WESTTOWN >> The Moose of Westtown were knocked off their stoop at the top of the Friends School League last winter, ending a run of 10 straight seasons.
If Westtown can reclaim the title it has owned for much of the 2000’s, there’s a chance the Moose can stay on top awhile again with a large group of sophomore contributors on the squad.
Westtown got a bit of a tune-up for league season with a non-league win at home over Phelps School, 60-24, Tuesday.
Fourteen of the 24 team members are sophomores, and the team as a whole is determined to earn its way back to the top.
“They’re striving to get it back,” Westtown coach Jay Farrow said. “We’re a young team, but we’re not rebuilding. We have a young squad but I think we’re on our way back. We have a good squad of sophomores and the whole group is getting better and better.”
In a dual meet that had nine forfeits, the Moose won four of the five wrestled bouts, all by fall. Miguel Montoya (120 pounds) pulled his off most dramatically.
Down 12-0 midway through the second period to Phelps’ Eric Appenzeller, Montoya flipped the script, staving off a technical fall by getting Appenzeller on his back and finishing him at the 3:28 mark.
“(Montoya) was making his debut and actually got to 120 earlier than we expected, so I wasn’t even expecting him to wrestle,” Farrow said. “He was a little rusty, but caught him with something and closed the deal.”
James Choi (132), Carter Dean (138) and Dahoon Song (160) also engineered first-period falls for the Moose.
Phelps was without Zane Black, who was coming off a sixth-place finish at 220 pounds at one of the most-difficult tournaments in the country, the Walsh Ironman last Saturday.
Al Ciccitto (152) got the lone win for the Lions, using a second-period pin to get Phelps on the board. Ciccitto’s junior season was cut short when he had to medically forfeit the prep state finals last winter due to concussion symptoms.
“Al is the team leader and he’s had some bad luck,” Ira Miles said. “He collapsed in the state finals last year in a match he was winning with 15 seconds to go. We haven’t had a state champ yet, and we’re looking for Al and Zane to bring us one.”
Black, who transferred in from Wyoming Seminary after finishing fourth at prep nationals last year, gives Phelps some star power as a junior. He also gives freshmen Khasim Mumin (182) and Jameel Coles (195) a role model as they begin what many expect to be promising careers.
“These guys don’t know how lucky they are to get beat up every day (by Black),” Miles said. “They’re very fortunate to have mentors and coaches with the Beat the Streets program, and to be with a guy like Zane, who’s been wrestling for a long time. (Black) is a little bit of a nurturer and he takes a little bit of a coaching role with those guys. As freshmen, coming in they don’t know a lot of things. He’s able to say ‘ you should try something here,’ or ‘that won’t work at this level anymore,’ coming from middle school.”
Westtown 60, Phelps School 24
113- Shea (WT) won by forfeit (6-0)
120- Montoya (WT) pinned Appenzeller, 3:28 (12-0)
126- Gada (WT) won by forfeit (18-0)
132- Choi (WT) pinned Lubinski, 1:08 (24-0)
138- Dear (WT) pinned Spencer, 1:33 (30-0)
145- Mutch (WT) won by forfeit (36-0)
152- Ciccitto (PS) pinned Kramer, 2:42 (36-6)
160- Song (WT) pinned Hope, :44 (42-6)
170- Starr (WT) won by forfeit (48-6)
182- Carr (WT) won by forfeit (54-6)
195- Mumin (PS) won by forfeit (54-12)
220- Coles (PS) won by forfeit (54-18)
285- Berkenstock (P) won by forfeit (54-24)
106- Lisi (WT) won by forfeit (60-24)
