The Steinert Wrestling team has had an amazing, resurgent season, earning early season victories over township rivals Nottingham and  Hamilton West, as well as county rivals Notre Dame and West Windsor North. With several wrestlers having records over the .500 mark, and the team placing fifth in this year’s Mercer County Tournament, it is clear that coach Panfili’s Spartans have become a force to be reckoned with on the mats once more.

Louis Bilardo went into the MCT with a record of 16-1, and although he ended up finishing fourth, he has a strong chance of making some heads turn in districts and regionals at the 215 lbs. Junior Dream Hemingway carried a 12- 2 record into the tournament at 190 lbs. and finished 5th in the tournament. The wrestler that placed the highest in MCTs was senior Devin Liriano, who currently has a record of 10-5. Sophomore Elliot Morris has been a stalwart on this year’s squad, finishing third in the MCT, and carrying a record of 10-5 at the 175 lb. weight class. Sophomore Anthony Giglio had a strong tournament, going 4-1 on the first day of the tournament and finishing 4th overall in the 165 lb. weight class.

Coach Joe Panfili likes the way the team looks moving forward. “We have a good shot at making the team sectionals for the first time in several years. Several of our losses this year have come to quality teams and have been decided by one or two individual bouts that could have gone either way. The primary factor that I attribute to our team’s success is the high level of camaraderie that our team has and the quality leadership that is displayed by our upperclassmen. The members of our team generally care for one another and like spending time outside of the wrestling room with each other.”

He attributes so much of their success to the work ethic that they show. “The young men and women on our team work very hard on a daily basis to be the best that they can be, and the level of self sacrifice for the betterment of the team cannot be overstated. It has been a great honor and pleasure coaching this team and I am very proud of each and every one of them. I look forward to a bright future with this program, and I am very excited about the things that are yet to come in the remaining weeks of the season."