The Seahawk wrestling team has been taking down the season like champs. The majority of the team consists of younger members, with twice as many freshmen as there are seniors. However, this fact hasn’t halted their success. The season has already rolled through the following tournaments: Throwdown in Snowtown, King of the Mountain, Lime-Solar Invitational, Nikiski Duals, and the Lancer Smith. A handful of our wrestlers made it to semi-finals, and few got the opportunity to stand on the podium, representing our school. These Seahawks have every reason to be proud of the accomplishments they’ve achieved.

Though every member has a reason to be acknowledged, there are a few who made a presence on the podium for Seward. After a six hour drive to Valdez, our season kicked off with Throwdown in Snowtown. Normally, we face 4A schools who have a significant advantage against small town Seward. This year, however, the name of our school appeared in the finals! Cole Norcross, Collin Mullaly, and Clay Petersen fought like dogs through to the finals match. All three received second place. Let’s not forget our two fourth place finishers, Colt Ogle and Jaden VanDyke. Coaches Scrivo and Hemstock overflowed with pride after watching these wrestlers put their hearts on the mat.

The next weekend gave the team a bit of a break on driving as we hosted our one home meet, King of the Mountain. We had teams as far as Barrow and Unalaska arrive in our community for two days of excitement. While wrestling as a team, the Seahawks showed the strength that has been growing throughout practices. Even though we had multiple second and third place winners, only first place was recognized as the official “King of the Mountain” for each weight bracket. Our very own Rebekah Christenson came out on top in the girls only bracket.

On November 3rd and 4th, 55 different teams gathered at the Anchorage Christian School to compete in the Lime-Solar tournament. The gymnasium swarmed with over 400 wrestlers, all fighting for the chance on the podium. Many of our Seahawks fought long and hard, several even made it to the second day without being eliminated. Our freshman 98-pounder, Clay Petersen, received third place in his weight bracket. This competition provided an opportunity for Seahawks to go against wrestlers from areas such as Selawick, Klawock, New Stuyahok, and Napaskiak. Earning a medal in the Lime-Solar tournament is exceptionally hard, considering it’s a greater turn-out than the state tournament — nevertheless, the wrestling team showed astonishing sportsmanship and hard work.

Our most recent tournament was the Nikiski Duals, which is structured slightly different than the past few tournaments. Duals consist of points as a whole, which are earned by the wrestlers. The amount of points the team receives is dependent on how the wrestler wins; minor decision, major decision, technical fall, fall, or forfeit. The bracket is based on the entire group of competitors as well, rather than a wrestler advancing alone. The Seward High team worked long and hard against some of our toughest rivals, and they will continue to fight in the upcoming weekends.

It’s evident that this team has tremendous potential. With a bright group of students, they will only continue to become stronger and fight harder. Every wrestler should be proud of his/her growth, while at the same time strive for more advancement. There is only one competition left until the long-anticipated regional tournament. By the second week of December, competitors won’t be a match for the Seward Seahawks.