Avon Wrestling

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Avon 25 Wethersfield 50

If at the beginning of this year anyone had predicted that this Avon team would be able to finish above .500 on the year, beat two ranked opponents and be wrestling for the conference championship on the last day of the season, people would have thought that was impossible. That is exactly what happened. However, Avon would not just be above .500, they would end the season 18-7. On top of that, 6 of their 7 losses came to top 15 teams in the state’s coaches poll. This Avon team is a group of young kids with incredible work ethics and don’t know how to quit. If this team stays together and makes off-season work a priority there is no telling what this team is capable of. Tonight’s senior night was a touching way to say goodbye to the seniors who have been here for this team throughout the years. They have seen the rebuilding of this team from their freshman and sophomore record of 25-19 to their junior and senior record of 40-7. It is their leadership that guided this young team to be as successful as they were this year. Unfortunately, tonight Avon ran into a very tough and experienced Wethersfield team. Wethersfield had 5 seniors, 5 juniors and 4 sophomores in their line-up. Avon had 1 senior, 5 juniors, 5 sophomores and 2 freshman in their line-up. Of that line-up 4 of Avon’s kids are brand new to the sport this year. Avon gave a noble effort, but the Eagles were just too much for them tonight. Jared Butler was asked to bump up to 152 to wrestle the 6^th ranked kid in the class “L” at 152. Jared did it for the team. Although he got taken down in the first period Jared demonstrated better skill, toughness and desire. Jared turned up the heat in the 2^nd and 3^rd periods and amassed a 14-4 lead when the final buzzer went off. It was an impressive major decision considering his opponent's skill and weight. Chris Gens was looking to round off a perfect 25-0 dual meet season tonight. He would not be denied. Chris, for the 25^th time this year in dual meet, looked absolutely dominant. It takes Chris 50 seconds to cap off his perfect season. At 113, Jonah Weber would again deliver. Jonah scores a first period takedown then puts the Wethersfield 113 right to her back. Jonah adds six more to the team total with a pin. Zack Colman has quietly put together quite an impressive season. He gets his 15^th win on the season which is extra impressive because he missed some matches with an ankle injury. Zack drums down his opponent and jumps on Jonah’s band wagon by adding another pin in a quick 49 seconds. In the final match of the varsity meet Cameron Casey, fresh back from a separated shoulder, proves that pain is only temporary. Cam and the Wethersfield 138 battle hard. Cam was the better wrestler and slowly it began to show. After the first period they were tied, after the second Cam was winning 3-2 and by the end of the match Cam won 7-4. Another tough performance from the Sophomore. It wasn’t the result that the falcons wanted tonight, but hopefully it is something that they will remember and let fuel them in the off-season in the weight room and on the mat.

Final Score Avon 25 Wethersfield 50

Season Record 18-7 Conference Record 3-2

Avon 36 Rocky Hill 42

This year the Avon wrestling team has been unbelievable in the tough matches. This team has managed pull out all of the tough matches that could have gone either way. It speaks to the toughness and depth of this team. Tonight, against Rocky Hill, Avon just ran out of gas. It is easy to assume that Avon will always pull out the tough ones, but this team has constantly been asked to do more with less. Both Baghdassarians are out of the line-up, Eli Johnson is out of the line-up and Jack Leavens is out of the line-up. Avon fought hard, but with only 1 senior and 5 juniors in the line-up, 2 of which are 1^st year juniors, Avon was just outmatched tonight. Zach Colman and Jack Noyes both gave Avon points by receiving forfeits. Jared Butler was the first Falcon to score team points on the mat. Jared did it in style with a first period pin in a quick 55 seconds. Liam O’Dwyer is quickly making the conversion to a legit varsity wrestler. Liam starts the match by getting taken down and put to his back, but Liam showed toughness by fighting off his back and getting a reversal. Once on top it took Liam little time to put his opponent on his own back. Liam took advantage of it and did not let him off. He uses 81 seconds of the first period to get Avon another pin. The Rocky Hill regular 220 went up to Heavyweight. So did Chris Gens. You just can’t run from Chris Gens. Chris Gens makes Rocky Hill pay. He gets the quick takedown, puts the 220 to his back and stops the match early. In the last match of the night Jonah Weber finally gets to wrestle at his own weight. But he doesn’t wrestle at his own weight for long. Quickly he gets a takedown and a pin. Twenty three seconds after the match started Jonah had his hand raised. This match did not go the way that Avon planned, but a reminder of hard work is always needed at some point in the season.

Final Score Avon 36 Rocky Hill 42

Season Record 18-6 Conference Record 3-1

Avon 78 St. Paul 4

St. Paul is a small class “S” school. They only came to the meet with 6 wrestlers in their starting line-up, so Avon had the meet won before the first whistle was blown. Ivan Fagin, Paul Netland, Jared Butler, Chris Bourquin, Ethan Volpe, Jack Noyes, Chris Gens and Jack Leavens would all be handed forfeits. Jonah Weber would get the first of the six matches. Jonah went up to 120 pounds and gave up 7 pounds and about 10 inches in height on his opponent. Height and weight don’t always matter when you have skill on your side. Jonah navigates the disadvantages easily and has a convincing 6-0 lead in the second period before pinning the St. Paul 120lber. It is nice to have Zach Colman back in the line-up. Zach looks like he never missed a beat. He gets a quick takedown and a very quick 25 second pin. It is nice to ease back into competition. One of the best kids from St. Paul is their 138 pounder. He got 4^th in the Rocky Hill tournament. Cameron Casey would have to battle to win this match. Fortunately for Cameron he has never been one to back down from a battle. The two throw down in a back and forth battle, but late in the second period Cameron got a reversal to take a 7-5 lead. He then threw his opponent to his back and ended the close match with a pin. Chris Pascarelli watched Colman and Casey wrestle. Chris decided that a quick pin definitely looked easier on the body than a battle. He follows Colman, but improves on his result. It took him 2 seconds less to get the pin. Pascarelli in 23 seconds. In the final match of the meet Matt Mancini continued his foray into the varsity world. Matt makes it look like he is an experienced pro. Matt gets the early takedown and then converts the pin in 46 seconds. It is nice to have a team with some depth.

Final Score Avon 78 St. Paul 4

Season Record 18-5 Conference Record 3-1

Avon 63 Windsor 15

Wrestling a team on their senior night is never easy. The senior night team is always pumped up and ready to go. It didn’t seem to bother the Avon squad in Windsor on Windsor’s senior night. at first it looked bad as Windsor jumped out to a quick 6-0 lead when Avon forfeited to them at 220. Avon bumped Chris Gens up to heavyweight to get Chris a tougher warm-up match for the states. Wrestling a bigger kid does not mean Chris is wrestling a stronger kid. There aren’t many, if any kids in this state stronger than Chris. Chris breezes through this match and gets Avon tied up at 6-6 with a pin late in the 1^st period. Matt Mancini only found out that he was going to be varsity about 24 hours before this match started. Matt shed the weight and got ready for the tussle. Matt looked like an old pro at this game. He scored a takedown and a set of back point before he put Avon on top with a pin in only one minute and one second. Jonah Weber had one of the toughest Windsor kids. Jonah was in control of the match the entire time. He took a first period 2-0 lead and extended it to 4-0 by the end of the 2^nd. In the third he got a quick reversal and landed Avon their third pin in a row. Ivan Fagin added 6 more with a forfeit at 120. Jack Janes is a 120 pounder by trade. Jack was asked to go up a weight and wrestle 126 for the injured Zach Colman. Jack filled in seamlessly. Jack is a kid who will be in a regular varsity position in the very near future and he demonstrated why in this match. Jack controls the pace of the match and ends it early with a 2^nd period pin. By the time it was Paul Netland’s turn to wrestle Avon already had a big 30-6 lead. Paul shot right in for an early takedown. He went to work and controlled his opponent. His pressure led to a pin of his own. Cameron Casey wrestled the match of the night. Cameron took on the Windsor captain. The match was a back and forth affair, and in the 3^rd period the match was tied at 4 a piece. Casey exploded for an escape a takedown and a set of backpoints to win 9-4. Jared Butler took the easy route. He didn’t do all of that 2 or 3 periods thing. Jared went to work like an iceberg on the titanic (too soon)? Jared pins the Windsor 145 in only 43 seconds. Chris Bourquin added 6 more with a forfeit. First year wrestler Liam O’Dwyer is another kid who is stepping in to fill in for an injury. Liam does not wrestle like a first year kid. When his opponent shoots in Liam catches him in a whip over, throws him to his back and sticks him there. Liam has a good future at Avon wrestling. When Jack Noyes added a forfeit to the total Avon won the match 63-15.

Final Score Avon 63 Windsor 15

Season Record 17-5 Conference Record 3-1

Doc Meter's Invitational 4th of 14

Last year Avon won the Doc Meyer’s invitational and set the tournament team point record. That Avon team had 12 starters in their line-up that have either graduated or are out from injury. This Avon team is younger but just as hungry. They would however be down a couple of starters. Aidan Bagdassarian, Jack Colman, Eli Johnson and Jack Leavens were all out of the line-up. It would be an uphill climb, but not one that this team has not made before. Amazingly, every member of the team added points to the team total. It was a total team effort. Five wrestlers were able to achieve medals in this tournament. At 160, Liam O’Dwyer is only a first year wrestler. He was thrust into the varsity spotlight when team captain Eli Johnson went down with a concussion. If Liam started wrestling in his freshman year he would be one of the best kids on the team right now. He is strong, tough and a great athlete. Liam gets Avon a pin and a tech fall on the way to a 4^th place finish. Ethan Volpe lost his first match of the tournament. At that point, many kids would have just giving up. Ethan dug in deeper. He won his next two matches. The first one by pin and the second match he grinded out and won a tough 3-0 decision. Ethan proved that wrestling is as much about mental toughness as physical toughness. Jared Butler has placed in every tournament that he has wrestled in. Today would be no different. Jared breezed through the first match with a quick first period pin. In his second match he amassed a huge lead before getting a third period pin. Jared ends up finishing 2^nd. Jonah Weber, like Butler, was seeded second. In the first round Jonah only uses 17 seconds to get a pin. The semi-finals was a little tougher as Jonah fought through a convincing 7-1 decision. The reason Jonah was seeded 2^nd was because he has already lost to the number 1 seeded wrestler twice this year. Good thing tournaments aren't won in the seeding room, but on the mats. Jonah goes out to an aggressive lead with the first takedown. The match was an even struggle, but in the third period Jonah found himself down 3-4. Hitting a claw move, he headlocks his opponent to his back for an 8-4 championship. This is the first tournament championship of Jonah’s high school career. At 220 the team captain Chris Gens did what Chris Gens does. Every tournament that Chris has entered in this year, Chris has won. Chris dominated the day. In the semi-finals, Gens stretches his legs a little bit by getting some mat time. After working on the mat he gets the pin to move on to the finals. In the finals Gens takes control with an early takedown and gets some back points. In the second period he wins himself the title with a pin. Avon had a great day considering that due to injuries they only covered 11 weight classes. Avon finished a strong 4th out of 14 teams.

Avon 42 Glastonbury 39

It is a sports cliché to say that your team has a next man up mentality. It is overused in sports. It doesn’t matter, this team has a next man up mentality. Tonight, Avon took on Glastonbury. Team Captain Ryan Baghdassarian, who had over 20 wins last year, goes out with a shoulder injury. Next man up. Ivan Fagin steps in. Team Captain Eli Johnson gets an injury. Next man up. Liam O’Dwyer Steps in. Aidan Baghdassarian gets an injury. Next man up. Matt Mancini steps in. Jack Leavens gets hurt. (Same) man up. Jack Leavens throws his crutches aside and steps in to take forfeits. Everyone on this team is capable of winning matches and that is why they are successful. If one guy gets the other team’s stud. No problem. Someone else steps up and picks him up by getting a win. That is why this team is successful. It is a true team effort. Tonight, Jonah Weber was asked to wrestle up a weight class at 120. No problem. He goes out there and dominates. Avon needs a pin and Jonah delivers. This tied the match at 6. Glastonbury had 5 seniors in their line-up to Avon’s 1. Three of the Tomahawk seniors came up after Jonah. This put Avon in a big hole at 6-24. Good thing Avon had an ace in the hole. Jared Butler is a junior taking on a senior at 145. Age doesn’t matter. Jared rips through the first period with a 5-0 lead. In the second period, he pulls Avon closer with a pin. Avon trailed 12-24. After the 152 match Avon went down 12-30. Chris Bourquin is only a sophomore. Like Weber, he was asked to go up a weight class to take on the Glastonbury 160. He doesn’t flinch at the challenge. He not only wrestles, he gets Avon another pin. Avon inches closer at 18-30. A year ago Liam O’Dwyer didn’t know anything about the sport of wrestling. Tonight, he was thrust into the varsity line-up in a tense match. Not only is he wrestling varsity, he was sent up a weight class to wrestle at 170. This is a huge challenge for a first varsity match. Liam O’Dwyer is athletic, aggressive and tough. He rips through the match and ends the match with a pin. O’Dwyer is the next man up tonight. Like many of his team mates Chris Pascarelli was also asked to step up and go up a weight class. One thing no one every worries about with Pascarelli is if he will lay it all out on the mat for the team. Chris is all effort, grit and toughness. He delivers, again, in a big way. His pin ties up the match at 30 for each team. Avon and Glastonbury traded forfeits at 220 and 285. Chris Gens gets the free win at 220. With only one match left in the meet, Glastonbury had a narrow 39-36 lead. The match would fall on the shoulders on Aidan Baghdassarian. No one competes like a Baghdassarian. You could see it in his eyes, there was no way that Aidan was losing. It didn’t take him long. He left no doubt. He pins his opponent and puts the match to bed. Avon pulls out the unlikely win. This team scraps and never backs down. That is why this team wins.

Final Score Avon 42 Glastonbury 39

Season Record 16-5 Conference Record 3-1

Avon 49 New Haven 34

If Avon was going to make it a clean sweep and go 3-0 tonight, they had to go through the New Haven co-op team. New Haven is another team that would give Avon some free forfeit points, but also had some very tough varsity wrestlers. The match started with both teams trading some forfeits, but Avon got the best of it after Caroline Hart and Ivan Fagin both took forfeits to put Avon up 12-6. Jonah Weber jumped out to an early and comfortable lead in the first period at 120. After the first 120 ticks of the clock Jonah already had a 7-0 lead. In the second period, he decided enough was enough and gave Avon another 6 points with a pin. After Zack Colman’s forfeit win Avon was way out in front with a 24-6 lead. It was stunning to see Paul Netland get on the mat and not have to wrestle the other team’s captain, but that is what happened in this match. Paul takes advantage of the opportunity. Although he goes down by two points early, he storms back to dominate the rest of the first period. Heading into the second period Paul was sitting on top with a 7-2 lead. Paul starts in control in the second period and ends on top in a pin. Avon now leads 30-6. At 138, Cameron Casey found himself in trouble early Cameron had to fight off his back twice in the first period and was behind 10-1 late in the first period. Cameron is the most dangerous wrestler in the line-up. He proves that fighting off your back just allows you to have more chances to score. Cameron found his chance, stopped a weak legs attack and scored a defensive pin. Jared Butler was next. All Jared needed to do was pin his opponent to insure the match for the Falcons. Jared is beginning to catch fire lately. He shows it tonight and in only 67 seconds, he guarantees the team win by getting another pin. After running through the meat of the New Haven order Chris Gens put the cherry on the top of this win with a forfeit at 220. It was a great day for the Falcons. The wins today guarantees an above .500 record on the year. A good accomplishment, but this team will do so much more by the time this whole thing is over.

