3 Black and Blues Shoot For Number 1

Div. 3 state wrestling action starts Friday at Holliston and Coach hopes his trio are still wrestling the next day. That will mean they are in the running for state titles.

The three wrestlers who qualified for these matches are Jake Powell at 103, Captain Jason Veytsman at 140, and Sean Taylor at 285.

Each qualified after coming in second place at sectional matches last weekend.

Also traveling to Holliston, as alternates, are Jeff Sherman and Joe Mitlin.

Here is what Coach Stamison has to say about his group. 

Jake Powell:

I am extremely proud of his efforts last Saturday. He has sacrificed a lot for the team this year, and I am grateful for his dedication to his craft.

He has a very real chance of being a state champion this year.

He dominated his two first-round matches and then met  Victor Ramierz of host school Triton in the finals.

The first period was fraught with action, the second and half of the third were controlled by Jake's cradling ability, but in the end, Ramierez slipped out of the cradle, and there was not enough time left for Jake to mount a comeback, losing the match by a 9-6 decision.

After the match, I simply told Jake to keep it together, have a good week of practice, knowing that they will run into each other again soon. That will be a matchup we will all be watching closely as the two boys mature.

I look for him, as well as all the others, to at least place top 6, thus qualifying them for the All-State meet @ Salem High. 

 Jason Veytsman:

Suprise of the tournament, other than the fact that we have 5 kids moving on, was Jason's dominant wrestling as of late.

Coming in as the 2 seed, he certainly wrestled like one, and all throughout the day was never sitting, constantly getting ready and psyching himself (as well as his coaching staff) up for his next match.

He won two matches using his head chauncery, which he has down to a science right now, beating them by pinfall, until he ran into Ryan Niven of Tyngsboro, who is in a class entirely his own, and tech-fall'd Jason early in the second period. Coming off the mat, he smiled, knowing what he had accomplished that day, and I did too.

Losing to a kid like Niven, who was a state champ his freshman year, is nothing to be upset about. Jason will work out with Salem's Kyle Hardy today, and other wrestlers of similar weight from Georgetown/Ipswich and Winthrop/Saugus at a communal practice we will have together, looking to add to his arsenal of takedowns. I am very proud of him for his second place finish @ Triton, and will miss him next year as the leader of this team. I get compliments for him, as well as the other boys, for their sportsmanship and professionalism. 

Sean Taylor:

Also placing second, had a good match against a Pentucket heavyweight, and then again ran into Eric Gesualdi of Georgetown/Ipswich.

This time, it went to double overtime, and Sean used his terrific balance to his advantage to put their season series at 3-2 in favor of us. I actually dislike having to wrestle Georgetown kids, as we are together at tournaments and communal practices throughout the year, and I've grown very fond of a few of them.

That's part of our sport though, try to beat each other on the mat, then work together off of it, and I wish them all the best as both programs will be at Holliston Fri/Sat.

Sean advanced to the finals match and met a tough opponent in Ryan of Tyngsboro. While not making excuses, Sean had not been feeling well all week, and coupled with Ryan's experience, Sean was pinned in the second period. He's healthy though, and very excited about being able to come to Holliston with his teammates. 

Jeff Sherman:

Like his cousin Veytsman, Jeff throws a mean chauncery, but unfortunatley could not qualify officially for states. We never wish ill upon any of our fellow wrestlers, but if any one gets hurt from his weight class, Jeff will get his first shot at states. He came in 5th, losing a consilation finals match to an opponent from Winthrop/Saugus in a heartbreaking one point decision. 

Joe Mitlin:

Joe missed weight by .4 of a pound on Saturday. Luckily for him, we don't have anyone at 135 and I was able to bump him up. I was very upset with him initially, as he was with himself, but he proved himself, winning two matches en route to a 5th place finish.

Joe and Jeff will stabilize the middle of our lineup next year, with Jake and Sean acting as bookends of a growing team.

I can't say how proud I am of the boys, and we are gearing up for a great showing this weekend. Whatever happens in Holliston is a bonus at this point, because this small, young group turned this program around, and I can say, proudly, that I think we are back.