Sachem wrestlers top Woburn in a thriller
By Michael Liuzza
Fri Feb 01, 2008, 02:53 PM EST
Winchester, MA - One thing high school wrestling fans from Woburn and Winchester have learned they can count on is every time the Sachem and Tanner varsity grappling teams square off, sparks are going to fly, fans are going to fill the gymnasium and the intensity level will be raised.
Wednesday night's match was no different, and once again, it came down to the wire.
For most of the season, Winchester has crushed its opponents. But with two matches to go the Sachems led the Tanners by just six points, 33-27.
Constantine took on Woburn's Steve Rao, and after the first period Rao had himself a 4-3 lead. But a minute and 30 seconds into the second period Constantine turned the tables and pinned Rao, giving Winchester six points. The victory ultimately propelled the Sachems to a 39-30 victory in front of a packed house at Woburn High School.
"I told Constantine the other day that somewhere along the way I would need him to come up with a big pin for us," said Sachem coach Larry Tremblay. "In previous years he came up big for us in matches against Billerica and Wayland, and he did it again tonight. He's a great kid and a great student who works very hard, and he deserved this."
Woburn's Mike Widtfeldt (140) earned an 8-1 decision over John Williams in the final match of the evening, but the outcome of the match had already been decided.
Despite the tough loss, Tanner coach Mike Tedesco was proud of the way his team performed.
"We have a senior-heavy team, and we knew this was going to be close," said Tedesco. "Our kids wrestled very well, and we threw everything we had at them. But Winchester is a phenomenal team, and they're one of the best in the state for a reason."
The loss was Woburn's fifth of the season (13-5), but for a while it looked as if they were going to upset the powerful Sachems.
"We had some really strong performances tonight," said Tedesco. "Kyle Blanchette stepped up for us, and Josh Rollins wrestled a great match. A guy like Matt Ramos — who has been banged up for most of the season — stepped up in a pivotal match and earned a huge victory."
As happy as Tremblay was that his team managed to pull out the victory, he wasn't thrilled with the way some of his guys performed.
"A lot didn't go our way tonight," said Tremblay. "We have smart kids on this team that tend to wrestle carelessly. I can't figure it out."
Despite that, the Sachems still had enough gas in the tank to keep the Winchester express rolling. Wednesday night's victory was the Sachems' 54th straight win, their 23rd this winter.
But Winchester didn't get off to a good start, dropping the first two matches of the evening.
Starting at the 145-pound weight class, Woburn's Kyle Teves pinned Winchester's Mike Greco with just 10 seconds left in the final period. Justin McLaughlin (152) also earned a third-period pin with 46 seconds left, and just like that Woburn had itself a 12-0 lead.
Charlie Hale (160) pinned Woburn's Jeff Boggs in 31 seconds, and Zach Gramlich (171) pinned Woburn's Seamus O'Brien in 53 seconds. Winchester's Connor MacNamara (189) led Steve June, 14-0, in the third period before June was disqualified.
After Moranian earned an 11-5 decision over Woburn's Chris Hardy, Winchester held a 21-12 lead.
Ramos (heavyweight) defeated Winchester's Andrew Zani, 6-2, converting a successful takedown with 15 seconds left in the match. But the Tanners forfeited the 103-pound weight class (victory credited to Winchester's Andrew Lacombe), and after eight matches the Sachems held a 27-15 lead.
Woburn closed the gap when Rollins (112) pinned Winchester's Connor Gregory in the third period, earning six more points for the Tanners. Fernando Monroy then pulled off a big pin on Woburn's Brian Chambers in the second period, but Tanner John O'Connell won a 6-1 decision over Winchester's Ryan Fitzpatrick. With three matches to go Woburn trailed, 33-24.
Blanchette (130) didn't let a bad nose bleed get in the way of another Tanner victory. After the match was stopped three times, Blanchette had his nose and face wrapped in tape to help keep the bleeding under control. The trick worked, and Blanchette earned a 6-1 decision over Winchester's Miguel Tirado.
Woburn now trailed by just six, 33-27, but Constantine's victory sealed the fate of the match.
Both coaches agreed that the Woburn/Winchester wrestling match is a big event, year in and year out.
"Woburn is one of the top teams in the state, but even when they aren't or when we aren't this is always a great match," said Tremblay. "Tedesco does a real nice job. He's a good coach and a great man."
Tedesco and Tremblay have a good relationship, and the Tanner coach even took a few friendly jabs at the Sachem skipper.
"People come out to see the 'Larry Show' and the 'chicken dance,'" joked Tedesco, referring to one of Tremblay's sideline moves while coaching. "He's an old guy who's been coaching for a long time. In fact, coaching when I was in high school.
"Seriously, Winchester is a great team, and Larry always has his guys in top shape. They always seem to have great depth. We hoped to spoil their winning streak tonight, but it didn't work out."
No comments:
Post a Comment