It was a battle in the majority of the weight classes for the Joel Barlow High Wrestling Team in its match against Brookfield/Shepaug last week.
The host Falcons claimed victory in four of the 14 bouts on Wednesday, Jan. 17, putting them far short of catching the competition in a 54-21 loss.
The Bobcats dominated from the start, taking six of the first seven weight classes. The 106-pound match lasted 32 seconds before Brookfield/Shepaug’s Matt Bray pinned Ben Azzara.
Jake Hamlin’s 113-pound match against Brookfield/Shepaug’s Lucas Calemmo was perhaps the closest of the night. The former managed several takedowns and escapes over three periods but came up short, 10-7.
At 120 pounds, the Bobcats’ Evan Gross pinned Kai Lee in 54 seconds. Neither side could produce an eligible wrestler at 136 pounds, resulting in a double forfeit.
Brookfield/Shepaug’s James Feather got the win at 132 pounds, pinning Ryan Knobb in 2:43. It was a similar result at 138 pounds with the Bobcats’ Danny Carrozza pinning Anthony Azzara in 31 seconds.
Another pin victory went to the Bobcats at 130 pounds with Nate Smith beating Alex Krais late in the first period. Trailing 30-3 after seven matches, the Falcons got their first when Scott Romano took the 150-pound class by forfeit.
The Bobcats then picked up where they left off, getting the pin at 157 pounds when Kip Faison beat R.J. Gaspar in 18 seconds. Barlow followed with a forfeit win by Dimo Gallindo at 165 pounds.
With the Falcons having no wrestler at 175 pounds, Brookfield/Shepaug got the forfeit win. At 190 pounds, Barlow’s Dylan Cooke lasted until the second period before getting pinned by Trey Parker in 2:32.
One last win went to the Falcons at 215 pounds when Chad Pranzo pinned Logan Lavery in 47 seconds. Ending the night with a win, the Bobcats took the 275-pound match by forfeit.
Now 1-4 overall, Barlow competes in the Brookfield Invitational on Saturday at 9:30 a.m. and hosts Weston on Wednesday at 6 p.m.
