Fini

This was a scheduled "outdoor" light day, broken-up by a little "Appreciation of Oil-based Paint Fumes" personal time (although afterward I was unable to come-up with a poem to be read at a Presidential inauguration), and then "fun with fence-boards."  And that meant the computer was only to be used to delete a lot of emails and make fun of my sister's new dog.  (My cat just came out a kitten, she did not have to go to "Kitten School."  She certainly did not have to do it twice!  I had to attend kindergarten twice in the state of Washington, but that was because I was not old enough to be a first-grader in the public school system...I keep telling myself.)

But it is Wednesday, and I thought a glimpse of the results on TrackWrestling could not hurt.  Mental chaos ensued.

Jesuit defeated Brother Martin 46-28 at Brother Martin Wednesday evening.  My first thought was that perhaps Brother Martin did not wrestle most of their starters.  Yet even with the state championships over a month away, that just did not make since.  This is a historic rivalry, and each team should put up their best.  It turns out, they did.

Match Results and my

Weight	Match	JES Points	BM Points	Validity Reason ?Advantage if not deemed valid
106	Dylan Moser (BM) defeated John Michael Bourgeois 9-3	0	3	Moser is undefeated and proven to be the best at 106 lbs. in the state.
113	Mason Elsensohn (BM) defeated Chase Haydel (JES) 13-2 MD	0	4	Elsensohn is at least the second best at 113 lbs.
120	Kent Burandt (BM) pinned Ferdie Laudemiey (JES) in 5:00	0	6	Burandt is one of the top five at 120 lbs. in the state.
126	Anthony Rosevally (JES) defeated Nicholas Cusimano (BM) 8-3	3	0	? Ethan Castex is the starter for Brother Martin at 126 lbs. and as good a season as Rosevally is having (12-2 with a Trey Culotta championship) it still is not the type of season Castex is having (24-2 with a Trey Culotta, Blackhorse Invitational and Zachary Big Horse championships and second at the LACL).  Plus, they have one opponent in common, and a good one in Michael Rader of St. Paul.  Castex scored a fall over Rader in 4:57 at the LACL while Rader defeated Rosevally 7-1 in an early December dual meet. BM +3-6
132	Chase Scott BM) pinned UNKNOWN (JES) in 1:25	0	6	Jesuit probably would have filled this weight class with Christopher Massey, but Scott is having a much better season so far.
138	Jack Seidel (JES) pinned Austin Gonzales (BM) in 2:51	6	0	? Seidel appears to be Jesuit's starter.  If available Brother Martin would have probably placed Ty Duncan at that spot.  Duncan moved up two weight classes since Ethan Castex moved down to 126 lbs.  He has only wrestled one match at that weight and lost.  The real question is can Duncan compete well at the higher weight class. Toss-up
145	Quinn Williams (BM) defeated Jackson Ballay (JES) 9-2	0	3	Williams' only loss to a Louisiana wrestler was a 1-0 TB-1 loss to eventual LACL champion Peter Kelly in the semifinals last week.
152	Luke Battaglia (JES) defeated Eli Hope (BM) 3-2	3	0	These are the starters for both teams.
160	Rocco Horvath (BM) pinned Winters McConnell (JES) in 2:55	0	6	These are the starters for both teams.
170	Parker Anderson (JES) pinned Jake Aiello (BM) in 0:35	6	0	I would have expected Luke Ohler to fill 170 lbs. for Brother Martin, but I am still calling this a verified match as Anderson and Ohler have wrestled two common opponents.  Anderson pinned the opponents in 0:36 and 1:24 while Ohler pinned the first common opponent in 1:24 but wrestled to a 5-1 decision over the second one.
182	Lawrence Hoffman (JES) pinned Anton Brown (BM) in 1:52	6	0	These two are the starters and this is Hoffman's second win over Brown.
195	Tyler Autin (JES) won by medical default by UNKNOWN	6	0	TW did not say who the Crusader wrestler was, and I do not want to list a name until I know his parents have been notified, but this match was probably leaning Brother Martin's way as the UNKNOWN wrestler was ahead 9-5 (9-2 after the first period) before having to stop.  But medical defaults, what are called "injuries" in the Common Tongue, happen after a line-up is entered and approved. These are a part of a lot of dual meets and cannot be used as an avoidable situation.
220	Dennis Daugherty (JES) pinned Nicholas Malek (BM) in 0:33	6	0	Daugherty proved he was the best in the state at the Louisiana Classic last weekend.
285	Spencer Lanosga (JES) pinned Adam Bourgeois in 1:36	6	0	Bourgeois has started since December 30th.  The freshman Lanosga took LACL winner Ashton Freeman to a 6-5 UTB match in the semifinals, prior to placing third.
		42	28

I am throwing out the 138 lbs. match because there is not enough known to estimate a possible outcome.  Duncan's one match at 138 lbs. was a loss versus Jacob Frost of Holy Cross, and nobody really counts matches against the Frost twins when determining a starter.  But there are no other results one can use re his moving up two weight classes.

So, it comes down to what might have happened had there been a Rosevally-Castex match at 126 lbs.  In any Rosemary-loss scenario Jesuit only loses three points.  That gives them 39 points.  Any win by Castex gives the Crusaders a range of three to six points more, giving them 31, 32, 33 or 34 points, which are all lower than 39. 

Thirteen matches were contested.  Jesuit won eight while Brother Martin won six.  Twenty-four of the guys who competed were supposed to be there or, if they lost, were expected to do so due to the strength of their opponent.  Luke Battaglia and Eli Hope had an excellent match in which all five points were scored in the third period.  Jesuit scored five falls while the Crusaders scored only two, and falls are crucial in dual meets.  This match did not appear to be very COVID affected.  This was as valid a match as I have seen all season, so give the Blue Jays their due, particularly as they finished in ninth-place at the Louisiana Classic, 91.5 points behind the team champion Crusaders.

Once again this looks to be a state championship in which just a few mistakes by one team and a few better-than-expected performances by another may decide the Division I state championship.  Jesuit may not yet be a contender, but St. Paul, Holy Cross, East Ascension and Catholic are.  But please, do not make it any harder than it has to be to enter the best team you can.  Be safe, be smart, be healthy. 

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