Senior leadership, experience and off-season preparation have all contributed to the varsity Bengals’ wrestling team’s current transition into the top tier of the county.

On Wednesday, Senior night, the Bengals ended their regular season with a massacre of the Poolesville Falcons, with a score of 56-12. Seniors Phil Menapace (undefeated in the regular season) and Joe Thomas ended their regular season high school careers on extremely high notes, both pinning their opponents in a matter of seconds. The Bengals capped of a stellar season with an even more impressing destroying of the Falcons from top to bottom.

On Saturday, January 29, the Bengals earned their ninth victory and their fourth loss with a 42-28 win over the Richard Montgomery Rockets and a surprising 24-39 loss to the Quince Orchard Cougars. After the match, the team’s record improved to 9-4, the best record in Blake history.

Senior 13---0 pound wrestler Connor Nesseler says, “This year we’ve surpassed everyone’s expectations for us. I am proud to be on the best wrestling team that Blake has had yet with a record of 9-4. Everyone is happy but no one is satisfied, we are still hungry.” Nesseler contributed yesterday with a victory against the Rockets.

Senior Joe Thomas who currently holds a record of 12-3 attributed much of the Bengals’ success to returning leadership and coaching. Regarding the team’s returners and the coaching Thomas stated, “Our team has shown a lot of experience and it feels like what the veterans have done is starting to show. Last year we got two more coaches, Chris and Tim Tao, who bring a lot of experience.”

Senior captain John Kimble expressed his excitement about the team which opened with a loss to Paint Branch, followed by five big wins in a row, losses to Springbrook and Magruder and then three straight wins. “I haven’t really wrestled much this season, but we’ve done great. Everybody is working harder in practice and it’s great to have the Taos as our coaches.”

Coach Rob Pinsky has had a chance to oversee the full growth and transformation of the widely respected squad from a bottom feeder to the cream of the county’s crop. Pinsky said, “We have a lot of depth this year with at least two people in each weight class and we’ve gotten better and better… The better we get, so too do our expectations.”

The Bengals, currently 9-4, have ended their days of being pounded.