The Sacred Heart University (SHU) men’s wrestling team opened their season on Nov. 11 in Bethlehem, Pa. They competed at Wranglemania and went 0-2, losing to both Long Island University (LIU) and Bloomsburg College.
They followed up those defeats with losses to Presbyterian College, North Carolina State University, as well as Cornell University. They are currently 0-5 on the season.
Source: Instagram, @sacredheartwrestling
Source: Keith Madison, Instagram, @sacredheartwrestling
“With beating those teams in the past, I definitely feel like we could have beat them this time. But I don’t want to get into a habit of making excuses,” said Head Coach John Clark.
SHU wrestling has been competing against LIU and Bloomsburg for five consecutive years, each time resulting in a different winner. However, more recently, SHU has fallen short, losing to them both this year and the last. Clark did not find the team’s previous season successful and senior Andrew
Fallon also recognized this. “It wasn’t the season I wanted to have. We wrestled a lot of tough teams
like Iowa, Lehigh, and Rutgers very early on. Facing them right off the bat was definitely a tough test,” said Fallon.
Although last season did not turn out in their favor, Fallon credited his teammates’ hard work and relentless effort through it all.
“We always had at least one or two kids who pulled in a good win,” said Fallon.
Clark also made note of this individual effort, specifically at the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association (EIWA) Championship.
At the end of the team’s previous season, 10 of their starting wrestlers represented SHU at the EIWA Championship. Although they finished 16th overall, Clark said he noticed the effort his men put in. Nine of those wrestlers are on the roster again this season.
Eight hours of the men’s week was dedicated to wrestling and preparation for the season.
The coaches focused on training the technique and skill of the individual athletes.
“After preseason I felt like the team was ready to kick it into full gear. We buckled down and were ready to compete,” said graduate student Scott Jarosz.
Clark said the score of their first match was deceiving. There were only small hiccups that cost them, but was ultimately happy with how the matches went individually.
Jarosz and Fallon both went 2-0 in their faceoffs.
“I want to bring my teammates with me and help them improve as well to help us get some team wins this year,” said Fallon.
In the next six months, Clark said he will continue to push his men for great individual effort in hopes of a successful season.
“I’m not here to make predictions but I’m here to look forward to the challenge,” said Clark.
The Pioneers are back at it on Friday, Dec. 1 when they travel to Las Vegas, Nev. when they take part in the Cliff Keen Invitational.
Sacred Heart Athletics contributed to this article.