Final Score Avon 49 New Haven 34

Season Record 15-5 Conference Record 2-1

Avon 48 Gilbert 27

In the second match of the night, Gilbert High School posed a very interesting challenge for the Falcons. Gilbert is the defending Class “S” champions. They also have a team of either stud wrestlers or forfeits. Avon would get some free points but would also need to beat some very good wrestlers in order to get the win. One of their studs is at heavyweight, Chris Gens bumped up a weight class again to takedown one of their studs. However, this is Chris Gens and he is always up for a challenge. Watching the match you would never know that this was actually a challenge. Chris made it look easy and gets Avon the lead 6-0. Aidan Baghdassarian, Jonah Weber and Ivan Fagin all added forfeits. Avon was up big with a 24-0 lead. Zack Colman was next up with a good challenge at 126. After one period of battling Zack found himself in a 3-2 hole. Zack took advantage of some good Colman leg riding and put his opponent on his back for good. Colman gets Avon another big pin. Jared Butler, Chris Bourquin, Chris Pascarelli and Ethan Volpe all took forfeits to give Avon a big 48-27 win. Avon wins in all sorts of ways, today having a good solid line-up helped Avon out.

Final Score 48-27

Season Record 14-5 Conference Record 2-1

Avon 59 Farmington 18

Avon entered their first Friday night quad of the year looking for their 13^th win of the season. Chris Gens entered the quad looking for his 100^th career win. Avon has not had a 100 match winning wrestler since Anthony Tripodi in 2016. Gens would have to wait until after Jack Noyes took a forfeit at 195. Chris bumped to 285 pounds to take on the Farmington heavyweight for the momentous win. Chris used an underhook to a far knee tap to get his takedown. He also used about 20 feet of mat as he literally started on one side of the mat and ended on the other. It didn’t take long from there to score a pin and his 100^th career high school victory. Congratulations. Aidan Baghdassarian and Ivan Fagin would follow with forfeits. Jonah Weber would show what wrestling skill looks like. He was all over his opponent for about 5 minutes. This included a dominant 3^rd period in which he scored eight unanswered points for a technical fall. At 126, Zack Colman got the first takedown and added to his season takedown total. Only Gens has more dual meet takedowns than Colman so far this year. After trading some points with the Farmington 126 Zachary got a reverse cradle and plants his opponent for the pin. Cameron Casey wowed the crowd with the move of the night. Cameron countered a single leg takedown attempt with a spladdle. There was no escape and Cameron added another 6 points to the Falcon total. If you sneezed during the 145-pound match, you may have missed more than half of it. Jared Butler just set the team’s 2020 regular season pin record. In only 18 seconds, Jared picks up the fastest pin of the year. In bowling 3 strikes in a row is called a turkey. Chris Bourquin uses 51 seconds to add another pin for the Falcons. In Chris’s last three matches, he has delivered three pins. Someone needs to name 3 wrestling pins in a row. Submit ideas. In the last match of the meet, Avon had a sizable lead. Ethan Volpe had no pressure on him. Volpe did his thing. He is physical and aggressive and it showed in this match. In only 37 seconds Volpe pinned the Farmington 182. His pin brings the final score to 59-18.

Final Score Avon 59 Farmington 18

Season Record 13-5 Conference Record 2-1

Avon 46 East Hartford 35

Going into tonight’s match Avon had a lot of momentum. They were coming off a nice win against South Windsor and a first place finish in the Hand duals, which included a win over a team in the honorable mention of the state coach’s poll. In high school wrestling things can change on a dime. Avon had its back to a wall. Two of their best wrestlers, Aidan Baghdassarian and Jack leavens, were out with injuries. Avon would have to give East Hartford 18 points in forfeits. On top of that, East Hartford is a very good class “LL” school. Fortunately, matches are not won on paper. Matches are won on mats, and Avon was not about to concede anything. Ethan Volpe was tasked with setting the pace for the whole team. Volpe did not waste time. He went right to a cement job and put the East Hartford 182 to his back, but was not able to snag a pin. A short time later Volpe found himself on his own back. In a show of guts, Volpe fought off and turned the tables once again. This time he made it stick and gave Avon the early 6-0 lead. If Volpe didn’t fight off his back it would have been a 12 point turn-around. Everyone contributed tonight. At 220 the match was knotted at 6. Chris Gens did not pass go and did not collect 200 dollars. Chris Took his opponent down and put him directly on his back. Avon needed Chris and he delivered (again). Avon went up 12-6. When Jonah Weber got on the mat at 113 Avon found itself down 12-18. The team needed the freshman to step up. Jonah stepped up. Jonah dominated on his feet, on top and on bottom. Jonah added 4 point to Avon's total with a major decision at 11-3. Avon continued to trail the Hornets. At 126, Avon was trailing 16-24. As a junior, Zack Colman is looking to add some leadership. Unfortunately, Zack went down 2-0 early in the first period. From the bottom, Zack made Coach Fink proud by hitting a reverse cradle and sticking the East Hartford captain. Avon crept closer at 22-24. Things again went bad from there. When Jared Butler hit the resilite at 145, Avon was down 22-35. There was only four matches left, so (for not the first time this season) Avon had very little room for error. Jared won an early scramble to score the first takedown. He then dominated for the next three minutes before getting Avon six more points with a pin in the second period. Avon crept closer 28-35. Chris Bourquin is only a sophomore, but has quietly become one of the best wrestlers in the line-up. Chris proves it with an early takedown, a first set of back points and then a pin. He puts Avon in striking position. Avon trailed by 1 point with two matches left. At 160 Avon got some of its free points back when Eli Johnson took a forfeit. With Avon leading by 5 points, and one match left Avon’s hopes fell squarely on the shoulders of sophomore Chris Pascarelli. There was not a person in their seat. If you could feel sound, this was your opportunity. The gym was going crazy. Chris got the first takedown and some backpoints, but then gave up a reversal and some backpoints against. In the 2^nd period, the two 170’s exchanged more points. Chris had the 10-6 lead when he threw his opponent to his back and brought the gym to a boiling point of excitement. Chris got the pin and Avon got the unlikely win. Never bet against this team. Great things happen when a great group of kids refuse to ever quit and always pick each other up.

Final Score Avon 46 East Hartford 35

Season Record 12-5 Conference Record 2-1

Avon 67 Notre Dame West Haven 9

Avon had one more match on the day. The Falcons took on Notre Dame West Haven. The match started off at 126 pounds. It was optional for non-varsity wrestlers to attend today’s tournament. Jack Janes was looking to wrestle even if the chance was small. When Zack Colman suffered an injury, Janes chance paid off. Janes took every advantage of his opportunity. Janes give the fans a glimpse of what he is capable of and what the future holds. Janes gets an early takedown and turns it into a pin. He puts Avon up 6-0 real quick. In the last 6 meets no one has had a tougher schedule than Paul Netland. This is one of the first times in a while he has not wrestled one of the other team’s best wrestlers. He takes advantage of the opportunity and crushes the Notre Dame 132 for another Avon pin which puts Avon up 12-0. Jared Butler has one of the better Notre Dame kids at 145. It doesn’t matter. Jared again dominates and would have got a pin but he wrestled a kid with rubber shoulders. Instead, Jared got his fourth major decision of the season. Chris Bourquin keeps the good times going. He gets two takedowns against a very spastic 152 pounder. There was no way his opponent could stave Chris off for too long. Chris finally gets a full hold of his opponent and ends it with a pin. Avon now has a big lead and there is no way Eli Johnson is going to relinquish it. Eli gets a five point lead before taking a cradle to the house. After Eli’s pin Avon was up 28-3. Chris Pascarelli takes aim at his third win of the day. As the whole team found out, when Chris aims at something, he usually hits it. Chris Gets his third win of the day with a pin in 1:02. Ethan Volpe follows Chris at 182. Ethan stepped on the mat with a look of intensity in his eyes. He absolutely blew through the match. The match only took 26 seconds, because Ethan threw his opponent to his back and stuck him there. In the match of the meet Chris Gens took on the Notre Dame 220. The Notre Dame 220 is another top ranked kid in the class “L”. This was going to be a tough one for Chris. Nope, it was not. Chris made a good wrestler look quite average. Chris got an early takedown, corkscrewed a cross face and ended with some barbed wire for an easy pin. Jack Leavens is undefeated this week, but has had 3 forfeits. This match would be the first time he got to wrestle this week. Jack took full advantage of it. He makes this wrestling thing look extremely easy. Jack went up 6-0 on his way to another first period pin. Matt Mancini came down from 113 to cover the 106 pound weight class because Bags is out with an injury. Matt is in his first year of wrestling, but is athletic and works his butt off. Matt shows his ability in this match. Matt is in control for the whole match and gets his first varsity win. This puts Avon up 55-9. Jonah Weber adds 6 more with a forfeit. In the final match of the day Ivan Fagin takes on the Notre Dame 113. Ivan now has an 8-3 record, which is quite impressive for a 1^st year kid. Ivan showed the progress that he has made this year. He dominated and got a first period pin. Avon wins 67-9.

Final Score Avon 67 Notre Dame West Haven 9

Season Record 11-5 Conference Record 1-1

Avon 38 East Haven 35

Avon came into the Hand Duals ranked 2^nd in Pool “B” and third overall. East Haven was ranked ahead of Avon because they have a better record, finished ahead of Avon at the Berlin tournament and have 6 seniors in their line-up to Avon’s 2. It would be a huge task for Avon to take down East Haven. At 113, Jonah Weber set the pace for the Falcons. He finally got to wrestle in his own weight class. He jumped all over the 113 from East Haven. Jonah amassed 12 points on his way to a major decision. This started Avon off well with a 4-0 lead. Ivan Fagin went up a weight to 120 in the second match. Ivan followed Jonah’s performance closely. He also jumped all over the East Haven 120 and proved that he is beginning to learn the sport. Ivan dominated the match and won a major decision. Avon gets an early 8-0 lead. East Haven was not about to just roll over for the Falcons. They came storming back to take an 11-8 lead. The East Haven momentum carried them through 4 minutes of the 138 pound match. Cameron Casey found himself in a 6-2 hole at the beginning of the 3^rd period. However, Casey is like New England weather, unpredictable and explosive. He cast his magic late in the third period and got a reversal then a huge pin for the Falcons. Toughness means a lot in this sport and Casey is dripping in it. He puts Avon back on top. Again the match score flopped back East Haven’s way when 152 rolled around. However, Avon has Jared Butler and whenever Butler is wrestling, Avon has a chance. Jared gets taken down but then wakes up, gets a reversal and exerts his will on the East Haven 152. Jared sticks the East Haven 152 in the mat, which puts Avon back on top by three points. This meet saw a lead change 6 times and it changed back in East Haven’s way at 170. Eli Johnson bumped up a weight with Avon in a 3-point deficit. Johnson started the match cold. Johnson was down 11-2 in the third period, but he was not out. The captain came through in the biggest way at the biggest moment. Johnson gets a late heroic pin to put Avon back in the lead. Chris Pascarelli bumped up to 182 pounds. Chris also found himself down in the third period. Like Casey and Johnson before him, “The Chief” would not be denied. In another crucial moment, Chris got Avon a pin. Captain Chris Gens was also bumped up a weight class. The good news for Avon was that if Chris won, Avon would be guaranteed the team win. When your team victory lay in the hand of Chris Gens things are looking good. There was never any doubt in this match. Chris makes quick work of the East Haven heavyweight. He gets a pin and puts Avon in the Hand Duals finals. This was a huge upset win for the Falcons. The Falcons did this with 2 seniors in the line-up and it is just foreshadowing of what is in store for this team over the next few years.

Final Score Avon 38 East Haven 35

Season Record 10-5 Conference Record 1-1

Avon 48 Maloney 33

After waking up just after 5am and traveling an hour and fifteen minutes to Madison Connecticut in 20 degree weather, the Falcons started the Hand Duals against the Spartans of Maloney. The Spartans were ranked third in pool B and the Falcons were ranked second. After taking forfeits from Matt Mancini and Ivan Fagin at 106 and 113 the Falcons jumped out to a fast 12-0 lead without even having to wrestle. Maloney came to wrestle today. They fought back hard and went up 15-12 by the time it was the turn for the 138 pounders. Cameron Casey had possibly the biggest throw of the season. He launched the Maloney 138 so high his right shoe is still stuck in the rafters. When you drop someone from that high they tend to not want to fight when they finally hit terra firma. Casey converts the throw to a pin and Avon retakes the lead 18-15. Jared Butler continued what Cameron started. Butler did not throw his opponent, but did score the first takedown. Amazingly, Jared has more pins than takedowns. Things are changing though, in the last 4 matches Jared has 5 takedowns. In the end takedowns don’t matter, wins do and Jared adds another win to his total. Butler puts Avon out in front by nine points. Chris Pascarelli is beginning to hit his stride. In this match, he dominated from start to finish, which of course was only 58 seconds. Chris gets a takedown and a set of back points on his way to another Avon pin. Jack Noyes adds a forfeit at 195, which gives Avon back the lead for good. Chris Gens has been blowing through opponents at 220 like Eli Johnson blows through bad jokes. The Maloney 220 is one of the top ranked wrestlers in the class “L”. Everyone dug in for an upper weight showdown. It was a tougher match than normal for Gens, but he was never not in control of this match. After one period, Chris led 2-0 and after two periods, Chris led 4-1. In the third period, Chris threw the Maloney 220 to his back and ended it early. After Jack Leavens added a forfeit, Avon managed a 48-33 victory and a berth in the Pool B finals.

Final Score 48-33

Season Record 9-5 Conference Record 1-1

Avon 64 South Windsor 18

There are no breaks in the CCC North. Avon is the smallest team in the conference. South Windsor is an “L” school and has a large team with many good lightweights. South Windsor is also a relatively young team, so this match would be decided by whose younger less experienced kids show up. Before the match, the scouting report said that there were many matches that could possibly go either way. Fortunately Avon was ready to scrap. Ivan Fagin is only a first year wrestler. Before this year, he didn’t know the difference between a chicken wing and a chicken wing. Now he is in Avon’s starting line-up. At 113 he was the better wrestler the whole match, but it was close enough to make it tense. Ivan removed the drama in the match when he scored his first varsity pin and put Avon in the lead 6-0. Jonah Weber often has the toughest job in the building. Jonah weighed in at 113, but was bumped to 120 to help the team out. He has to wrestle a bigger heavier kid. At first it looks like the weight may be too much for Jonah because he is taken down early. Jonah’s toughness shows through as he very quickly changes his fortune with a reversal and a slick cradle. Jonah makes it look routine and after his pin Avon goes up 12-0. One of the big success stories of the season is Zack Colman. He emerged out of the JV ranks from last year to become one of the best wrestlers on the team. Zack is deadly on his feet. He shows it with a takedown that he evolves into another Avon pin. Avon now has an early lead 18-0. Casey Cameron is one of the most athletic kids on the team. His athleticism makes him a better wrestlers. However, the reason he is improving so quickly is his willingness to take chances and try new things that he learns in practice. It pays off and Casey also gets a pin. Jared Butler is 11-1 in duals meets. Jared is clearly one of Avon’s best wrestlers. The anomaly is that Jared has been losing after the first period in 8 of his 11 matches. Tonight was different. Tonight, Jared not only won the first period he went unscored upon except for an escape. Jared dominated his was to a major decision. In real life, Chris Bourquin is quiet and unassuming. On the mat Chris is tough aggressive and physical. Chris does a nice job of playing to his strengths and gets physical on the mat. He did it tonight and uses a cement job to put the South Windsor 152 back on his bench before the allotted 6 minutes was up. Chris’s pin happens in 1 minute and 5 seconds. Eli Johnson has had a string of tough opponents. Tonight was a little more relaxing for the senior captain. Eli gets the first take down and a set of back points with a cradle. He goes back to the cradle again for the pin. His pin took exactly one more second that Bourquin’s. The time of the pin of course doesn’t matter it is still 6 team points. Ethan Volpe has gone from an average jv wrestler in his freshman year to a go to varsity guy in his sophomore year. It came from hard work and desire. He shows off his emerging talent tonight with a pin in the first period. Chris Gens and Jack leavens both add 6 points with forfeits and Avon pulls off a big win in convincing fashion. Avon leaves no doubt with a 64-18 win over the Bobcats.

