Perhaps it was a little kismet that the three seniors on Aledo’s wrestling team pinned their opponents, lifting the team to a 42-39 win over Brewer during Senior Night on Wednesday, Jan. 22.
Avery Kernan, Arianne Mathias, and Sebastian Barbarena all managed to glue their opponents to the mat in the first period.
With Aledo trailing 39-36 heading into the final match of the evening, Barbarena made short work of his 190-pound match, earning the pin in just 47 seconds, to give Aledo six points and elevate the team to victory.
“Man, on the girls’ side, they’re solid,” Aledo head coach Benjamin Shaw said of his seniors after the match. “They’re going to be big leadership shoes to fill. We’ve got good girls coming up, but those two are leaving big shoes to fill. Sebastian’s been with us a short time on the boys’ side, but he brings energy and wrestles hard. He brings his A-game every time. We’re gonna miss him. We thank them for everything they’ve done [for the program] in our short three years of existence. They’ve been great for us.”
The varsity Ladycat grapplers started off the night with a good showing on the mat despite the mixed results on the scoreboard. Lillian Carruthers led off the festivities in the 100-pound division for Aledo. After a brief feeling out period, Carruthers was taken down and pinned in short order to give Brewer a 6-0 lead.
Kernan took to the mat at 107 pounds for the second match. She turned in a dominant performance, making quick work of her opponent as she tied the score up at 6-6 with a pin of her own.
A pair of freshmen Ladycat grapplers took to the mat next. Grace Beasley at 114 pounds went all three rounds in a highly competitive match before ultimately falling 8-3. The decision victory pushed Brewer ahead, 9-6.
Joy Stephens answered right back for the Ladycats in her 120-pound match. Stephens locked down her opponent, maneuvered her into position, and picked up a win by pinfall with less than a minute to go in the first period. Aledo regained the lead at 12-9 following the pin.
Sophomore Braylin Wiggins trailed her opponent at 126 pounds for the first two periods before dropping the match via pinfall with 17 seconds left on the clock in period three. The Lady Bears regained the lead, 15-12 with the final ladies match heading to the mat.
At 138 pounds, Mathias dominated on the mat to a far greater degree than the scoreboard showed. Taking her opponent down early, Mathias grounded the Lady Bears grappler for the better part of two minutes until the first period ended with her leading 3-1. With her opponent struggling to deal with her constant pressure, Mathias earned the pinfall midway through the second period, handing the girls an 18-15 lead.
With no opponent at 106 pounds, Cameron Robbins didn’t get all dressed up for nothing. Instead, the freshman grappler went up to 113 pounds to pick up a pinfall win in the second period.
At 120 pounds, sophomore Dylan Chandler dominated his opponent before picking up a pinfall win in the second period to increase the Aledo lead.
Then the Bears came out of hibernation.
Brewer ripped off four wins in a row to regain the overall lead before sophomore William Reese (165 pounds) put an end to the Bears’ streak. His pinfall with 29 seconds left in the first period gave Aledo the momentum back heading into the final three matches of the night.
Freshman James Beyer (190) went up by a 7-0 score in the first period before earning the pin midway through the second stanza.
In the heavyweight division (285) freshman Cade Rangel held his own. The pair held each other scoreless in the first period. At the end of two rounds, Rangel trailed ever so slightly, 2-1. The third period, though, ended up with Rangel’s shoulders being pinned to the mat with time winding down as Aledo trailed 39-36 heading into Barbarena’s match.
Both Aledo teams are wrestling in the District 4-5A Tournament in Fort Worth this weekend.
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