In one of the most exciting tournament performances this season, Ted Pyne '18 won the New England Wrestling Tournament this past weekend in at the Hyde School in Bath, Maine. Competing against 55 New England teams, the MX wrestling team also continued its strong tournament placement history with another top ten finish placing 8th overall.

Ted was ready to rumble the entire two-day tournament.  Starting as the 3rd seed and working on a strong base from last years third place finish, he made his way through the bracket with a phenomenal run to the finals.  He won his semifinal match in the final seconds, sending his Phillips Exeter opponent into the consolation bracket. The final reversal with seconds left on the clock sent the Middlesex fan base through the ceiling!

Carrying the momentum into the finals, Ted wrestled another nail biter of a match. With the match tied, Ted scored a last second takedown with a move he had just put together for the first time.  The ecstatic Ted along with the entire team preserved a memory of a lifetime.

Sophomore Dante Gutbrod, seeded second, technically mastered his opponents over the two-day event with another major decision over a senior competitor.  He finished second and set up a probable seed at the National Wrestling Championships at Lehigh next weekend.

The ever-competitive, athletic, and exciting Naomi Hunt '17 placed fifth, becoming only the third female of all-time to participate at the National Prep Tournament. Also competing over the weekend, Peter Daichman continues his most-improved individual wrestler status with advancement into the consolation round of 8 with excellent wrestling. Diego Flores, Cal Fries and Jack Canniff developed excellent experience over the weekend to set up next year's run to the New England tournament top five goal. They all lost very close matches to seniors and have created a fantastic opportunity for advancement next year. Finally, we may have watched the last match of senior Marcus Coward, who after winning several matches on the first day was knocked out of the tournament in the final qualifying round in a close match. What a career!

Congratulations to Ted Pyne, Dante Gutbrod and Naomi Hunt for their qualifying positions at the National Prep Wrestling Tournament beginning on Friday at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

Congratulations to the entire Middlesex Wrestling Team!