Final Score 64-18

Season Record 8-5 Conference Record 1-1

Avon 27 Branford 45

The last match of the day saw Avon in the finals of the Art Powers duals against Branford. The match started well for the Falcons. Zack Colman led off at 126 pounds. Zack got an impressive six takedowns on the way to securing the lead for Avon. Zack delivered a 12-5 victory and Avon started with a 3-0 team lead. At 145 Jared Butler once again found himself down 0-2 in the first period, but Jared is never out of a match and there is never a reason to panic with Jared as long as there is time left. Jared proves this by getting a reversal and stacking the Branford 145 up for 6 team points. This knotted the team score at nine. After Jared, Branford got some momentum. When it was time for Chris Gens to wrestle, Avon was down 9-36. Everyone knew Chris would put an end to Branford’s momentum. Chris scored a takedown immediately and then gets in a little practice on top. In the third period, Chris ends his top work and moves to a pin. Chris pulls it closer, but Avon is still down 15-36. Aidan Baghdassarian has been so tough this year and he continues his coming-out season with another pin at 106. He pulls Avon even closer. Jonah Weber was a huge pick-up for the Falcons this off-season. It seems like Jonah is getting more and more comfortable with High School wrestling with every match. Jonah makes quick work of Branford’s 113. It takes Jonah 51 seconds to get Avon six points. His pin brings Avon’s total to 27 points. Unfortunately, Branford was too much for the young Falcons and although Avon wrestled well they fell short in the finals. They did manage a runner-up finish with only 2 seniors in the starting line-up. It was another very good day for the Falcons.

Final Score Avon 27 Branford 45

Season Record 7-5 Conference Record 0-1

Avon 39 Pomperaug 36

In order to make the finals Avon had to take on Pomperaug in the Pool B championship. There is only one member of this team with an unblemished record. Because of that, dual meets are truly a team effort. When some wrestlers have tough matches, other members must step up and get the wins to pick them up. This match was a great example of that. Every meet has a hero; today this meet had about six of them. Pomperaug started with the strength of their order. They came out fired up and ready to wrestle. In a whirlwind of action, Pomperaug went up 24-0 after the first four matches. It fell on the shoulders of Jared Butler to put an end to Pomperaug’s momentum. Like many times before Jared found himself down by two in the second period. Novocain works, just give it time. In the third period still down by two, Jared gets a reversal and puts his opponent on his back. Jared grinded out a win and put Avon on the board. Unfortunately, Avon was still down 24-3. From there things got worse for the Falcons. With seven matches left, Avon only had six wrestlers left to wrestle and were down 36-3. Avon needed someone to step up. Chris Pascarelli is only a sophomore and this is only his first year of varsity. Chris stepped on the mat at 160 and immediately found himself in a battle. One thing you can never question about Chris is his desire and effort. Chris fought hard in a back and forth match. Down 13-14 in the third period, in a must win match, Chris came up huge and threw his opponent to his back and gave Avon a desperately needed pin. Pomperaug did not throw out a 182 pounder. If Avon put out their 182 pounder, they would mathematically not be able to win the match. They had no choice but to double forfeit 182 and bump Ethan Volpe to 195. They had to gamble with Volpe’s personal record, but it was their only chance to go to the finals. Volpe took the challenge without a thought. Volpe’s intensity is infectious. Volpe, the concrete kid, does his bread and butter move and gives Avon the pin they needed. Now Avon has a legitimate chance at winning this match. Chris Gens and Jack Leavens took forfeits. Avon was then down by 9 point with 2 matches left. There is not much room for error. They need a pin and a decision to at least tie, but to ensure the win they need a pin and at least a major decision. Fortunately, the two wrestler that Avon had left were Baghdassarian and Weber. All this team ever needs is a chance. Bags was fired up. When he stepped onto the mat, there was no doubt in anyone’s mind what was going to happen. From the minute, the ref blew his whistle to the minute the ref hit the mat Aidan just steamrolled the Pomperaug 106. Baghdassarian got the pin and put the chance to make the finals squarely on the shoulders of a freshman. Pomperaug was in a good position. With one match left they had a three point lead and a wrestler who got 5^th in the class “L” championship left to wrestle. But Jonah Weber is no ordinary freshman. Jonah stepped on the mat and absolutely crushed the returning state placewinner. He got a takedown, a set of back points and a pin in only a minute and twelve seconds. He didn’t leave an ounce of doubt in anyone mind. With six matches left Avon needed to win all six. There was no room for error. But Avon did not make any errors. In a show of toughness and guts Avon pulls out an incredible comeback victory.

Final Score 39-36

Season Record 7-4 Conference Record 0-1

Avon 60 Bacon Academy 21

In the second match of the day, Avon took on Bacon Academy. Avon got out to a quick start when Ivan Fagin and Jonah Weber took forfeits. Zack Colman got the same result, but he had to break a sweat to do it. Zack fell into a hole early and was down by a few points, but with a reversal, Zack put his opponent to his back and added the six to Avon’s total. Avon was now up 18-0. Like Colman, Cameron Casey also started his match off with a 2-point deficit. The thing about Casey is that he is one of the most dangerous wrestlers on the team. If you let Casey hang around in a match too long, he will make you pay. Cameron did just that in the 2^nd period. Casey finds his opportunity and makes it count. Avon goes up 24-6. Jared butler is the Novocain of the wrestling world. It takes a while for Novocain to kick in, but when it does, it is incredibly effective. Butler finds himself losing in the first period, but slowly starts scoring points late in the first period. By the second period, he was in control and cranking. Then he delivers the pin and takes away any remaining pain. Unlike his teammates before him, Chris Bourquin decides to take control of the match immediately. He does not pass go or collect $200. He throws his opponent to his back and ends it in only 37 seconds. Eli Johnson and Ethan Volpe each get the free pass with a forfeit and increase Avon’s lead. Chris Gens got a match, but didn’t get much competition. Chris dominates on his feet, on the mat and on the scoreboard. Exactly 3 minutes after the match started it ended in another Gens pin. Jack Leavens followed Gens for a nice one-two punch. Jack is deadly and aggressive. Jack brings home the Bacon and fries it up in a pan. Another Avon pin. Avon wins.

Final Score Avon 60 Bacon Academy 21

Season Record 6-4 Conference Record 0-1

Avon 60 East Catholic 17

This is the first time Avon has taken part in the Art Powers (Berlin) duals. Avon was the third seeded team behind Branford and Pomperaug. Avon would start its Pool B action with East Catholic. One of the big narratives for Avon this year is the emergence of Aidan Baghdassarian. Aidan is quickly becoming one of the most consistently dependable wrestlers on the team. He would prove it by opening the match with a pin. Avon started the match comfortably with a 6-0 lead. Ivan Fagin would make it 12-0 with a Forfeit at 113. Jonah Weber would expand the lead further with a quick pin after amassing an 8-0 lead in only 47 seconds. Zack Colman would not be out done by his fellow lighter teammates. Zack, who leads the team in takedowns, would add another takedown then wrap his opponent into a pretzel and put Avon up 24-0. Cameron Casey, Jared Butler and Chris Bourquin all took forfeits which put Avon up big. Chris Pascarelli has made a huge leap from the JV team to the Varsity squad this year. Chris always gives this team toughness, aggressiveness and determination. When his technique catches up with his toughness he will emerge as one of Avon’s best wrestlers. His toughness showed in this match. Chris was in a battle. He traded points with the East Catholic 170 and late in the second period he found himself down 6-14, but score doesn’t matter until the match is over. Chris puts his opponent on his back and ends it. Chris’s pin extended Avon’s lead to 48-11. It wasn’t over yet, Ethan Volpe, like Pascarelli has also made amazing progress since his freshman year. Volpe watches Pascarelli’s match and decides going into the second period looks too hard. Volpe just grabs a front head turns it into a cement job and puts Avon up 54-11. Chris Gens got a forfeit which saved someone some pain. This brings the final score to 60-17. It was a good start for the Falcons, but the day was only going to get tougher from there

Final Score 60-19

Season Record 5-4 Conference Record 0-1

Avon 16 Simsbury 60

In the CCC there are no days off. In their first home Dual meet, Avon would have to take on the third ranked team in the state. Simsbury was last year's class "L" runner-up and this year's top ranked "L" team. Avon created an even greater challenge because they had to take on the Trojans without team captain Ryan Baghdassarian and Bristol Central finalist Jared Butler. This Avon team is scrappy and even though Simsbury has more talent, Avon has guts and doesn't ever back down. The meet started well for the Falcons. Jonah Weber bumped up to 120 to take on the older bigger Simsbury wrestler. In the immortal words or Yoda, “judge me by my size do you?” Apparently, size and age don’t matter much. Jonah took care of business very quickly. Jonah puts Avon on top with a quick 41-second pin. Zack Colman continued what Jonah started. Colman looked slick on his feet as he scored the first six unanswered takedowns. Zack dominated on his feet and the Simsbury 126 had no answers. In the end, Colman adds 3 points with a convincing 13-7 victory. From there Avon hit the meat of the Simsbury line-up. As it has happened many times before it would take Chris Gens to turn things around for the Falcons. Gens did not have a cakewalk tonight. He was taking on the returning 5^th place in the class “L” kid who is now one of the top ranked kids in the entire state. Rankings don’t mean much. What happens on the mat means everything. On the mat Chris absolutely dominated. The score ended up 8-0, which is a major decision. However, at no time was Gens even close to being scored upon. Even with Chris’s victory Avon was in a 13-48 hole. In the match of the night, Aidan Baghdassarian was pitted against a wrestler that pinned him last year in 40 seconds. Tonight things would be different. Aidan is one of the scrappiest and most athletic kids on the Avon team. His incredible balance and toughness were the difference in this match. The match was a battle, but I would take Baghdassarian in a battle any day. In the end, Aidan would grind out a 3-2 win. This shows how far Aidan has come in a year. Avon lost this match, but showed that they are tough. This young team is full of scrappers and I would take a team of scrappers any day.

Final Score Avon 16 Simsbury 60

Season Record 4-4 Conference Record 0-1

Bristol Central Invitational (4th place out of 19)

Nineteen Connecticut wrestling teams crammed into the Bristol Central High School gym for the forty-fifth annual Bristol Central invitational. The competition would prove to be a big challenge for the young Falcon squad, but one that they were up to. The BC tournament was a deep tough tournament. It is amazing that almost every wrestler on the team was able to contribute to the team point total. It was a true team effort and a clear foreshadowing of the amazing things that will be happening to this program over the next few years. Ethan Volpe, Chris Bourquin and Eli Johnson all added big wins for the Falcons. Even more important, they added the bonus points with pins. Jonah Weber, Zack Colman, Paul Netland, and Cameron Casey each ended up one match away from a medal. However, they were all able to get two pins on their way to top 8 finishes in their weightclasses. Each pin added 2 extra “bonus” points to Avon’s total, and these bonus points were the difference between 4^th and 6^th place on the day. Four Avon wrestlers were able to get on the medal podium. Aidan Baghdassarian continues his breakout season by pinning his way to the semi-finals. Aidan fell short in the semis, but still brought Avon their first medal with a 4^th place finish. Avon proved that good wrestlers come in every size. Aidan, our smallest wrestler, finished fourth but so did Jack Leavens our largest. Jack is a junior in only his second year of wrestling, as well as his first year of varsity. In the quarter-finals Jack got some revenge on a last year loss to put himself into the semi-finals. His semi-finals birth was enough to get Jack a fourth place medal. Avon had two finalists. Jared Butler has emerged as one of Avon’s best wrestlers. He proved why in this tournament. Jared made the finals with style. He got pins in both his quarterfinals and semifinals matches. Jared went down early in the final match, but fought back. Jared brought the match real close, but time ran out before Jared was able to even the score. The second place finish was the second best finish of any Falcon. At 220 pounds Chris Gens was the first seed in the tournament. At 220 everyone else was competing for a chance at second place. Chris pinned his way to the championship match. In the final Chris dominated the match and controlled all of the action. His opponent’s goal was to last six minutes. Gens did all of the work and his 6-0 win did not tell the true story of the match, which was totally dominated by Chris. A 6-0 win was all Chris needed to become the 2020 Bristol Central Tournament champion. It was a great day for the Falcons. In a year that the rest of the state thought that Avon would be way down they are quickly finding out that Avon is still here and setting up solid for the future.

Avon 33 Manchester 46

Manchester is the first CCC North opponent on the schedule for the Falcons in the 2019-2020 season. Manchester is currently ranked number 10 in the state of Connecticut. It would be an uphill battle for the young falcons, but one that they were up for. Chris Gens got the Falcons on the board in the third match of the night. Chris again looked impressive. Chris scored the first takedown then went right to the crossface series. From there it would not take long for Chris to end it with a pin. Chris’s pin drew Avon closer at 6-12. After a Jack Leavens forfeit the match was knotted at 12. When the match flipped to the lightweights Aidan Baghdassarian would get Avon the lead. Although the match was close in the first period Aidan ran away with it in the second period. Aidan not only gives Avon its second pin of the night he gave Avon their first lead at 18-12. Jonah Weber would follow Baghdassarian with a forfeit extending Avon’s lead to 24-12. Ryan Baghdassarian made his season debut tonight. It is good to have the captain back in the line-up. Ryan shakes off the rust and controls the pace and the scoring in the match. Ryan would end the match with a 9-2 win and extend Avon’s lead to 27-12. Unfortunately, for the Falcons, Manchester is ranked 10 for a reason. The reason is the middle of their line-up. It also did not help that Avon made a poor coaching decision which could have cost the Falcons up to 12 points. Regardless, by the time the 145 pound weightclass rolled around Avon saw itself trailing 27-30. Jared Butler was on a mission to turn the score around. The first period was not kind to Jared and he found himself down by 2 at the start of the 2^nd period. Jared’s determination, experience and conditioning made the second period his period. Jared looked like a totally different kid and puts his opponent on his back for good. Avon again had the lead 33-30. In the end Manchester was too much for the young Falcons and the match ended with a score of 33-46. Avon did however proved that they can hang with any team in state.

Final Score Avon 33 Manchester 46

Season Record 4-3 Conference Record 0-1

Avon 58 Conard 18

Avon and Conard were both 3-1 going into the final match of the day. Whoever won this match would end up in second place for the duals. At 160 Chris Pascarelli would be the one to get the Falcons going. Chris is another kid who has emerged this year out of the ranks of JV as only a sophomore. Although Chris is losing after the first period there is no quit in him. He starts the 2^nd period with a reversal then a set of back points before putting his opponent to his back for good. Chris gets Avon out to a quick 6-0 lead with his second period pin. Chris Gens found himself playing the same role he has played multiple times this season. He would again need to be the one who stopped the bleeding and break Conards momentum. Chris starts his match and the team score is 6-9. Chris ends his match and the team score is 12-9. Another Gens first period pin. Jack leavens was 4-0 on the day up to this point. Jack wasn’t about to let down now. Jack dominates with a first period pin. It was a very impressive 5-0 day for Jack who is only a second year wrestler. Aidan Baghdassarian was excited to not have to wrestle another top ranked 106 pounder. The Conard 106 was good, but good to Aidan is a walk in the park. Aidan gets a pin in the first period. Avon is now up 24-9. Jack Janes is another big part of the fabulous freshman class. Jack is only a freshman, but wrestles like a much more mature and composed wrestler. Jack gives the Falcon fans a little sneak preview of the future of Avon Wrestling. He and the Conard 120 exchange points for the first two periods before Jack takes control for good. Jack scores the pin in the third period and Avon now had a 30-12 lead. Zac Colman put on a veritable clinic at 126. Zac would get 3 takedowns and 4 sets of back points to get a tech fall 18-0. What was even more impressive about his “tech” is that he did all of it before the second period was over. Cameron Casey is just a tough, physical athlete. Cameron starts off his match down 0-2, but then goes to work. He started the second period up 5-2. He wouldn’t see the third period because he would pin the Conard 138 just a minute into the 2^nd period. Jared Butler was one of the three Falcon wrestlers who entered this match 4-0 on the day. The other two (Gens and Leavens) extended their record to 5-0. Jared would not be outdone by the two big guys. Jared methodically dominated the match. He gets his second major decision on the day with a 12-2 victory. Avon now had a 45-18 lead. Chris Bourquin is pound for pound one of the strongest kids on the team. He demonstrates what a commitment to the weight room will do for an athlete. Like a few other Avon wrestlers today Bourquin found himself down 0-2 early in the first period. However, there isn’t any panic in Chris. He gets is reversal and converts it into a pin. This put Avon up 51-18. In the last match of the day captain Eli Johnson would square up against the Conard 160. Eli finished the first period tied 3-3. Midway through the second period Eli was down 3-6. A reversal put Johnson in the top position and from there is was all over. Eli would stick the Conard 160’s shoulders in the resilite to end the match, the meet and the day. Avon takes third place

Final Score: Avon 58 Conard 18

Season Record 4-2 Conference Record 0-0

Avon 28 Bristol Central 43

Avon was rolling with a 3-0 record when they ran into a talented and veteran Bristol Central Rams squad. Ethan Volpe who is beginning to declare himself as a solid varsity wrestler, started off the scoring for Avon. Volpe is a tough physical kid who hits a front head to a cement job like nobody’s business. He gets Avon on the board with a pin in one minute and fifteen seconds. Avon trailed 6-9. That deficit would be erased very quickly as Chris Gens was the next kid up. Chris does his usual thing and gets a quick takedown to a quick turn and a quick pin. It is always good for Avon that Chris Gens is in their line-up. Chris gives Avon a 12-9 lead. After a Jack Leavens forfeit Avon would go up 24-9. At that point Avon hit the meat of the Bristol line-up. When Jared Butler got his turn to wrestle Avon again found itself in a hole down by 13. It didn’t bother Jared. Jared scores five points in each of the first two periods to be leading 10-0 going into the third period. He adds three more and gets Avon the major decision and 4 team points. Avon would lose this match, but would still have one more to go on the day in order to achieve a second place finish.

