Bradley Beaulieu, a sophomore, sustains his first loss of the season but posts the best finish by a Mainer
BY STEVE CRAIG STAFF WRITER
Marshwood High sophomore Bradley Beaulieu advanced to the final of the 126-pound division at the New England high school wrestling championships Saturday in North Andover, Massachusetts.
Beaulieu suffered his first loss of the season in the final when he was pinned by defending champion Troy Gassaway of Mt. Anthony Union of Bennington, Vermont.
Beaulieu was the only Maine wrestler to reach the finals of the two-day event.
Gassaway beat Peter Del Gallo of Gardiner in the semifinals. Del Gallo finished fourth.
Other Maine wrestlers who placed among the top six in their weight class were Marshwood four-time state champions Cody Hughes (170 pounds) and Jackson Howarth (160), and Wells senior Michael Curtis (220).
Hughes finished third in the 170-pound bracket. After losing 3-1 to Anthony Falbo of Newtown, Connecticut in the semifinals, Hughes won two consolation matches, including a 5-2 decision in the consolation final against Ebed Jerrell of East Greenwich, Rhode Island. It’s the fourth time Hughes, Maine’s all-time wins leader, has placed in the top six at New Englands, and his third time in the top three.
Howarth finished fifth for the second straight year.
Curtis placed third, beating Rhode Island’s top seed, Tylor Fenwick of Mt. Hope, 8-5 in the consolation final. Curtis lost his championship semifinal 5-2 to defending champ Ian Butterbrodt of St. John’s Prep in Massachusetts. Butterbrodt went on to win the final with a pin.
As a junior, Curtis placed third at 195 pounds, also losing to the eventual champion in the semifinal.
Biddeford’s Dominick Day (152), Marshwood’s Brett Gerry (182), Noble’s Austin Shorey (120), Mt. Ararat’s Robert Heatherman (160), Skowhegan’s Cody Craig (106) and Massabesic’s Mike Risti (220) finished in the top eight.
Marshwood was fourth in the team standings with 55 points. Mt. Anthony Union scored 122.5 points to win its second straight New England championship, by a 38.5-point margin over Newtown.
Sanford’s 1967 team is the only New England champion from Maine. Maine wrestlers did not compete at the New England championships from 1979-98.