seamans (195); Seventh-graders — Nate Torres (170), Riley Reid (120/126), Riley Young (160/170), Doug Monte (126/130).
OUTLOOK: Senior Chris Waslaske is back for one more year, and after enjoying tremendous success on the big stage the past two seasons, the expectations have only gone up for the team’s leader.
Waslaske won the 182-pound title at the Central Mass. Division III Tournament after Athol was realigned into central Mass. last year. He then went on to finish third at the state meet and earned a berth at the MIAA All-State Wrestling Championships where he took eighth place, which left him one spot out of the New England Championships. Earning a spot to that tournament will no doubt be a goal for Waslaske this winter.
While Waslaske was the top wrestler from the Recorder-area last winter, three Red Raiders in total earned All-State berths. Waslaske is the only returner from that trio, however, as a mostly young and inexperienced group will man the lineup for Athol this time around.
Athol will co-op with Narragansett this season, giving the roster a bump in numbers.
“We’re pretty young but we have good numbers,” said Athol head coach Brandon Jeffery, who takes over for Phil Saisa after spending the past nine seasons as an assistant coach.
Freshmen Caleb Cox (138/145) and Joe Gray (160) are other top returning wrestlers for the Raiders. Both won matches in the sectional tournament a year ago, with Cox taking sixth at 126 pounds and Gray going 2-2 at 160 pounds.
COACH: Joe Gamache, 14th season
LEAGUE/DIVISION: Suburban North/3
LAST YEAR’S RECORD: 10-2, 3rd at WMass, Suburban North champions
WRESTLERS: Seniors — Brody Wood (170), Skyler Rouse (126), Ayden Stacy (182/195), Walker Picard (195/220); Juniors — Kyle Brunelle (132), Dominic Bowden-Smith (160), Colin Pettis (138); Sophomores — Noah Fuess (145), Cameron Tuttle (285), Austin Ellison (195/220); Freshmen — Will Rosenberg (106), Daniel Phillips (113), Josh Brunelle (120), Matthew Jordan (285).
OUTLOOK: The defending Suburban League North champions ran the table a season ago in the division, and capped a fine season with a third-place showing at the WMass Div. 3 meet.
Spencer Telega closed out his Franklin Tech wrestling career with a WMass title at 152 pounds, leading the Eagles to a solid showing in the sectional meet.
The other top finisher from last year’s team returns, as junior Kyle Brunelle was the runner-up at 126 pounds and is back to likely compete at 132 pounds. Brunelle was the runner-up at 138 pounds in the season-opening Red Raider Invitational in Athol over the weekend, and he’s continued to improve throughout his time at Tech putting in the work during the offseason.
The Eagles sent six wrestlers to the state meet a year ago, though there will be some new faces called upon this winter. Seniors Brody Wood (170), Ayden Stacy (195) and Walker Picard (220) are all experienced and will be counted on to score points, while junior Colin Pettis and sophomore Cameron Tuttle (285) are other familiar faces.
Freshman Josh Brunelle is certainly an underclassman to watch. In his opening meet last weekend, Brunelle took fourth overall at 120 pounds.
COACH: Brian Bagdon, 3rd season
LEAGUE/DIVISION: Suburban North/3
LAST YEAR’S RECORD: 19-8-1; 6th at WMass
RETURNING WRESTLERS:Seniors — Nate Austin (182/195), Eric Trueswell (152/160); Juniors — KC Mattson (160/170), Rearkeous McMillan (145/152), Victor McNutt (145); Sophomores — Avery Tuttle (126/132), Tanner Finch (126/162), Jackie Phong (285); Freshmen — Bailey Murry (120/126); Eighth-grader — Jake Mattson (132).
NEW WRESTLERS:Senior — John Creque (220/285); Juniors — Elliot Johnson (160/170), Spenser Mabius (126), Dylan Apanell (220); Freshmen — Ovidiu Nichita (113), John Puchalski (106), Brady Finch (120); Eighth-grader — Forest Riddington (113); Seventh-graders — Dylan Camp (152), Matthew Brooks (106), Alex Schreiber (120), Wyatt Finch (106).
OUTLOOK: There are some experienced wrestlers back for the Red Hawks this winter, including six grapplers with WMass tourney experience from a year ago when the team took sixth in the Div. 3 meet.
