GMHS Wrestlers Set for Districts

The action was fast and furious in both gyms at George Mason on Saturday Feb. 5 when six teams met to duke it out on the wrestling mats. Locals Mason, Marshall, McLean and Yorktown were joined by nearby Osbourn Park and Mason’s Bull Run District compatriot Rappahannock County for a full day of action. Team-wise, the Highlanders of McLean came away with the day’s honors as they went a perfect 5-0 followed by Marshall at 4-1. Mason went 0-5, but as usual several individuals stood out during the day.

Nick Pitas, Mike Coleman, and John Sullivan all went 4-1 to lead the Mustangs with their efforts, but teammate Willie Hoover had to miss the first 2 rounds due to the SATs and was able to finish only one match (a big win against McLean) before having to retire for the day due to a concussion. Rick Schumann and Tash Khan each went 2-3.

For the four AAA schools the weekend served as a final tune up for their District tournaments which were held on Saturday Feb. 12. The Mustangs had one more meet left in their regular season though and traveled to Manassas Park, Wednesday the 12th for their finale against the top-ranked Cougars. The result was not in their favor as the Cougars prevailed 63-3 with John Sullivan the lone Mustang winner. Hoover was still on the medically ineligible list and missed this meet as well.

As the Mustangs head for the District tournament this weekend at Manassas Park they are remarkably upbeat considering it has been one of the most difficult seasons team-wise in recent years.

“Sometimes this happens, particularly at the Single A level,” Mason Head Coach John Pitas said. “We lost eight people from last year’s team and with our limited student enrollment it is hard to overcome that loss in one year. Sometimes you have years like this where you take your lumps. There are four people in our starting lineup (Palmieri, Kendra, Hanna, and Schuman) who had never wrestled when this year began and they have made great strides. With the experience they have gained this year I am confident next year will be much different. This year is not over yet, however. The entire squad is looking forward to the District tournament. I admit it will be an uphill battle for the new guys, but we have do have four wrestlers who are experienced and could do well in the post season. Pitas, Coleman, Hoover, and Sullivan have the experience and skill to go all the way to the state tournament. Hopefully the breaks will go their way.” Start time for the District tournament is 10 a.m. at Manassas Park High School.

Mike Hume may be emailed at mhume@fcnp.com