In a near repeat of what took place in their gymnasium almost a month ago, the Lake Orion wrestling squad topped Novi Detroit Catholic Central last Wednesday night.
Last time, it was for first place in the Oakland County meet. This time it was for bragging rights in a dual meet setting.
The Dragons won 34-27 in a battle between two of the state’s top teams (Lake Orion is ranked sixth in the state, while CC is seventh).
Lake Orion used a Joe Graffeo pin at 152-pounds, decisions by Jake Varilek and Morgan Maciejewski (at 160- and 171-pounds, respectively) and an Evan Gros pin at 189-pounds to reel off the last 18 points of the match, sealing the comeback effort.
The Dragons started their evening with a 73-3 trouncing of Marlette, which included 10 Lake Orion pins.
LO improved to 16-3 on the season. It was their final home meet of the regular season.
New University of Michigan Football Coach Rich Rodriguez was in attendance for part of the night to watch CC’s Mike Martin wrestle. Martin, a highly recruited defensive lineman who has verbally committed to U-M, pinned LO’s Tyler Benson in the 285-pound class.
The Dragons continued their week at the Hartland Duals, falling 36-33 in the finals against the hosts, who are ranked fourth in the state.
Six LO wrestlers, including Doug Mack (119-pounds), Justin Ruddy (130), A.J. Fligger (140), Varilek (this time at 152-pounds), Graffeo (160) and Gros all went undefeated on the day.
The team topped Romeo, a potential opponent at regionals, and two other opponents on their way to the finals.