BY CHRIS MANNINGNorthern Tier Sports Report
It’s an exciting time for Northeast Bradford wrestling. Their boys’ numbers are up, and they’ll be fielding their first ever girls’ wrestling squad this winter.
“This is my favorite time of year,” said NEB coach Curt Cole. “I enjoyed being back in the mat room, even though we’re in the mat room kind of all year anyway.”
The Panthers hope to be filling out most of a 13-man line-up this season as they have 12 guys on the roster.
“Having the numbers, and then having them fall into the weight classes are two different things,” Cole said. “So we’ll see about that, but it feels good to have 12 kids. And, for the most part, they’re working hard.”
One of their key returnees is Mason Alexander, who went 25-11 a year ago as a freshman, wrestling at 107. He’s been spending the off season working on scoring out of neutral.
“It’s crucial to get that first takedown,” said Alexander. “It’s definitely going to help later in the match.”
His goal this year is to get to 60 wins and get a little further in the postseason after getting upset at the blood round of sectionals.
“I think he learned the pressures of the post season, and how long and grueling wrestling season is,” said Cole. “He got some nerves that humbled him a little bit, so hopefully, he’s worked through that, and can overcome some of that stuff.”
As a team Alexander is hoping that they can improve on their dual meet record, getting to three wins this season.
“I feel like, once we start getting some wins, we can get some more people on the wrestling team, and eventually get a better team,” he said.
Sophomore Ben Ellis is another key returner. He went 15-17 a year ago, and made it to the district tournament at 215 pounds.
He plans on wrestling at 215 again, but can’t rule out bumping up to 285.
“It’s a challenge,” Ellis said about going up to heavyweight. “It’s mostly a mental game. Last year I did it a couple matches, and I won both of them.”
Ellis has also been working on his offense, along with controlling heavier guys from top.
“Maintain that, and make sure they don’t come up,” he explained, noting that he’s been working on his conditioning, as well. “It’s very important. I’ve been trying to make myself push as hard as I could. It’s hard, but you’ve got to work through it, just like I would in a match.”
One newcomer to watch is freshman Kale Howland, who is excited to see a fuller wrestling room.
“We have a lot more people on the team the year than prior years,” said Howland. “And we’ve got a lot of young people, so this year should be a warm-up for years to come.”
He plans to come in at 145 pounds, which is usually one of the toughest weight classes around.
“It’s a little nerve wracking, but, at the same time, I fee like I’m freshman, so I’ll be getting the experience I need to get better throughout the years,” said Howland.
His goal this season is to make it to districts.
Cole is not only excited for the numbers, but also the amount of youth on the team.
“We’re still a young team,” he said. “We only have one senior. I would like to see Hunter Comstock, Ben Ellis, and even the younger Kale Howland, step up for us right out of the gate.”
As for the girls’ squad they have five on the roster right now, with three of them having wrestling experience.
Leading the way will be Anaiah Kolesar, who took seventh a year ago at the MyHouse Girls’ State Championship at 112 pounds
“Anaiah will be our workhorse,” said Cole. “Mackenzie Clark, who is our freshman, she’s got a lot of potential. And the new girls, who was our manage last year, and will be our manager this year, is Cora Franklin.”
Franklin is excited to give the sport a try after pushing for them to add girls’ wrestling this year.
“I’m working on getting the skills down,” said Franklin. “It’s really a lot of skill, and then muscle, so I work skills all practice, and then I’ll work out afterwards.”
Her goal is to get as good as possible, and grow the sport at NEB.
“I’ve had a lot of fun,” said Franklin. “It’s been only a few girls, but it’s a lot of fun.”
Ava Lambert, who wrestled a year ago, is also returning, giving them a nice mix of experience and youth.
“It’d be nice to end with all five, and maybe get a couple of them to regions, into states, and get somebody on the podium,” said Cole.
ROSTER (Grade)
Boys
Alex Gomez (9)
Kale Howland (9)
Layton Vargo (9)
Mason Alexander (10)
Kelton Raymond (10)
Hunter Comstock (10)
Ransomme Vanriper (10)
Cameron Rinebold (10)
Ben Ellis (10)
Connor Eastabrook (10)
Nation Evans-Merritt (12)
Westen Perkins (12)
Girls
Cora Franklin (11)
Anaiah Kolesar (10)
Ava Lambert (10)
Chesney Avdevich (9)
Mackenzie Clark (9)
SCHEDULE
Dec. 2 vs Williamson, 2 p.m.
Dec. 5 vs Blue Ridge, 7 p.m.
Dec. 7 vs Athens, 7 p.m.
Dec. 12 vs Canton, 7 p.m.
Dec. 16 at Hughesville Duals, 2 p.m.
Dec. 19 at Towanda, 7 p.m.
Dec. 27 at Jim Thorpe Tournament, 6 p.m.
Dec. 28 at Jim Thorpe Tournament, noon
Jan. 4 at Wyalusing, 7 p.m.
Jan. 6 at South Williamsport Tournament, 2 p.m.
Jan. 9 at Troy, 7 p.m.
Jan. 11 at Montrose, 6 p.m.
Jan. 16 vs NPL, 6 p.m.
Jan. 24 vs Wellsboro, 7 p.m.
Jan. 26 at Bedford Tournament
Jan. 27 at Bedford Tournament
Feb. 17 at Sectionals
Feb. 23 at Districts
Feb. 24 at Districts
Mar 1 at Regionals
Mar 2 at Regionals
