On the heels of last year’s 15-11 winning record, the Hammonton Blue Devils wrestling team started off the season with high expectations.  They faced off against Washington Township, Winslow Township ,and Millville High School at their first meet on Saturday, December 17 where they came away with 3 wins.

The members of the team know that their individual performance on the mat translates directly to team success. And success comes from preparation.

The team meets every day after school for 2.5 hours of intense training. Training consists of  hard drilling  such as take downs, stairs and a lot of live wrestling.

Maintaining weight is another major focus with wrestlers  every wrestler must make sure they are on weight so they can help the team compete at their best.

Senior Brian McCarty, who wrestles in the 152 weight class, explains the discipline required for the sport.

“If you have cut weight, you can’t eat junk. You have to drink just water, not soda or iced tea,” McCarty said. “It takes over my entire life until March.”

One intense part of conditioning involves running up and down those 45 steps by PAC. When it becomes harder and harder to keep going, Head Coach Dave Mauriello keeps reminding them of an important message: their body is a machine.

For senior Tom Donio, who wrestles  182, the sport is more about the mental than it is about the physical

“You just have to think about getting your hand raised at the end of the match,” he said. “It’s mental. You have to want to go out there and win. And push yourself to do good.”

Junior Brett Beebe,competed varsity last year as a sophomore in the 182 weight class. This year, he’s going in as 170. He has to adjust how he each approaches each match.

“[The guys are] not going to be as strong as 182, but they’ll be a lot a quicker,” he explained. Beebe  has been working on his speed and footwork at practice. So that means hitting every step every time.

Even during the winter break, wrestlers will even be training on Christmas Eve morning, preparing for the Overbrook Holiday Tournament on December 27.