By Patrick Glenn ’16

The West Essex Wrestling Knights begin their new season with a change of format. Many of the seasoned and battle-tested wrestlers have moved on. In their place is a new crop of athletes who will look to continue the success from year’s past. With many talented wrestlers to replace from last year’s squad such as Marc McDonald, the team will have many challenges ahead of them.

The team are still getting their bearings as of now. Their record of  3-2 illustrates that the team is overall young and inexperienced.

While the starting varsity lineup does include a few seasoned contributors, there is a large portion of this year’s team that is just getting there first varsity experiences.

Senior leader and experienced wrestler Matt Jones believes that while the squad is young, it has great potential to find increased success throughout the rest of the winter season.

“With a young team it’s hard to get off to a great start, but we are quick learners and with our great coaching staff it looks like we will be getting hot at the right time,” Jones said.

Despite barely being over .500, the team, and especially its senior leaders, have not lowered their expectations for the season. “Our hopes and our objectives as a team are to beat anything and everything that gets thrown our way, and to win the county, sectional and district tournaments.”

The team’s varsity roster includes a load of young raw talent, including two freshman in Billy Garofalo and Mike Ruane, as well as several other sophomore and juniors. One of those juniors is RJ Bell (126), who is receiving the first varsity experience of his career. The challenge of raising his game to the next level has been daunting, yet rewarding for him.

“It has been a tough challenge but being a part of the varsity team has taught me a lot about commitment and perseverance,” Bell said.

However, there are also three first year varsity starters in Ryan Coia (Heavyweight), Joe Gambino (182) and Frank Hunter (220). Hunter, receiving some varsity time last year as a junior, believes that the team is getting better each and every day.

“With a lot of guys receiving varsity experience for the first time, the beginning of the season can present a big challenge,” Hunter said. “However, with more practice and matches, every individual is getting better, and through that, we are definitely collectively improving as a team.”

Having a lot of young wrestlers with little varsity experience, Jones and Hunter, as well other upperclassmen, have put certain obligations on themselves to help their younger teammates.

“It’s a big responsibility to teach them the ways of the program and make sure they retain the teaching they receive, but it’s also very gratifying and new to be looked up to as a leader and big-brother type,” Jones said.

The older wrestlers are being looked upon to set an example for the guys who are just starting out. For some, it could mean their first season of wrestling, while for others, it could possibly be the first time they are part of a team. Being a part of a team means relying on your fellow teammates and trusting that they will always have your back. The veterans on the team will be asked to provide a comfortable scene in the locker room and during tournaments.

Coach Markey will lead the new team into the season with high hopes and new lessons to learn. While nervousness may have arose at the start of the season, that sense has vanquished with many matches complete.

With the bulk of the season to look forward to, the West Essex wrestling Knights look to make continuous improvements and work their way to the top. Their current group of wrestlers are boys who are inexperienced and new, but willing to learn any lesson that will help them obtain their goal.

The consensus in the locker room is that with more and more experience, the younger wrestlers will begin to feel more comfortable in their positions, and ultimately help the team make noise in the ensuing matches and tournaments during the season.