Freshman hands Metea win in final match
There’s the last play in football, the bottom of the ninth in baseball, the 18th hole in golf, the last shot in basketball. And in wrestling, it’s the last match.
Thursday night’s Upstate Eight Conference Valley Division battle between host Metea Valley and Waubonsie Valley came down to who would prevail in the final bout of the evening at 106 pounds.
Metea’s Joe Riordan and Waubonsie’s Taylor Morrison each fought for advantage as the noise hit its highest decibel level of the night, and as the crowd stood, some walked down a few rows in the bleachers to be close to the mat. Teammates and coaches on both sides stood on the mat shouting encouragement and instructions.
The music played during the middle to late rounds of Rocky Balboa’s first fight with Apollo Creed in “Rocky” wasn’t playing, but if had, who would have objected?
The seconds ticked down, the anticipation was heavy. And when the clock read 00:00, Riordan was a 13-4 major-decision winner and the Mustangs were 34-30 victors over the Warriors.
Riordan’s teammates hoisted him on their shoulders in celebation. And to top everything off, it was the freshman’s first varsity match. He knew he would be in the lineup a couple days before the meet. He said he was nervous but had confidence.
“I knew I was going to win. I’m going to have memories of this for a long time.” he said.
Metea coach Claudio Torres stressed to Riordan what was crucial to winning the match.
“I told him to relax and pace yourself and look for setups. I think he had the advantage with body positioning,” Torres said.
The Mustangs jumped out to a 24-6 advantage. The meet started at 113 pounds with Metea’s Jason Manix winning by fall in 1:56. Also prevailing were Kennan Carter at 120, Cole Lettieri at 126, Eddie Gonzalez at 145 and Ahren Marmolejo at 152.
Waubonsie reached the scoreboard between those Metea victories thanks to Jimmy Davis at 132 and Howard Beatty at 138.
The Warriors went on to win five of the next six matches thanks to Elton Manuel at 160, Malcom McSwain at 182, Anthony Napolitano at 195 and Luis Cisneros at 220. Adam Szott’s fall in 1:22 at 285 pounds tied the match at 30.
Waubonsie coach Brad Caldwell said he had to shuffle the lineup around because of injuries.
“There were some new guys in the varsity lineup. We dug a hole, but got back in it. The effort was there. But it comes back to one or two close matches that go the other way and we can’t make up the points,” he said. Caldwell expects Waubonsie to be at full strength for next week’s conference meet.
Torres said the victory is significant with the postseason almost here.
“I see it as growth. They beat us big last year and to close the gap and overcome it with a win is big for the kids,” he said.