The boys wrestling team defeated MICDS 84-0 and Parkway South 51-29 on Jan. 10.
The Falcons hosted both teams at home, which wrestling Derryan Derrough said could be challenging because going up against multiple opponents in one night requires a mindset switch.
“There is a mental component to [tri-meets]. Preparing to wrestle one team and then having to take a break and then get back in focus and engaged to wrestle again can sometimes be tough,” Derrough said.
Going into the meet, Derrough said the team was focusing on starting each match off strongly and with fierce competitiveness, but said the overall goal was to see growth from the wrestlers.
“We’ve been working lately on working to get the first takedown and having a hunter instinct versus a hunted instinct, and focus more on the process than the outcome. We don’t care about wins and losses, we care about whether the kids are getting better,” Derrough said.
Senior Justin Cornett said that the team was able to succeed at the meet by using the techniques they’re comfortable with while also branching out to try new ones.
“It was a pretty good meet for the whole team. Everyone was trying new things and doing what we felt comfortable doing,” Cornett said.
Derrough said that while he was pleased with the score, he was more impressed with the overall improvement the athlete’s have shown over the course of the season.
“The things that went particularly well were from an outcome standpoint, it’s nice to go 2-0, but then from a process standpoint, they have improved leaps and bounds by doing this for the last couple of weeks, and I’m really excited to see how we finish it,” Derrough said.
Throughout the season, Cornett said the team has faced some challenges because of the amount of new wrestlers, but said other members have supported the team by consistently performing well.
“[Our season] hasn’t been the best that we’ve had in the last couple of years, but we’re starting to get some good leaders on the mat. We have some guys who we know will do well and help out the team. We just have some inexperienced guys, too, who are just trying to figure it out,” Cornett said.
Overall, sophomore Michael Rossomanno said the team has put in hard work to consistently perform their best and master their skills this season.
“We’ve been pretty good. We’ve been working really hard at practice, and at matches we’re really competitive. I think everyone just gives a really good effort. We’re focusing on staying on weight, working really hard, and getting better at what we know how to do best,” Rossomanno said.
