By Isabella Hassan '25
The GFA Prep Wrestling team traveled to Phillips Exeter Academy on February 14-15 for the annual NEPSWA Championship Tournament, looking to complete the three-peat.
Prep competition began on Friday evening and the women's tournament kicked off on Saturday morning.
Kayla Batres competed in the Prep division and secured silver at 108, pinning two of four opponents and besting a Hopkins wrestler by decision in the semifinals.
At 113, Brighton Karvoski, the No. 2 seed, dominated his first two matches by fall and fought hard in the finals but fell just short with a 4-2 decision.
Chase Kastner dominated early at 120, winning two matches by fall and taking his semi-finals opponent to all three periods. Kastner ultimately placed third.
No. 1 seed Jackson Heslin controlled his 126 bracket, pinning every opponent, including a 26-second fall in the round of 16. His finals match was back-and-forth early, but he took control in the second period to secure GFA’s first individual title.
At 132, Brady Kaupp fought through a tough bracket, recording two falls and a tech fall on his way to a fourth-place finish.
Joe Mahoney found his rhythm early at 138, pinning his first opponent in 24 seconds. He won by major decision in the quarterfinals, by fall in the semifinals, and defeated the No. 1 seed from St. Paul’s in a 9-7 thriller to take home first.
At 144, Ben Zuckerman kept the Dragon’s positive momentum going, with an early match resulting in a fall in 18 seconds and ultimately, a dominant first place finish to take home another individual title.
Freshman Jacob Jones competed at 150, securing a first round fall before facing a tough quarterfinals match. He remained focused through the following consolation rounds and finished sixth.
Will Motley put on a show at 157, winning his first match by fall and taking a 10-3 decision over a familiar Brunswick opponent in the quarterfinals. After falling in the semifinals, he battled back to take fifth place.
Liam Carlin was dominant at 165, pinning three of four opponents, including a huge win over Brunswick’s Jack Degl in the semifinals. He controlled the finals, winning by decision, 7-0, to claim another GFA individual title.
At 175, Tyler Neiva won his first three matches by fall before a tough semifinals match but rebounded in the consolation finals to place third.
Ryan Schneider, seeded No. 4 at 190, fought his way to the semifinals with two pins before facing the top seed. After a hard-fought loss, he regrouped to win his consolation match and finish third.
At 215, Kingston Daniels Silva went undefeated, winning his first two matches by fall, his third by tech fall, and securing a 4-1 decision in the finals.
Dominic Iaquinto, the No. 2 seed at 285, advanced to the finals with two pins and a decision. In what was a scoreless battle for most of the match, a late reversal from NMH decided the match, giving him a second-place finish.
In the girls’ tournament, senior Izzy Kittredge dominated with four pins in five matches, finishing third.
With 331.5 total team points, the Dragons secured their third straight NEPSWA title. They now look forward to next weekend’s Prep Nationals, aiming to finish their dominant season on a high note.