ROCKINGHAM — The Richmond Senior High School wrestling team’s focus this season has been to develop a young program under first year head coach Richard Kerekes and assistant head coach Andre’ Ellerbe.
And that’s what the Raiders did during Wednesday’s Sandhills Athletic Conference tri-match against visiting Hoke County and Seventy-First high schools.
A night after splitting two non-conference matches, the Raiders defeated the Falcons 42-27, but fell to the Bucks 21-54.
Although his team didn’t get the sweep, and forfeits played a factor due to low participation for all three squads, Kerekes said the Raiders continue to improve in each weight class during each match.
“We are a really young program, but each match I see our kids going the distance and wrestling a lot better every time,” Kerekes noted. “The competition is tough, but with each match we are scoring more points.
“We’re working every day to get better and I’m proud of the guys’ efforts.”
Senior 170-pounder Kaden Walker (yellow) was the only Raider to win both matches by pinfall on Wednesday. (Kyle Pillar)
Against Seventy-First, the Raiders collected 24 points via a forfeit. Those winners were freshman Aiden Rountree (113-pound), junior Andres Sanchez (126-pound), sophomore Christian Sanchez (132-pound) and senior Michael DeMay (145-pound).
The Raiders collected three pinfall victories against the Falcons, starting with sophomore 138-pounder Naaman Perakis. Battling against William Brantley, Perakis held a 5-2 lead before pinning Brantley to the mat with two seconds remaining in the first round.
Senior Kaden Walker, the only Raider to win both of his matches by pinfall, started with a pin over Demontrious Ratliff in the 170-pound contest. Holding a 2-0 lead midway through the first round, Walker flipped Ratliff onto his back for the pin at the 1:14 mark.
In the heavyweight match, sophomore Jerry Cogg went to work against Anthony Mack. The 285-pounder pinned his Falcon opponent with 48 seconds left in the first round despite holding a 2-0 lead.
Freshman Braxton Jenks wrestled Jahmir Lucas in the 160-pound bout and went all three rounds. The two wrestlers were knotted in a 3-3 tie, but Jenks fell in the final seconds due to locking his hands.
Sophomore Jerry Cogg (yellow) looks up for direction during his 285-pound match against Seventy-First. (Kyle Pillar)
Richmond struggled against a fast and physical Hoke County team, but Jenks, Rountree and Walker all secured victories by pin. Andres Sanchez added three points with a minor decision win.
Starting in the 113-pound match, Rountree jumped out to a 12-4 lead over Angelina Kulczewski in the first round. With four seconds left on the clock, Rountree pinned Kulczewski for Richmond’s first six points.
Andres Sanchez went the distance against Nathan Oakes in the 126-pound match, completing all three rounds with a 9-4 minor decision victory. Sanchez led 6-2 after the first round and was up 9-4 after the second period.
Jenks collected his solo win of the night against Evans Stephens-McIntosh in the 160-pound battle, taking just 1:13 into the first round to pin the Hoke County wrestler.
Walker wrapped the match with another pinfall win against Sam Glazebrook in the 170-pound contest. After a physical first round, Walker led 5-1, and closed the door with the pin with five seconds left in the second.
Junior 126-pounder Andres Sanchez (black) works against Hoke County’s Nathan Oakes. (Kyle Pillar)
The Raiders surrendered 18 points via forfeit and lost seven matches by pinfall to the Bucks.
Richmond (8-6, 4-3 SAC) will return to the mat in another non-conference tri-match at Douglas Byrd High School on Monday.
