BERLIN- After knocking on the door in recent years, Stephen Decatur’s varsity wrestling team kicked the door in last weekend with a first-place finish in the prestigious Iron Horse Duals tournament.
Last year, the Seahawks finished third overall as a team in the Iron Horse Duals at C. Milton Wright High School as five wrestlers went unbeaten in the tournament. This year, Decatur took it a step further, taking first place in the Iron Horse Duals, sweeping every match and ending up with five wrestlers finishing unbeaten and nearly every other one in the line-up finishing with a winning record.
In the finals, Decatur beat South Carroll, 57-23, to claim the championship. Reho beat Rylan Moore at 145, while Koulikov beat Brandon Athey at 152. Parana beat Austin Gidge at 160, Taylor beat Justin Brister at 182 and Bourne beat Shane Allison at 195.
In the 220 bout, Hofman beat Richie Summerlin, while T.D. Ortega won at 285. After the Seahawks dropped two in the lower weight classes, Clapsadle got Decatur back on track with a win over Gage Owen at 120. Nico D’Amico beat Jake Rippeon at 132 and Elliott closed it out with a win over Anthony Bond at 138.
In the semifinals, Decatur beat John Carroll, 64-10. Shamar Baines beat Ian Moccia at 113, Clapsadle beat Trevyn Suskowicz at 120 and Dustin Morrow won by forfeit at 126. D’Amico kept the run going with a win over Cole Jones at 132, while Jayden Criner beat William Kaiser at 138.
Reho beat Matthew Mitrega at 145, Koulikov beat Dominic Comello at 152 and Parana beat Dylan Cox at 160. Bourne beat Trent Katen at 182, Hofman won by forfeit at 195, Henry Brous beat George Fritz at 220 and Jonathan Church won by forfeit at 285.
In the first round, the Seahawks beat Bishop Ireton, 75-6. Austin Miller won by forfeit at 106, Baines beat Kyle Miller at 113, Adam Sites beat Calum McIntyre at 120 and Dustin Morrow won by forfeit at 126. Kyle Elliott beat James Lucchessi at 138, Tyler Long beat Gabriel Jones at 145, Koulikov beat John Ambery at 152. Ethan Kalchthaler (160), Adham Labwam (170), Bourne (182), Brous (195), Church (220) and Michael Rayne (285) all won by forfeit.
In the second round, Decatur beat Howard, 66-9. Miller beat Theo Bloomquist at 113, Baines beat Kenny Ling at 120, Clapsadle beat Arjun Kundu at 126 and D’Amico beat John Collins at 132. Elliott beat Richard Kim at 138, Koulikov beat Braeden Anderson at 152, Parana beat Success Myers at 160, Taylor beat Gavin Romberger at 170, Bourne beat Adam Kozikowski at 182, Hofman beat Devin Dengu at 195, Ortega beat Solomon Larsen at 285 and Logan Intrieri beat Thomas Magsino at 106.
In the third round, the Seahawks beat Boy’s Latin 70-3. Morrow beat Kyle Klepp at 126, D’Amico beat Sam Rosiak at 132, Reho beat Justin Kagen at 138, Elliott beat Nathan Krouse at 145, Nick Vinogradov beat Jake Laupert at 152, Koulikov beat Gavin Proutt at 160, Parana beat Rohan David at 170, Taylor beat J.T. Morton at 182, Bourne beat Mason Isaac at 195, Hofman beat Joe Dye at 220, Intrieri won by forfeit at 106, Baines beat Teddy Davies at 113 and Clapsadle beat Cedric Tyson at 120.
The Seahawks beat Cape Henlopen, 49-19 in the fourth round. Baines beat Brexton Carter at 120, Clapsadle beat Charles Fritchman at 126, D’Amico beat Carson Kamerer at 132, Koulikov beat Finbar Rishko at 152, Parana beat Juan Lares at 160, Taylor beat Gary Hayes at 182, Bourne beat Cameron Smith at 195, Miller beat Holt Baker at 106 and Intrieri beat Joshua Wright at 113.
In the sixth round, the Seahawks defeated Leonardtown, 42-21. Reho beat Finn Eskeland at 145, Kouilikov beat Travis Chism at 152, Parana beat Gannon Brooks at 160, Taylor beat Alex Evans at 170, Bourne beat Matthew Cox at 182, Hofman beat Aidan Gamble at 195, Church beat Grant Peters at 220, Clapsadle beat Brandon Oh at 126 and D’Amico beat Troy Cialona at 132.