Wrestling Team Pins Competition

Alexander Shavishvili ’20 locks up an Erasmus opponent.

Photo Credit: Tom Ng

By DIMITRI GAMKRELIDIZE, AYAN KHAN, CHELSEA NOEL, and TETYANA OLEKSYSHYN

Boys Wrestling beat Stuyvesant 48-36 to win their first scrimmage of the year on December 6. However, they struggled to keep the momentum going against Grand Street Campus, losing 66-18 on December 12 to bring the team’s record to 1-1. 

Although wrestling seems to be a simple sport in which one competitor tries to pin the other on his back, there is much more to it. Wrestling is just as much as a mental game as it is a physical one. 

Ibrahim Mohamed ’19, the captain of the wrestling team, said, “I try to clear my mind, keep calm, and keep a positive mentality. In my experience, being unconfident or distracted can shift the outcome of the match, which I learned when I lost last year in Brooklyn Finals.” 

“Wrestling has taught me composure, confidence, and humility,” said Mohamed. “On top of that, being on a team with people who lift each other up and and push each other to the limit has given me hard-working experience.”

Dennis Kaplan ’21 said the team’s goal is to “destroy the opponent, break them down mentally and physically, and mess with their mind.”          

 The coach, Mr. Michael Dowd, referred to this year as a “rebuilding year” because of all the new wrestlers coming in. 

With that in mind, older team members are focusing on sculpting the new members.

“We’re teaching basic skills to the new guys who are just coming to the team,” said Mohamed.

The team won’t settle for anything less than a city title this year.

“I think the team will have a lot of success,” said Emre Mabocoglu ’19.