Seahawks Rolling Into War On Shore

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BERLIN- Stephen Decatur’s varsity wrestling team stayed on a major roll this week heading into its own War on the Shore tournament that got underway on Friday.

The Seahawks swept two matches in a tri-meet last week on the road, beating Cambridge-South Dorchester, 71-6, and Kent County, 59-15. Back in action at home last Friday, the Seahawks blanked North Dorchester, 84-0. Decatur’s Adam Sites beat North Dorchester’s Ledger Bates at 106. Anya Knappenberger and Jagger Clapsadle each won by forfeit at 113 and 120 respectively. Nico D’Amico beat Adam Ray at 126 and Noah Reho beat Austin Kimmey at 132.

Decatur’s Kyle Elliott beat Masmi Lewis at 138 and Hayden Gable beat Lucas Tolley at 145. After a forfeit win by Jhymir Blake at 152, Decatur’s John Hofman beat Cody Olson at 160. Lucas Layton and Micah Bourne won by forfeit at 170 and 182. D.J. Taylor beat Kaden Handte at 195, Daletez Smith beat Brendan Ebeling at 220, and Dakota Souder closed out the match with a forfeit win at 285.

With the three wins in the last week, the Seahawks improved to 8-0 in the conference and carried significant momentum into the War on the Shore tournament, which Decatur is hosting this weekend for the 18th time. War on the Shore, long a staple on Maryland’s prep wrestling winter schedule, gets underway today with nearly two dozen of the top teams from the mid-Atlantic region competing.

Friday’s action at Decatur will feature preliminary bouts in every division with matches held practically around the clock through Saturday. The event concludes on Saturday evening with championship bouts in each weight class. A total of 22 teams including last year’s top three finishers are expected to compete at Decatur this weekend although a predicted snowstorm some parts of the region could wreak havoc on the schedule.

Last year, Decatur finished a respectable ninth among the 24 teams competing in the War on the Shore tournament. The top three team finishers last year were Mount St. Joseph’s, Damascus and Caesar Rodney, each of which is expected to return this year.

About The Author: Shawn Soper

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Shawn Soper has been with The Dispatch since 2000. He began as a staff writer covering various local government beats and general stories. His current positions include managing editor and sports editor. Growing up in Baltimore before moving to Ocean City full time three decades ago, Soper graduated from Loch Raven High School in 1981 and from Towson University in 1985 with degrees in mass communications with a journalism concentration and history.