Eric Menq’19 faces off with an opponent. Riley Hennessy’20/Media

After a strong showing last week at Kiski Prep, the Vikings were eager to prove themselves at the MSL tournament at Whitehall on Saturday, February 3. Academy fought hard, and even though it fell short as a team, our wrestlers had some fantastic individual triumphs.

When the Vikes competed at MSLs, they were competing with many fewer wrestlers than normal. Due to a combination of illnesses and injuries, Academy could only take around half of its wrestlers to the tournament. Because of these severely reduced numbers, the Vikings placed 5th out of 6 teams.

The individual results for the Vikes, however, told a much different story. Each wrestler that competed had stellar performances, and Academy’s individual wrestlers did very well. Senior Josh Pearson, competing up a weight class, placed first in the 220 tournament. Pearson was the first Academy wrestler to win an MSL tournament since 2015. Junior Thomas Jones also had an amazing second-place victory in his weight class. Rounding out Academy’s placings were Angus Soderberg’18 and Eric Menq’19, who both placed third in their respective weight classes.

The Vikings will have a chance to regroup and regain their team momentum this week with a home meet on their Senior Night: Friday, February 9, against Bloom Carroll, Centennial, and North Union. Senior captains Pearson and Soderbergh will be honored. 

Academy travels to Dublin Jerome on Saturday, February 10.