Injury riddled wrestling team looks to rebound
Despite having two record setting wrestlers, Gennies have limped to a 6-13 record with only ODACs and regionals left
Zach Bylykbashi, ‘19, broke the record for most wins in a season held by captain Ron Tassoni, ‘16. Photo courtesy of W&L Sports Info.
February 8, 2016
The Washington and Lee wrestling team has faced a rollercoaster of a season, filled with ups downs, flips and rolls.
The team began the season on a three-match losing streak, only to turn around and dominate the next five.
Since that win streak, the team has lost eight of its last nine matches, a majority of which were against conference opponents.
The score sheet doesn’t always tell the full story though. Despite being a team sport, wrestling relies heavily on individual performances.
“Although on paper our team has lost 6 straight matches, much of those team losses can be attributed to our team not being able to fill certain weight classes in dual meets. That puts us at a severe disadvantage in those matches,” Matt Kaminer, ’18, said. “We are only concerned with the athletes that do compete for us and we look to maximize their results.” The roster is full of stellar individual performances. With the postseason still ahead, Zach Bylyk- bashi ’19 tied the single-season win record with his twenty-ninth win against Ursinus. The win brought his record to 29-5 on the season.
Bylykbashi also leads the team in takedowns with 77. Ron Tassoni ’16, who broke the school record for career wins in early January, has also had a banner-worthy season with a record 26-2. He leads the team in pins with eight on the year.
Other big time performers include Alex Pollera, ‘18, with a record of 16-8, and Brandon Lefore, ‘18, with a 17-5 record.
The story of the season has been injuries. The Generals have been plagued with injuries from the get go, hindering performance all season long and preventing the team from filling every weight class at several matches.
“My season started out rocky as I had been wrestling with a torn labrum in my shoulder all season. After getting an MRI in November I eventually decided to get surgery and miss the rest of the sea- son,” said Kaminer.
Despite their lackluster regular season, the team looks to the postseason with high expectations. With Bylykbashi, Tassoni and Pollera all in good form, the team expects to bring home individual titles in the Centennial Conference Championships and ultimately qualify for the NCAA Champion- ships in March.
