Melrose tops Rockets, 45-21
Published June 18, 2021
By JENNIFER GENTILE
MELROSE—The Melrose High wrestling team finished their spring season at a nearly flawless 9-1 after a 45-21 victory over Reading on Thursday, June 10 at the Melrose Marcoux Gym. This completes their official MIAA season (though individual wrestlers are expected to compete in USA wrestling meet in NH later in the month.) This comes a week after Melrose lost the Middlesex Freedom title to Wakefield in their annual “Brawl in the Hall” which took place at Melrose High rather than Melrose’s Memorial Hall. The Red Raiders would lose on account of five weight forfeits. Both teams came into that battle unbeaten and it was the Warriors who prevailed, 49-27, to cement both their title and their first undefeated season in Wakefield wrestling history. The senior heavy Warrior team had wrestlers to spare and took advantage of it, while Melrose enjoyed wins from Sean Thomas, Mike Maher, Jake Swan and Matt Hickey.
And while a league title hasn’t in the cards for Melrose, they will gladly take a shiny record of 9-1 after a season that came close to not happening at all. Slated to normally play in December, they were bumped beyond the Fall 2 season to the spring season, with the initial idea of playing outdoors. Melrose fortunately got to compete inside in the Marcoux Gym and enjoyed plenty of home meets, which gave parents a change to watch them compete among the Middlesex League best.
The Red Raiders say goodbye to four seniors: captains Jake Swan and Matt Hickey and seniors Mike Maher and Jake Petitpas. Coach Larry Tremblay saluted them. They were, after all, a key part to the team’s state title just last year. “We had a great group of seniors who accomplished so much. They worked their tails off.”
It was a season of great highs for Melrose. The team’s four captains, Matt Hickey, Jake Petitpas, Jake Swan and Sean Thomas remained a steady presence for the team, combining for a 38-2 record over a grueling dual meet season. Those who ran undefeated were Sean Thomas, Alec McLaughlin and Jacob Swan. Hickey and Jake Petitpas only lost one wrestling match in 10 contests, finishing their high school wrestling careers in the finest of fashion.
In the team’s last meet again Reading, senior Mike Maher (who also enjoyed one of the few pins against Wakefield) and Nick Tremblay came up big, taking wins over the Rockets. Against Wakefield in the 138, he had previously pinned Jameson O’Callahan to give Melrose a brief 18-15 lead during that contest. “Mike has without a doubt been our most improved wrestler. His pin against was Wakefield was unbelievable,” says Tremblay. “He came up big. I would have liked to see his brother CJ on the team for us, but he was competing track.”
Other wrestlers prevailing over Reading were Jake Swan, Alec McLaughlin, Sean Thomas, Jake Petitpas and Otto Albanese, who won in a 6-5 nail biter.
Things should look differently next season (with the departure of two heavyweights being foremost on the roster replacement list) but the team is expected to return players competing in other spring sports this spring, which will help prevent future forfeits. Overall, Melrose has some quality incoming juniors and seniors that will keep them very competitive next season, including state champion Sean Thomas. Serving as captains will be Thomas, Shea Fogarty, Alec McLaughlin and Otto Albanese.
Albanese (8 wins this season) and fellow sophomore Ian Gauch signal big things for the future. Alec McLaughlin has enjoyed a flawless season at 10-0 and will be key to victory next year. Additionally, their freshmen Nico Chiullis, Gabe Laverde, Pedro Ribeiro and Jacob Guzman-Ceniceros represent the future and were valuable in picking up key wins over the season.
“We had 11 guys, four of them freshman,” says Tremblay. “It was an unusual season to say the least. We would have liked to go 10-0 but 9-1 isn’t so bad.” Tremblay guided the team during the strangest of years when Melrose often wrestled outside and masked. This season, he has improved his career coaching record to 777-105-5.
As they call it a wrap, Melrose can take comfort in knowing they have continued their winning tradition, born from the state titles earned under coaches James Bleiler and Tim Morris and now extended by Tremblay and his staff. Efforts from assistant coach Nick Gamble and volunteer work from state champion alum Hunter Adrian and Sean Herbert helped the team tremendously this year.
One thing is for certain, this team will be ready to go again in December. It can’t come soon enough. Says Tremblay, “This was such a crazy season, but thank God it was this group of kids who I coached. Their personalities saved this season. We had a ball.”
