The only thing that has stopped Concord’s wrestling team this season was a broken-down bus on Route 9.
After winning the Minickiello Tournament in Keene with a 31.5 point advantage, the Tide experienced some issues on the road and had to be bused back to Concord by the Noble High School team from North Berwick, Maine.
The Concord bus driver realized the engine was smoking, pulled over, and evacuated the wrestling team for safety. Noble’s bus pulled over and let them stay warm while emergency services arrived, according to assistant coach Dan Breen.
The Crimson Tide has been on fire, literally and figuratively, this season. Twelve wrestlers placed in the top six to win their third consecutive Minickiello Tournament.
Junior Biswas Darji (106 lb) and senior Maximus Chung (175 lb) won their respective classes and continued to prove why they’re among the best in the state. Both made Meet of Champions appearances last year and are in form to return this year.
Coach Breen said Darji has been dominant this season.
“He’s been wrestling, getting a lot of pins, and so it’s been really great to see his development throughout the year,” he said.
Chung had some tough losses early in Salem and at the Lowell Holiday Tournament, but always managed to battle back to place in the top six.
“Max is a great kid, too. Hard, hard worker, quiet kid, just always doing the right thing,” Breen said.
Seniors Dominic Schinella (126 lb) and Isaiah Puckett (215 lb) were runners-up in their weight classes after hard-fought tournaments through the end. Senior Madison Beauregard (185 lb) was another bright spot for the team and finished runner-up to Madi King from Burr and Burton Academy in Vermont.
She’s chasing her fourth consecutive state championship this season to cap off a historic career for a female wrestler, not just in Concord history but also in New Hampshire history. She had won the Salem Blue Devil tournament in two different weight classes and won at Lowell, but King came out with aggressive wrestling and ultimately bested Beauregard.
“I think it could be a blessing in disguise, because there’s room for improvement,” Breen said. “Obviously, like every wrestler in our lineup, and even though she’s been doing a lot of winning, there’s still stuff she needs to work on.”
Going into the weekend, the Tide had wrestlers place at the Salem Blue Devil and the Lowell Holiday Tournament, widely considered one of the toughest in New England.
Eight other Concord wrestlers placed in the top six at the Minickiello tourney: Seniors Owen Gregg (5th, 132 lb), Jaxon Carter (3rd, 144 lb), Wayne Sakakeeny-Gutierrez (3rd, 285 lb), Camden Carbone (6th, 285 lb), junior Carter Buxton (4th, 113 lb), and freshmen Daniel Sheehan (3rd, 150) and Dawsen Nedeau (6th, 106 lb).
“The funny thing is, I think we are underperforming a little bit, and we’re still able to do these things,” Breen said about how he expects the season to continue.
The team will host Goffstown, Manchester Central, Manchester Memorial, Pinkerton and Winnacunnet this weekend at home for the Concord Super-Quad starting at 10 a.m.