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It was a night of celebration for the Winchester High School Red & Black wrestling team last Wednesday night, March 19, at the Sons of Italy on Swanton Street, when the team convened for the annual awards banquet.
There was plenty to remember throughout the last four months, starting with a regular season that began slowly with three straight losses, but ended on a high note to close out the Middlesex League schedule with a 6-3 record.
It was then onto the postseason, where four Red & Black grapplers qualified and competed quite well in the All-State Meet at Methuen High School.
Junior captain Kai Napadow Baquero (113-pounds) took third place in the state divisional meet to move on to the All-States in Methuen, where he came in sixth to become the first Winchester wrestler in five years to place at the annual statewide event, and as a result had qualified for the All-New England Regional Championship Meet the following week in Providence.
He was able to secure a win there against the best in New England.
Kai’s classmate and fellow captain Eddie Donlon came in seventh among the 132-pound All-State grapplers. Both Baquero (113-pounds) and Donlon (132-pounds) have since been preparing for the 36th annual NHSCA (National High School Coaches Association) Tournament in Virginia Beach, Virginia that is scheduled for this weekend from March 28-30. They alone are making sure the wrestling season never ends in Winchester.
In the girls division, senior captain and league all-star Anshu Patra (114-pounds, fourth in the divisional meet) and sophomore Maria Baldwin (120-pound, second in the divisional meet), also an all-star, rounded out the quartet of elite Winchester wrestlers against their All-State peers.
It’s trophy time
After working hard to achieve so much success throughout the season, it was time to have some fun at last week’s awards banquet. Head Coach Ryan Errico presided over the annual event.
Kai Napadow Baquero, who made it all the way to the aforementioned All-New England Tournament, took home the trophy as the team’s Most Valuable Wrestler.
The Coach’s Award for Perseverance was presented to Eddie Donlon, while Omar Alosta received the Leadership Award. Donlon also received the Ironman Award for 100% attendance, along with Cole Deason, Joe Ficcocielo, Luka Kovacev and senior Andrew Sim, who never missed a practice or match throughout his four-year scholastic high school career.
Sophomore Maria Baldwin earned the Most Improved Award. The spotlight also shined on Leo Gannon, when he was the recipient of the Freshman of the Year trophy.
For all of his work between seasons, Caleb Kohlberg was handed the Off-Season Dedication Award. Yusef Ebeid was the team’s Unsung Hero.
