Despite Loss, Wrestling Team Produces Tournament Champs

The Varsity wrestling team traveled to Pope Paul VI high school to compete in the Panther Invitational Tournament.
The tournament field included two team ranked in the top 10 ranked in the State, as well as numerous returning State place-winners. Of the nine wrestlers competing, seven scored team points and three earned medals as the Maroon finished 7th out of the 10 teams represented. Earning medals for Episcopal were: Chad Calderwood '20 (3rd at 138), Christian Wright '17 (3rd at 285), and William Smith '19 (2nd at 182).
Tournament notes:
  • Smith made the finals in his third consecutive tournament. In the finals, he did some of his best wrestling all year, building up a 9-3 lead over a wrestler who placed 5th in the state last season before losing by fall in the third period.
  • Calderwood had his strongest performance of the season, going 3-1 on his way to third place. Chad did a particularly good job using a “snap-down” to get into a front headlock position. After losing to the eventual champion, he won two close decisions in the consolations.
  • Wright has a particularly challenging weight class, featuring two returning state place-winners. After tough losses to both of them, he earned a 3rd place finish with a fall over a wrestler from St. Stephens and St. Agnes.
  • Clay Sailor '21 continues to impress with his both his aggressiveness and his ability to adjust to coaching while competing. He earned two wins, the second of which by pin over an opponent he beat by decision last week.
  • Jay Kim '19 earned two first period falls using a front headlock to a cradle. He is competing with increasing confidence on his feet.
  • Alex Brown '17 rebounded from a first round loss with two dominating falls using a hammerlock. He lost his consolation final to the same wrestler who beat him earlier, but showed real improvement as he turned a 13-3 loss into a 7-6 decision.
  • Chineme Agulanna '20 had his best win of the year in the first round of consolations as he effectively countered on his feet and rode well on top.
  • Though Yoyo Lu '21 and Brenton Smith '21 lost both of their bouts, the coaches continued to be impressed by their resilience and good attitude as they compete in their first year of high school wrestling.
This was some of the most competitive wrestling faced by the Maroon all season. It is worth noting that of 16 losses on the day, six of them came to the eventual tournament champions.
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