Final Score Avon 28 Bristol Central 43

Season Record 3-2 Conference Record 0-0

Avon 54 Fitch 28

It was a long ride for Fitch to get up to Avon for the Avon Duals and it will be even a longer ride home. In the third match of the day Avon dominated Fitch to run their Avon Duals record to 3-0. Early on in this match Avon was in a big deficit to Fitch. When Chris Gens stepped on the mat Avon was down 6-22. Avon needed a big momentum change. Chris Gens is always the right guy for that job. Chris would get it done in short order. He only uses 31 or the allotted 300 seconds to put a stop to the match. Chris gives Avon 6 more points and Avon is now down 12-22. Jack Leavens would keep Avon on a roll. Leavens would show that heavyweights can actually use technique. Jack score two takedowns and a set of back points before ending the match late in the first period. Avon inched closer but still trailed 18-22. Aidan Baghdassarian, who had the toughest weight class on the day, would give Avon the lead that it would not let go. On the day Aidan would end up wrestling 3 wrestlers who will make the state opens. Two of them are probable class champs. Aidan used this easier match to grab a fast pin, get off the mat to rest up. He put Avon up 24-22. Jonah Weber would again deliver Avon 6 points with a very quick pin. Jonah only needed 26 seconds. Jonah’s pin is the team’s fastest on the year so far. Zac Colman would follow suit with a quick pin of his own. Before getting the pin Zac would amass an impressive 7-0 lead. His 51 second pin put Avon up 42-22. Paul Netland again delivers on the promise of his freshman year. Paul got taken down early, but reversed his opponent and puts him on his back for 6. Look out for this freshman and sophomore class in the next few years. With the addition of forfeits from Paul Coletti, Ivan Fagin and Jared Butler, Avon wins this match with an impressive 54-28 score.

Final Score Avon 54 Fitch 28

Season Record 3-1 Conference Record 0-0

Avon 52 Canton 26

Avon and Canton have had a rivalry that goes back to when Avon was in the North Central Connecticut Conference. Avon enjoys a huge advantage in the rivalry and has not lost to Canton in over a decade. After graduating 11 starters from last year’s team Canton saw its opportunity against this year’s young Avon squad. Avon had other ideas. Jared Butler sent out that message in the opening match. Although Jared got in a little trouble in the first period, he fought through it and off his back. When he got off his back he made it clear who the better wrestler was. He scored 9 of the next 11 points before putting the Canton 145 away with a third period pin. Chris Bourquin watched Jared wrestle and decided that starting the match down 0-5 is too difficult. Instead, Chris just throws his opponent to his back and pins him in 51 seconds. He is much nicer to his coach’s blood pressure. Eli Johnson followed Bourquin’s example and dominated from start to finish. Eli had a 10 point lead in the second period when he delivered 6 points to the team with a dominant pin. Jonah Weber started his match with a quick pair of takedowns. Jonah was in control and dominated, but his domination only lasted one minute and thirty nine seconds because Jonah would score the pin. Jonah is one of the fabulous freshman that are the future of the program. Cameron Casey is another wrestler who is making the large jump from JV to Varsity. Cameron dominated on the JV level and it is no surprise that he will become a great varsity wrestler as well. Cameron gave Avon a preview of his potential in this match. Cameron ran the score to 12-0 in 6 minutes and gave Avon a major decision. With the addition of forfeits from Chris Gens, Jack Leavens, Ivan Fagin and Paul Netland Avon would win this match with an impressive 52-26 score.

Final Score Avon 52 Canton 26

Season Record 2-1 Conference Record 0-0

Avon 48 Joel Barlow 23

Avon would start the day by taking on the Eagles of Joel Barlow. Barlow is a team with 6 wrestlers who should place very high in the Class “M” championships, including a couple of kids who could potentially win them. Unfortunately for Barlow, they do not have a full line-up. Avon was able to capitalize on this. Six of the Falcon wrestlers received six team points through forfeits. Cameron Casey, Jared Butler, Chris Bourquin, Chris Pascarelli, Jonah Weber and Zac Colman all got the free passes and upped their record by one win. Chris Gens was the first Falcon to deliver a win on the mat. Chris racks up 18 points to dominate most of the match for an 18-4 win. Jack Leavens is in his second year of wrestling. Last year he lived in the shadow of Henry Schrecengost. This year Jack has emerged out of the shadow and has declared his presence. Jack got taken down fairly quickly but immediately got a reversal and puts the Barlow heavy on his back for a pin. When Paul Netland got his turn to wrestle Avon was already leading 42-23. Paul went back and forth with the Barlow 132, but by the middle of the second period Paul took an 8-4 lead. He then put his opponent on his back and ended it there. In only his second year of wrestling and first year on varsity it is nice to see Paul become a legit varsity wrestler. Avon wins this match with a convincing 48-23 score

Final Score Avon 48 Joel Barlow 23

Season Record 1-1 Conference Record 0-0

Berlin Tournament (4th place out of 9)

Going into the Berlin tournament conventional logic said that Avon would have a real fight on their hands just stay out of last place. With only 3 returning varsity wrestlers and most of their guys with no record to get seeded on, it seemed like it may be a long day for the Falcons. Well, it was a long day, but not because Avon did not wrestle well. The young Avon squad wrestled like a much more experienced and seasoned team. Avon pulled off a fourth place finish, which is especially impressive considering there were only 3 Falcons with any varsity experience from last year in the line-up. In stark contrast Foran returned 6 varsity wrestlers from last year, Brookfield returned 7, Berlin 8, while East Haven and RHAM each returned 10. In a sport where experience is so critical it is impressive that Avon was able to achieve everything that they did this weekend. Avon’s heavy weight, Jack Leavens, continued Avon’s tradition of good heavyweights by delivering a first round pin. A pair of sophomore wrestlers in Cameron Casey and Chris Pascarelli have never been varsity in a tournament before. Chris got his first varsity win and added two bonus points to the team’s total with a pin. Cameron went two and two on the day and was close in both of his losses. Cameron also lifted the team up with 4 bonus points. Fellow sophomore Chris Bourquin has great pedigree. His older brother Matt was a team captain 3 years ago and is now wrestling in college. Chris delivers on his promise and gets two impressive wins to get himself a 4^th place finish. Perhaps the most impressive Avon wrestler on the day was the captain Eli Johnson. Eli is an example for anyone who ever wanted to excel at a sport. Eli struggled in his freshman and sophomore years of wrestling. He amassed an underwhelming 4 wins in his first 2 years. Eli never quit and decided to set a goal of being a good wrestler someday. He dominated on the JV level his junior year. This year he has already competed with some of the best kids in the state at 160 and earned himself a 4^th place finish. Eli is proof that relentless hard work and a clear vision pay off. Avon sealed 4^th place in the wrestle backs. It is easy to quit after you lose in the championship bracket. It takes guts and perseverance to fight back for 3^rd place. The first four weight classes for Avon were up to that challenge. What is impressive about this group is that there are two freshman and a sophomore. Aidan Baghdassarian is the smallest kid on the team, but possibly the most exciting. There is no break in the action with Aidan. He is all go. Aidan delivers two pins then gutted out a tough 4-2 victory to bring home a bronze medal. Jonah Weber has a bright future with Avon wrestling. Jonah is only a freshman, but is tough and technical already. Jonah grabs is own 3^rd place medal in a come from behind pin in the consolation final. Another Freshman Jack Janes will not be outdone. Jack has quietly impressed the coaching staff. Jack showed toughness as he gutted out his consolation semifinal match to take a third place. Zac Colman has always lived his wrestling life in the shadow of his brother. Today he showed that he is emerging from that shadow. Zac led the team with 4 pins on his way to a third place of his own. Jared Butler has always held great promise as a wrestler. This year the state will have no choice but to become aware of him. Jared pins his way through the consolation bracket and takes 3^rd place. Avon’s only finalist was also Avon’s only champion. At no point in this tournament was Chris Gens even challenged. Chris wrestled 3 matches, but was on the mat for less than 4 minutes. Chris had three pins and is now a Berlin Tournament Champion. Chris is one of the most feared wrestlers in the state of Connecticut and is Avon’s leader in the wrestling room and on the mat. It was a great day for the Falcons and is a great omen of what is to come for the rest of the season.

Avon 15 Bristol Eastern 61

Avon knew they were up against a tough opponent well before they even stepped on the mat. Bristol Eastern has been the class “L” champion for the past three years. Furthermore, they have been ranked 2^nd in the entire state for the last two years. Bristol Eastern has two large youth clubs in their town and even their freshman have been wrestling for multiple years before they get into high school. In contrast, only 2 kids in Avon’s line-up were full time varsity kids last year. Tonight, Avon showed heart and demonstrated that they are young, but tough. Three wrestlers did the scoring for the Falcons. In only his second year of wrestling Ethan Volpe made his varsity debut. He did not disappoint. Ethan is a much more focused and technical wrestler than he was last year. It showed tonight. Ethan needed only 24 seconds to bury his Lancer opponent’s shoulders in the mat. He snaps him down to a cement job. Ethan ignited the Avon side with the huge pin. Big Chris Gens is the rock for this team. When matches get at their most desperate, the team will look to Chris for strength and hope. Chris did just that tonight. Chris easily handled the Bristol Eastern 220. Chris dominated on his feet with 3 takedowns and a 2^nd period pin. It is tough to believe that Aidan Baghdassarian is only a sophomore. On the mat he moves with such confidence and toughness. He exhibits the traits of a much more experienced wrestler. Tonight, Aidan was tested. Going into the third period the score was 0-0. Aidan scored a reversal and rode the Eastern 106 out for the rest of the period. Aidan won this match on heart and toughness. Avon lost this match, but this is the second toughest team on Avon’s schedule and Avon gained valuable experience. It is going to be a fun season and the next 2-3 years for the Falcons will see Avon return one of the best teams in the state. Buckle up it is going to be a fun ride.

Final Score Avon 15 Bristol Eastern 61

Season Record 0-1 Conference Record 0-0

2019-2020 Season Preview

After a season that saw the Avon Falcons go undefeated and win a conference championship, there is a high bar set for this year’s team. Last year out of the 14 varsity wrestlers in the line-up, Avon had 11 seniors. With only three returning varsity wrestlers, Avon has its work cut out for it. This year’s team is right where they want to be. This year’s team gets to play the underdog role. Most teams around the state think Avon will be in a deep rebuilding year. Most teams in the state will be in for a surprise by what this team is capable of. As a team, Avon is young, but athletic and tough. By the end of the season, the team will have grown and will be a much tougher team than anyone could have foreseen.

A trio of senior captains will lead this year’s team. Ryan Baghdassarian has something to prove this year. As a junior, Ryan was one of the best 108.6 pounders in the state. However, he never got the opportunity to prove it in the state championships because in the last week of the regular season Ryan separated his shoulder and was not able to compete. This year the state will see what he can do. Eli Johnson was a JV wrestler last year because Avon’s senior laden line-up was almost impossible to crack. Eli was dominant as a JV. He won 2 JV tournaments and ran a winning streak to 12 matches. No one from any other team will see Eli coming. The one returner who strikes fear into the heart of just about everyone else in the state is Chris Gens. Chris is Avon’s returning state champ. He placed in the State Open Championship and went all of the way to the New Englands. Chris is one of the frontrunners for the Opens and New Englands this year and will be the strength of this team.

Some other younger wrestlers will move out of the shadows this year and become the next generation of Avon stud wrestler. Juniors Caroline Hart, Niko Deluca, Zach Colman, Dillan Karp, Paul Colletti, Jared Butler, Jack Noyes and Jack Leavens will have a huge impact on the starting line-up. Deluca, and Butler come back this year with states experience and will help the captains lead the team. Sophomores Nate Andrews, Aidan Baghdassarian, Chris Bourquin, Cameron Casey, Paul Netland, Zack Gross, Chris Pascarelli and Ethan Volpe will all be looking to crack the starting line-up. Baghdassarian is a returning varsity letter winner with some states experience. It will be a great season as the young but scrappy Falcons get back in the hunt for a Conference and State championship.

Class "M" State Championships (3rd of 31)

The best finish an Avon wrestling team has ever achieved in the class M championships is 4th. No Avon team has ever won the CCC championships. No Avon wrestling team has been undefeated since 1987. All of that changed this year. This Avon wrestling team is up there with any of the great wrestling teams of the past. This Avon wrestling team restored Avon wrestling to its past glory. What makes Avon's performance at the Class M's so impressive is that it was a total team effort. Twelve wrestlers added points to the team's total. With the crushing injuries to Ryan Baghdassarian and Max Jacobs, two young wrestlers stepped in to pick up the slack. This was great experience for Aiden Baghdassarian and Nick Deluca because they will both be a big part of the team next year. Grant Corbett, Jared Butler and Gavin Douglass each added a first round pin to help the Falcon's first night total. They were each such a big part of the season this year, and as they did all year they added points to the team and when they went down, they went down swinging. Seeded twelfth Justin Meador not only added a first round pin he added a huge upset in the round of 16. Justin knocked off the fifth seeded 132 pounder with a 18--9 major decision. At 126 Alex Rostenberg made a run into the Quarter finals by toughing out a close 10-9 match. Rostenberg was selflessly up a weight class to strengthen the Avon line-up. As he always does Alex put the team in front of himself. Sam Johnson picked the right time to wrestle his best. Sam has been fighting through a knee injury all year and in this tournament he ignored the pain and delivered a major decision in first night to get into the quarter finals. Sam fought back through the consolation bracket, but came out one match short of placing. Tyler Dickinson has been one of the best surprises of the season. Tyler suffers an early loss, but showed determination by fighting back in the wrestle-backs. He delivered a much needed pin, but fell short of the medal round. Tyler never quit or backed down and that showed guts. Possibly the best story line of the year was Amir Johnson. Amir is shockingly only a first year wrestler. He set a goal of placing at the states. Amir would refuse to lose until that goal was reached. Amir was only seeded 10th. Impressively Amir upsets the number 7 seed, the number 9 seed, and the number 5 seed. Amir beats his goal of placing by getting 5th. It couldn't have happened to a nicer kid and better person. Amir gets to go to the Opens and also gets a Ted's steamed cheeseburger. Four years ago this journey started with a group of close knit athletic freshmen. The coaching staff told this group that if they worked hard and did what it takes they could be state champions. No one took that advice more seriously than Abhi Bhabad. Abhi spent the next 3 years working his butt off to be a state champion. In the end Abhi fell just short of his goal when he suffered a loss in the state semi-finals. What showed Abhi's true character is not how hard he worked and how good he made himself. It wasn't his huge number of wins or his two state place medals. What shows Abhi's character is that after having his dreams ripped from him in the semi-finals, he didn't feel sorry for himself and quit. He honored his team, his four year commitment, his coaches and mostly himself by getting back on the mat and fighting back for third place. That is the kind of character that makes this team great. This team had some incredible leadership from its captains as well as other seniors that did not wear a letter C on their singlet. Jack Colman has been possibly the most important members of this team in the last 4 years. Jack recruited kids to join the team, he wrestled year round, he gathered kids at his house to work out, he fostered the younger kids and always kept the mood in the room fun and hard working. Jack is one of those kids who always does the right thing, in the wrestling room, in the classroom and in life. Jack also had his sights set on winning a state championship. He also lost in the semi-finals. With his heart broken, Jack picked himself up and dusted himself off. He made it all the way back to the consolation finals. In the consi-finals his opponent was only interested in brawling. He was cheap and dirty. Jack kept his cool and fought through it for 3rd place. Not surprised, that is Jack Colman; tough and level headed. Two years Chris Gens stepped into the wrestling room. Little did anyone know he was destined to become one of the greats of Avon wrestling. Chris has every gift that one needs to be great at wrestling or any sport. Chris is athletic, has unbelievable natural core strength, an incredible work ethic, loves the weight room, and is one of the most coachable kids that has ever wrestled for Avon. All of this makes him one of the best wrestlers in the state. However, this is not the most impressive thing about Chris. With all of these talents and accomplishments, possibly the most impressive thing about Chris is his lack of ego. He is the most level headed, kind, humble kid that I know. Tonight Chris won a state championship. The reality is that Chris didn't win it tonight. Chris won it in the off season in wrestling clubs and in the weight room. It is scary that he is only a junior. Four years ago I met a freshman that I knew was meant to be a wrestler. The problem was that he was a basketball player from a huge basketball family. We tried to recruit him, but he had a love for basketball. Two years later he had fallen in love with the sport of football. He correctly learned that wrestling might make him a better football player. Henry took a chance on a new sport and left a sport that he had played his whole life. It turned out he had amazing talent as a wrestler. He has uncanny size and strength. He is also way more athletic than any other heavyweight in the state. He quickly learned to wrestle. The toughness he always had. He took a chance by leaving the sport that he grew up playing. In recruiting him, my big fear was that he would regret leaving basketball. Tonight, after winning a state championship in only his second year I hope he will never look back at his basketball career with any regret. Henry's sister will forever be on the gym wall as a 1,000 point scorer. Now Henry will join her on the gym wall as a state champion.

