Pirates show promise despite loss

WW-P South wrestlers need lower weights to add experience

By: Bob Nuse
   At the moment, the West Windsor-Plainsboro South wrestling lineup has some big holes in it.
   Eventually, the holes that exist in the lower weights will be filled. And when they are, those wrestlers figure to combine with the veterans at the upper weights to give the Pirates a pretty good team.
   "Right now, from 152 up, we’re solid," said South senior Will Despeines, who picked up a win by pin at 160 pounds in the Wednesday’s 55-21 loss to Hightstown. "I think we’ll do well there. We have a lot of guys with experience who have done well before. We just have to get some of the young guys ready at the lower weights. There are some good wrestlers there, they just need to get some experience and then they’ll be ready for varsity matches."
   The Pirates certainly held their own on the mat with Hightstown on Wednesday, winning four of the 10 contested bouts. But forfeits at 112, 119, 125 and 135 put South in a hole that was just too much to dig out of.
   "The guys who wrestled did well," said South coach Craig Wilson, whose team also picked up wins from Misha Esipov, Joe Everingham and Adrien Schriefer against Hightstown. "We’re just real young at the lower weights. They’re all freshmen and sophomores and we’ll keep working with them. They have talent, we just have to get them ready. I think by the middle of the season, they’ll be ready.
   "The kid we had at 103 today, Jeremy Lopez, we’ve had him for seven days and he has made a lot of progress. He showed a lot of heart today and he’s going to come along."
   If the Pirates can get those lower weights up to speed my tournament time, they could be a team that could make an impact at the Mercer County Tournament. But right now, when you forfeit four weight classes, wins are tough to come by.
   "We’ve got some experienced wrestlers who have been successful at the upper weights," Wilson said. "I thought the match at 189 tonight, with Joe (Everingham) and Kenny Amponsa was probably a preview of the county final. Unless I’m missing someone, those two guys are probably at the top right now. And that was a great match."
   Everingham scored a couple of late points to win that match, 8-7. That, along with pins by Despeines, Esipov and Schriefer, accounted for the Pirates’ scoring.
   "Those are three seniors and a junior who has wrestled varsity since he was a freshman," Wilson said. "They all work hard and they have experience. They’ve done a good job of leading the younger wrestlers. There is a weight difference, so they don’t get to work with them on the mat, but they’ve helped them learn about what you need to do to be successful at this level."
   The Pirates opened the season at the Moorestown Classic last weekend, with Despeines taking a second place and Esipov and Everingham each taking third places. They’ll wrestle at the Holy Cross tournament today.
   "That was good competition down at Moorestown," Despeines said. "There were some good South Jersey teams. I was seeded fifth and upset the No. 1 seed to get to the finals. That was a good experience for our team. We didn’t have everybody there, but I think it still helped us.
   "Right now we have a big gap in our lineup. But once we get that filled, I think we’ll be solid. We already have good guys at the top. And some of the younger guys, like Joe’s brother (Nick Everingham) are already coming along. If we get it together, we could do well at the tournaments."
   And that makes losses like Wednesday’s easier to take. Because down the road, the Pirates know this is a team that has a chance to be pretty good.