The wrestling team participated in an Invitational at Sherando High School on Dec. 10 and Dec. 11. The Atoms recorded a 2-5 overall record throughout the two-day meet.
However, the varsity squad was short handed and was only able to fill 10 of 14 weight classes for the competition.
Despite the minimal roster depth, the Atoms were able to keep the scores duals fairly close, which is very impressive considering the fact that 24 free points were awarded to the opposing teams due to empty weight classes.
“We were able to keep the duals close and competitive by the kids wrestling hard and not giving up pins when we were outmatched in certain weights, getting bonus points when we could, and moving some kids around in the lineup at weights they may not normally wrestle,” Coach Joshua Damico said. “Hopefully we can get a couple kids back here soon and those competitive losses will turn to wins.”
Duals are set up so two schools face each other and compete to score the most points. The schools the Atoms faced were West Potomac Senior High, John Champe, Heritage, Amherst, Sherando, and Washington Lee. Each weight class from the two sides match up against one another.
Key performances throughout the tournament include Junior Marcelo Pozo winning all seven of his matches with seven pins and Senior Romeo Velez going 6-1.
“Over the two days, I think I did very well because I scored the most points possible for my team because I pinned all of my opponents,” Marcelo Pozo said. “I am happy that the team is improving and am proud of the other wrestlers.”
In addition, Junior Nate Quisbert and Freshman Dom Verjcik earned their first wins of the season. Other wrestlers with winning records over the course of the invitational include Maher Khalid, Jonathan Tejada Rodriguez, Alex Kennedy, Tyson Nguyen, and Sergio Osorio-Jaimes, all of whom finished with a record of 4-3.
The JV wrestlers have also gotten the chance to wrestle against high-level opponents this season. The JV team competed at Alexandria City, where almost all of the Atom wrestlers were able to leave the event with 1 or 2 wins against solid opponents.
The next meet will be an invitational on Dec. 18 at Woodson. There will be several meets prior to the upcoming one, giving the team plenty of time to prepare and improve before district and regional meets in the beginning of 2022.