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Haverhill edged Georgetown, 36-33, thanks to a pin at 152 by Jared Grazio. The Hillies (4-5) needed a decision by Grazio for a tie, but he delivered the pin with four seconds left in the second period. Mike Brigandi also came up big with a decision at 215.

Those anticipating a close meet were proven wrong by a trio of North Andover freshmen. Behind the three youngsters, the Knights blasted Wilmington 55-9. Freshmen Pat MacLean (103) and Jason Ricketts (112) both posted pins and 125-pounder Robert Drover claimed an 8-3 decision. Ricketts has won 12 straight matches.

The Pinkerton wrestling team defeated Concord for the first time in its history, 40-30. The Astros had five pins and a key 7-5 overtime win by Matt Morin at 171. Also, 160-pounder Josh Kaake was key in an 8-1 loss to Concord standout Derek Brisson by staying off his back."This is definitely a big win for us," said Pinkerton coach Ken Najem.

Wrestling in the Frank DeMeo Duals Memorial Team Tournament, Triton pulled off impressive victories over Essex Junction, VT 40-27 and Algonquin Regional 46-19 before falling to Central Catholic in the finals to take home second place. Dan Chandler was voted Triton's MVP at 119 taking home three wins in the meet.

With a tremendous evening round, Timberlane's wrestling team grabbed the lead after the first day of the rugged 74-team Eastern States Classic in upper state New York. The Owls have 94 points and Shenendehowa is second with 87.

 Despite a lopsided score Triton coach Shawn McElligott said the final result was not indicative of how closely his team performed against the perrenially strong North Andover Scarlet Knights.

Only four days after squaring off in the finals of the Greater Lawrence Boys Christmas Tournament, Andover (4-1) will be at Central Catholic (5-0) at 7:30 p.m. today.

The highly regarded Raiders held off the Warriors 59-51 in the championship game. Carson Desrosiers had 17 points and Billy Marsden added 14 for the winners and Joe Bramanti led Andover with 12 points. 

SANFORD, Maine — Once again, the Timberlane wrestling team completed a holiday sweep of two of the toughest tournaments in New England.
But it wasn’t easy.
The Owls, after a tough semifinal round, battled back in the final round yesterday to capture the Redskin Invitational in Sanford, Maine, for the third year in a row and fifth time in six years.
Timberlane, which won the Lowell Holiday Tournament six days earlier, finished with 221 points with Connecticut power Danbury second (188 1/2) in the 20-team field.
“We had a tough semifinal round, and lost some we should have won, but I was really proud of the way we came back in the consolation round,” said Timberlane coach Barry Chooljian. “Things weren’t going our way, and we were definitely the hunted, but I liked the way we battled back.”
Five wrestlers recovered from semifinal losses to finish third. They were Zach Bridson (103), Dave Clemens (135), Nick Lawrence (145), Eric Petrillo (171) and sophomore Ben Tammany (215). It was the best tournament performance yet for Tammany.
The Owls had three finalists, meanwhile, and each captured their weight classes. Cam Sullivan won his first major tournament at 125, recording a major decision in the finals, and Alex Smith (130) and heavyweight Brian Nicoll both followed their Lowell Holiday titles with crowns.
Smith also had a major decision in the finals and Nicoll claimed a 6-2 decision.
The schedule won’t get any easier for the Owls, who’ll be at the rugged Eastern States Classic next weekend.

The Timberlane wrestling team is tied for first with Danbury (CT) after Day 1 of the 24-team Sanford Redskin Invitational with 90 points. Third place Lisbon (ME), one of the top two teams in the state, trails with 83.5 points. The Owls have eight wrestlers in the semifinals including Zach Bridson (104), Matt Morris (119), Cam Sullivan (125), Alex Smith (130), David Clemens (135), Nick Lawrence (145), Eric Petrillo (171) and Brian Nicoll (HVY).

Missing five starters, Lawrence downed Lexington 57-24 but fell to Shawsheen 44-24. Jose Varela (215), Melvin Rivera (119) and Pedro Cruz (heavy) each went 2-0 for the Lancers (7-2).

Georgetown beat Northbridge 45-30 but fell to Hamilton-Wenham 42-27 and Pentucket 40-36. Dean Nemeroff, Cody McCarthy and Zach Rabel all went 3-0 for the Royals.

Georgetown beat Northbridge 45-30 but fell to Hamilton-Wenham 42-27 and Pentucket 40-36. Dean Nemeroff, Cody McCarthy and Zach Rabel all went 3-0 for the Royals.

WEST NEWBURY — Talk about lack of respect!
Not only was North Andover junior 135-pounder Jake Munroe unseeded in yesterday’s Pentucket Tournament, but his first name was listed incorrectly (as Jack) throughout the day.
Munroe should be more recognized in the future, however, as he rolled to the 135-pound title with three pins and a solid 9-3 decision in the finals over Pentucket’s Dan Dragon.
Munroe’s heroics helped North Andover tcapture its first non-league tournament crown in two years. The Knights compiled 163 points to defeat runner-up Roxbury Latin by 13 points. North Reading/Lynnfield was fourth in the 17-team field and Brooks was sixth.
North Andover had never entered a full varsity team at the Pentucket tourney, but veteran coach Dave Castricone thought this year was the perfect time to make a run at the title rather than knock heads at the rugged Lowell Holiday Tournament.
“With so many young guys, I thought it’d be good to get this kind of experience and maybe get some momentum for them,” said Castricone.
That thinking worked perfectly for Munroe, who had never even placed in a tournament before yesterday.
“I wasn’t expecting this, but it’s definitely a morale boost,” said Munroe, who entered the tournament with a 6-2 record. “I feel great about it.”
The Knights had two other champions in 145-pounder Sal Scali and 152-pounder Derek Timpe. They captured clutch one-point decisions in the finals against No. 1-seeded wrestlers.
Finishing third for North Andover were Brody Kelly (119) and Garrett Alter (160) while Jason Ricketts (112) and heavyweight Mike Miller both came in fourth.
North Reading/Lynnfield, which placed five wrestlers, was paced by 140-pound champion C.J. Venuto of North Reading. He improved his record to 12-1 on the year, recording three pins on the day, including one in the finals.
Brooks enjoyed a superb final round. Connor Duffey remained unbeated on the year, pinning his final three opponents to place first at 103, Mike O’Boyle followed three pins with a 12-3 major decision in the finals to take top honors at 119 and Haverhill’s Colin Lahiff prevailed at 160.
Wrestling up a weight, Lahiff got a takedown with eight seconds left to secure an exciting  4-3 decision over Souhegan’s rugged Tyler Lott.  Also for Brooks, Billy Walton was third at 152.
For Whittier, Pat Scheidegger looked sharp while winning the 215-pound title, following two first-period pins with a 10-4 decision in the finals. Pentucket had runners-up in Dragon and 145-pounder Austin Perreault and Ben Stasiuk battled back to third at 189.

Lawrence wrestling's Pedro Cruz earned a big win over Josiah Quincy's Dante Wilson, who finished third in the state last year. Cruz, a heavyweight, pinned Wilson in overtime. Kevin Valerio had a big day as well, going 3-0. The Lancers swept Masconomet, Andover and Josiah Quincy.