William Penn roars back to defeat Cape wrestling 36-33

Most high school wrestling fans sitting in Cape’s Big House gym Jan. 18 were silently smart. They know the sport and are tuned into matchups. 

William Penn at Cape was a collision that would come down to bonus points. Each team won seven matches, with William Penn prevailing 36-30. 

“We made moves and pushed guys into the lineup not always there,” said Cape coach Chris Mattioni.

The Colonials’ coach Joe Archangelo responded to the question, “Has William Penn beaten Cape since you have been there?” with a “No!”  

The match started at 285, where Cape’s Patrick Donahue bumped up from 215 to go after Eliedxander Jarquin-Torres. A bold move rolling the dice on the first bout paid off with four team points as Donahue won by major decision 9-1. 

Fast forward with 12 of 14 bouts in the books, the score was tied at 30-30 entering the 175-pound weight class. Cape had led 30-15 after nine matches. 

William Penn got a pin from Franklin Norris at 190, staking the Colonials to a 36-30 lead with one bout remaining at 215. 

Luke Arnold-Decyk, who bumped up from 190, would need to pin Jaden Tyler to tie the match. Luke won 9-2. He had Tyler in trouble in the final period, but he couln’t get his shoulders to the mat.

The final score 36-33.

“You can’t give up that many bonus points and expect to win,” said Mattioni. 

The Vikings gave up 15 bonus points on five pins. The Vikings earned 12 bonus points on three pins, a tech fall and a major decision.   

Cape wrestles at Smyrna Wednesday, Jan. 22, with JV action beginning at 6 p.m. The Vikings will wrestle at Sussex Central at noon, Saturday, Jan. 25. There is no JV, as those wrestlers will be at the JV Hawk Tournament at St. Georges. 

Detailed wrestling results can be found at trackwrestling.com.