Wrestling battles for first win of season

After beginning the season with devastating losses in the Messiah Invitational and Terrapin Duels, the Hopkins wrestling team continued to remain optimistic heading into the John Reese Duels this past weekend at Wilkes University. The team entered the weekend with a 0-3 record, despite wrestling admirably against formidable opponents including Davidson and University of Maryland. Unfortunately for the Jays, the team was unable to generate a win in three matches as Hopkins lost to Oneonta, Wilkes and Messiah. The Jays fell to 0-6 on the season and were unable to find consistency in any of their matches. The Jays generated the most points of the day against Oneonta, falling 31-15, before falling to Wilkes by a final score of 38-6 and then Messiah 34-12. Messiah entered the Duels ranked second in the nation according to the National Wrestling Coaches Associations (NWCA). Two new faces on the team led the way for the Blue Jays throughout the entirety of the day, as freshmen Tommy Grifa and Christian Vallis both earned two victories in the Duels. Grifa generated a spark for the Jays with impressive wins against Wilkes and Messiah. The skilled freshman nearly pulled off a third victory but fell by a narrow margin of 7-5 in his match against Oneonta. Vallis defeated his opponent from Oneonta by a narrow margin of 3-2 before falling in the 133-pound weight class match against Wilkes. Despite the tough setback, Vallis regained his form against Messiah and earned a well-deserved 5-2 win by decision against Messiah. An additional highlight for the Jays was the return of senior captain Paul Bewak. Bewak, who wrestles in the 125-pound weight class, missed the opening weekend for the Jays at the Messiah Invitational, and his presence was sorely missed. In his first weekend back in action, Bewak went 1-1 on the day, scoring a victory against Oneonta and narrowly falling by a score of 2-1 in his match against Messiah. Bewak’s loss came against Lucas Malmberg, who entered the weekend ranked second in the nation in the 125-pound weight class. Bewak came into the match ranked fourth in the nation, and the matchup between the two superstars certainly did not disappoint as Malmberg came out victorious by the slim margin of 2-1. Sophomore Jared Forman noted that Bewak’s performance was a pinnacle of the tournament. “The match between our captain [Bewak] and Malmberg was a highlight of the weekend,” Forman said. “It was exciting to see Paul compete against the second-ranked wrestler in the nation.” The return of the senior captain was a lovely sight for the Blue Jay squad, as Bewak has been one of the most consistent wrestlers for Hopkins over his four-year career. Bewak currently holds an overall record of 101-19, making him the most successful wrestler in Hopkins program history and the only wrestler to earn over 100 wins. In addition to strong performances from Bewak, Grifa and Vallis, sophomore Kory Johnson managed two victories on the day, coming up with strong performances against Oneonta and Wilkes in the 197-pound weight class. The final Hopkins victory was captured by sophomore Jared Forman, who battled admirably in the 174-pound weight class matchup, picking up a big win against Messiah. Forman expects the team to rebound nicely when the team begins conference play. “Moving on toward conference play, our team expects to do well,” Forman said. “The goal every year is to win conferences. I personally feel that our team has the ability, the work ethic and the dedication to win it.” The Blue Jays will look to pick up their first victory of the season when they travel to Lexington, Va. this upcoming Sunday for matchups against Ohio Northern and Washington and Lee.