Bulldogs wrestling honors seniors at tri meet

ROBBY FLETCHER Sports Editor

With the season inching closer to its ultimate conclusion, the Goochland Bulldogs welcomed the Dinwiddie Generals and the Patrick Henry Patriots to their home gym for a senior night tri meet that honored five Bulldogs making their way through their final seasons.

Seth Conrad, Noah Daniel, Riley Hite, John Summit and Reese Vincent were all honored in the middle of the meet, though Vincent was out due to an illness.

“The coaches and I have been around long enough to know that team dynamics change every now and then due to seniors graduating, and in this particular case, our team is definitely about to lose the driving force of its current identity,” head coach Jeremy Wampler said. “Noah and Seth have only been with us for two years, but they fit in perfectly with Reese, Riley and John, and we will miss them all sorely.”

The Bulldogs were down a number of wrestlers entering the meet and lost Summitt early in his first matchup due to a wrist injury, which played a part in Goochland losing 46-36 to Dinwiddie and 58-24 to Patrick Henry.

Only Conrad, Daniel and Summitt were available to wrestle on their senior night, and with Summitt leaving his battle with Dinwiddie’s Xander Nesmith in the first period with an injury default, that left Goochland’s other two available seniors to lead their team.

Conrad took a forfeit in Goochland’s favor against Patrick Henry and took on Dinwiddie wrestler Dylan Harris in the 285-pound class. Though Harris had the advantage throughout the matchup, Conrad fought hard to keep the match going into the third period, where he was eventually pinned for six team points for Dinwiddie.

Daniel split his matches in the 138-pound class, winning a dominant meeting against Dinwiddie’s Kaden Vandermark with a first period pin as he took the Generals wrestler down by the leg and quickly got his back to the mat. It was one of five pins for the Bulldogs in the Dinwiddie match, with three coming in the first period from Jordan Duke, Cannen Harlow and Ethan Winter. Mason Duke, 132 pounds, also won by pin in the second period.

Despite some positive results, two forfeits along with the injury forfeit for Summitt were key for the Generals to pull ahead, and they took home the road win.

Against a strong Patriots team, the Bulldogs got wins from Winter and 157-pound Jarin Evans, but six Patriots pins were too much to keep up with, and the result again went against the Bulldogs.

Winter had his second first period pin in as many tries, taking down Jesup Chandler and improving his overall season record, while Evans finished the job in the second period against Jacoby Williamson.

Though not the picture perfect send-off for its senior class,

Wampler says it was an honor to coach and work with these athletes as they approach the final moments of their wrestling careers at Goochland.

“These five have shown our team how to embrace the rigor, hard work, attitude and camaraderie that comes with wrestling, and they’ve led the way as Bob (Harris), and all the other coaches and I have worked to steer this program in the direction we’ve gone,” he said. “Without them, we wouldn’t have made the strides we’ve made over the past years, and we’ll do what we can to make sure the team remembers just who these guys are and how much they’ve impacted wrestling at Goochland.”

With the regular season now finished, the Bulldogs get set for a chance to compete at Warren County for the VHSL Region 3B Championship. Last year, the Bulldogs placed fourth in regions, with Vincent, Summit and Patrick Harlow all placing within the top-3 of their weight classes. This year, those core members of the team will hope to improve on those results.