Baldwin impresses in qualifier

After some December highs, followed by some January lows, the Baldwin wrestling team entered the Nassau County qualifying tournament as a bit of a wild card. The Bruins had several impressive outings early in the season, but were slowed down last month by injuries and weight class issues.

Last Saturday at Long Beach, the Bruins answered any doubts that may have surrounded the team, putting forth a strong effort in a qualifying tourney grouping that featured some of the best wrestling programs in the county. 

“We had some issues last month, but we were able to straighten them out,” Baldwin coach Jim Murphy said. “We got everybody eligible to wrestle, and we competed hard. There were some tough teams in there. There was no wiggle room here in the qualifier. But, we did not show any fear.”

The Bruins had a tough draw, having to faceoff with talented teams like Long Beach, Lynbrook, Bethpage and Hewlett. But, Baldwin still received top-three finishes from Paul Wehr, Abraiham Mitchell, Jon Debique and Mat Kong.

Marc Castel and Dylan Somra also earned fourth place finishes for the Bruins in the tournament, while Kylen Dickens and Jahil Treasure finished fifth in their respective weight classes. Denver Powell added a sixth-place finish at the tournament. In total, eight of the team’s wrestlers earned spots at next weekend’s Division I county tournament.

 “A lot of the kids surprised me,” he said. “All of a sudden the light went off in Somra’s head. He wound up punching his ticket to the counties. We had the wild card Jahil Treasure get in as a sophomore. He had a really good tournament and wrestled the best I’ve seen him all season.”

Now Baldwin’s focus moves to this upcoming weekend. The Bruins’ eight Division-I county championship qualifiers will get the chance to wrestle on a much bigger stage, at Hofstra University. While aware of the challenge that lies ahead, Murphy seems optimistic about a few of his wrestlers chances at the event. 

“Our guys are going to have to come in and wrestle as hard as they did this past weekend to continue on,” Murphy said. “I think Debique and Kong are in real good spots to make some noise at Hofstra.”

Murphy also has high hopes for Castel at the county championships, after seeing him be matched up against top competition in the qualifying round. “I think Castel had two out of the top six guys in the county in his qualifier,” Murphy said. “He got to see them all, and I thought he wrestled fairly well.”

Baldwin got plenty of positive re-assurances, not just for the program’s present, but for its future as well. 

“Young guys like Paul Wehr, Mat Kong, Jahil Treasure, and Kylen Dickens, they really impressed me,” he said. “I feel confident coming back with that team next year. I feel that we are going to be right there.”