Captain Wyatt Hepner ’25, who went undefeated during his matches, emphasized how these meets earlier in the season are great for breeding new players.
“Some of the incoming guys haven’t had too much competition,” Hepner said. “This meet will let some of the newer guys get some action because matches are very different from practices.”
Not just new guys, but veteran players found success too. Captains Lex Wilson ’25 and Neil Honablue ’25 both went 2-0 during the meet. Honablue credits composure to his success during the match.
“Opposed to what I used to do, I’ve found that remaining calm has [helped me win],” Honablue said. “I am silently and quietly confident in myself and I have faith in the work I’ve put in.”
Not only would the varsity team find individual success, with more 2-0 performances coming from Matt Duso ’27 and Jeff Herman ’27, but the junior varsity team had some stand out performances as well. Simon Justin ’26, who was competing in his first wrestling meet ever, took down his first opponent with a pin in only five seconds.
“I was practicing the same move that I used to pin [my opponent] yesterday,” Justin said, “When I got into the ring today, all of a sudden [my opponent’s] on the ground, and the match is over.”
The result of the meet brought good vibes to the Blue Devil wrestling team. Key players like Mats Duffy ’25 were proud of the discipline his team showed.
“We didn’t do anything excessive, we just did what had to be done,” Duffy said. “We took it slow, didn’t try to do anything crazy and make mistakes, and we came out on top.”
