Last Saturday the George Mason High School varsity wrestling squad participated in a quad meet at Liberty High School, squaring off against AAA powerhouse Westfield and AAA Atlee, as well as AA juggernaut Brentsville and the host school, AA Liberty. Although the Mustangs came out on the losing end, dropping all four duels, their young guns proved that down the line, the Mason grapplers will be a force to be reckoned with.
An absence of light-weights proved to be costly for the Mustangs as well, as they were forced to forfeit seven matches per duel, due to a lack of wrestlers at the 103, 112, 119, 125, 135, 171 and the heavyweight 285 weight classes.
Against Atlee, the Mustangs fell 69-10. Winners for the visiting Mason squad, the only A team in the quad meet, were sophomore Jake Schwind, who won 13-5 wrestling in the 140-lb. class, as well as junior Steve Parks, who defeated his opponent in 3:03, while wrestling in the 189-lb. weight class.
Parks once again came out on top versus Liberty, pinning his opponent in 3:28, while senior captain Rick Schumann defeated his in 3:54. Entering the tough part of the quad-meet, the Mustangs squared off against Westfield High School, the No. 6 AAA wrestling team in the state. Parks proved once again to be the lone bright spot on the day for Mason, as he was the only Mustang victor against Westfield, winning 2-0.
Facing an even more daunting task in Brentsville, the No. 2 AA squad in the state, the Mustangs did not back down. Schwind and Parks each won their respective matches, with Schwind triumphant by a score of 9-6, while Parks pinned his opponent in 4:38.
Last Wednesday, in a duel meet versus Bull Run District rival Clarke County, the Mustangs were unable to come out on top, losing a closely-fought battle to the Eagles 27-21. Parks and Schumann each won by forfeit, while senior Roger O’ Brien won 8-6. Junior Barrett Kennett pinned his opponent in a mere 1:59 to round out the winners for the Mustangs on the night.
Next up for the grapplers is a head-to-head meet at Rappahannock County, Thursday, Jan. 25 at 7 p.m.
