No Repeat for Decatur Grapplers

BERLIN- Stephen Decatur's varsity wrestling team's quest for a second straight state 4A-3A dual meet title ended last week with a 40-8 loss to eventual dual meet state champion Old Mill in the regional tournament.

The Seahawks entered the regional dual meet last Wednesday as the number-four seed, but faced a major obstacle in top-seeded Old Mill in the first round. Decatur won the state class 4A-3A dual meet for the first time ever last year and appeared to have momentum going into the regional dual meet this year, but Old Mill prevailed, 40-8, to end any hopes of a repeat.

Decatur wrestlers won just five of the individual matches in the meet against Old Mill in the first round of the regional tournament. At 119 pounds, Decatur's Devin Bataille beat Old Mill's Felipe Aleman. Corey Tobias topped Old Mill's Jason West for victory in the 130-pound class, while Josh Bargar took care of Caleb Marshall in the 145-pound class. At 152, Decatur's Danny Kominos beat Old Mill's Patrick Mahoney, while Seahawk stalwart Danny Miller took cruised to victory in the 215-pound class with a win over Old Mill's Sean Mahoney.

Old Mill went on to beat Bel Air in the region finals before winning the state championship with wins over Whitman and La Plata. The loss in the region semifinals did little to tarnish what has been another great season for the Seahawks and there is still a lot of wrestling to go. Decatur will compete in the Bayside Conference tournament this weekend at Cambridge-South Dorchester with a lot of bragging rights on the line. The season will culminate with the state championship meet during the first week of March.