This season, Westfield wrestling worked towards something bigger than wins, to wrestle not just as one team but to become better on and off of the mat. In a sport that is historically individual, the Blue Devils wanted to put their strongest team out on the mat and continue the success this program has created throughout the years. Unfortunately, with an inexperienced team facing physical competition all season Westfield had a tough time converting in the win column. Though the season ended with a 12-10 record the boys will continue pushing themselves to improve as one team next season.
The season started on a positive note, securing a win against Elizabeth then turning around and falling short to Governor Livingston in their next matchup. Westfield secured one more win against Arthur L. Johnson before their senior day matchup against Rahway.
The senior night matchup was gridlocked until the very end which ultimately resulted in a loss for the Blue Devils. This celebration of seniors Max Rotter and Noah Neimiera had its high points and showed Westfield they could win certain tough matches when it mattered.
These wins constantly came from junior Dylan Sontz, sophomore Jake Zemsky and Rotter. Regardless of the strength and record of individual wrestlers Westfield needed to capitalize on easy points and maintain stamina throughout their matches. Head coach Glen Kurz encouraged this in his team but knows they still need improvement. “While we had some outstanding individual efforts, we struggled to be a team. The great thing about wrestling is that the results don’t lie. The kids who did the right things were, for the most part, rewarded.”
Sontz will lead the team next year as a senior but wants to use what they learned from this season to propel the team forward. “Something big for next year is we’re a very young team. So we only have two seniors that are graduating, which means we have a lot of returning wrestlers for next season. So with that, like we’re gonna get a lot of maturity coming back and like just another year of experience and then with the freshmen coming up, we’ll be able to fill out a whole varsity lineup and should be a lot better next year.”
The next few matches for Westfield proved to be tough with a few wins peaking through, including heading up against one of their rivals Cranford. While Westfield tried to hold their ground they were outmatched physically and could not take down their intense opponent.
Following a few unexpected losses the season became a must win for Westfield. They were able to rally in a very tough Brearley matchcup pushing them straight into the sectional quarterfinals and semifinals.
The sectional championships are structured as one meet but, you must wrestle two teams to reach the finals. Westfield showed up ready, taking down Elizabeth in the first round without much of a thought. Sontz shared the Blue Devil mindset walking into the meet and it seemed to be a winning attitude, “And we knew that going into sectionals that in order to be better and maybe win whatever matches we had, we need to outwork your competition so that we could be the most prepared and best that we were for when like came postseason.”
However, after an exhaustive first effort Westfield was swiftly defeated by Bridgewater as their season came to a disappointing end. A few Westfield wrestlers moved on to districts and individual championship meets but as a team Westfield’s season had come to a dramatic close.
As for next year coach Kurz is already looking for a new strategy of attack to bring the winning spirit back to his team, “We will be making some changes in our approach next season. My coaching staff has gotten together and started some planning, but we need to see a more consistent desire to be here.”
