Girls Wrestling takes 4th in GMCs

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Sofia Sousa raises her arm after winning the GMC Tournament despite sustaining a bloody nose.

BY MARIAMI PANTSULAIA
          The girls’ wrestling team has a strong 7-5 record. The girls team finished 4th in the GMC Tournament, and, after recently defeating North Brunswick, earned the #10 rank in the State.

          Roughly 25 wrestlers competed in each bracket, so reaching the top six represents an accomplishment. “It was an amazing experience because it was a moment of realization that all my hard work had paid off,” said Mackenzy Brennan.

          The coaches selected Sofia Sousa as the Upper Weight Outstanding Wrestler of the tournament after she defeated St. Thomas Aquinas’ Makayla Decker in the finals. “[Decker] is a really good wrestler, one of the toughest I’ve been against this season,” said Sousa. “The key for me was pushing myself and fighting to get that win.”

Mackenzy Brennan, who took first place in her class in the GMC Tournament, tries to use her top position to get her opponent on her back.

          Senior Samantha Larkin made it to the finals, earning points to help her team finish fourth overall, capping a season with many highlights for her, including an emotional Senior Night. “It was honestly just really nice to be able to experience a team win and individual win that night,” said Larkin. “We had a really awesome crowd that night and everybody was super excited cheering their teammates on.”

          The girls found success throughout the year, even going back to their first tournament of the season. “I definitely think that the highlight of the season was our Ron Mazzola tournament,” said Te’ata Byrd. “A good number of our girls were able to win all their matches, and for the girls who didn’t they still gave it their all going against challenging opponents.”

Sophomore Julia Berk, who earned a piin in 36 seconds against Perth Amboy, waits for her opponent to make a move.

          Among the several team members, Byrd was able to take something home. “I am proud that I was one of the girls who was able to win a medal during the Ron Mazzola match even after getting bit for the first time and seeing my improvement from last year.”

           That’s right; her opponent bit her. “I had her in a head lock, and she bit my entire thumb,” said Bryd. “It was my second to last match of the day, and there was about 5 seconds left. I put her in a head lock then she bit down on my finger, so we had to stop that match, and they almost didn’t disqualify her, but they ended up giving me the win.”

          The girls will close the season on the road against Howell on February 12 at 5pm before beginning preparations for the NJSIAA State Tournament.

  • Samantha Larkin, who finished second in her class in the GMC Tournament, starts in referees position above her opponent.
  • Stella Melnikov scores two points for a takedown.

Posted on 2/10/25

Photos by John Post and Laila Mohamed-Ali