Wrestlers roll to 2-0 start, impress at Lowell Holidays

Two dominant dual meet victories in a three-day span followed by a strong showing at the George Bossi Lowell Holiday Tournament capped off a memorable opening week for the CHS varsity wrestling team.

Declan Monahan celebrates after pinning his Randolph opponent. (Photo courtesy of CHS Wrestling)

Under the guidance of head coach and program alum Nick Matt, the Bulldogs are a team to watch this year and hope to contend for a team title in the Hockomock League’s Davenport Division.

“My expectation is to win and that’s the culture I’m setting,” noted Matt. “I intentionally loaded up our schedule with some of the best teams in the state, but I do think this team and the roster that we have is capable of upsets.”

In last week’s season-opening meet against Stoughton, the Bulldogs announced their presence with a 54-14 victory. They then hosted nonleague Randolph two days later and scored an even more convincing 48-5 win.

Among those making a strong early statement is promising freshman Calvin Quinn, who opened with two straight wins in the 106-pound class.

Quinn, who placed third at least year’s state youth wrestling tournament, also collected a team-high three wins to reach day two of the Lowell Holidays, one of the premier wrestling events in all of New England.

“There’s some really good competition this year at his weight class, but Calvin is undoubtedly a contender,” Matt said of the talented newcomer. “He’s definitely one of the better 106’s in the state and he’s just getting started.”

Also reaching day two at Lowell were returning wrestlers Matt Morin (132 lbs.), Conor Hanlon (138 lbs.), and Robby Blochstein (190 lbs.). Morin and Hanlon both came into the event with 2-0 records after pinning their opponents from Stoughton and Randolph, while Blochstein got things rolling over the weekend, winning two matches by tech fall.

Other top contenders for the Bulldogs include their two senior captains, Jimmy Podgurski (285 lbs.), who has two pins on the season, and Seamus Brown (165 lbs.), who opened with a pinfall victory against the Black Knights.

Braeden Ayers is also off to a strong start in the 113-pound class, as are Jacob George at 120 lbs. and Kyle Kane at 144 lbs.

Newcomers to watch out for include Iznaur Edelbiev, who comes to Canton by way of Chechnya and collected a victory in his first-ever wrestling match, winning at 157 lbs. against Stoughton, and freshman Shnider Theodore, who won the state youth wrestling title last year at 215 pounds and is someone with “immense potential,” according to Matt. “With Shnider, it’s a matter of when, not if he’s going to turn it on,” said the Canton coach.

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Posted by Jay Turner on Dec 27 2024. Filed under High School, Sports. Both comments and pings are currently closed.