The last holidays of 2018 have brought on some serious competition for the Downingtown East wrestlers. Once again, the Cougars competed in an event with only ten men and a tough field. Conestoga Valley’s annual Buckskin Classic during the weekend of 12/28 and 12/29 included 27 teams and a host of individual talents. At the conclusion of the two-day event, East finished in 7th place with 120.5 points, the second highest placing team from District 1. Keanu Manuel (106) was the lone champion for the Cougars, but Matt Romanelli (170) placed second, and Lukas Richie (138) and Jack Scheerer (195) claimed 3rd place finishes. Rounding out the placers was Zach Sharaf (285) who finished in 6th. All of the five fought their way to the semi-finals of the tournament, a strong number for only entering ten wrestlers. Now, 2019 and the dual meet season awaits and it’s time for the Cougars to rekindle the energy and motivation to make the big push towards March! Happy New Year to all DE wrestlers, coaches, parents, and community!
Month: December 2018
Downingtown East rumbles at the “new-look” Chesmont League tournament!
This past Saturday, the Chesmont Legaue held its annual league tournament at WC Rustin. It seemed odd taking place in December, but the revamped qualifying system in District 1 allowed the league to bring its teams together nice and early! The twelve teams competed fiercely, and the Cougars made their mark. At the conclusion, East secured 4th place with 174.5 points, just shy of the 3rd place honor. Due to injury and illness, there were only 10 Cougars available, but these soldiers did their jobs. Keanu Manuel (106), Lukas Richie (138), and Matt Romanelli (170) collected championship gold, while Jett Lucas-Murphy (145) fell short in the finals and ended with silver. Kyle Mittelsadt (132), Jack Scheerer (195), and Zach Aceto (220) wrestled back hard after losses and took 3rd place finishes. Sean “The Iceman” Mullen (126) also fought back and secured a 6th place to round it out. East certainly exceeded expectations, and made the coaches and community proud putting themselves in the top third of the league. Next up for East is the prestigious Conestoga Valley tournament in a week. In the meantime, Merry Christmas to all, and to all, a good night!
The Cougars bring their game to Delaware Valley University!
Over this second weekend of the official season, the Cougar wrestlers travelled to Delaware Valley University to compete in Archbishop Wood’s annual “Kurt Meister Invitational.” The eight-team individual tournament got cooking at 9:00am and East battled with 10 wrestlers to claim a second place team finish. They lost by 2.5 points to champions Bangor, who were able to fill every weight class and barely edge the competiton. The Cougars had four individual champions: Keanu Manuel (106), Lukas Richie (138), Matt Romanelli (182), and Zach Sharaf (285). They also had a second place winner in Jett Lucas-Murphy (145). Collecting bronze medals were Kyle Mittelstadt (132) and Spencer Uggla (170). The event also had a JV scrum, and East registered big winners in Billy Dyer (170), Zach Aceto (285), and Connor Huntoon (145). Congrats go out to all of the wrestlers for a long day wrestling and valuable achievement! Next up on the schedule is the inaugural December “Chesmont Tournament” where league honors await! Good luck Cougars!!!
D-East kicks off 18-19 at the Ephrata Duals
On Saturday 12/8, wrestling teams across the great state of Pennsylvania began their campaigns for 2018-2019. Downingtown East was no different making their annual trip to Ephrata for their 8-team dual meet event. At the end of the day, East finished 5th with a final record of 3-2. They fell to Biglersville 37-34 and Spring Grove 54-16, but defeated Ephrata 54-21, Lower Dauphin 51-27, and Reading 48-30. Matt Romanelli (182) collected a 5-0 record on the day, while Keanu Manuel (106), Kyle Mittelstadt (132), and Jack Scheerer (195) all went 4-1. Junior utility man Sean “The Iceman” Mullen secured a 3-2 record and scored a few come-from-behind wins in the process. Overall, the Cougars were definitely rusty and need to continue their development. This coming practice week will demand serious focus as they get ready for The Kurt Meister Invitational, their first individual tournament of the year!
Downingtown East Wrestling 