John Jay Opens Dual Meet Season with 60-18 Victory over Harrison

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After a few weeks of tournaments, John Jay came home to open their dual meet schedule. Harrison on the docket, the Huskies were definitely cowed by the time they headed south with their tails between their legs.

A 60-18 drubbing was a great way to start, and a young team gave no reason for JoJo Kern to have any doubts. “We lost a lot of seniors, but we’re rebuilding right now,” said Kern. “I think we’ll make it alright.”

The match, on the other hand, did begin on the downside. Gavin Orrill fell behind early and was pinned by Sienna Cozzali. But it was Harrison’s 110 pounder who soon felt he might have bit off more than he could chew.

In other words, John Jay’s Jonah Levine came out frothing at the mouth. “I was hungry,” extolled Levine.

He built a 6-0 lead, and by snapping Matt Hansen down to his back in only 46 seconds, the eighth grader showed just how famished he was for victory. “I could eat a cow,” assured Levine.

Not quite as quick, Peter Monti and Joe Gabriele still showed Harrison who had grazing rights. Both registered second period pins, and John Jay led 18-6.

At 132, Devon Comstock waited for the second period too and there was no need to get overly sophisticated. “I ran a nice simple half nelson,” Comstock clarified.

John Alia didn’t fare as well and was pinned 33 seconds into the match. No problem it seemed when JoJo Kern mauled his opponent to an 11-0 lead. That is until Kern got a front row seat to John Jay’s ceiling.

Still, he fought his way back and had no excuses. “It was sloppy wrestling on my part,” Kern freely admitted.

Pride wasn’t Kern's only motivation to get back on the upside, though. “My whole family showed up for this match,” he joked. “I couldn’t lose. I would never hear the end of it. So I had to come back and win.

He did just that, and 1:25 left in the third was when the tables were turned for good. Tumult nonetheless, he and his Wolves have already had their share and refuse to succumb going forward. “We’ll stay strong with everything going on,” asserted Kern.

Austin Omin showed no ill effects with his second period pin and neither did Spencer Hadlock. “I nearside cradled him,” said Hadlock after his pin yielded a 42-12 lead.

He actually opted to allow his opponent into the neutral position, because the senior prefers being on his feet. “I feel like it’s the most creative,” said the 160 pounder. “The best moves are from neutral. They look cool.”

Either way, Jake Llanos kept Harrison on ice too. An 8-0 lead led to a second period pin and Alvin Wong literally found himself on the slab. “I couldn’t stick ‘em,” said Llanos. “So I switched to a butcher and then to a half.”

Up 48-12, Max Wasserman batted cleanup, and in this case, the match didn’t hang in the balance. “That’s the time to experiment and try out new moves,” he revealed.

But the sophomore knows the feeling when everything rides on him. “If you don’t win, then everyone else has done it for nothing,” said the 182 pounder.

The wrestler sometimes likes the pressure nonetheless, and falling behind early in this match, he wasn’t off scott free. On the other hand, Wassermann sensed an edge and he rode it. “I think I had better conditioning,” said Wasserman. “He was pretty gassed at the end.”

Up wind, Wasserman took what was given. “I did a reverse, then a crowbar from the front, and I just flipped him over,” he said.

The teams then traded forfeits and the 60-18 stat line was complete.

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