The weather outside has gotten colder, and North’s boys wrestling team has gotten bolder! The season started off with a bang, the first meet happened on Saturday, Nov. 18th and ending with a 42-36 North win. In wrestling, the point breakdown is a little different from other sports. According to student manager, junior Yuliet Monatukwa, “Individually [in scoring], most points are scored by takedowns (2 each), reversals (2 each), escapes (1 each), and near falls (2 or 3 points each). Pins are always the best because they are automatic wins and worth the most points for the team [score] (6 each).”

Of course, the win wasn’t a surprise to the wrestling team, with all the practice they put in weekly. They practice every day after school, with morning practices two to three times a week. With a schedule this grueling, one would think that there might be tension in the team, but according to freshman Danny Monatukwa, the opposite is true. “The practice schedule is continuous work, but as is with every sport… It’s not bad, it’s just work. The team dynamic is really like a family. We do dumb stuff. We check up on weight and call each other out on the important things, like attitude and effort. We look out for each other.”

When asked about what made wrestling different from other sports, Danny said, “Wrestling is both a team and individual sport. You’re competing against everyone in the practice room and outside of the practice room. Teammates are your best friends, but sometimes you absolutely hate them because they beat you to a shot or they lapped you in that last sprint. Everything’s a competition amongst us, but everything you do and everyone on the team will make you a better wrestler if you put 110% effort in.”

Even though it’s still only the beginning of the season, it’s safe to say that boys wrestling is off to a great start, and hopefully an even better future.