Avon 77 Rocky Hill 3

The Friday night wrestling would start with the Terriers of Rocky Hill against the Falcons of Avon. On this match the talon would beat the paw. Alex Rostenberg led off with a pin. It took 43 seconds. That was it, Avon leading 6-0. Max Jacobs follows with nothing less than Rostenberg. However, it took Max almost 4 times as long. No matter it was an Avon 12-0 lead. Justin Meador goes with a takedown and fast set of nearfall points. He then splits the difference between Alex's and Max's pin time. This puts Avon up 18-0. Grant Corbett didn't want the lighter wrestlers to have all of the fun. He added a pin of his own. This would end up being the longest match of the day that would end in a pin. It took Grant a whopping 3:17 to pin his opponent. Avon extends the lead to 24-0. Jared Butler would also end his match early, but this match would not end early by pin. It would end early on points. Jared dominates and ends up with a tech fall. This would be 5 more points for Avon. It is good to have Gavin Douglass back. Since he has been back in the line-up it seems like he has only faced the other team's captains. Today would be different. He goes from takedown to pin and puts Avon's lead at 35-0. Jack Colman follows Gavin's lead but only needs 45 seconds to get his pin. It is a fast pin, but no doubt Max Jacobs' season record of 18 seconds will stand the test on the last day of the season. Sam Johnson does exactly what Jack did. He also adds a pin in exactly 45 seconds. Tyler Dickinson does the same thing as so many others before him. Tyler gets Avon another 1st period pin, but that is what Avon has come to expect of Tyler. Wait, Max, say its not true. Yes, Amir Johnson destroys Max's season pin record with a 10 second pin. If you looked away you may have missed it. Amir was not messing around, and now Amir has a pin record that will surely not be broken this year. What did you expect next with Chris Gens up? Nothing less than a pin in 44 seconds is what you got. Chris Gens continues to cruise this season. At heavyweight Henry Schrecengost broke the mold of the typical match tonight. Henry did not do his typical takedown to pin. Henry went takedown to 2 sets of backpoints to a 2nd period takedown to pin. Either way, the results were the same. Avon now led 71-0. In the last match of the meet, Abhi Bhabad would do what happened so often before him. He would get a quick takedown and turn it into another Avon pin. This is the first match of the year that every Avon wrestler got a takedown in their match. In the 14 matches the fans only saw the second period 5 times and the third period twice. Avon wins 77-3

Final Score Avon 77 Rocky Hill 3

Season Record 20-0 Conference Record 5-0

Avon 53 Manchester 20

Nothing has been given to this Avon wrestling team. To be conference champions, Avon had to beat the 3 time defending conference champions East Hartford in their home gym. Avon had to beat #15 ranked and undefeated in the conference Wethersfield in their home gym right in the middle of Avon's exam week. Tonight, Avon had to beat a very good Manchester team after missing 2 days of practice and having the meet moved to a Thursday. Nothing would be given to Avon, they would have to take it. Who better to start this than a captain. Justin Meador would set the pace of the match right away. Justin Looked quite "Abhiesque" with his technique. Justin dominated every aspect of the game. He was better on his feet, on top and on bottom. Late in the third period Justin was up by a score of 19-5. Avon didn't want a tech, Avon wanted a pin, so with 40 seconds left, Justin did just that. It put Avon up 6-0. Manchester's next 3 wrestlers are all ranked top 3 in the class LL. They were able to take a 14-6 lead over the Falcons. Jack Colman would slam the door shut on the thought of a Manchester upset. It was no walk in the park for the captain, but a first period take down would give him a lead that he would never let go of. Jack pushed the pace and was the better wrestler. His win drew the match closer at 9-14. Things took a bad turn 170 for Sam Johnson when he started the match getting caught on his back. Tonight, Johnson was unflappable. He just goes to work and turns the match around. He builds himself up a 7-5 lead before throwing his opponent to his back and sticking him there. Avon had its second lead at 15-14. At 182 Avon has Tyler Dickinson, so good things were about to happen. It only takes Tyler one minute and twenty three seconds to pin his opponent to the mat. Tyler extends Avon's lead to 21-14. Manchester was not done yet and when Chris Gens stepped into the 10 foot circle, Avon would again only have a 1 point lead. Chris has absolutely no problems at all in this match. He gets a quick takedown and a set of backpoints before pinning the Manchester 220 in the first period. At Heavyweight Henry Schrecengost found himself in a strange position. Henry went down 2-0 after he threw an errant headlock. Henry spent the next 3 minutes letting everyone in the gym know that it was just a mistake. He dominates and turns a 2 point deficit into a 9-2 lead before getting the pin. Avon now led 33-20. Aidan Baghdassarian has been a huge addition to the Falcon line-up this year. This Manchester match was the epitome of that. Aidan is relentless and grinds to a 7-1 win. It is so appropriate that such a four year wrestler and leader would have the opportunity to lock the conference championship up for the Falcons. All Abhi Bhabad had to do was win and Avon would be guaranteed their first CCC championship. Not only would Abhi win, he would do it with a pin. Avon had just won the CCC North. Even though Avon had the championship locked up, there were 2 matches left. Alex Rostenberg dominated at 120. He has a big 8-0 lead before he gives Avon the gift of 6 points. Max Jacobs would not be out done. The only question remained if he would end the match with a spladdle or not. It wasn't a spladdle, but it was a pin. This Avon team becomes immortalized by winning its first CCC wrestling championship ever.

Final Score Avon 54 Manchester 20

Season Record 19-0 Conference Record 5-0

Brawl on the Hill (1st of 9)

Nothing makes getting up at 5:30 feel better than winning a tournament. A tired banged up Avon wrestling team did just that on Saturday. The team would be without 3 normal varsity starters due to injuries and prior commitments. Having as much depth as Avon does makes this only a minor problem. Winning the tournament was great for the Falcons, but losing Ryan Baghdassarian is devastating. Ryan pinned his way to the finals at 108, but in the finals got his arm stuck deep in a front headlock. His shoulder separated. Ryan is a wrestler that Avon expected big things from in the states. Little brother Aiden will now have to carry the load. At 113 Nick Deluca planned on wrestling in the JV tournament. He ended up wrestling varsity. Nick showed what he can do. He gets two pins with flying cement jobs and lands himself in 4th place. Pretty darn good for a last minute replacement. Falcon fans will get used to him in the varsity line-up next year. The "Brawl on the hill" gives a special award for each teams' highest GPA. Alex Rostenberg won Avon's award. He also won 3 matches all by pin. Alex takes 3rd place and his third tournament medal of the year. Max Jacobs would follow suit and also grab the bronze medal. Jacobs added two pins of his own including a sweet spladdle to excite the crowd. Justin Meador has had the toughest schedule on the team. Today he would get some easier matches and he would take advantage of it. He goes 3-1 on the day with three pins. He also takes 3rd place. For the second time this year, Grant Corbett would reach a tournament final. Grant was seeded 2nd and would breeze his way into the finals with 2 pins. Grant fights hard for 6 minutes, but drops a close decision in the finals. Jack Colman leads the team in tournament wins this year. Jack has placed in every tournament that he has wrestled in and the Brawl on the Hill would be no exception. Jack would drop a heart breaker in the finals, but still places 2nd. Jaden Folkwein would wrestle at 170, but weigh-in at 156.something. It is also only his first year wrestling. That didn't stop him from getting two pins on the way to a 4th place finish. At 182 Tyler Dickinson would win his first varsity tournament. Tyler has made the largest improvement of anyone on the team. He emerged from JV last year to be one of the team's best wrestlers. His improvement was demonstrated today with a Brawl on the Hill championship. There was no larger off season pick-up this year than Amir Johnson. In only 2 months Amir went from not knowing the rules of wrestling to a wrestler who will place in the states. Amir shows that progress by placing 2nd at 195 this weekend. What can you say about Chris Gens. He has made the finals of every tournament that he has wrestled in. This tournament would be a walk in the park for Chris. He pinned in every match and was on the mat for a grand total of 5 minutes and 10 seconds. Chris is now a 2 time Brawl on the Hill champion. Two years ago Henry was throwing a basketball around a court. Now he is literally throwing guys around a mat. This tournament win was his 3rd championship of the season. Acquiring Henry two years ago, was a huge turning point in the direction of this team and a big part of its success. This was a huge win for the Falcons in their march towards the state championships.

Avon 45 Wethersfield 18

Two years ago Avon wrestling sat in the same Wethersfield gym that they sat in tonight and received a beat down to the tune of 15-67. The Wethersfield team this evening was better than that Wethersfield team back then. Tonight, away, during exam week and with cheerleaders yelling in their ears, Avon took what they came for. Avon and Wethersfield were the two remaining unbeaten teams in the CCC North. Although the CCC North is not won yet, Avon took a big step towards that goal. Alex Rostenberg sent the message early that Avon was there to win. Alex went up 5-0 in the first period, and extended his lead to 9-0 in the second period. Avon needed the bonus points of a pin and Alex would not let the opportunity slip through his fingers. Alex got Avon ahead early 6-0. Avon would not relinquish that lead all night. Max Jacobs is quickly becoming a Fink disciple. Although Max is taken down early, there is no panic. Max gets a reversal and a quick set of 2 back points before carefully setting up the crowd pleaser. Although it was well planned out, Max had to muscle (yes, Max and muscle are in the same sentence) the move to the finish. In the end Avon was up 12-0. Sometimes in hard fought matches, kids have a mission. At 145, Wethersfield's mission was to not get pinned. Grant controlled the match and at no time in the match did his opponent come remotely close to meaningfully scoring on Grant. In the end Grant delivers a 6-3 victory. Avon's lead stood at 15-6. Jared Butler weighed in at 146, but had to wrestle at 154. Giving up that weight is often a very tough thing to do. It didn't matter, Jared was on his game tonight. In the first period, the match was back and forth. Jared went into the second period down 3-4. Toughness and skill always prevail. Jared takes control in the second period and gets Avon another pin. Avon is now up 21-6. The captain was next, and when he is next Avon always feels a little more relaxed. Jack had one mission, he had to get Avon a pin. It didn't take him long. Just 40 seconds after the match started, Jack gave the team what they needed from him, another 6 points. At this point Avon had a good lead, but the next 4 Wethersfield wrestlers are all ranked in the top 3 in the class "L". This would have to be the big push that Wethersfield needed. They needed all pins. They did not come close to getting what they needed. They narrowly squeaked through the 182 and 195 match. At 220, Avon has Chris Gens. However, Wethersfield has the #2 ranked guy at 220 for the class "L". This match delivered on its promise to be a throw down. The match changed leads a couple of times, but with a 3rd period takedown and a solid ride, Chris Gens put the state on notice that he will not be denied. He also extended Avon's lead to 30-18. Henry Schrecengost was next. Wethersfield had no chance at heavyweight. Henry pursued his opponent for 35 seconds. When Henry finally got a hold on him, he threw him to his back, Henry style. This ended in a quick and decisive pin. Avon was now up 36-18 with 3 matches left. Avon just needed to not get pinned in one of the last three matches. Avon had two Bags and a Bhabad left. Things were looking good. Little Bags, had one of his typical matches. He uses his athleticism, and toughness to wear down his opponent. His opponent is no slouch, and late in the third period Aiden is winning by 3 points. For drama sake he locks hands twice to cut his lead to 1 point. I am pretty sure he does this because he just doesn't want the fans to be comfortable at the end of the match. In the end he wins and secures the victory for the team. Big Brother Ryan Baghdasarrian is next. Ryan would also be tested in this match. Like Aiden, Ryan also starts in the hole after an early Wethersfield takedown. After that, it was all Ryan. The only other points that Ryan would yield would be escapes. Ryan uses three reversals and an escape to win the match 7-5. He extends the lead to 42-18. In the last match of the night, Abhi Bhabad would be pitted against one of Wethersfield's best wrestlers. The team helped Abhi out by taking pressure off of him with their big team points lead. Abhi just washed up, put on his scrubs and went to work. The match ended 8-3, but that makes it look closer than it really was. Abhi is so good on his feet that his opponent actually pounded the mat when Abhi took him down for the second time. Abhi also puts the state on notice. He is going to make some real noise in the State Opens. It was a great night for the Falcons, but they are still one step away from the conference championships and Manchester is a very good team, so there is no time to rest on their laurels.

Final Score Avon 45 Wethersfield 18

Season Record 18-0 Conference Record 4-0

Avon 67 Farmington 9

Anytime an Avon team beats Farmington it is is great win. Tonight, Avon would leave no doubt who is the dominant team in this rivalry. Big Henry Schrecengost starts this off with a forfeit. Shrek's size, strength and athletic ability seem to attract forfeits. Next up, Aiden Baghdassarian would thrill the audience with a nail biter. Aiden shows why he has become the future of this program. Early in the match he falls behind. Aiden showed how much of a competitor he really is. He keeps himself in the match until with only 30 seconds left he gets himself a headlock to win the match 8-4. If wrestling was a medical career, Abhi would be a surgeon. He was surgical in how he dissected his Farmington opponent. Abhi gets 5 takedowns and a pin in only one minute and twenty three seconds. Abhi is fun to watch when he cranks up his game. Alex Rostenberg ends his night the same way he started it; with a pin. He wasn't even challenged too much tonight. He would only be on the mat for 4 minutes and 16 seconds all night. Similarly, Max Jacobs also would post 18 team points on 3 pins. Max finds himself in a little bit of a scrap against the Farmington 126 pounder. In the second period, Max would be up 6-1, when he puts his opponent to his back for the last time. Jared Butler is only a sophomore. Sometimes, Avon fans forget that because he has been a mainstay in the varsity line-up. Jared is talented and tough. He has to fight through the full 6 minutes in this match. Fortunately, he is in control the entire time and manages Avon a major decision at 12-4. Jack Colman, what exactly do you expect? Jack got a pin. What else is there to say? When the final match of the night features Chris Gens you know it is going to turn out alright for the Falcons. But wait, this Farmington wrestler was the Pomperaug tournament champion. This might be a tough match. Nope, it wasn't. Chris still pins his opponent in the first period. Match over.