Junior Ito McMillan had a big winter, culminating with a third-place WMass finish at 145 pounds. Sophomore Tanner Finch was also third a year ago at 113 pounds, while classmate Jackie Phong (285) and freshman Bailey Murry (126) were fourth-place finishers.
Frontier has just three seniors on the roster, led by Nate Austin who took fifth at WMass at 195 pounds. Austin will wrestle at 195 or 182 pounds this season. Classmate Eric Trueswell (152/160) is also back while eighth-grader Jake Mattson was sixth in the 106-pound division.
Last year’s runner-up in the Suburban North, the Red Hawks lost some key performers to graduation. Consistent wrestlers like Miguel Olvera-Aguilera, Connor Pettis and Joey Hildreth all moved on after stellar wrestling careers.
COACH: John Speek, 7th season
LEAGUE/DIVISION: Suburban North/3
LAST YEAR’S RECORD: 7-6, 8th at CMass
WRESTLERS: Seniors — Ed Bennington, Adam Clement, Justin deDiego, Brian Johnson, Caleb Watson; Juniors — Todd Chiasson, Carolyn Gilmore, Jon Mahony, Alex Plotner, Peter Tattan; Sophomores — Luke Chiodo, Bella Marigliano, Henry Ndayisaba, Anthony Nye, Chris Vezina; Freshmen — Gracin Bisceglia, Gareth Gordon-Halpern, Anya Roberts; Eighth-graders — Eric Aldrich, Domanic Cacciolfi, Jayden Carey, Samuel DeJackome, Jordan Green, Landen Hardy, Daniel Kidwell, Jeff Kidwell, Xander Roberts; Seventh-graders — Imani Baez, Ava Chiodo, Elijah Harrington, David Lehmann, Gregory Lehmann, Sayyid Roberts, Lucien Rolski, Carmichael Thompson, Brooke Voudren.
OUTLOOK: There’s a lot to like about the Senators this winter.
Junior Henry Ndayisaba headlines a stellar returning core that features several deep finishers from last year’s CMass meet. Ndayisaba was the runner-up at 138 pounds as a sophomore, and he’ll likely move up a weight class or two to help power a Mahar team looking to move up the Suburban North standings.
Fellow junior Todd Chiasson was also a podium finisher at CMass last year, and he opened his season with a second-place showing in the Red Raider Invitational over the weekend at 160 pounds.
Classmate Jon Mahony comes over from Athol after finishing as the runner-up at the CMass meet last year at 106 pounds. Mahony is off to a good start with the Senators, as he was second at 113 pounds last weekend at the Red Raider.
Junior Peter Tattan is another podium finisher from last year’s sectional meet who returns. Same for senior Adam Clement, while classmate Ed Bennington is back as a key contributor from last year’s team.
COACH: Mark Biagini, 4th season
LEAGUE/DIVISION: Tri-County League/3
LAST YEAR’S RECORD: 3-5, 9th at WMass
WRESTLERS: Seniors — Mason Biagini (170); Juniors — Ethan Bower (220), Lillian VanVleet; Sophomores — Jasmine Burns, Elliot Gougeon (106), Jaden Moore (145), Kaitlyn Randall, Quinton Romer (152), Dylan Wooldridge (160); Freshmen — Jakob Bower; Eighth-graders — Ariana Gougeon, Roscoe Weeks; Seventh-graders — William VanVleet.
OUTLOOK: Mohawk received some notoriety at the WMass level last winter, when Gabe Bower marched through the 182-pound bracket and wound up as the sectional runner-up in an impressive performance.
While Bower has graduated, the Warriors do have some talented wrestlers looking to make a similar run this time around.
Senior captain Mason Biagini is at the top of that list. His season got off to a solid start last weekend at the Red Raider Invitational, as he was the runner-up at 170 pounds; a weight class where he’ll look to make some noise for the Warriors.
Sophomore captain Dylan Wooldridge is another wrestler to watch, and he’ll compete at 160 pounds.
Sophomore Jaden Moore is fresh off a podium finish at WMass where he was sixth at 132 pounds and moves up to 145 pounds this winter.
Junior Ethan Bower (220) and sophomores Quinton Romer (152) and Elliot Gougeon (106) are others on the varsity roster looking to contribute.