ROCKINGHAM — Senior wrestler Naaman Perakis has been named the Official Richmond County Male Athlete of the Week presented by HWY 55.
Continuing a strong stretch of wrestling over the last month, Perakis showed out over the weekend with a perfect record and another first-place finish in his weight class.
One of the Raiders’ four senior captains, Perakis earned his first career recognition.
Athletic Profile
Year: Senior
Winter Sport: Wrestling
Division: 152-pounds
Years on Varsity: 4 years
Other Sports: Cross Country
“ON THE MAT” WITH NAAMAN PERAKIS
The Raiders traveled to Montgomery Central High School on Saturday to compete in a five-match dual tournament. Finishing 3-2 on the day as a team, Richmond defeated Lexington, Providence Grove and Randleman high schools.
Perakis was one of two seniors to finish the day with a perfect 5-0 record, but all of his victories came via pinfall, the only Raider to do so. As a result, he earned 30 points for Richmond and was crowned the 152-pound tournament champion.
This season, Perakis has an 18-6 overall record and is currently riding an 11-match winning streak. Dating back to Dec. 17, he has rattled off those wins with 10 pins and one forfeit victory over a series of tournaments and conference matches.
Over the weekend, Perakis made quick work of all of his opponents. His fastest victory came against Wyatt Griffith of Lexington, pinning his opponent just 32 seconds into the first round.
Perakis added pinfalls over Brice Baker (Oak Grove), Mitchell Freeman (Providence Grove), Caden Thorne (Randleman) and Ty Dixon (Southwestern Randolph).
Richmond’s wrestling team will host a Sandhills Athletic Conference meet against Hoke County and Scotland on Wednesday. The Raiders will wrestle at the Ninth Grade Academy, starting at 6 p.m.
That will be followed by the SAC championship tournament on Saturday at Hoke County, which will see Perakis contend for a conference title in his weight class.
RAPID RESPONSE VIDEO WITH NAAMAN PERAKIS Hear from Perakis, who explains the success of his current winning streak, describes his wrestling style and go-to moves and shares his aspirations for after graduation later this year. The Richmond Observer will publish two more Official Richmond County Athletes of the Week next week.