Final Score: Avon 67 Farmington 9

Season Record: 17-0 Conference Record: 3-0

Avon 84 Terryville 0

Tonight, Avon ties their own record for best match score. In wrestling, 84-0 is the best score that a team can get in a dual meet. Avon has done this before, but it is a very rare event. Terryville is down this year and helped Avon out with 6 forfeits. Chris Gens, Henry Schrecengost, Abhi Bhabad, Grant Corbett, Jared Butler and Amir Johnson would all receive forfeits. Aiden Baghdassarian would be the first actual match of the meet. Aiden is young and talented. He is also becoming a real wrestler. He showed the incredible progress that he has made this year. Aiden gets a quick takedown, a set of quick back points and then a pin. Over the years, Alex Rostenberg has proven just how good he is. He showed it here. Alex uses one minute and thirteen seconds to get his 2nd pin of the day. Watch out, Max Jacobs is stepping up in a big way. He hits a nasty headlock and gets the fastest pin of the year in only 18 seconds. As Max gets healthier, he gets more and more dangerous. Justin Meador exploded after his opponent. He went so quickly he actually missed. He ended up taken down. That was a fluke and Justin proved it with a quick reversal and pin. Gunner Propiescus has had one of the toughest roads to run. He probably could be a 138 pounder. However, Avon is loaded with tough athletes in that area. As a result, he has been going 152 for most of the season. This is a lot of weight to give up. He is tough and explosive and he shows it tonight. He gets Avon another pin in the first period. For Jack Colman it is just another day in the office. He has no problem in this match and takes just over a minute to get himself another pin. Sam Johnson hit an absolutely filthy double leg takedown. He started on one side of the mat and finished on the other. This led to another Avon pin. Tyler Dickinson was again the last match of the meet. Tyler would get a quick takedown before trading a points with his Kangaroo opponent. With Tyler, it is only a matter of time. He does such a nice job of taking advantage of other people's mistakes. When one pops up in this match he grabs it, and makes him pay. Tyler's pin gets Avon the perfect score.

Final Score: Avon 84 Terryville o

Season Record: 16-0 Conference Record: 3-0

Avon 50 Gilbert 23

Gilbert is one of the favorites to win the class "S" championships. They have 6 returning class "S" place winners including 2 finalists. In comparison, Avon only has 3 returning class "M" place winners and no returning finalists. What Avon does have, is a bunch of tough athletes who worked their butts off in the off-season. That would make all of the difference. It is good to have Chris Gens back from the flu. Chris went to work erasing an early 6 point deficit. Chris absolutely dominates the match from start to finish, but falls short of the pin. Chris does deliver 5 points through technical pin. Henry Schrecengost follows Chris and also dominates. Henry is fighting through a stiff rib injury but doesn't have to test his ribs too much. Henry gets the pin with a pair of nice headlocks and takes Avon's lead to 11-6. Aiden Baghdassarian and Abhi Bhabad add 12 points with a pair of forfeits. Avon extended its lead 23-6. At 126, Alex Rostenberg would get taken down early in the match, but apart from maybe Justin Meador no one wrestles better from behind than Alex Rostenberg. This takes a whole lot of mental and physical toughness, and that is what Alex brings to the table. Of course, Alex fights his way back, and very quickly into the second period he gets Avon another pin. Max Jacobs was on point all night. Speaking of points it looks like Max might have just put himself into the lead for the Fink award. He hits a nasty spladdel for a pin. At this point, Avon has jumped out to a 35-6 lead. However, Gilbert is not the 15th ranked team in the state of Connecticut for no reason. They come storming back and bring the match closer at 35-14. Jared Butler slows their roll with a forfeit. All Jack Colman needs to do at 160 is win and Avon would be guaranteed a team win. The first period is a hard fought event. Jack pushed the pace, but is unable to score. The second period would be different. Jack starts on top and never lets his opponent even move. He puts him on his back quick and makes him pay. Jack pins his opponent and guarantees Avon the win. In the last match of the meet Tyler Dickinson found himself in a bit of a dog fight. Tyler scores early, but his opponent does not buckle under the pressure. Tyler is in control, but needs all 6 minutes to give Avon another win. Avon sends a message to the state by beating a very good Gilbert team 50-23.

Final Score: Avon 50 Gilbert 23

Season Record: 15-0 Conference Record 3-0

Avon 47 New Britain 33

Avon had its back against a wall tonight as they were down 3 varsity guys due to medical and other reasons. They were also up against a tough New Britain squad. Avon would have to rise to the occasion. The match started at 113. It is always good for Avon when their lead off man is Abhi Bhabad. From the opening whistle to the closing mat slap Abhi outworked his New Britain counterpart. He scores 4 takedowns and multiple back points, but Avon needed a pin. In the end Abhi does deliver the pin, which puts Avon up 6-0. Alex Rostenberg also delivers 6 the easy way with a forfeit. Tonight, Avon needed every pin it could get. Max Jacobs knew what he had to do. Max's match was wild with many lead changes and reversals. However, the cream always rises to the top and in the end Max delivers what he needs to deliver. Avon takes an 18-0 lead. Grant Corbett would make easy work of New Britain's 138 pounder. He got a quick take down and a couple sets of back points before delivering Avon another 6 points. At 160, Jack Colman dominated from start to finish. Sometimes your opponent's only goal is to not be pinned. That was the case in this match. Jack was in control the entire time and got multiple sets of back points. In the end he added 5 to Avon's tally with a tech fall. Sam Johnson received a forfeit next. The 182 pound weight class was similar to the 160 pound weight class. New Britain's goal was to last a full 6 minutes. It worked for New Britain for a period and a half, but you can't run from Tyler Dickinson for long. Tyler built himself a lead before he finally put his opponent away with a pin. When the heavyweight weight class rolled around Avon had an 11 point lead. In order for New Britain to win they had to pin our last two wrestlers. If Henry won, Avon would be guaranteed the team win. It would also take the pressure off "little Bags". There was no doubt in anyone's mind what was about to happen. Henry pushed hard and had a good lead going into the 2nd period. In the 2nd period Henry threw a big headlock and crushed New Britain's hopes of victory. Avon would go on to win 47-33.

Final Score Avon 47 New Britain 33

Season Record 14-0 Conference Record 3-0

Avon 69 Jonathan Law 6

In the last match of the day, Avon would find itself on the mat with the host team Jonathan Law. Abhi Bhabad would start Avon off right with his season premier at 126 pounds. Abhi was matched up with a bigger, stronger wrestler. However, he wasn't better, more skilled or tougher. Abhi controls the action and puts Avon in the lead with a 6-0 lead. Justin Meador for the second time today would find himself in a battle. Although, the Law 132 keeps fighting back, Justin controls the action. He does what it takes and gets a 10-8 victory. Grant Corbett is finally feeling better from his injury at East Hartford, and it shows. Grant gets two takedowns and a nearfall before getting the pin and jrobbing his opponent of the chance to win the match. Jared Butler would add 6 with a forfeit, putting Avon up 21-0. Jack Colman would get himself going early in this match. He score a takedown and converts it to a pin. This puts Avon up 33-6. Sam Johnson ends his day like he starts it; with a pin. If you are counting Sam went 4-0 with 3 pins today. Of course Tyler Dickinson also went 4-0 today, but after this forfeit he only tallied 2 pins. Speaking of 4-0, Amir Johnson added his 4th win at 195. Johnson definitely has his own style, and his teammate should emulate it. He just hits all of his moves, whether they are real moves or not, as hard as he can. Chris Gens gets a pin (of course). Chris just dominated all day with 4 wins and 3 pins. Henry Schrecengost musters up a forfeit for his 4th win on the day. Ryan Baghdassarian's last match of the day is against a kid who was 29-4 last year. Bags is not impressed. He is taken down early, but with a reversal he puts the Lawman to his back. Bags gets the pin. Once Alex Rostenberg finishes up his match, Avon can pack up and head home for the day. Apparently, Alex is aware of that fact. He, like a good teammate, makes it a quick match. Fifty three seconds after it began, Alex sets the team free for the weekend, through his pin. Avon wins this match 69-6

Final Score Avon 69 Law 6

Season Record 13-0

Avon 51 Westhill 25

Going into this quint meet, it was expected that Westhill would be the toughest opponent of the day. This would prove true. Alex Rostenberg would get Avon a quick lead. He doesn't need much time to do so. He uses one takedown then ends it early with a pin. Max Jacobs would also add a win to the Avon tally. Max gets into a dog fight, going back and forth with the Westhill viking. It is back and forth, but Max for the mast part controls the action. In the end he wins a 12-7 decision and puts Avon in the lead 9-0. After Max, Avon hit the meat of the Westhill order. By the time Sam "The Nature Boy" Johnson gets on the mat Avon has gone down 25-9. Sam is very outdoorsy. The score doesn't matter to Sam. He steps up to put an end to the bleeding and he would do it quick. He gets the pin and corrects the direction of the ship. Tyler Dickinson would take the cue from Sam. Tyler does much of the same. He just uses less time. Sixty six seconds later Westhill's lead is cut to 25-21. Amir gets a forfeit to put Avon ahead by 2. Avon, at this point, feels pretty good with Gens, Schrecengost and the Baghdassarian brothers left to go. Gens does not disappoint. Chris has a kid who places 4th in the Fairfield Warde tournament. This was supposed to be a tough match. It seems that no one told Chris this was supposed to be tough. He looks like he should look and gets a 53 second pin. Henry Schrecengost then puts the match out of reach with a 22 second pin. To this point in the season 22 seconds is the fastest pin of the year. Henry is a clear starter for this team. Aidan Baghdassarian is only a freshman with limited experience. He wrestles like like a veteran. It has a lot to do with intensity, natural ability and more intensity. He gets Avon another 1st period pin. Much like Chris Gens, Ryan Baghdassarian also has a Warde tournament place winner. Never intimidated, Ryan just wrestles his match. Ryan gets the pin. This ends the match with a 51-25 win.

Final Score Avon 51 Westhill 25

Season Record 12-0 Conference Record 3-0

Avon 69 Masuk 12

Avon doesn't wrestle many class "M" schools and today Avon would get to wrestle 3 "M" school. It is always more important for state seedings when you get to beat class "M" opponents. Ryan "The Baghdassarian Devil" would get himself a win over a class "M" opponent. This match would not go very long. Bags uses just over a minute of his time to put Avon up 6-0. Alex Rostenberg, Max Jacobs, Justin Meador and Grant corbett would help Avon's cause with forfeits. The mark of a good wrestler is winning even you are not at your best. Jack Colman has been the rock that Avon has depended on all year. He struggles in this one a little bit, but like good wrestlers he pulls out a another Avon victory. Sam Johnson and Tyler Dickinson each add a forfeit. Six weeks ago Amir Johnson didn't know an arm bar from a candy bar, now Amir isn't just a varsity wrestler, but one of the best guys in the line-up. He is a natural talent. He proves it with another Avon pin. It is easy to surprise people with Amir, but no one is surprised with Chris Gens anymore. Chris is known by just about everyone in the Connecticut wrestling world. He is known because he is the beast in the cage. Gens gets Avon 6 points in only 40 seconds. After forfeits from the biggest and smallest kids on the team, Avon gets a 69-12 win.

Final Score 69-12

Season Record 11-0 Conference Record 3-0

Avon 72 Harding 11

Today featured a cold early morning, but it would start off blazing hot for the Falcons. Little Aiden Baghdassarian would put Avon out front right away in their opening match. Aiden would get taken down, but immediately got the escape and a takedown of his own. His match would end in a pin for Avon. Baghdassarian puts Avon up 6-0. The meet would get closer after the 113 match, but after Alex Rostenberg and Max Jacobs each take forfeits, Avon would go back up 18-5. After three more forfeits from Grant Corbett, Gunner Propiescus and Jared Butler Avon would extend its lead to 36-11. The captain, Jack Colman, would dominate the first period. He surgically adds up a 7-0 lead before landing Avon a pin. Sam Johnson would start off his very impressive day the same way that he continues and ends his very impressive day. He also lands Avon a pin. As Sam get healthier he gets more dangerous. Tyler Dickinson watches Jack and Sam dominate and doesn't want them to have all of the fun. He joins in the freakas and gets a pin of his own. Amir "The Hammer" Johnson and Chris Gens also add points with a forfeit. The last match of the meet features the big man, Henry Schrecengost. Henry is on point today. He gets a take down and a pin faster than coach Fink could run a quarter mile. This ends the match with an Avon win at 72-11.

Final Score Avon 72 Harding 11

Season Record 10-0 Conference Record 3-0

Avon 45 Glastonbury 30

Some teams match up very well with other teams. When a team matches up well with your team, they tend to take away your strengths by either being slightly stronger than you good wrestlers, or forfeiting to them. Glastonbury matched up very well with this Avon team last night. Glastonbury is a very good team, who has some very good light weights, and it gave Avon fits. The match started out right in the heart of the Glastonbury order. Avon very quickly went down 16-0. It took the funky hips of Justin Meador to turn the match around. Justin led the match right from the beginning, but Avon didn't just need a win, Avon needed a pin. By the beginning of the third period, Justin led 12-2. Justin needed to make the next turn to the back tight. He does and Avon cuts the lead to 16-6. There is a lot of pressure on Grant Corbett to follow suit with another pin. Grant gets an early takedown, but has difficulty turning his opponent. However, with only 4 seconds left in the first period he is able to secure the pin and pull Avon closer at 16-12. At 160, Jack Colman is tasked with closing the new 22-12 Avon deficit. Jack pushes the pace, especially on the mat, but is only able to come up with an 8-1 victory. Although he was denied a pin, he did help Avon chip away at the 10 point. Sam Johnson becomes the spark that Avon would need in this match. Sam went out on fire. There was no doubt about what was going to happen just by looking into Sam's eyes. Sam pins the Tomahawk 170 and cuts the lead to 1. Tyler Dickenson who also went onto the mat "on a mission" was about to deliver the fatal blow to Glastonbury's upset hopes. Tyler would make quick work of the match and pin his opponent in only 30 seconds. Glastonbury would never get the lead back. From there Amir Johnson, Chris Gens and Henry Schrecengost would all get free points through forfeits. This would be enough for an Avon win.

Final Score Avon 45 Glastonbury 30

Season Record 9-0 Conference Record 3-0

Bristol Eastern JV Tournament

It is not always easy being a JV wrestler. You work every bit as hard as a varsity wrestler, but don't get nearly as many opportunities to wrestle. It is tough to go to some of the big meets and sit and watch as the varsity wrestles all day. The BE JV tournament was a great way for the junior varsity to get experience and display how far they have come since late November. This was no run of the mill JV tournament. Danbury, Bristol Eastern, Southington, Bristol Central, Ledyard, Berlin, Enfield, New Milford and Plainville all have big youth clubs in their towns. That means that even though Avon may have a Sophomore with 2 years of experience, other schools may have a sophomore with 7 years of experience. That being said Avon did more than just hold their own in going toe to toe with some of the wrestling giants of the state. Avon came home with 15 medals. This included 2 champions, 7 second places and 6 third places. The JV team was led by Eli Johnson who started a new win streak as he dominates and goes 3-0. Fellow champion, Diego Ortiz, goes through a 2nd match battle in a grueling overtime win. He showed guts and determination in the win. Freshman Cameron Casey, and Paul Nettland along with Sophomores Silvan Cloutier and Jack Leavens as well as seniors David Triggle, Jake Deluca and Sam Obie all went 2-1 and took home the Silver medal. Chris Bourquin, Zachary Colman, Nick Deluca, Jadon Folkwein, Chris Pascarelli and Ethan Volpe all got wins and a Bronze medal. It was a great day for Avon against some very good competition. Avon hopes to improve upon this performance next week in Enfield.

