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`Senior wrestler Jarrett Hostetter notched his 97th career win on Saturday as he inched towards 100 victories in his tenure at Millersville University. While it was a good for Hostetter as an individual, the team’s string of losses in dual meets continued as they dropped both matches in the tri-meet against Army and Sacred Heart University.
Hostetter’s two wins improved his overall season record to 20-5 as fellow sophomore teammate Shane Smith notched his 20th win on the day as well, Smith’s current record on the year is 20-7. However, this would be the only bright spot for an injury riddled team that has not won a dual match since Jan. 16.
The Marauders traveled to West Point, New York with the hopes of erasing their string of bad luck with a couple of wins. However, it ended up to be an all too familiar story for the struggling Marauders as they returned home empty handed at the hands of defeat. They lost 37-6 against Army and 30-15 versus Sacred Heart.
Through no fault of their own, the Marauders had to forfeit two matches against Army and one against Sacred Heart, something that has been a constant for most of the season. The team unfortunately does not have any healthy wrestlers to fill in 141-pound class thus essentially starting off each match 0-6. Against Army the Marauders also forfeited at the 133-pound class which basically provided Army with a 12-0 cushion to begin the match.
Hostetter and senior Jeremy Brooks were the only Marauders to notch victories against Army with each winning by decision. Hostetter won at the 157-pound spot with a score of 3-1, while Brooks won 3-2 at the 165-pound weight class. The two wins were not nearly enough for the young Marauders squad as they lost the first and last four matches of the meet.
Following the loss to Army the Marauders squared off against Sacred Heart. They were able to place freshman Tim Yoon into the 133-pound spot to tie the score at 6-6 after the second match. However, they had to forfeit the next match at 141-pounds again and then were only able to get wins from Hostetter and Smith throughout the rest of the dual. Hostetter again won by decision 5-2, and Smith recorded his 12th pin of the season 2:50 into the match.
The losses over the weekend dropped the Marauders dual meet record for the season to a paltry 3-13-1. It is difficult to blame the poor record to the individuals on the team as they have had to battle numerous injuries and inexperience throughout the course of the season. The Marauders have had nine freshman compete this year and have had patchwork rosters going in to most of their matches. “It’s extremely frustrating knowing we’re going to have to forfeit matches,” Hostetter explained, “We can be better than half of the teams we face but lose because of the forfeits.”
With the dual meet season winding down to its end, the Marauders are shifting their focus to sending as many wrestlers as possible to nationals. “We’re going to have to work harder and stay focused and not let the early season downfalls get to us,” Hostetter said, “The most important of the season is coming up.”
And as for Hostetter reaching the plateau of 100 career wins, “I’d rather do well at Nationals,” he said, “I mean I think about it, but its not as important as doing well at the end of the season. And it’s great for the program because it shows the kids can come in and successfully perform as a part of Millersville wrestling.”