The boys’ wrestling squad finished 14-13 for the season with notable wins coming in matches against Lenape, Pinelands, and Bordentown. Led by PE teacher Robert Murray, who is in his seventh season of coaching, the team hosted the District 27 tournament in late February where the team took third place and had six wrestlers move on to regions.
With a strong senior class and budding potential among the underclassmen, the squad has a lot to be proud of this season.
Senior captain Dominic Marino recorded his 100th career win at the start of the season and wrapped his CHS career with a 141-31 record. Having wrestled for 12 years, Marino plans to continue wrestling in college. The two-time district champion and two-time state qualifier had 28 pins for the season and 92 over the course of his time at CHS.
He and senior Davi Guimaraes competed in Atlantic City last weekend in hopes of winning the state title. Guimaraes had won the District 27 title earlier in the season and recorded 39 wins for the season along with 24 tech falls – the best in the state.
In addition to Marino and Guimaraes, the squad will graduate four other senior wrestlers, including co-captain Max Frey, who has been wrestling for nine years. Frey said beating rival Delran has been one of his favorite moments on the team.
“My favorite moment was probably beating Delran my freshman year, or beating Wall in the playoffs two years ago. I had the last match, and I was able to win for the team,” Frey said.
Similarly, Marino recalls the pride of winning the Burlington County Open as a junior.
“My favorite moment was winning the Burlington County Open my junior year in overtime as a junior,” Marino said. “It was against a rival from my whole life.”
Murray talked very highly of the seniors and the captain leaders of the team.
“I would describe this team as ever-changing, but in a good way. I think we’re coming together more as a team, the team seems to like each other, they cheer for each other, and we had some really good senior leaders, so I think some of the younger guys are following suit,” Murray said.
He also described how the team adjusts to the hardships that come with wrestling and how the senior captains influence the underclassmen.
“Captains are huge; they set the tone in the practice room, and they set the tone in our matches. The way they go about things, we have really good senior captains, and the young guys can learn a lot from them,” Murray said.
Marino and Frey noted how it can be difficult to balance the responsibilities that come with being both a senior and a captain on the team.
Murray highlighted the seniors in the middle of his lineup, including Marino, Guimares, Ryan Marino, Frey, and Jayon Wescott, who have helped out the team. The Pirates finished third in the Liberty division behind Northern Burlington and Delran.
