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The Wyoming Seminary wrestling team is on a mission to make history, something the Blue Knights have done a lot of over the last two seasons.
Fresh off a record-breaking performance at the Pennsylvania Prep Championships when Sem shattered the points record scoring 375 points for its ninth straight state crown, the team heads to the National Prep Wrestling Championships at Lehigh University this weekend trying to win a national title in consecutive seasons for the first time in school history. Its other national championships came in 1937, 1947 and 1952.
In 2014, the Blue Knights crowned a pair of national champs en route to 299.5 points and unseating Blair Academy as national titlist. They enter nine wrestlers coming off state championships and five as top seeds for this weekend’s event, which starts at Stabler Arena at 8:30 a.m.
The No. 1 seeds for the event are Will Moss (106 pounds), Jack Mueller (120), Chris Weiler (160), Nick Reenan (170) and Mike Rogers (285). Trent Olson, who was national runner-up in 2014, is seeded No. 2 at 126, while Will Verallis (138) and Zane Black (195) grabbed No. 3 seeds.
Moss, Mueller, Olson, Verallis, Weiler, Reenan and Rogers claimed state titles last week along with Harrison Nye at 220 and Jonathan Carrera at 152. Nye is seeded sixth this weekend, while Carrera is the No. 5 seed. Also seeded for the Blue Knights is John Busiello (sixth at 132), Danny Boychuck (fourth, 145) and Anthony Cable (fourth, 182). Freshman Max Toman also qualified for nationals as Sem qualified all 14 wrestlers for the event.
Blair has been the Blue Knights’ nemesis, but after winning the national title last year and defeating the Bucs in a dual last month, Seminary may now be the favorite heading into nationals as the team returns six national medalists from last year including runners-up Olson, Verallis, Reenan and Weiler. Rogers was fourth in last season’s tournament, while Busiello placed fifth as the Knights look to build on a team record of crowning a national titlist seven consecutive years.
The success of the program is just getting started too, as 11 of the team’s 14 national qualifiers are underclassmen and many other underclassmen are full of potential.
One of the possible matches that could impact the team scores this weekend between Sem and Blair are at 138 where Verallis could see Blair’s Matt Kolodzik, who is the No. 1 seed at 138. When the teams met earlier this season in a dual, Kolodzik pinned Verallis. The two met in last year’s finals with Kolodzik coming out on top.
After the opening round Friday morning, the quarterfinals are slated for 6 p.m. Wrestling continues Saturday morning with semifinals at 8:30 a.m. and concludes with the finals at 12:30 p.m.
If you can’t make it to Lehigh for the event, you can see action live on FloWrestling.