H.S. wrestling: Holyoke edged by Minnechaug in tri-meet with Frontier

HOLYOKE — The Frontier, Holyoke and Minnechaug wrestling teams all faced off at Dean Tech High School on Wednesday, with the Falcons coming out on top with 100 total points. The Purple Knights finished in a close second with 98, while the Redhawks rounded things out with 42.

Head-to-head, Frontier won five of the six bouts against Holyoke to begin the night. With eight forfeits due to a chunk of their team attending a band competition, the Redhawks trailed in points at 54-30, but showed up on the mats.

“Everybody that wrestled, wrestled tough, aggressive, hard,” Frontier head coach Brian Bagdon said. “That’s what we coach them to do: score the next point. This was a great experience [Wednesday]. It’s just putting one match together, and just keep flowing matches, and hopefully you’ll pile up a few wins.”

Former state champion from last year, Jocelyn Antes, defeated Holyoke’s Lillivette Ramos in the 120-pound match by pin at the 1:30 mark to start the match off for the Redhawks, losing her match against Minnechaug.

Frontier’s Konnor James defeated Johann Lopez in the 165-pound matchup against the Purple Knights, battling for a late pin. The sophomore lost by decision, 4-0, against the Falcons. Lopez took home the win in his match against Minnechaug.

In the 175-pound match, Jacoby Merrill walked away with a quick pin victory for the Redhawks over Holyoke freshman Alexander Ramos. Merrill made quick work of the Falcons as well, with Ramos also winning his matchup.

“[Wednesday] started off with a pretty tough competition against Frontier,” Holyoke head coach Vin Silano said. “They definitely brought a lot of great technique, a lot of great energy. Although a small squad, each one of their athletes did a great job.”

The Redhawks’ Jack Phillips defeated Jacob Rosa of the Purple Knights in the 190-pound match. Against the Falcons, both wrestlers took home the win.

Holyoke’s one win over Frontier came in the 215-pound match, with Jesus Morales defeating Casey Bestler, who went up a weight class. Morales defeated Minnechaug as well.

“I like how the kids supported each other, win or lose,” Bagdon said. “The kids I have are pretty tough, and by mid-season and end of the season, when we get them to where we want them to be, it’s going to be fun.”

Max Hunter won the 285-pound match for the Redhawks against Noah Cintron for the Purple Knights, with both losing to Minnechaug.

The Falcons handled Frontier, winning that head-to-head, 70-12.

Holyoke got to showcase a larger number of its players against Minnechaug, finding success. Josiah Cedeno won his 106-pound matchup, Omar Amiri won at 113, Steven Santiago won at 120, Jan Luis Rivie Cartagena won at 132 and Cecilio Sanchez won at 150. The final score between the two teams was 44-30 in favor of the Purple Knights.

“We talked a lot about meeting adversity and handling that,” Silano said. “They definitely shifted their mindsets as athletes. They got together, and they did what they needed to do.”

Frontier’s next match comes up on Saturday, December 20, at 8:30 a.m. when it hosts Belchertown, Hampshire Regional and Mohawk Trail.

“[Minnechaug and Holyoke are] two bigger schools, so we’re out-manned with enrollment numbers,” Bagdon said. “But my guys didn’t give up fighting. So that’s really what I want. To keep being tough, being aggressive, and try and score the next point.”

Holyoke heads to West Springfield next, along with Westfield, Southwick, Shepherd Hill and Montachusett on Tuesday, December 23 at noon.

“Biggest takeaway is back to basics,” Silano said. “We have a lot of kids trying to do a lot, all at once, and wrestling, when you’re in the mix, can be very confusing, especially for newer wrestlers. So, going back to basics and really just honing down on those basic elements of wrestling.”