The Silver Lake High wrestling team has some of the top wrestlers in their respective division in the state. They earned the opportunity to prove this last weekend, competing at the Division 2 State meet at Milton High School.
In all, the Lakers sent three wrestlers to the meet, an indication of the caliber of wrestlers they have within the program. Even after such a strenuous meet against stiff competition, their season is still alive.
That is because junior Dan Walsh (120) earned a sixth place finish at the meet, so he earned a ticket to the All-State tournament. In all, he went 3-3 during the two-day tournament which was held on Friday and Saturday. His final bout was for the fifth place spot so he would have made it to All-States regardless of the outcome of it.
Walsh was not the only Laker to compete over the course of the weekend either. Senior captain Gavin Hamilton (182) and sophomore Kyler Baur (106) also wrestled over the course of the weekend.
Hamilton came up with a big 9-1 major decision win over a North Andover grappler where he was clearly in control. His opponent’s only point of the match came with 34 seconds remaining on an escape. Plus, his opponent had an injury timeout about 30 seconds into the second period. Ultimately, Hamilton would fall in the consolation round of eight, so he did not advance further in the tournament; Baur dropped his two matches during the state meet.
Earning the right to wrestle at the state meet is a major accomplishment in itself. Seeing how the Lakers had three men wrestling at it–two of which are expected to return next season–they certainly have reason to be confident in the future of their program.
Walsh will compete at All-States this Friday and possibly Saturday at St. John’s Prep in Danvers.