The Emmaus wrestling team surged into the District 11 3A Duals with a victory a 58-9 victory at Pleasant Valley last Wednesday night to improve to 14-4 this season

Coach Jim Best’s club trailed early 6-9 with the six points courtesy of a Bear forfeit. Logan Armstrong gave the Green Hornets a lead they would not relinquish when he pinned Emmanuel Rivera at the 5:43 mark in the 127-pound tilt. Chancellor Henry then showcased some fine wrestling in the 133-pound bout with an 18-2 technical fall win over Benjamin Griffith at 5:57 to give the Hornets a 17-9 advantage.

Xayden Sallit continued the winning ways when he pinned John Careccia at 1:59 in the 139-pound match. Senior Marco Albanese won by technical fall over Jason Kays, 20-5 in the 145-pound match, while teammate Jesse Scott took care of Aldin Vukel 8-4 in the 152-pound matchup.

Albanese continued to show why he is among the better wrestlers in the EPC. His Pleasant Valley win raised his season mark 23-6 and improved his career record to 80-27.

“Marco pushes himself beyond his perceived mental limitations during every practice, but more importantly, he goes above and beyond what we do as a team to prepare for competition,” Best said. “He works out multiple times a day, makes responsible choices with his social life and diet, stays organized with his academic responsibilities, and competes in the sport on a year-round basis.”

Junior Sam Rainford earned his first career high school victory and he did it in style pinning Frederick Merklin in 3:27 for the 160-pound win. Lord Henry pinned Aiden Lollis in only 48 seconds to secure the 172-pound victory, and Reilly Bechtel pinned Pleasant Valley’s Jason Schubert at the 5:05 mark at 189.

Jake Gross has had a fine year for the Hornets and he continued that trend when he pinned James Barruzza in the 215-pound match at 3:47 for the win at 215 pounds. Finally, tough guy E.J. Boney won a 5-1 decision over Andrew Mihalichko for the 285-pound win.

Along with Albanese, Gross is a consistent winner this season for Emmaus. With his pin last Wednesday night, he improved his season mark to 24-5. Last season Gross was a sub-.500 wrestler, but he has turned it all around this year to Best’s delight.

“Jake pushes himself in the practice room on a daily basis,” Best said. “He keeps an open mind when receiving suggestions for improvement for his coaches.”