With a 5-2 start on the season, Oxford Varsity Wrestling Coach Paul McDevitt expects the Wildcat grapplers should be pretty good this year.
‘We are bringing back most of the starters from last year’s state quarter finalist team and the squad is full of experience and talent,? McDevitt said. ‘If we are able to get the right kids in the right weight classes and stay healthy, we could be contending for a state championship at the end of the year.?
To lead this year’s team, McDevitt is depending on his senior captains Alex Hrisopoulos and Wyatt Harden.
‘A majority of our lineup is still underclassmen,? he added. ‘The mixture of talented underclassmen and fantastic seniors is a great recipe for sustained success.?
As far as new guys, McDevitt believes it’s one of the best freshman classes they’ve had. Out of the 40-man roster, 20 of them are freshmen.
‘Many of these freshmen are working their way into the starting lineup on a team that is contending for a state championship. That right there tells you about the caliber of this freshman class,? he said. ‘The freshmen are also providing excellent depth and a competitive room for daily practice.?
One of the team’s strengths this year is its ‘balance across the weight classes,? McDevitt noted.
‘When we have our lineup healthy and intact, each weight class has a solid wrestler, with a few of them (being) outstanding,? he said. ‘That balance allows us to maneuver our lineup to get the match-ups that favor us without compromising somewhere else.? That is difficult for many teams to match up with.?
One of the goals of the season is to continue the league championship winning streak. The Wildcats have dominated the OAA league every year since joining five years ago and the prior three years, they were league champions in the Flint Metro League (FML).
‘Clarkston and Rochester Adams will probably be our biggest challenge to continue our streak,? McDevitt noted.
The other goals of the season are to win districts, regionals and ultimately, win the state championship.
‘We have built an extremely challenging schedule for this season.? We have sought out the best teams in the state to compete against week in and week out. We are traveling to Fort Wayne, Indiana to a national tournament to compete against some of the best teams in the nation,? explained McDevitt. ‘We are also traveling around the state to compete against the strongest competition from all divisions.? Our goal is to be battle-tested and ready to compete at the highest level when the state tournament comes around in February.?
Part of that battle-testing took place this past weekend when Oxford had a few Wildcats wrestle in the Individual Detroit Catholic Central Invitational.
‘We had a pretty good showing. There are some places we could have been a little bit better and there are some places where we surprised ourselves,? McDevitt explained. ‘Overall, it was probably one the toughest individual tournaments that I’ve ever seen.?
McDevitt said the tournament was a combination of several state champions going against each other in the same weight class as well as the best teams in Division I, II and III all represented at the invite.
Out of 22 teams, Oxford finished eighth. Wyatt Harden, senior, took second at 215 pounds. Alex Hrisopoulos, senior, went 4-1 on the day and took third at 140 pounds. Jacob Call, junior, went 4-1 and took fifth.
‘It’s kind of a strange tournament because depending on what round you lose in, depends on whether or not you can get back to third place,? McDevitt explained. ‘Even though Jacob went 4-1 on the day and Alex went 4-1, Jacob ended up in fifth place, which was best he could do (according to the round he lost in) and Alex got third, so some fifth places and third places are almost the same.?
One of the surprises of the day for McDevitt was how well Call did. ‘He’s been wrestling 119 all year,? he said. ‘Bumping up to 125 and still going 4-1 on the day, that was a really classy showing for him, so I was really happy with that.?
Sergio Borg, sophomore, placed fifth at 130 pounds and Ryan Miller placed sixth at 119 pounds. It was also junior Vinny Vackaro’s first time back on the mat following an injury last season. Vackaro went 2-2 on the day.
‘He did a nice job and it’s good having him back,? McDevitt said.
As far as things to work on, McDevitt said the team has to learn how ‘to compete at a really high level with the best of the best.?
‘It takes a learning curve because your intensity level and preparedness has to be there,? he added.
He said they also need work on ‘getting off the bottom (position)?
‘We just spent too much time on the bottom,? McDevitt said. ‘When you’re going against really good wrestlers you don’t want to be on the bottom for very long because that will hurt you.?
McDevitt noted the competition going forward isn’t going to get any easier.
The Wildcat grapplers are heading to Fort Wayne, Indiana this weekend for a national dual meet where they will wrestle teams from Ohio, Indiana and Michigan.
‘It’s going to be another tough competition,? McDevitt said. ‘In our pool is last year’s Division I State Champ Brighton and Division II State Champ Lowell. So, our duals from Michigan are going to be real tough. I don’t know about the other ones from Ohio and Indiana.?
The Wildcats? first home dual meet will be against the Clarkston Wolves Jan 13.
Wrestling starts at 5:30 p.m.