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After a five-year hiatus, the sport of wrestling will return to The Woodstock Academy this winter.
It has made a host of student-athletes happy.
“I’m really excited to be able to do something this winter. Really excited that wrestling is coming back,” said Centaur senior Lucas Theriaque.
Coach Cahan Quinn had about a handful of interested athletes when the rebirth of the sport was announced last spring. Now there are 20.
It’s a sport of discipline. And it’s not for everyone. Wins and losses will not mean much this season.
“I really just want to see all the kids have a good attitude because it is going to be rough the first year back. It’s a really tough sport and I think they will learn that quickly,” the senior added.
The season has also begun on the road.
The mats that Woodstock used to wrestle on are gone.
The new mats have not arrived.
It has meant that the Centaurs have been working out at Putnam High School with the Clippers wrestling team and that has been a blessing in disguise.
“It’s been great. Putnam has hosted us for the last two weeks and their coaches have been awesome. We have been going against them and each other. It has given the kids a chance to see an established program and it has given them a sense of what a wrestling program should feel like in the future,” Quinn said.
During a recent weight certification, Quinn also decided to give his wrestlers a dose of reality as he showed the recordings of the ECC wrestling championships from last year.
“That way, they will have some sort of understanding what a real match looks like especially at the top tier,” Quinn said.
In addition to Theriaque, Anthony Buckner and Jacob Lizotte are the other two seniors on the squad.
Aidan Angel-Ouimetter and Gunnar Basak are the juniors on the squad, leaving the underclassmen to comprise the bulk of the team.
Sophomores Jacob Say, Dylan Phillips, Olivia DiGregorio, Kaylyn Hall, Owen Hamilton, Jackson Doraz, Andrew Landreville and Aidan Souhaloun will be joined by freshmen Jaden Bowers and Jake Henderson.
Among the assembled wrestlers for the Centaurs, two have prior wrestling experience, one has taken jiu-jitsu and another judo.
“We’re going to have a few forfeits but I don’t think it will be too many,” Quinn said of the prospect of filling the 14 weight classes. “It also depends on the teams we face and if they can fill the brackets. We are missing a heavyweight right now.”
The addition of the two female wrestlers, DiGregorio and Hall, is also a positive. according to Quinn.
“Hopefully, that number goes up in the future to really make sure the sport is diversified. Connecticut is already doing all-female tournaments so, hopefully, we can get more out and even have a girls’ team in the future if the numbers are there,” Quinn said.
The Centaurs plan on concentrating on dual tournaments with the first on Wednesday on the road in Lebanon against the Lyman Memorial-Windham Tech Cooperative.
The Centaurs are also investigating the possibility of participating in a couple of larger tournament-style events.
The senior’s big advice to his teammates is just to have fun.
Something Quinn is already doing.
“I’m very excited,” Quinn said. “I think this will be a big advantage to the school. It will help make a lot of athletes better. It should really help them with all the other sports they do.”
Marc Allard
Director of Sports Information
The Woodstock Academy
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