Maroon Devils wrestling is 10-1

The delayed start to the season has done little to slow the Swain wrestling machine, as the Maroon Devils now sit at 10-1 ahead of their final conference push before. Even the lone loss, which came at the hands of defending conference champion Robbinsville, served as progress for the young Swain team.

“That’s one of the things about having another good program within your conference is that it gives you a great measuring stick and gives you an opportunity to see what you need to do to get better,” said head coach Adam Jaimez of the Robbinsville loss. “It was a tough loss, but it was a loss I think we can get better from.”

Swain has relied on some fresh faces this season in the lineup, and the newbies have stepped up. Freshman Owen Craig now boasts a 6-1 record in the 115 weight class, and Adam Cotterman, who was on the team last year in a reserve role, has also posted a 6-1 record in his first year as a starter. Blake Sain also currently sits at 6-1 in the 195 class, and Tyce Neadeu is not far off at 5-1. Gabe Lillard, who missed qualifying for the state meet last year by a single match, is undefeated at 7-0.

“We have a young group, a good group, and at the end of the day I believe we are going to like the end product, when it is all said and done,” said Jaimez.

Jaimez noted that the young roster has been aided along the way by the leadership of Dhruv Senghani.

“He’s having a good year,” he said of the senior. “He’s wrestled some tough kids and his record might not be indicative of the wrestler that he is for us, but he’s a go-getter. He works hard, and it’s good to have a kid like that.”

Swain will host Andrews and Franklin on June 2 ahead of the conference meet on June 10. Jaimez said he is pleased with how the season has gone and hopes his group can make a deep run into a postseason that will look much different than years past.

“Regionals are a little strange this year in that I think they are going to be on a Tuesday or Wednesday this year, whereas typically they are on a weekend,” he explained. “Typically it’s a two-day event, but with the state no allowing wrestlebacks, we will probably be done within a day.”