Falcons Lose a Close First Match: High Hopes for Season

The lights went dim over the Monmouth Regional gymnasium last week as the Falcons, accompanied by a background of inspirational music, ran in to start their wrestling season.

The Falcons hosted Shore Regional and jumped out to an early 18-0 lead with help from 119-pound junior Domini Cardella, who was able to get a pin with 18.2 seconds left in the third period, and Julio Hernandez, who got a crucial takedown with 16 seconds left in the third period to give him a win by decision.

Shore then began to mount a strong comeback, and despite a decision win from 160-pound Clinton Cotton, a pin from 215-pound Scott Thatcher, and a win by forfeit from Ryan Greenwood, the Falcons fell short with a final score of 34 to 33 in Shore Regional's favor.

"We have a very hard working group of kids," said head coach Jason Morrell. "Still somewhat inexperienced in certain places but a solid mix of newcomers who will play a role in the future."

He added, "Our goals are to simply work to get better each and every day."

Some wrestlers to keep an eye on this season are juniors Cardella and Joey Panchack, who wrestle the 103- and 119-pound weight classes, respectively. There are also high hopes for senior Nick Jordan who expects to make his mark on the 145-pound weight class. Ryan Greenwood, a senior, finished his junior year with 22 wins and third place in District 23 and hopes to replicate or surpass these stats this year.

Although the season started with a loss, Monmouth's strong performances in preseason matches -- including a seventh place finish at the Matawan Icebreaker Tournament -- has the team optimistic that the remainder of the season will bring success.   

"We don't focus on beating certain teams as much as we focus on winning the battle against ourselves to get better from one day to the next, then let everything else take care of itself," said Morrell.

 Monmouth's next match will be home on January 5 at 5:30 pm against Red Bank Regional. For other information regarding the Monmouth Regional wrestling team, including rosters and schedules, refer to their website at www.monmouthregional.net.