For many of the area?s top prep wrestling programs, this coming Friday and Saturday are the days they have been waiting for all season.
Those days are when 27 of the top wrestling teams in the region will converge on Goucher College for the fourth annual Mount Mat Madness tournament. Organized by Mount St. Joseph, many consider the tournament the toughest in the state.
However, prior to that tournament area teams had a number of tough dual meets to get through. For some, this meant going into the tournament on a high note while others realized they had work to do.
Defending Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association champion McDonogh kept the pressure on the rest of its conference as the Eagles (5-0) handed Loyola (8-1) its first loss of the year Friday, 42-18.
Old Millput the rest of Anne Arundel County on notice after it knocked off defending county champion Broadneck, 41-23, Friday night. Fellow Anne Arundel school, Severna Park split its two dual meets this week, losing Wednesday at Mount St. Joseph, 39-20, before taking down Sherwood Thursday, 46-27.
“The only way to become a better team is by facing the top competition that we can find,” said Severna Park coach Paul Joyce last week. “Although we?re usually not going to win against a team like Mount St. Joseph, we are learning a lot through that experience.”
In Howard County, Hammond took a step toward continuing its dominance in the county as it knocked off Reservoir, 35-33. Hammond is now 9-5 and snapped a three-match losing streak that included defeats against Old Mill, Arch Bishop Curley and Mount St. Joseph.
In Harford County, John Carroll?s grueling dual meet schedule continued in full force Saturday as the Patriots – who are not in the Mount Mat Madness tournament – steamrolled through their competition by capturing the C.M. Wright dual meet invitational.
John Carroll (27-10) – which is a member of the MIAA B Conference – posted a number of impressive victories Saturday, including ones over Aberdeen (56-12), Milford Mill (37-18) and Chesapeake-AA (39-22).
This came three days after a number of early-season dual meets on the public school side in the Upper Chesapeake Bay Athletic Conference. On Wednesday, Bel Air swept a tri-meet against North Point (54-17) and Aberdeen (39-20). Also on Wednesday, Rising Sun defeated Harford tech, 43-24 and North Harford beat Edgewood, 63-18.
