The Oswego State Lakers wrestling team has only one more regular season dual left on the season in which they have been able to demonstrate their depth. Top to bottom, this is a team that has a lot of talent, something that is evident by its results.
In their most recent invitational, the John Summa Memorial Tournament, the Lakers finished in sixth place out of 15. A big reason for this depth is the fact that the Lakers returned five of their six wrestlers who reached the NCAA Mideast Regionals from last season. These include two juniors and three seniors. Of these five, seniors Troy Seymour and Rocco Russo finished in third and sixth, respectively. Having regionally recognized talent on the roster has helped the other wrestlers in the room immensely as leaders and competitors.
“Having that continuity and leadership, showing guys how to do the right thing, is important,” head coach Mike Howard said. “We can preach it all we want as coaches, but a lot of times, coming from your peers, it goes a lot farther.”
That leadership and battling it out in practice among other talented wrestlers helped the Lakers place five wrestlers in the top eight at the John Summa Memorial Tournament. Seymour was the runner-up at the 174-pound weight class with his only loss coming to the No. 5-ranked wrestler in all of Div. II, Connor Craig.
After defeating the No. 1 seed in the 157-pound weight class, Christian Gramuglia claimed third place. Other top-eight finishers include Jeff Lombardi in fifth place, Isaac Matthews in sixth and Bryan Coll in eighth. While there were only five wrestlers that placed, the team runs 20 wrestlers deep.
“We are deeper than five guys,” Howard said. “We [have] 20 guys working extremely hard to make each other better … We have been wrestling good the second half of the year, and we are excited about the direction we are heading and what the postseason has in store.”
In the biggest win of the season, the Lakers received contributions all throughout the lineup. The contest occured on Jan. 11 against Southern Virginia University. The depth of the Lakers was on full display, as they won eight of the nine weight classes. Freshman Wyatt Gorman was able to win his match at the 133-weight class, and alongside Ricardo Dawkins and Jeff Lombardi, the trio tacked on nine additional points.
Gorman is one of five freshmen on the roster who have 12 combined wins. The first-year wrestlers battled through early struggles to start the season as it takes time to adjust to the next level of wrestling.
“It is still a work in progress,” Howard said. “They are making strides, but it is a big jump for some … with the help of the upperclassmen and the leadership they have, [the freshmen] are starting to get it.”
With five seniors, mentorship is quite common for the freshmen, Howard said. Early on, the freshmen were not pressed hard. However, as the season progressed, they were able to develop in their own way.
“Early on, we started off by throwing them out to the dogs,” Seymour said. “The older guys [took charge] and did not give them much leeway in the room … As the year has gone on, we just let them form in whatever way works [best for them.]”
Despite being a top-tier wrestler with nationals experience, Seymour follows in the footsteps of his coach and focuses on team success in addition to his own. For the week of Feb. 4, he was named Laker Athlete of the Week. Although that is an individual award, Seymour was just happy that his wrestling team was noticed.
“It is pretty important to me [because] our team is being recognized by the school with all the athletics here at Oswego State,” Seymour said. “We have come a long way in the four years.”
The pride Seymour demonstrates in his team goes to show how significant the team-first attitude that has been developed by Howard and his upperclassmen. However, in the end, wrestling is also an individual-based sport, and the Lakers have five returners who reached regionals and have goals to continue to grow and improve off that. This makes it tricky for a coaching staff who wants to continue to develop and improve the group while protecting his wrestlers for a lengthy postseason.
“We want to keep them healthy, shorten out the workouts for them so we are not beating them up too much, but maintaining their conditioning,” Howard said. “That is going to be the challenge for us moving forward … [We want them to be] aggressive and motivated to achieve the goals they set for themselves.”
For Seymour, that goal is simple.
“My ultimate goal is to be a national champ, make sure I get on the podium and end my career with an exclamation point and achieve everything I have worked for,” Seymour said.
Graphic by Shea McCarthy | The Oswegonian
