Hornets Place 2nd at Sterling Lions Wrestling Invitational

Provided:

Dec. 13- The Herndon wrestling team competed at the Sterling Lions Invitational at Park View HS over the weekend. The Hornets posted a 4-1 record in the competition and took home the 2nd place trophy.

“It was a really good weekend for us,” Herndon head coach Mike Gonzales said. “The thing we talked about as a team before the matches was improving each week, and to keep moving forward. We had a rough start to the year, going 1-4 at the Tuscorara Duals, but I reminded the boys that it’s not where you start, it’s where you finish. We have to look at these types of meets as preparation for our conference schedule and the post-season.”

The Hornets kicked off the tournament in impressive fashion by defeating host school Park View in the first round of competition. Herndon won 13 of 14 matches en route to a 66-3 win over the Patriots.

In the second round, Herndon stormed past Gar-Field with an impressive 72-0 sweeping of all 14 weight classes. Herndon followed that performance with a convincing 49-12 win over Smithsburg, MD in the quarter-finals.

In the semi-finals, Herndon rolled past last year’s champion, Woodgrove, with a 47-12 triumph.

The finals pitted the Hornets against the state-ranked Kellam Knights of Virginia Beach. Sam Milligan dominated with a pin at 160 pounds, and Jonah Poulson earned a fall at 195 pounds, but No.5 Kellam’s depth throughout the lineup was too much. The Knights earned a 66-12 dual meet victory over Herndon in the championship finals.

The Hornets will make a trek down to Virginia Beach next weekend to face some of the top teams in the Hampton Roads area at the Lions Rotational hosted by Tallwood HS. The tournament is on Saturday, December 20, and action is slated to start at 10am.