PROVIDENCE, R.I. – A bevy of native wrestlers shined on the mat on the 2023 New England Interscholastic Wrestling Championships however none extra spectacular than Chelmsford heavyweight Thomas Brown.
Brown had a aptitude for the dramatic along with his a hundredth win of his quick profession as he took down the 285-pound title in an 8-2 determination. Brown’s thrilling victory was over Rhode Island state champion Joe Church (Bishop Hendricken). The match went all the way down to the ultimate 90 seconds earlier than Brown ensured the hand increase.
This was Brown’s first All-New England first-place end because the two-time Division 1 Massachusetts champion positioned third as a freshman final season.
Brown (56-0) remained undefeated on the 2023 season. He held a slim 3-2 benefit after Brown lower Church free after a shock break on a fast takedown into the third interval.
Brown had a slight benefit down the stretch because the sophomore knew a factor or two about his opponent coming into the finals. He defeated Church 10-0 again in January on the Colter Abeley Classic in Middletown, Conn., and whereas Church made important changes on Browns’ underhooks, the feeling dug deep down and dominated within the last 1:20 of the third with 5 unanswered factors.
“(Church) is a tough kid, he’s a great wrestler but I tried to wrestle my match. This feels great,” mentioned Brown. “I just had to trust what my coaches taught me and to trust what I do and stick with my stuff. Just tried to keep a good stance and not try to do anything stupid and hold onto the lead.”
With the win, that is the primary New England champion for the Lions since 2008 within the 135-pound division. Brown mentioned he was humbled to be even talked about in the identical breath as Tim Rich and the legacy of the Chelmsford program.
“We haven’t had a New England champ or even finalist since Timmy Rich so this is a huge accomplishment for Thomas and shows all the work he puts in and shows the other guys that it’s possible they can do the same,” mentioned Chelmsford head coach Chris Piscione.
Other notables have been Shawsheen Tech’s Sidney Tildsley, who took the highest spot at 138 with a pinfall over Jaeckez Mendez (East Hartford, Conn.) at 2:27 whereas Algonquin’s Rafael Knapp outlasted Isael Perez (Hope, R.I.) within the 170-pound bracket, 10-8, in essentially the most thrilling match of the finals.
Not to be denied was Central Catholic’s Nathan Blanchette for back-to-back New England titles at 182 with an 8-4 hard-fought determination over Spencer Fine (Bishop Hendricken).
The win provides Blanchette one other shot at Nationals and when requested what his expectations have been shifting ahead, Blanchette didn’t mince phrases.
“Man, that (finals) was the toughest. (Fine) is a dog and fights hard. We saw each other last season too,” mentioned Blanchette. “We don’t go to tournaments to lose.”
Also with a really inspiring run was Emmett Logan (Lowell) within the 106-pound division. Logan got here up simply wanting the title to take second place in a serious determination loss (12-4) to Raekwon Shabazz (Xavier, Conn.). Logan, a freshman who additionally positioned second in All-States, has a vibrant future with the Red Raiders’ program.
St. John’s Prep had the most effective end as a workforce with a second-place end after taking down the workforce title in 2022. The Eagles (82 factors) have been chasing eventual winner Ponaganset of Scituate, R.I., which completed the match with 143 factors.
Rawson Iwanicki (160) received his second New England chip with a 7-3 determination over and Brent Nicolosi (Haverhill) in an All-Massachusetts last whereas Alex Schaeublin (113) added a second-place medal to go coach Manny Costa’s trophy chest in an especially profitable season on the mat.
“Iwanicki was the returning champ, he’s been undefeated three years in a row, so it’s a nice way to finish his career. Alex had a tough loss in the finals but you make the New England finals at 58-0, so how can you be upset about that? We knew Ponaganset was going to win it, they were loaded, had so many guys, but we’re happy with second,” mentioned Costa. “I didn’t think we would be top five let alone place second so we are happy with that.”
Tewksbury’s Jack Callahan additionally had a implausible match. He completed second at 126 kilos.
Source: www.bostonherald.com