OCEAN CITY- Stephen Decatur’s varsity wrestling team turned in a strong performance at the inaugural Kings of the Mat Dual Meets at the Ocean City convention center last weekend with great team finishes and a handful of unbeaten individual performances.
Decatur hosted the Kings of the Mat Tournaments at the Roland E. Powell Convention Center last weekend. About a dozen of the top high school programs from around the region competed in the high school portion of the dual match, along with an in-kind number of top youth club teams from all over the region.
The Decatur High School team split into a blue team competing in the Bay Pool and the white team competing in the Ocean Pool. The Kings of the Mat tournament was a good early test for the defending 3A duals state champions and the Seahawks were up to the test.
In the Bay Pool bracket, Stephen Decatur Blue finished first, edging Caravel Academy, 24-21, in the finals. Stephen Decatur Blue lost its opening round match to Holy Spirit by a mere point at 22-21. Stephen Decatur Blue then beat Sussex Central, 32-21; Queen Anne’s, 30-18; and Team Delmarva-Parkside, 39-15, in the fourth round to reach the finals against Caravel Academy.
In the Ocean Pool bracket, the Stephen Decatur White team finished third overall. Town Center Wrestling finished first, followed by the Arrowhead Wrestling Club in second. Stephen Decatur White got a first-round bye, but fell to Arrowhead, 26-18, in the second round. Stephen Decatur White then beat Oakland Mills, 45-9, before losing to eventual champ Town Center, 43-6, in the semifinals. Stephen Decatur White beat Stevensville Wrestling in the fifth round to earn third place in the Ocean Pool.
The Seahawks also turned in several strong individual performances during the meet. Nico D’Amico went undefeated at 6-0 at 135, while D.J. Taylor also went a perfect 6-0 at 180. Jagger Clapsadle also came through with an unblemished record of 5-0 at 125.
Alex Koulikov finished with a 4-1 record at 145 and Lexx Carr finished with a 3-1 mark at 200. Henry Brous finished with a 4-2 record at 200, while Ethan Kalchthaler finished with a 4-2 mark at 155. Kyle Elliott went 2-1 at 145, Noah Reho finished with a 3-3 record at 145 and Shamar Baines finished with a 2-2 record at 125.
