Big things often come in small packages, and this year’s wrestling team is a solid example of that. With depth in the lower weight classes, the team looks for strength and technique over size as it attempts to improve on last year’s 6-8 record.

Last year, the team graduated Brad Taylor and Josh Daryoush, who both placed in the top three of their respective weight classes at states. This year’s team returns three seniors, only one of whom has previous varsity experience. But don’t confuse lack of seniors for lack of leadership. The team has a permanent captain in junior Max Sessions. In addition to Sessions, juniors Jack Calder and Jacob Cutler and seniors Andrew Cullinane and Jacob Shiman will rotate as captains every week, after team voting resulted in a four-way tie.
“We’re hoping that one of those guys step up, be a little but more of a leader in the room, and kind of make a claim that they want to be a captain for the whole year,” coach Derek Manon said.

The team returns starters in almost every weight class, including 106 lb Harriet Symington, 113 lb Stephen Sharbaugh, 120 lb Will Baker and 126 lb Cutler in the lighter weight classes, with 170 lb Calder and 195 lb Sessions further up the lineup.

“All of those guys are juniors,” Manon said. “So the future is bright.”

A big year is expected from Sessions, who was 13-1 last year before an injury sidelined him for the remainder of the season, and Calder, who was one of the team’s top scorers last year. Calder expects everyone who is returning to make solid contributions and is confident in the depth of the lighter weight classes, he said.

“We’re really strong in the lower weights, that’s going to be our strength,” Calder said. “It’s kind of a reversal from the last couple years.”

Manon also expects returning starters Cutler and Baker to step up, as they worked extremely hard in the offseason to prepare for this winter by attending almost every workout.

Eric Beverly (a 2009 regional champion) and assistant coach Will Sharbaugh, a 2006 state champion and 2007 regional champion, ran the offseason workouts. In the spring, Beverly worked with the team on basic fundamentals, preparing the them mentally, while Sharbaugh drilled the team in the fall to prepare them physically.

Wrestlers also had the option to sign up and wrestle at open tournaments throughout the offseason, and some attended a four day camp at the University of Maryland where they wrestled up to three times a day.

The weekend before its first meet, the team’s varsity lineup was determined by “wrestle-offs,” in which all wrestlers of the same weight class competed in bracketed tournaments for the top spots.

“Coaches really don’t pick the varsity line up,” Manon said. “It’s all up to the wrestlers; if they beat the man across from them, they’re the starter.”

With the lineup now set, the team can focus its attention on its competition. Its toughest competitors look to be the Wootton Patriots Dec. 7, the Damascus Hornets Dec. 18, and the Sprinbrook Blue Devils Jan. 12. Calder cited the Patriots as the biggest meet of the year after the Vikes lost to them by only one point last year.

The group has the basis of a good team, Manon said. He added that if they work a little harder, they can “wrestle with anybody, compete with anybody, and beat anybody.”

The measure of that work will be provided by the wrestling room itself. When the team works hard enough they can “make it rain,” Manon said.

“When they can get the room misting a little bit or the windows to fog up,” Manon said, “then it’s a good day.”

The Vikes opened the season strong Dec. 5 at home, defeating the 0-1 Northwood Gladiators 59-21 and jumping to a 1-0 start.

Captains Andrew Cullinane, 160 lb., and Jack Calder, 170 lb., set the tone for the night by pinning their Northwood opponents and giving the Vikes a 12-0 lead. The Vikes and Gladiators split the next four bouts, with first year wrestler Jonah Brain and captain Max Sessions securing pins.

Sessions wrestled up a weight class in the heavyweight division, but still pinned his opponent with 25 seconds left in the first period, putting the Vikes up 24-12. He has been battling injuries for the past year, and is trying to drop weight as the season goes on.

After Sessions’ bout, the Vikings won 4 of their next 6, three on pins and one on a technical fault. Senior Maheyaar Barron lost on a hard-fought 14-10 referee’s decision, which came down to the last seconds of the third period.

Barron, 138 lbs., had a 10-9 lead with 20 seconds left as he fought for position with his opponent. The Gladiators wrestler executed a takedown for 2 points, and then got 3 “back points” as time expired to get the narrow win, making the score 47-21.

Grapplers Evan Smith, 145 lbs, and Kevin Baker, 152 lbs, closed out the contest for the Vikes with back-to-back pins in their first periods, winning with an overall score of 59-21.

Baker thought the key to the Viking’s victory was their hard work in the offseason and in practice.

“If we didn’t push ourselves and our teammates week to week, we wouldn’t have such great success in our matches,” Baker said.

The team will have one day to prepare for a tri-meet Friday vs. the Wheaton Knights and the rival Wootton Patriots, both of whom will be competing in their first meet of the year.