Allentown High’s Nick Painchaud wins MCT wrestling championship at 112 pounds.
By: Kyle Moylan
TRENTON Nick Painchaud has done a lot of growing this year in both height and stature as a wrestler.
The height was inevitable. His brother Tom, a District 25 champion last year, and uncle are both comfortably over 6 feet tall. The wrestling took a lot of work.
Painchaud always was a good wrestler. He placed third in District 25 last season. This year, however, he has become a very special wrestler. He’s been Allentown Coach Ed Dunckley’s most valuable weapon all season, moving back and forth from 112 to 119 pounds while posting a 16-0 record.
Painchaud picked up three of those wins this past weekend while winning the 112-pound weight class in the Mercer County Tournament, held at Trenton High School.
The top seed, Painchaud received a bye in the first round Friday night. In the quarterfinals, he disposed of Hightstown’s Alec Wong via a pin.
On Saturday, Painchaud defeated Hopewell’s Ryan Hamor in the semifinals by a major decision, 13-4. He then took care of Ewing’s Darin Kitashima in the finals, 6-1.
The first time he faced Kitashima, Painchaud won the match, 13-11, in overtime. Dunckley felt a lot more confident this time.
"I figured Nick had the upper hand," Dunckley said. "Nick has been on and off at 112 and 119 all year. I always wrestle Nick against the tougher kid, but he weighs in at 112. Kitashima dropped down for this tournament."
Unfortunately for Kitashima, there was a major road block in both weight classes. It was face off against an undefeated wrestler who had already defeated him or against Hamilton’s Frankie Page, the defending champion at 119 pounds.
"Nick did an outstanding job," Dunckley said. "He’s an outstanding wrestler."
It’s a good thing Dunckley speaks highly of Painchaud because the Allentown junior will rarely pat himself on the back. In addition to wrestling ability and a sudden height growth, self-deprecating humor also appears to be inherent in the Painchauds.
Despite a perfect record and MCT championship, Painchaud was quick to play down his accomplishments. In fact, when reminded that he was at the Region VII Tournament last year, Painchaud couldn’t help but laugh and add "but not for long. Just 26 seconds. Right on my back."
Of course by then, 95 percent of the wrestlers in the state already were home eating lasagna and Oreos.
Even with the growth spurt, weight has yet to become a major issue for Painchaud. Just a 103-pounder last year, Painchaud says wrestling at 112 pounds hasn’t been much of a chore for him. And the rewards are definitely worth the sweat.
"It was a lot easier wrestling at 112," noted Painchaud. "The guys at 119 are a lot stronger. As long as I made weight and didn’t mess up, I knew what I had to deal with. I had seen most of them at 112. The ones that I thought I might have a problem with (in the MCT), I got down and wrestled against in the regular season. It makes it a lot easier."
But nonetheless impressive. A MCT title is a MCT title. A 16-0 record is a 16-0 record.
"It’s all right," Painchaud said. "If I win more, it gets better. I’m not going to worry about it. I’ll just take it match by match."
And be ready for the District 25 Tournament at Steinert on Feb. 22-23.
"When it gets here, I’ll start thinking about it," Painchaud said. "I have the last portion of this season to worry about.
"It’d be nice if I could win the districts and go back to the regions, but I’m not going to predict anything.
"My freshman year I didn’t do anything. Last year I was third in the districts. You gradually go up from year to year."