SAUGUS — It was a successful Wednesday night for the Saugus-Peabody wrestling team as seven wrestlers won via pin. Jackson Deleidi, Max LoRusso, Mike Maraio, Justin Bremberg, Sam Lo Russo, Will Pinto, and Freddy Espinal all pinned their respective opponents to help Saugus-Peabody beat Pentucket 60-21.
“I’m glad we’re finishing some guys. To get a pin, you give the team bonus points. Winning by a point is good, but pinning is better,” Saugus-Peabody head coach Wayne Moda said.
Moda was impressed with his team since everyone who weighed in at 145 pounds wrestled up a weight class. One wrestler who Moda said had the “match of the night” was captain Sam LoRusso.
A highlight of LoRusso’s match came when he pulled off an impressive “roll” to escape a dangerous situation.
“He [LoRusso] is a real smooth wrestler. He’s a chain-wrestler, he’ll execute from move to move which is really nice,” Moda said. “He’s going to be a bright spot for us this season.”
Throughout the night, one thing was constant: Will Pinto cheering on his teammates and trying to advise them during matches. Pinto, who is a senior and captain, was described by Moda as “the heart and soul of the team.”
“He’s just a great captain. He is inspirational to all the guys. He’s always cheering on his team. He’s a great kid,” Moda said.
“I definitely [have] been there before. I wanted and/or needed a leader, so I always try and put myself in the younger kids’ shoes,” Pinto said. “I definitely have the personality and the traits to bring positivity towards the younger kids and, in general, I try to bring positivity to everyone as much as I can.”
Before each wrestler started their match, Pinto was on the sideline trying to fire up his team. When it was his turn to wrestle, however, he said he felt “cold” at the start.
“Before the match, I was telling myself I was ‘good,’ but when I got to the mat I felt very cold,” Will Pinto said. “We shook hands and I got very nervous. He [opponent] shot right away and then I knew it was real and I was good.”
Pinto persevered through his early nerves and continuously took down his opponent until securing the pin in the second round.
“He executed two or three takedowns in the match today – that I thought was good,” Moda said.
Both Pentucket and Saugus-Peabody have young teams and are rebuilding. 80 percent of Saugus-Peabody consists of eighth and ninth graders, Moda said.
“Our team is young. We have beginner wrestlers other than one or two guys,” Pentucket head coach Dennis Puleo said.
Puelo graduated from Saugus high school in 1963. Though his alma mater spoiled his homecoming, he’s complementary to the program Saugus-Peabody has built.
“We did not have a good day. They had a good day and they’re better than us,” Puelo said.