Bristol Central Tournament (3rd of 22)

The Bristol Central Tournament is always one of the toughest weekends of the year. This year was no exception. The tournament was loaded with teams from the state's top ten coaches poll. There would be 7 of the mentioned teams at this tournament; they were Bristol Eastern ranked #2, Southington #3, Avon #10, Ledyard #11, Bristol Central #19, Berlin #22, and Wethersfield #27. Getting through this tournament alone is a tough feat, placing third as a team is a very impressive accomplishment. To make it tougher, Avon would do it while only entering wrestlers 13 of the 15 weight classes.

One of the great stories of the year is the surprising emergence of an unlikely hero at 195 pounds. If Amir Johnson started wrestling as a freshman he would be one of the best wrestlers in the state right now. He is explosive, talented and afraid of nothing. Amir comes from being an unseeded wrestler, to placing 6th. He earns 3 wins doing so. Jack Colman has been one of the pillars of strength for the team this year. He has placed in every tournament, and even won the Plainville Tournament. Unfortunately, Jack stumbled early on in this tournament, but like the leader he is he fought back and ripped off 3 wins in a row to place 5th. Alex Rostenberg pulls off an upset of the #4 seed in the quarter finals. He beats his own seed and places 4th. Grant Corbett made his return a week ago at the Avon Duals, but has been used sparingly until his rib is fully healed. Today he was unleashed. Grant made it to the Semi-finals before getting knocked down to the consolation bracket. Grant finishes 4th. Tyler Dickinson continues his impressive season. Dickinson also reaches the semi-final before losing a heartbreaker and getting knocked down to the wrestle backs. Tyler places in his third tournament this year. Avon had four finalists. Abhi Bhabad wins 2 matches on his way to the final. He would add three bonus points to the team tally with a major decision and a pin. Abhi would fall short in the finals, but proves that he is one of the big guns in the state. The two toughest weight classes in the tournament were 145 and 220. Chris Gens who is one of the best wrestlers in the entire state was ranked 5th in this tournament. He knocks off the #4 seed in the quarters and in a potential Class "M" final preview, he pins the #1 seed in the semi-finals. Chris definitely makes a statement here today even though he placed 2nd. Aidan Baghdassarian again gives Avon reason to believe that the future is looking bright. You get the feeling watching Aidan wrestle that this will not be the only tournament championship that he will win in his career. He pins everyone today and becomes Avon's first champion of the night. Avon would win the first championship of the night and Avon would also win the last championship of the night. Henry Schrecengost pinned his way to the finals including a very nice crossface cradle. Funny story, Henry once told me that he is a cradle guy. Henry pushed the pace from the minute his final match started to the minute it ended. His opponent was content to stall the entire time. He can be content with 2nd place as well.

Overall, It was not the best Avon wrestling is capable of, but Avon did the job they needed to do. It will be scary to see what Avon will do when they have their whole line-up in tact and they wrestle at their potential.

Avon 66 South Windsor 15

Tonight's match would be Avon's second CCC League match of the year. This match would also be under the white hot spotlight of the mat lamp. Avon fell quickly into a hole and found themselves down by 6 points, when at 182 Tyler Dickinson stepped to the start line. Tyler went right to work. Boom takedown, boom back points, then boom pin. Tyler ties up the match at 6 a piece. South Windsor's line-up was a little light tonight and after Tyler wrestled, Amir Johnson, Chris Gens, Henry Schrecengost and Aidan Baghdassarian all took forfeits. This put Avon way in front with a 30-6 lead. Ryan Baghdassarian was only the third Avon wrestler to wrestle at this point. Like Tyler, he wasn't out there to fool around. He got right to work with a quick takedown, followed by a quick pin. Ryan would end up using 2 more seconds than Tyler to get the pin, but none the less the result was the same. Avon was now up 42-0. Abhi Bhabad was given a unique opportunity. He got the chance to get 2 matches tonight. Abhi took a forfeit against South Windsor then wrestled half of the 2 man team from Tolland. Abhi did what Abhi does and looked slick on his feet. He also looked dominant on the mat. He racked up 4 sets of 3 point nearfalls. He was all over the Tolland 120 before scoring a tech fall. Alex Rostenberg would add 6 with another forfeit. We are a much better team when Max Jacobs is in the line-up. Max is back to wrestling for the first time in over 2 weeks. He started out a little rusty as he went down 2-0. However, he shook off the rust and threw the South Windsor Bobcat to his back, for another Avon pin. Justin Meador follows with another forfeit. At 145, in the match of the night Jared Butler had to work from a big deficit to come back and win. He is down 10-1 when he just turned it on and around. He got a reversal and lifted his opponent into the air before he put him back down on his back. Jared made it count and got Avon another pin. Even though there were a lot of forfeits in this match, Avon still took care of business.

Final Score Avon 66 South Windsor 15

Season Record 8-0 Conference Record 2-0

Avon 57 Canton 22

In order to win the first Avon Duals, Avon would have to beat a very good Canton team. Luckily for Avon, the match would start at 132 with Justin Meador. Meador was having a great day but would find himself trailing early in this match. The thing is, you can't let Justin stay in a match. If you do he will find his opportunity. That is exactly what happened. Justin found his opportunity in the second period with a pin. Jared Butler is only a Sophomore. He is wrestling at 145 and 152 which are arguably the most competitive weight classes. Jared is a big part of the bright future of this team. He proved it here with a quick 25 second pin. Jared's pin would only get Avon and Canton even at 12. Jack Colman would break that tie without much of a challenge. Jack racked up the points and was leading 14-0 after the first period. In the second period, he decided to get it tight when he put the Warrior to his back. Avon goes up 18-12. Again, the match is knotted at 182 pounds. That isn't a big deal when your 182 pound wrestler is Tyler Dickinson. Tyler makes his day perfect at 5-0 by pinning the Canton 182. Avon would only have a 24-22 lead when Canton forfeits to Chris Gens and Henry Schrecengost. This would put Avon up 36-22 which would set up a huge match at 106. Ryan Baghdassarian and the Canton 106 were locked in a back and forth battle. In the third period Ryan would take the lead for good with a big headlock. Ryan doesn't get the pin, but emerges victorious with a 10-9 decision. Ryan also went 5-0 on the day. The match ended with a trio of Canton forfeits to Abhi Bhabad, Alex Rostenberg and Max Jacobs.

Final Score Avon 57 Canton 22

Season Record 7-0 Conference Record 1-0

Avon 66 Enfield 15

After wrestling very well and coming out of pool B in 1st place, Avon had to face the top two teams from pool A in the championship pool. Avon would start off with an opening night rematch with pool A winner Enfield. This time Avon would be without 4 of the varsity team members who took the mat the first time. Avon would be down by 6 points after the first match. For the second time of the day, Justin Meador would have to square off with the opposing team's best wrestler. Justin scores quickly with a take down, but they trade a fast pair of reversals. The difference was that Justin's reversal would land the Enfield 132 on his back. Again, Justin scores another pin against a very quality opponent. It is good to get Grant Corbett back in the line-up. Grant is back for the first time since the East Hartford match in which he suffered a rib injury. Grant didn't miss a beat. He picked up right where he left off. Grant puts Avon up 12-6 with a pin in 1:16. At 145 pounds Gunner Propiescus watched Corbett and Meador deliver two quick pins and decided that he would make it three in a row. The only difference is that Gunner would only take 34 seconds to do what the other two would both need over a minute to do. Avon goes up 18-6. At 160, Jack Colman ran across the mat to check in at the table, but this time his calf muscles did not cramp. Jack actually gets to wrestle an Enfield kid this year. Jack was in for a pretty tough match here. Jack was in control but the match was still very competitive. In was 11-2 in the third period when Jack finally got his opponent on his back for the last time. Jack adds 6 to the total with a pin. Sam Johnson had quite a day. For the 4th time in 4 matches Sam would do the same thing and deliver a 1st period pin. Sam Johnson's confidence and recovery from injury this year, gives Avon another big weapon in their line-up. Tyler Dickinson also had a very impressive day. Although he doesn't do it all in the first period, Tyler also delivered 4 pins in 4 matches. Tyler has a unique ability to capitalize on advantages. Rarely does anyone ever get away when Tyler gets them on their backs. This would happen here with a 2nd period pin. Amir Johnson would get the 3rd varsity match of his life. It is hard to believe that this kid only started wrestling a month ago. He has huge amounts of natural ability. He shows it again by getting a first period pin and bringing his lifetime varsity record to 2-1. Chris Gens finally gets a chance to wrestle. He has a very tough opponent from Enfield. However, when you are Chris Gens very tough is all relative. Chris is the monster in the cage. Although the first period was a tough fought 2-0 period in favor of Gens, in the second period Chris cracked it wide open. Chris pulls a 7-1 lead before ending it with a pin. Henry Schrecengost was fresh off of a battle. This match would prove to be quite different. Henry was in control from the first whistle. He threw the Enfield Eagle onto his back and ended it quick. Avon now had a convincing 54-9 lead. The Enfield 106 has nightmares about the Baghdassarian boys. Younger brother Aiden beat the same kid on opening night. Ryan would not be shown up by his brother. Ryan goes from move to move and racks up a 12 point lead before ending it in the second with a pin. Abhi Bhabad adds 6 points with a forfeit. Even without 4 varsity members the result of this match is much the same.

Final Score Avon 66 Enfield 15

Season Record 6-0 Conference Record 1-0

Avon 50 Platt 25

Things did not start off well for the Falcons in the third match of the Pool B pairings. Avon went down early 0-10. A pair of forfeits from Justin Meador and Grant Corbett would put Avon into the lead, 12-10. Things again slid the wrong way and by the time Jack Colman got his turn to wrestle Avon would be facing a 12-19 deficit. But Jack Colman is Jack Colman, so you know things were about to turn around. Jack would take 39 seconds and cut Platt's lead to one point 19-18. Of course, with Sam Johnson following Avon was in a comfortable position. The reason why, Sam was about to deliver unto Avon his third pin of the day. He puts Avon back in the lead 24-19. To Platt's credit, they would not go down easily. Avon would again find itself down 23-25, but still to wrestle were Avon's big names like Dickinson, Gens, Schrecengost Baghdassarian and Bhabad. Dickinson would put Avon back into the lead for good. Tyler would use the first period and add a pin to Avon's total. Chris Gens would again add 6 to the tally with a forfeit. The biggest matchup of meet was definitely at heavyweight. This was a re-match of last year's conference championships. Henry Schrecengost would find himself in an unfamiliar position early in this match. Henry was down 5-2 after having to fight his way off of his back. Ironically, this might have been just the wake-up call that he needed. He uses the next two periods to display why he was last year's conference champion. He runs off 7 of the next 9 points and wins a 9-7 decision. More importantly he proved that he was clearly the better wrestler, he just made an early mistake. Ryan Baghdassarian would continue his great day. He would not need to mount a comeback in this one. He dominates right from the start and increases Avon's lead to 44-25. The match would end with an Abhi Bhabad forfeit.

Final Score Avon 50 Platt 25 * Avon loses 1 point for throwing headgear

Season Record 5-0 Conference Record 1-0

Avon 63 RHAM 18

The second match of the day would prove to be about the same result as the first match. In this match, team captain Abhi Bhabad would start the show of right. Abhi would leave no doubt in anyone's mind who the best 113 pound wrestler in the gym was. Abhi jumps out to a 9-1 lead before putting Avon ahead 6-0 with a pin. Alex Rostenberg has become such a beast this year that other teams are afraid to wrestle him. RHAM put someone on the mat, saw Alex, then pulled him off the mat. That is respect, or fear. Either way Alex gats an easy win. Avon 12- RHAM 0. Zack Colman had to step up into a varsity role today. Not only did he step into a varsity role, he had to do it by going up a weight class. Zack is one of the big future stars of this team and shows why in this match. He jumps all over his opponent with a 11-0 lead in the first period before he ends it with a pin. Justin Meador gets a forfeit to bring the match score to 24-0. Jake Deluca continued his display of his talent. He dominates on the mat and has a 10-7 lead in the third period. However, this match does not go the distance. Jake pins his RHAM counterpart to put Avon up 30-0. Jack Colman, better known as Zack's brother, had to wrestle the RHAM team captain. This was two of the best 160 pounders in the state. It was a battle, but Jack was just better in the end. Jack pulls out a 4-1 win. Sam Johnson is quietly becoming one of the best wrestlers on this team. He is tough, athletic and very good on his feet. He would only need 52 seconds to pin his opponent. Speaking of underrated wrestlers on this team, Tyler Dickinson follows SJ in the line-up. These two are the unexpected 1-2 punch of the year. Tyler would do the same thing as SJ, but would do it 12 seconds faster. This would be another Avon pin. Chris Gens and Henry Schrecengost both received forfeits. Ryan Baghdassarian would end the match in much of the same way that Abhi Bhabad started it. RHAM's 106 pounder was the Manchester Tournament champion so Ryan had his work cut out for him. It didn't bother Ryan too much. He grew his lead to 8-1 in the third period before he puts the match away with a third period pin.

Final Score Avon 63 RHAM 18

Season Record 4-0 Conference Record 1-0

Avon 67 Plainville 12

The first annual Avon Duals started with the Avon-Plainville match-up. The 108.6 pound Ryan Baghdassarian started the day off for Avon right. He grabs 6 points for Avon with a pin in 2 minutes and 26 seconds. A smaller 116 pound Abhi Bhabad followed Baggs with the same result. The only difference is that Abhi would only take 37 seconds of our time to get his pin. Alex Rostenberg is another Avon wrestler who has slimmed down. He follows suit with a first period pin. This allows Avon to go out to a fast 18-0 lead. Hands down the match of the day, and a strong candidate for match of the year, took place at 132. Justin Meador was up against one of the top wrestlers in the state. Justin battled back and forth with his opponent. In the third period, down 10-12, Justin hit an absolutely brutal headlock. No one gets meaner than Justin when he has someone on their back. Justin refused to let the Plainville 132 off of his back. It was a huge upset for Justin and a huge step towards winning a state championship for him. Jake Deluca stepped into a varsity position today. Jake was ready for this position. He took full advantage of the opportunity to prove that he is as deserving of a varsity spot as anyone. Jake dominated and racks up 19 points on his way to a major decision. Gunner Propiescus also made his 2019 dual meet debut as a varsity wrestler. He does it in style. Gunner dominates the first period amassing an 8-2 lead before pinning the Plainville blue devil down for a second period pin. Jack Colman did not have calf cramps today. When he doesn't have calf cramps he is a pretty good wrestler. In a re-match of the Plainville Tournament finals, Jack proves that the first time was no fluke. Jack majors his opponent and Avon goes up 38-12. At 170, Sam Johnson starts off his day with a first period pin. Sam is one of the big success stories of the year. He is fighting his way back from knee surgery and his confidence and talents are growing. Speaking of stories of the year, Tyler Dickinson has come out of nowhere to become one of Avon's best wrestlers. Tyler is unknown in the state of Connecticut now, but is making a huge amount of noise. He will not be unknown for long. Tyler starts off an undefeated day with a first period pin. Amir Johnson is only a first year wrestler. If Amir started wrestling as a freshman, he possible could have been the best wrestler on this team. He is tough, athletic and coachable. He makes a huge statement in his varsity debut with a 19-4 win. Speaking of talented kids, Chris Gens steps on the mat next for Avon. Chris is one of the toughest kids that Avon has produced in a long time. Chris and the Plainville 220 struggle through the first period, but in the second period Chris exerts his will. He gets a pin at 3:29. In the last match of the meet Henry Schrecengost takes a forfeit. This extends Avon's lead to 67-12.

