Mt. Hope wrestlers make strides in loss to Coventry

Story and photos by Richard W Dionne Jr
Posted 12/18/18

Wrestling team makes strides during loss to Coventry

Story and photos by Richard W Dionne Jr

The Mt. Hope gymnasium was whipped into a frenzy as they chanted the name of the the team’s 6’ …

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Mt. Hope wrestlers make strides in loss to Coventry

Posted

Wrestling team makes strides during loss to Coventry

Story and photos by Richard W Dionne Jr

The Mt. Hope gymnasium was whipped into a frenzy as they chanted the name of the the team’s 6’ 3’’ tall, 285-pound freshman Atley Jenness as he clung to a 7-6 lead with thirty seconds left in the match. Jenness got down on the mat and only needed to stand up to secure the contest.

The whistle sounded and Coventry sophomore Kyle Sanford tried with all his might to hold Jenness down. But the freshman got one leg under him and then the other and when he stood the fans erupted.

Jenness turned and gripped his opponent and flipped him over his hip to the ground. He jumped on top of him and again the crowd went wild. Jenness would certainly have pinned his opponent if time had not run out, but the heavyweight won the match on points 9-5, giving his team and the fans hope for a special season.

“Wow! It just feels awesome. It feels amazing,” Jenness said of his home win. “Everyone cheering for me, got me so hyped up that I knew I could do it.”

“It was pretty cool,” said Head Coach Eric Francis. “It definitely was a fun match.”

“That match was so exciting,” agreed co-captain Aidan Bennett. “He got me out of my seat so many times.”

“I think this kid is a beast,” said co-captain Corey Grifka.

“He has a motor in him. He’s one of the nicest kids I’ve ever coached. But he also has a streak,” said Coach Francis. Some say a mean streak. I say, a competitive streak. He goes out there and he knows when there’s something on the line. For a big man, he pushes very hard.”

The match

Mt. Hope lost the match to Coventry 51-23. The Huskies forfeited the 106 pound match. Huskies wrestlers Liam Mallon (113 lbs), Ethan Bland (120 lbs ), Eddy Kutter (132 lbs), Adam Orwiler (138 lbs) and Matt Campo (145 lbs) all lost by pin and Riley Furtado (126 lbs) lost on points to give Coventry a commanding 39-0 lead.

“We are very young. The majority of our lineup right now are sophomores and freshmen,” said Coach Francis. “We expected trouble in the lower weights. Coventry has four guys that are returning state place finishers. Some of them are state champions and New England champs. They are really really good down low.”

The Huskies finally got on the board when senior captain Aidan Bennett (152 lbs) beat his opponent Ben Charlebois,17-2 to make the score 39-5.

“I got the tech fall. I have to try and work harder to get the pin, so we can get more team points,” said Bennett. “I have to work on more pinning combinations in practice. But overall it was a good match.”

“He’s going to be one of the big team leaders this year,” said Coach Francis. “He’s a four year starter and has a lot of experience.”

Huskies 160-pounder Cameron Connor lost by pin. But junior Dylan Loiselle (170 lbs) fell his opponent in the second round to make the score 45-11.

“I was proud of him. He helped us get our energy going,” Bennett said.

Huskies 182-pound standout Corey Grifka pinned his opponent in the third round to make the score 45-17.

“It’s weird when you wrestle a guy with an unorthodox body style,” said Coach Francis. “He did a good job handling it and coming out with a win, like usual.”

“Corey had a good match,” said Bennett. “He put his opponent away. I don’t expect anything less from him.”

Grifka has been honing his wrestling skills in various wrestling clubs for eleven years. He is clearly the team’s best wrestler. He stands 6’4” tall, with a sinewy, muscular frame that allows him to easily work around his 182-pound opponents. The sophomore’s knowledge and skills allow for him to help out his fellow wrestlers by barking out moves as they battle in the ring. He also helps out during practice.

“I like to get on the mat. It’s my home,” said Grifka. “I try an wrestle as many teammates as possible during practice. I want to make everybody better and get better from them.”

Mt. Hope forfeited at 195. Then Huskies freshman 220 pounder Patrick Pitts beat Oakers sophomore Zander Reybrock-Barber on points 8-5.

“He wrestled incredibly,” said Coach Francis. “He came up with a win against an upperclassman. That’s a big win.”

“I think we have a lot of potential,” said Grifka. “There’s so much room to improve. You look at a kid like Atley. He’s just learning how to wrestle and he’s out here pinning kids.” he said.

“We have a bunch of new kids. We are a young team. I think that we are going to be really good,” said Grifka.

Next up the Huskies wrestle North Kingstown at home at 6:30 p.m.

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A lifelong Portsmouth resident, Jim graduated from Portsmouth High School in 1982 and earned a journalism degree from the University of Rhode Island in 1986. He's worked two different stints at East Bay Newspapers, for a total of 18 years with the company so far. When not running all over town bringing you the news from Portsmouth, Jim listens to lots and lots and lots of music, watches obscure silent films from the '20s and usually has three books going at once. He also loves to cook crazy New Orleans dishes for his wife of 25 years, Michelle, and their two sons, Jake and Max.