Photos courtesy of Diane Shannon

Spring-Ford High School, Royersford (PA), Friday, February 10th 2006

Downingtown West finished their dual meet season tonight with a 49-9 victory over the Spring-Ford Rams. The Whippets final team record for the season is 20-3 (4-0 Ches-Mont and 14-2 District 1). It’s been a very tough season and we are all proud of they way they wrestled! With the regular season behind them, the wrestlers now have a week off before beginning the individual post season starting with sectionals next Saturday at Boyertown High School.

In tonight’s event, the Whippets took command early with Jason Scanlon (125) earning a pin in 3:54. Downingtown would win the next three matches, all by decisions. These wins, by Chris Uhler (3-0 decision), Jake Miller (3-1 decision) and Matt McDonough (4-3 decision) are clear examples of why the team practices with such intensity. It’s this training that gives them the ability to wrestle for the full six minutes against tough opponents and come out on top. The fifth match of the night featured senior state medalist Matt Moley against freshman Josh Homer. Even though Josh gave up the pin, you could tell he wasn’t backing down. It’s this toughness that has driven Josh to earn over 15 wins this season. A major accomplishment for a weight class dominated by upper classmen!

Downingtown would win their next seven straight bouts and finished the night winning twelve of fourteen. Steve Rathfon used a series of takedowns to earn a 10-3 decision over Matt Patterson. The next two matches would end up with the same outcome. Chris Kalbach and Paul Roseberry both won 4-3 decisions. The premier contest of the evening featured Joe deGaravilla against Mike Platco. These two wrestled earlier in the season with Platco on the winning end of a pin. Not tonight! Joe was aggressive and kept the upper-hand throughout the match. Even though the final score was 5-2, it was clear that Joe was the one in control.

The Whippets last three wins would all yield bonus points. Alex Bause was relentless and pinned Mike Salamone in 4:51. Rob Akers used his quickness to earn a 10-1 major decision. Pat May had a tough match against John Martin. Even though the score was 9-6 in Martin’s favor, there is a feeling these two will meet again in the post season with a completely different outcome. D.J. Evans finished the night on a positive note with a quick pin at 1:20.