The FVHS Bengals Wrestling team is fighting a hard fight to end this season on a strong note. Over the last two weeks FVHS women and mens teams competed in a dual with Willow Springs High School and other schools at their conference tournament. As of right now they are looking strong for team states, which will be on Feb. 8, at the Greensboro Coliseum.
The Lady Bengals had multiple top finishers, starting with our first place winners, senior Miazion Warren in the 152 weight class and freshman Kaitlyn Hatt in the 185 weight class. Our second place qualifiers were sophomore Olivia Downling in the 107 weight class and freshman Madeline Husk in the 165 weight class. Lastly our third place finishers were sophomores Hayden Folan in the 113 weight class and Zoe Healy in the 132 weight class.
The FVHS women’s team not only showcased their individual talent, but also their team’s determination. Despite some of the wrestlers facing injuries, they continued to push forward, proving their resilience.
“The girls performed great, each and every one of us was amazing,” said Warren. “We continue our sideline cheering no matter what. Screaming our lungs out coaching back to back for each other is how we support one another.”
There was an incredible amount of dedication and hardwork from the girls team. Olivia Dowlings in particular destroyed misogynistic stereotypes by securing a victory for the mens team.
“She won her match against a boy to score the team’s victory,” said junior heavyweight Lucas Prestipino, “Winning at willow helped a lot of our conference records, which improved our seeding for the conference tournament and regionals.”
For our male team we had many third and fourth place finishers. Coming in third was sophomore Mateo Ocharan in the 165 weight class, junior Brady Thomas in the 113 weight class, junior Jayden Manchego in the 175 weight class, and junior Lucas Prestipino in the 285 weight class. For our fourth place qualifiers, we had junior Dominic Austin in the 138 weight class and senior Michael Piper in the 157 weight class.
To prepare for competitions, wrestlers emphasized their pre match routines.
“We do group stretching and the entire team likes to do some warmups on the mat,” said Warren. “Music is my go to warm up. Some folks run through moves, but I perform best when relaxed and under no pressure.”
On Feb. 14-15, they will compete at regionals at Green Level High School. If they win regionals and score well across the board, individual students may have a shot at individual state competition on Feb. 20-22 at the Greensboro Coliseum.
