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Canfield wrestlers hold off Beaver Local
By Gary Housteau
CANFIELD
Canfield was on its way to a rout against Beaver Local on Wednesday night, but the wrestling meet didn’t quite end the way the Cardinals expected.
Canfield led 30-6 after senior Mason Giordano (285) won a 3-1 decision in the Eastern Ohio Wrestling League dual meet and appeared in firm control. But the Beavers rallied and pushed the Cardinals to final match of the night before Canfield prevailed, 33-31, in what turned out to be thriller.
Canfield senior Anthony Joseph (145) was literally saved by the bell at the end of the second round of the finale when it seemed like Beaver Local sophomore Jared Wright was near a meet-winning pin for the Beavers.
But Joseph held him off and although Wright eventually won an 8-1 decision, Canfield held on to win the meet.
“I knew what I had to do and my team put us in that position,” Joseph said. “It was a team effort and I did what I needed to do and we got the win.”
Joseph admitted he was well aware of the dire situation he was in at the end of the second period.
“I knew in my mind I couldn’t get pinned, so I just fought,” Joseph said. “Obviously, I’m disappointed in the outcome of my match but, as a whole, it was a team effort and I’m glad we got the win.”
Canfield head coach Dean Conley praised Joseph.
“Hey, he went out there and battled. He fought like mad,” Conley said. “In that situation, when you got a senior in the last match, we know he’s going to give us the best effort he has. He always has for four years. He fought off his back like mad and we’re proud of him and that’s the kind of kid he is. I’ll be honest with you, we’ve got a team full of them and we’re really proud of them.”
After starting the meet with a 4-3 decision by freshman Anthony D’Alesio (152), the Cardinals ran out to a 27-0 lead, with a forfeit and three consecutive falls, before Beaver Local got on the board with a pin of its own to cut the deficit to 27-6.
And after Giordano pushed the lead out to 30-6 the Beavers closed the gap to 30-22, with a decision sandwiched between two pins, before Canfield sophomore Aidan Burscak (126) stopped the bleeding with a 8-4 decision, giving the Cardinals a 33-22 cushion. Beaver Local then closed the gap to 33-28 with two decisions to set up the dramatics in the final match.
“Gosh, it was a battle. I’m so proud of our kids,” Conley said. “Beaver Local came to wrestle, too. It was a classic battle — back and forth. I’m so proud of our kids, we fought like mad and we beat a good Beaver Local team right there.”
Every match was crucial, according to Conley.
“It’s huge. It’s the difference between getting bonus points on our guys,” he said. “The pins were huge for our guys, and guys not giving up and getting pinned. That’s the difference in a match right there.
“When you win a dual and you beat a good team, it’s a team effort. All 14 guys wrestled their tails off and I’m really proud.”
Beaver Local head coach Jordan Williams was just as proud of his wrestlers.
“It was very competitive, it was just a great high school wrestling match between two good teams and two quality programs that got after it,” Williams said. “We competed hard, I’m proud of our guys. It just didn’t go our way.”
Canfield improved to 6-2 with the hard-fought victory, the Beavers fall to 3-2.
“We’ve got tough kids that love to compete against great teams and great programs and sometimes it happens like this,” Williams said. “But this was fun, we had a great time and we’re just happy to be able to compete and get after it like this. It didn’t work out tonight, but if a couple of things go our way then it does.”