By: Ken Weingartner
Success in wrestling seems to rely on the future very little. The future merely provides new opportunities.
Success is built on the past.
More specifically, success comes from learning from the past and applying that knowledge to future matches.
Falcon wrestlers Justin Bauman and Greg Dennen both recognize that fact. For Bauman, it’s a blessing. For Dennen, it’s the source of regret.
Dennen is in his first year on the varsity and has wrestled just five years. The 152-pounder is 8-11 this season, and has won four of his last five dual matches, but realized earlier this month at the Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament that experience is a big factor.
"I wish I would’ve been wrestling since I was in the third grade," Dennen said. "At counties, a lot of those kids have been wrestling since third grade, or kindergarten, or something like that. For us, most of us started in middle school or high school. That’s the biggest difference in how that tournament goes. It takes a lot of work, a lot of practice to get where you want to be. I’ll regret having not started sooner because I would’ve been more talented than I am now."
Bauman, a sophomore, is in his second season on the varsity. Last year he won 14 matches. This season, he is 17-8 and placed seventh in the GMCT at 112 pounds. He has been wrestling since fifth grade.
"The experience I got last year definitely helped a lot," Bauman said. "There’s a big difference between jayvee and varsity when it comes to the skill of the wrestlers. It’s mostly about technique and how experienced you are."
Bauman participated in karate before taking up wrestling.
"My dad wanted me to do it to help me with my coordination," Bauman said. "I used to be the type of person who would trip over his own two feet. I started wresting, and I just liked it. The fact that I was good at it probably helped. It’s just fun."
He added with a laugh that his coordination is "really good now."
In placing seventh at the GMCT, Bauman posted wins over two wrestlers who had beaten him previously Vinnie Biondo of South Brunswick and Mike Hall of Middlesex. He hopes to use his success as a springboard for a strong showing at the District 20 Tournament. The district tourney is Feb. 28 and March 1. The top three finishers in each weight class advance to the Region 5 Tournament.
"I’m pretty pleased with my performance so far this season," Bauman said. "I’d like to go to districts and finish in the top three. It’ll be hard, but I think I can. The counties, in general, boosted my confidence. I showed I could wrestle with good people. I showed I could wrestle with the best."
If Bauman fails to finish among the top three, he will still have two more years to reach the regionals. For Dennen, a top-three finish is needed to extend his scholastic career.
"This will probably be it for me," Dennen said. "I’m really getting into wrestling more and more, so it will be a little disappointing when the season ends. I know I’m not going to get a great seed, but it would be nice to go to regionals and extend the wrestling season for a week and see what happens from there."
Dennen said his experience at the GMCT, his first major tourney, will help.
"I won’t be as nervous," he said. "I know what to expect. I want to see if I can improve from that. It was a pretty good experience. There were a lot of talented wrestlers. You learn things to work on by watching yourself and the better wrestlers."
Dennen said the "whole season has been a learning experience."
"I’ve learned there’s always room for improvement," he said. "With hard work and a lot of practice, you can always get better. I think this season went all right. I think I could’ve done better, but the latter part of the season is going better for me. I like how it feels when you win. It’s a real sense of accomplishment. You know that you stuck through all the practices and did all the things you don’t like to do, and you got something out of it. It’s a great feeling."Having had limited varsity experience, Dennen said there’s yet to be a real highlight to his wrestling career. But there’s still hope.
"We’ll have to wait for districts for that," he said.

