Whitehall’s wrestling team picked up some steam last week as they won their first league meet of the season.

It came against the Dieruff Huskies, taking down the dogs, 41-27. The Huskies have been a thorn in their side the last few seasons, having defeated them in their last two meetings. This year the Zephyrs rode their stable of young and talented wrestlers to reverse that trend.

They came out victorious in eight matches, registering bonus points in five matches to help them ice the win.

They got pins from Marwan Rajha at 185 who decked Daniel Bartczak in 3:05, Jaden Youwakim who pinned Miguel Pena in 1:59 at 120, Josh Grol who stacked Jacon Wesler in 2:45 at 126, and Noah Rex who flattened Isaac Kassis in 2:43 at 132.

They also got decisions from John Kaintz at 160 and Michael Ajami at 195. Kaintz won 4-0 over Michael Colon, while Ajami won in a tiebreaker over Victor Alvarado, 5-1.

Their previous match against Bethlehem Catholic also highlighted their progress. This season they were able to win four bouts against the Golden Hawks, three of them resulting in bonus points. Last season they won just one bout against the perennial wrestling powerhouse who have won five PIAA team championships, including a AAA win in 2016.

Earning falls for the Zephs were Kai Clark and Noah Rex. Clark pinned Henry Pavis in 3:40 at 138, while Rex decked Christian Liedke in 2:59 at 126. Rajha also delivered bonus points, earning a 12-3 major decision over Nate Bennett at 182. Their other win was a 4-2 decision with Jaden Youwakim earning the victory over Matt Lackman at 120.

Head coach Tim Cunningham still sees areas for improvement. They may have closed the gap, but there’s more work to do.

“We wrestled well against Bethlehem Catholic, but we need to continue to work on the little things as well as the mental aspect of the sport of wrestling that will help individuals win close matches,” said Cunningham. “We are making progress but need to start stepping it up a notch and finish the dual meet season strong.”