Proof that the Bridgewater-Raritan Middle School wrestling team improved as the season went on came on Saturday, January 31.
The team, which posted a 6-6 record during the season, placed second overall in the Raritan Valley League Tournament, held at the Bridgewater-Raritan Middle School.
Mike Denver, who coaches the Middle School team with Anthony Silva, saw how the wrestlers progressed throughout the season.
“ I think that this team demonstrated resilience, growth, and the power of peaking at the right time. Although we did not have many team wins this season, finishing 6-6, the team continued to improve by 1 percent each day,” Coach Denver said. “We kept believing in the process and continued to improve on our technique, and when it was time to perform, they showed up with confidence and poise.”
Coach Denver further discussed his squad's success.
“ We finished up second as a team overall in the tournament, with some of our lower-seeded wrestlers knocking off or battling it out with some of the top seeds. I am proud of how far this team has come and look forward to what they will accomplish next year.”
Three Middle School wrestlers—Xaden Chua, Chase Magley, and Lucas Toro—were crowned league champions.
Xaden needed just 1:10 mat time to win his two matches en route to the 95-pound title.
Xander revealed that he used “a cradle for one pin and then an arm bar to win his other match by the fall.”
“It helps that I wrestle almost year-round,” Xander said.
Lucas said that he used an underhook to pin his way to the 140-pound championship.
“I like to use a lot of throws,” Lucas said.
Both champions were No. 1 seeds.
But Chase was just a fourth seed and took a hard road to win the 100-pound championship.
He knocked off the No. 5 seed and then the top seed before earning the gold medal in the final, defeating the No. 3 seed in double overtime.
Also winning titles for Bridgewater-Raritan Middle School were Sean Sylvestrer in the B Tournament and Danilla Quuevedo in the Girls’ Tournament.
Coach Denver also praised his fellow coach's efforts.
“ I would also like to mention that Coach Silva put a lot of work into this tournament, organizing all the workers and officials, running it, obtaining medals, and answering questions from other teams. He is the main reason why the tournament goes off without a hitch every year. Thank you, Coach Silva, for all that you do.”
Here are the results of the Middle School wrestlers in the tournament.
A TOURNAMENT
80 pounds - Owen Jones, 3rd place.
90 pounds -- Tyler Hampton, 2nd place
95 pounds -Xaden Chua, Champion
100 pounds -- Chase Magley, Champion
112 pounds -- Amor Gonzalez, 0-2
126 pounds -- Jamie Jaggi, 2-2
140 pounds -- Lucas Toro, Champion
150 pounds --- Leo Grasso, 3rd place
165 pounds -- Nolan Moy, 4th place
B TOURNAMENT
George Georgallis, 5/6th place
Grant Levash, 2nd place
Joe Salazar, 4th place
Sean Sylvester, Champion
GIRLS
Danilla Quevedo, Champion