Powered by two first-place finishers and depth, New Bedford took the top spot in the MIAA Division I South sectional wrestling sectional championship meet on Saturday in Weymouth.
Wins from Anthony Bojorquez (113 pounds) and Josiah Martins Semedo (126) led the way for the Whalers.
Weymouth and Xaverian both earned team spots in the top-five, placing fourth and fifth, respectively.
The Wildcats’ 143 point total was spearheaded by three first-place finishes from Mustafa Mzaouak (106), Jake Thompson (165) and Kevin Mackin (175).
Mzaouak bested Jowell Quinones of Tauton with a quick pin at 1:09 of the first period in the 106-final. Thompson won his 165-pound final by a 4-2 decision against Nathan Hicks from Bristol-Plymouth.
Mackin followed up his teammates’ performances with a 8-2 decision win over Xaverian’s Joseph Karvelis. After no points in the first period, Mackin pulled ahead during the second with a 4-2 lead. From there, Mackin added four more points with a takedown and an escape in the third to secure the Wildcats’ third individual championship win of the day.
Weymouth also had three fourth-place finishes and one in sixth to secure the No. 4 spot.
Xaverian edged past Bridgewater-Raynham by 3.5 points to round out the top five with a total of 130 points.
Although the Hawks did not have a championship finisher, they had two wrestlers deemed runner-ups plus three who captured third place.
While Karvelis and Luke Dwyer (113) both took down top talent on the way to the championship bout, both wrestlers fell short with losses by decision in their respective weight classes.
Dwyer’s second-place finishes was against Bojorquez, whose early takedown in the first period proved to be just enough as Dwyer only earned a reversal to counter, and was handed the narrow 3-2 loss.
Ben Bolduc (120), Matthew Karvelis (144) and James Goedde (215) were Xaverian’s third-place finishers.
BC High placed ninth on the day with its lone championship win by Matthew Thorely (144). Thorely took down New Bedford’s Anderson Dinis via a pin.
Braintree slotted in right behind the Eagles in 10th place with two top finishers. Thomas Nguyen (132) won all four of his bouts to reach the finals, making quick work against Seth Chuon from Durfee to capture the 7-1 win. Michael Nigro (150) had a similar path as Nguyen and grabbed a 8-2 decision win over Taunton’s Anthony Vieira in the final bout.
Individual Champions
106 — Mustafa Mzaouak, Weymouth
113 — Anthony BoJorquez, New Bedford
120 — Colby Grenon, Bristol-Plymouth
126 — Josiah Martins Semedo, New Bedford
132 — Thomas Nguyen, Braintree
138 — Jack Alves, Bridgewater-Raynham
144 — Matthew Thorley, BC High
150 — Michael Nigro, Braintree
157 — Andrew Daley, Bristol-Plymouth
165 — Jake Thompson, Weymouth
175 — Kevin Mackin, Weymouth
190 — Fletcher Rinke, Bridgewater-Raynham
215 — William Buffington, Taunton
285 — Ashton Vieira, Taunton
Top 10 Team Standings
- New Bedford, 206.5
- Taunton, 170.5
- Bristol-Plymouth, 169.5
- Weymouth, 143
- Xaverian, 130
- Bridgewater-Raynham, 126.5
- Brockton, 119.5
- Boston Latin, 113.5
- BC High, 88
- Braintree, 86.5