Final Score 67-12

Season Record 3-0 Conference Record 1-0

Frank Chaves (Simsbury Invitational) (3rd of 21)

The only way to get better in any sport is to compete against the best. Early in this season, Avon has done just that. So far the Falcons have seen Southington (5th in New England), Bristol Eastern (2nd in Opens), Danbury (1st in Opens, 3rd in New England), Ponaganset RI (1st in new England), Coventry RI (6th in New England) Simsbury (6th in the LL) and East Hartford (5th in the LL). That is one of the toughest schedules any team could have in the first 2 weeks of the season. The Falcons are a little banged up, but have been up to the challenge, have held their own and even beat some of the powerhouses in their early schedule. This will only make the Falcon team better when it counts at the end of the season. Even though this was an absolute buzzsaw of a tournament Avon was able to place an impressive 3rd out of 21 teams. It is a very impressive accomplishment especially seeing as how they finished in front of Coventry RI who is considered one of the best teams in New England. What is even more impressive is that they did it without 4 of their varsity senior leaders. With a full line-up, 2nd place was very possible.

Avon took home 5 medals on the day. At 120 Abhi Bhabad went 3-1 with one pin on his way to a 4th place finish. Abhi had to injury defaulted out of the consolation final match. He had already beaten his opponent once in the tournament, but was held out to make sure he would be healthy for more important matches later in the season. At one 160, Abhi's fellow captain, Jack Colman had a very good day. Jack went 4-1 and placed 3rd. His only loss was to the returning state champion. Jack also added 8 extra points (bonus points) to the Falcon total with all 4 of his matches ending in a pins. One of the great stories of this very young season is the emergence of Tyler Dickinson as one of the team's best wrestlers. The coaching staff was always excited about Dickinson's potential, but now the potential is being realized. Tyler not only placed 3rd, but more importantly he got revenge on the East Hartford 195 pounder that he had lost to just a few days earlier. It was an impressive day for Tyler as he continues to grow as a wrestler. As expected Chris Gens makes it to another tournament finals. In the finals Chris was taking on the #1 ranked 220 from Rhode Island. This would be a match that could very well happen again in the first weekend of March, at the New Englands. As expected, it was a dog fight. Chris went down early, but fought back through the 2nd and 3rd period. Unfortunately, he fell short of the victory, but he just may get a 2nd crack at it later. In the dominant performance of the day, Henry Schrecengost uses 4 consecutive match wins to land himself the tournament championship at 285 pounds. The most impressive part of this was that he beat a kid in the finals who was 2nd in the LL championship last year only losing in triple overtime. This same kid won 3 matches at the New Englands. In under two years of wrestling Henry has emerged as one of the premier athletes at 285, not only in the class M, but in the whole state and possibly even New England. They future will be exciting for Henry. There were many other impressive performances on the day. Jared Butler is up a weight class filling in for Gavin Douglass and pulled down 2 wins on the day. Jared makes the future of the Falcons look very bright. It was a great day for Avon Wrestling.

Avon 51 East Hartford 27

East Hartford has been beast of the CCC North for the last three years. They are the back to back to back conference champions. In order for Avon to win the conference championship this year, they had to get through the Hornets. They would have to do it without Senior Gavin Douglass, who is still recovering from a elbow injury. Four years ago, in the same gym, East Hartford layed a beating on the Falcons to the tune of 58-19. That night the class of '19 made a promise to return here and exact some revenge. Tonight, the Falcons made good on that promise. The match started out well for the Hornets as they jumped out to a 6-0 lead. Unfortunately for East Hartford, Avon has Chris Gens. Chris Gens demonstrated just how good he is. Chris needed a takedown and 33 seconds of mat time to tie the match up at 6-6. He was followed by the big man, Henry Schrecengost. Henry would need to pin his opponent twice tonight. The first time he has the East Hartford Heavy on his back the clock mysteriously reset itself. Henry had to get a restart. It didn't matter much as he just gets more mat time. He still gets a pin in 1:03 of the first period. A special congratulations to Henry as he signed a National Letter of Intent to play football at Bryant University. Looks like we have a college career to follow. Aidan Baghdassarian is only a freshman and wasn't on the team two years ago, but he didn't need the loss as motivation. Aidan has his brother's intensity. It was a competitive first period, but Aidan slams the door in the second period with another Falcon pin. Avon goes up 18-6. East Hartford pulled it closer at 18-9 when Abhi Bhabad stepped onto the mat. That is never good news for the other team. Abhi is all about technique and when he decides to he can put on a show. Tonight was too important to mess around. Abhi took care of business quickly. He scores a quick takedown and only has one second to spare in the first period when the referee hits the mat. Avon extends its lead to 24-9 Things did not start too well for Alex Rostenberg. He was quickly taken down and put on his back. There aren't too many guys on this team who are tougher on their back than Alex Rostenberg. He has a gut check to fight off of his back, but he does it. He then takes it out on his opponent in the second and third periods. He rattles off the next 10 straight points before capturing 6 points with a pin. It wasn't just any pin, it was a Spladdle pin. He is now in the lead for the Fink award. Justin Meador also started the match a little slow tonight. At the end of the first period Meador was on the wrong end of a 4-2 score. Like Rostenberg, he uses the next 2 periods to take control of the match back. He scores the next 7 straight points on his way to his 2nd dual meet pin. Conditioning makes a difference. He puts Avon up by a score of 36-15. When the 152 match rolls around all the Falcons need is a major decision or better to guarantee the victory. It didn't look like 152 would be the weight class that would win us the match. Jared Butler, up a weight class, went down early by a score of 7-0. Like Rostenberg and Meador, Butler wasn't ready to give up just yet. Jared slowly and methodically chips away at the 7 point deficit. He scores the next 5 straight points before bringing the house down with an incredibly timely pin. He ensures team victory and becomes one of the heroes of the night. Of course it wouldn't have mattered because Jack Colman was matside awaiting his turn. Where there is a Jack Colman, there are always good things waiting for the Falcons (and an occasional calf cramp). For the 4th time of the night a Falcon wrestler would find himself down early and need to come back from a deficit. No problem for the captain. He gets a reversal and a set of back points before he scores the pin. He extends the lead to 48-21. Sam Johnson has the luxury of starting his match without any pressure. He starts the match fast with an early takedown. He slow plays the match, but is in control the entire time. We wins a relatively easy 5-0 victory. This brings the match total to 51-21. The first mission of the season is accomplished. Avon takes a big step in the CCC North. East Hartford has been the class of the conference and it was a great win for the Falcons.

Final Score: Avon 51 East Hartford 27

Season Record: 2-0 Conference Record: 1-0

Plainville Tournament (2nd out of 12)

The 2018 Plainville Invitational was a much tougher tournament than the 2017 Plainville invitational. In 2017, the Avon Falcons brought home the championship trophy. This year however, the #1 team in the state and the #3 team in New England stepped up to challenge the Falcons. Just like when Bill Gates walks into a room the average income of the room skyrockets, when Danbury walks into the gym the quality of the tournament skyrockets. While the Falcons may not have been able to beat the Hatters today, they definitely proved that they can wrestle with them. At 106, Ryan's mini-me, Aidan Baghdassarian continued to make Avon's fans believe that the future is as good as its present. Aidan looked impressive in his first match before injury defaulting out of the tournament. His brother Ryan is one of the fiercest competitors on the team. He is athletic, tough and will never back down. He goes 4-1 with 3 pins on his way to an impressive 3rd place finish. Winning doesn't tell much of the story about who a person is, adversity does. Abhi Bhabad may arguably be the best Falcon wrestler, but today he showed his true character. He lost a heartbreaking match in the quarter-finals. He could have moped around all day and felt sorry for himself. He chose not to. He picked his head up and decided to be a leader. He cheered his team on and got himself wrestling again. That is leadership and a great example for everyone else on the team. He takes home a 3rd place medal, but more importantly he took home the team's respect. Revenge was one of the themes of the day. Alex Rostenberg was one of its dealers. Alex had an impressive day going 4-1 and placing 3rd. However, most impressively, was the fact that when he won 3rd place he beat a kid that he lost to earlier in the day. Max Jacobs had possibly the toughest weight class to win in the entire tournament. He had a nationally ranked kid in his weight class. Max had to fight through a rib injury and went 2-2 today. At 138 Justin Meador is clearly the most dangerous kid on the team. At no time should any opponent ever feel safe when they wrestle Justin. From top to bottom 138 was probably the toughest weight class in the tournament. Justin went 2-2. J-Rob would be proud. Grant Corbett reached his first tournament championship. He pins his way to the finals before falling short in the finals. Hard work always pays off. Possibly the most improved wrestler on the team is Gavin Douglass. He has grown 3 weight classes, but the weight he put on, he put on in muscle and it shows. Gavin loses a close one in the semi-finals, but has to injury default after an elbow injury. Hopefully Gavin has a speedy return because he is becoming one of Avon's best wrestlers. Jack Colman wins the Plainville tournament. That is impressive in itself, but more impressively is that he made it on the mat everytime without collapsing with lower leg injuries. Jack looked very impressive today. He goes 4-0, and is still undefeated on the season. One of the big stories of the season is the return of Sam Johnson. Sam is fighting back from knee surgery and is wrestling like he was never injured. Sam made the finals and loses a tough one in the finals. Sam's return instantly makes Avon a much better team. Sometimes we need to sit back and remember that Diego Ortiz is only a sophomore. He has been such a big figure in the line-up that he blends in with the junior and senior ladened line-up. Diego scratches and fights his way to the consolation finals. The emergence of Ortiz will help soften the sting of losing this senior class. Injuries were tough on the Falcons today. Tyler Dickinson had a shoulder injury, and a thumb injury. Although the coaching staff thought about holding him out, he fought through the pain and ended up placing 4th. Tyler's ability to step out of his JV role last year and into a solid varsity role has really strengthened the Falcon line-up. Alex Rostenberg wasn't the only Falcon who exacted some revenge. Chris Gens got double revenge today. In the semi-finals, on the same mat as last year, he beat the same kid who beat him in last year's semi-finals. He not only just beat him he pinned him. In the finals Chris had the kid who pinned him in last year's New Britain dual meet. He showed true heart and toughness by fighting off his back in the first thirty seconds of the match. He then battled back from a 5 point deficit to bring home his 2nd tournament championship 7-5. Guts and heart are two things that Chris has plenty of. One of the best things that has happened to this team in the last year, is the decision by Henry Schrecengost to come out for the team. Henry made the finals today and had the Danbury kid who placed 3rd in the double L state tournament last year. The match lived up to its billing and unfortunately Henry dropped a double overtime thriller. It was a match between two of the premier Heavyweights in the states and my guess is that Henry will get another crack at this match down the road. The varsity kids were not the only impressive narrative of the day. Avon had many JV kids wrestling today and they were just as impressive. Imagine being a first year wrestler and staring across the mat from a varsity kid, let alone a Danbury kid. It is intimidating. Avon had many impressive performances. Cameron Casey is only a freshman. He used an impressive 3/4 nelson to land his first high school pin. Zack Colman is a kid who will move seamlessly into a varsity role next year. He showed that today as he went 2 and 2. Jake Deluca should be a varsity wrestler, and he would be on most teams in Connecticut. Avon is just loaded in Jakes weight. Jake proves his ability and goes 2-2 today. He made the semi-finals and the only 2 losses that he got were to Avon wrestlers. Jared Butler is another one of the kids who make Avon's future look bright. Jared, as an unseeded wrestler goes 4-1 and takes 3rd place. This is a huge accomplishment. It is even bigger because he won the fast fall award in the tournament. He got the most pins in the least amount of time. At 195 Amir Johnson continues to impress. He wins his first match in a gutsy 5-4 victory. Amir is a first year senior. If he had wrestled for 4 year he would be contending for a state medal. Overall, it was a great day for the Falcons. They are showing toughness, skill and class. It has been and continues to be a fun run by this talented Falcon squad.

Avon 68 Enfield 5

The season got off to a great start Wednesday night. The season opener could not have started off better, when Avon's JV team set the pace for the Varsity. Zack Colman started off the night with an Avon pin. He would be followed by other JV pins from Amir Johnson, Silvan Cloutier and Jack Leavens. The varsity match started at the 138 pound weight class. This wasn't a problem for Avon as the Falcons put their all-conference senior captain on the mat first. Justin Meador did not disappoint. He dominated and amassed a 7-0 lead before he put Avon ahead with a 2nd period pin. He was followed by fellow captain Grant Corbett. The weight class was different, but the result was the same. Another 2nd period pin put the Falcons ahead 12-0. Gavin Douglass has made a big leap this year all the way up to the 152 pound weight class. It doesn't really make a different what weight class Gavin is in, he still is on of Avon's toughest wrestlers. Gavin has a tough match, but he is always in control and takes home a 9-5 victory. This extends Avon's lead to 15-0. At 160 Jack Colman ran to the head table to check in. Halfway there he was struck with calf cramps. In 23 years of coaching, I have never seen a wrestler injured walking out the a match. The team turned to 1st year wrestler, Jadon Folkwein, for help. Jadon is not only a first year wrestler, but he has never wrestled a match before, and he is a 152 pounder. It didn't matter to Jadon. He went out there on a mission and in 71 seconds, pinned his opponent. Sam Johnson made it all of the way to the front table. He then took the mat and scored the night's fastest pin. He ended it in a quick 63 seconds. Perhaps no one on the team has taken a larger step than Diego Ortiz. Diego is an athlete and a tough kid. He demonstrated it and gave us a little preview of the future. He battled to a 14-7 win. Tyler Dickenson is a kid who is going to make a name for himself very quickly this year. Last year he was behind Avon's captain. He was varsity ready last year and now he steps out of Matt Bourquin's shadow. Although he has one of Enfields best wrestlers, he fights back from a 3-0 deficit and scores a third period pin. Avon 36 Enfield 0. Chris Gens wrestled Enfield's captain. It wouldn't be a problem for Chris. He takes control early and dominates on his feet with 4 takedowns. He gets a major decision with an 11-3 victory. I can only image what heavyweights say to themselves when they look across the mat and see Henry Schrecengost as their opponent. I imagine it has something to do with a cross between fear and bargaining. Henry legitimizes the fear. He goes into the second period with a 8-2 lead before throwing his opponent to his back and plants his shoulders for a pin. As much as Diego Ortiz made the future look good, Aidan Baghdassarian made it look even better. In only his first match Aidan goes out there and looks like a seasoned veteran. He dominates for three periods, turning his opponent 4 times and scores a major decision 13-0. Avon's lead is extended to 50-0. Aiden's brother Ryan gets a forfeit and runs Avon's total 6 points higher. Abhi Bhabad (speaking of seasoned veterans) takes the mat and puts on a takedown clinic. Abhi is the best clinician on the team and he proves it by going from move to move. Eventually, Abhi ends it with a pin in the 2nd period. Last year, Alex Rostenberg lost to his Enfield counterpart by 1 point. This would be a re-match that Alex wanted. It was a barn burner of a match. The score went back and forth. Alex was up 7-5 in the third period when he scored a reversal and pin. Revenge was served. It was a great night for the Falcons as the first match of the season couldn't have been much better. However, there is only minimal time to celebrate, it is time to get ready for the Plainville tournament. Go Falcons

Final Score: Avon 68 Enfield 5

Season Record: 1-0 Conference Record: 0-0

Season Preview:

• The 2018-19 Avon High School wrestling season is a highly anticipated season. The team is dripping with talent, leadership and hungry athletes. The team will be lead by a very talented senior class. The pre-season coaches poll has the team ranked 20th in the state of connecticut. Although Avon is the smallest team in the CCC North, they are one of the favorites. The big conference matches will be against 2017&2018 champion East Hartford on December 19th and Wethersfield on January 23rd. Avon is also a big contender in the class "M" championships. Foran, last years champion, is the favorite. They return 8 state medal winners. Killingly is also a favorite, but Avon will surprise people this year. They are the dark horse with something to prove. The Falcons will be led by their 4 captains Abhi Bhabad, Justin Meador, Grant Corbett and Jack Colman. However, the team has a plethora of other seniors who will provide leadership and team points. Alex Rostenberg, Max Jacobs, Jake Deluca, Gavin Douglass, Gunner Propiescus, David Triggle, Sam Johnson, TyTy Dickenson, and Henry Schrecengost are the other returning seniors who will help steer the team. Chris Gens and Ryan Baghdassarian are two juniors who should also make a huge impact on the season. The team numbers are way up this year with the addition of many new sophomores, juniors and seniors. There is also a great new group of freshman who will be groomed to take up the Avon Wrestling torch. It will be a fun season.