Windjammer wrestlers seek return to top position in Class B

Camden-Rockport High School’s Windjammers are no strangers to state Class B wrestling championships. Even if they don’t win an Eastern Maine regional prior to the state tourney.

The Windjammers won three consecutive state titles until being dethroned by Marshwood High School of Eliot a year ago and finishing eighth.

They will try to make it four state crowns in five years when the state B meet is held in Kennebunk on Saturday beginning at 10 a.m.

The Class A meet will be held at Caribou High School beginning at 9:30 a.m. Bonny Eagle of West Buxton is the defending champ and the pretourney favorite. Oxford Hills of South Paris will carry the banner for the East.

“When we won those states, we didn’t finish first in the regional in two of those three years,” pointed out Camden-Rockport Coach John Kelly. “We were third one year and second in another year.

Camden-Rockport finished second to Belfast in the Eastern B regional a week ago, but the Windjammers had five wrestlers win their respective weight classes and two others finished second. Belfast had two winners and six runnersup.

“I like our chances this year,” said Kelly. “If I had known at the beginning of the season that we would be sitting in this position right now, I would have loved it. If we wrestle up to our potential, we’ll have a good shot at it.”

Still, Kelly knows it won’t be easy, and he considers Belfast the team to beat.

“We’ll be taking eight wrestlers and we’ll need six of them to take a medal (by finishing in the top four),” reasoned Kelly. “Three of them, maybe four, will have to get to the final.”

Camden-Rockport will be without 189-pounder Sean Ellis, who finished second at the regional but suffered a knee injury in practice this week.

Their five regional winners were Jake Kubel (112 pounds), Justin Hopkins (130), Toby Mitchell (140), Brandon Allen (152), and Matt Mazzeo (160). Allen was a runnerup in last year’s state tourney at 145. Mitchell and Hopkins took thirds at 125 and 130, respectively.

Mitchell was a state champ at 103 two years ago.

Mitchell edged Belfast’s Matt Curtis 1-0 in the regional. Curtis was second in the 140 at the state meet a year ago.

Belfast’s regional winners were 135-pounder Brian Harvey, the defending state B champ at 135, and 171-pounder Mark Box. Bucksport also had two winners in Corey Veilleux (103) and Andy Maguire (119).

Maguire was fourth in the state meet at 103 last year.

The other regional winners were Foxcroft Academy’s Mike Ewer (125), Medomak Valley of Waldoboro’s Andy Simmons (145), Mount View of Thorndike’s Scot Padelford (189), and Fort Kent’s Wade Jandreau (275).

Besides Allen and Curtis, Fort Kent’s Jeremy Desjardins, who was decisioned by Hopkins in the regional, was also second in the state meet a year ago. He was second at 125.