Castleton, VT – Williams Wrestling traveled up Route 7 to face off with NEWA rivals, the Castleton Spartans, in a Friday night match to conclude the 2022-23 dual meet schedule.
The dual kicked off at 197 with
Elias Chen representing the Ephs against the Spartans' Josh Negron. Both grapplers were very defensive throughout, resulting in a 0-0 stalemate heading into the third period. Negron opened the scoring though with an escape at the beginning of the third and was able to pair this move with a takedown to establish a 3-0 advantage. Chen registered an escape with just over thirty seconds to go but was unable to pick up any more points, leaving Negron with a 3-1 win.
Next up at 285 was
Wyatt Moyer. The freshmen brough the away contingent to their feet with an electric first period pin, flipping the Ephs' three-point deficit into an advantage.
David Yeh followed up at 125 for Williams against Gavin Bradley. Yeh established an early 5-1 lead, but Bradley responded well flipping the score to take a 6-5 advantage into the third. Bradley rode this momentum into the third, picking up a 13-6 win to knot up the team scores at six.
At 133,
Lucas Johnson squared off with Castelton's Michael Gonyea. Gonyea was able to execute a first period pin to put the Spartans on top 12-6 heading into the fifth bout of the day.
Donnie Morton stepped up next for Williams at 141, facing off with James Rodriguez. In a hard-fought match, Morton entered the third behind 9-2. While he was unable to flip the score, Morton picked up four more points in an eventful final period that resulted in a major decision victory for Rodriguez.
At 149,
Caleb Seyfried put up a strong fight for the Ephs against Nick Roeger. Unfotunately, Roeger was able to outscore Seyfried late in the macth, resulting in a 10-4 decision victory for Castleton.
Next up at 157 was
Peter Kane for the Ephs. Kane delivered a dominant performance, maintaining control the entire way en route to a 6-1 decision victory over Tashon Holmes.
In the penultimate bout,
Eamon Garrity-Rokous squared off with Michael Angers at 165. In a bout that could be described as high intensity from start-to-finish, Angers was able to walk away with a 16-5 major decision win.
In the last match of the night,
Max Hall represented Williams at 174 against Cooper Fleming. Fleming came out to a hot start, building an 8-1 lead heading into the second period. Hall exhibited his resilience, holding off move after move from Fleming in the second to keep him off the board in this period. Fleming was able to add two more points in the final frame to secure a 10-1 major decision win for the Spartans.
Reflecting on his team's performance tonight, Head Coach
Scott Honecker had this to share: "Our guys wrestled super tough tonight, wrapping up a great regular season. But it's been all eyes on the postseason since stepping on campus in the fall. We are ready to start sharpening the blade as we gear up for what we've been peaking for."
The full results from the match are below.
| Weight |
Williams |
Castleton |
Result |
Score |
| 197 |
Elias Chen |
Josh Negron |
3-1 decision |
3-0 Castleton |
| 285 |
Wyatt Moyer |
Shea Garand |
1:25 fall |
6-3 Williams |
| 125 |
David Yeh |
Gavin Bradley |
13-6 decision |
6-6 |
| 133 |
Lucas Johnson |
Michael Gonyea |
1:26 fall |
12-6 Castleton |
| 141 |
Donnie Morton |
James Rodriguez |
18-6 major decision |
16-6 Castleton |
| 149 |
Caleb Seyfried |
Nick Roeger |
10-4 decision |
19-6 Castleton |
| 157 |
Peter Kane |
Jashon Holmes |
6-1 decision |
19-9 Castleton |
| 165 |
Eamon Garrity-Rokous |
Michael Angers |
16-5 major decision |
23-9 Castleton |
| 174 |
Max Hall |
Cooper Fleming |
10-1 major decision |
27-9 Castleton |
| 184 |
N/A |
Desmond McLaughlin |
Forfeit |
33-9 Castleton |
