HARVARD MAN
Before he heads to Crimson for college, Avon wrestler Isaiah Adams has some unfinished business on the mat
Isaiah Adams wasn’t expecting to lose. He was top-seeded in his weight class at the New England wrestling tournament last year. He got pinned in the quarterfinals. “It was a brutal match,” Adams said. “It was my old drill partner from Massachusetts. I was a little bit flustered after that match and I kind of just wanted to go home.” He lost again and he did go home. But out of that loss came resolve. Adams, the defending 113-pound State Open champion from Avon, went back to work on the mat. And he finished seventh at the national championships and was honored as an All-american. This season, he has not lost. His coach John Mclaughlin doesn’t believe he’s even been taken down this year in a match. He’s the No. 1-ranked wrestler in New England in Max Schwartz’s rankings. Last month, he picked Harvard over the U.S. Military Academy at West Point to continue his wrestling career in college.
He wants to win that New England title. But first up this weekend, is the State Open, which starts Friday at the Floyd Little Athletic Center in New Haven. Adams, a senior, won the Class M 113-pound title last Saturday and his team won the title by a half-point after runner-up RHAM was assessed a controversial one-point penalty for a wrestler who was
“It was a little disappointing not being able to get as many matches as I would have liked my senior year, but I do understand the strategy of the game. There’s no animosity toward anybody.” — Isaiah Adams
part of a celebration on the mat and was not wearing his uniform correctly, as per the rules.
Adams started wrestling at age 4 in the Lehigh Valley in Pennsylvania, a hotbed for the sport. He continued when he moved to Massachusetts and competed in the state
Turn to Adams,