Cyrus, Rodrigues pick up key wins for No. 2 South Carroll
A battle-tested South Carroll wrestling team found itself in not one, but two tightly contested duals against top competition Tuesday night.
The No. 2 Cavaliers got key wins from Kaden Cyrus and AJ Rodrigues and narrowly defeated both No. 3 Gilman and Spring Mills, one of the best teams in West Virginia, to keep its undefeated record intact and improve to 25-0..
“It was hard,” South Carroll coach Jay Braunstein said. “We have a schedule like this on purpose.”
South Carroll’s first dual was against Spring Mills out of Martinsburg, West Virginia, and was headlined by the 170-pound contest between Rodrigues and Spring Mills’ Patrick Jackson, who came into the match as returning state champions and are ranked 15th and 16th in the country, respectively, by SBLive. Jackson got the best of Rodrigues, winning by decision.
While that might have been the match of the night on paper, the biggest win came from South Carroll’s Cyrus as he picked up an important victory for the Cavaliers.
Cyrus’ pin of Ryan Haggerty in their 145-pound bout erased a four-point Spring Mills lead, giving South Carroll the advantage late in the dual. Gage Owen sealed the victory for the Cavs with his own pinfall to clinch the narrow 35-32 win.
“I just wanted to win so bad for my teammates,” Cyrus said. “I went out there and gave everything I had and I think that’s what gave me the edge.”
While Cyrus might be a lesser-known name on a roster filled with state champions and other state placers, his coach knows exactly the quality he’s getting when he sends Cyrus to the mat.
“He did what he does; he just doesn’t make many mistakes,” Braunstein said. “If he was anywhere else, he’d be starting and fighting for a state championship. He’s that good.”
Along with Cyrus and Owen, South Carroll got a pin from Sean Hobbs (126). It’s the second time this season the Cavaliers defeated Spring Mills, the first coming with a 40-36 victory at the Musselman Duals.
South Carroll’s second dual came against a Gilman team hungry for redemption after its 38-31 loss to Spring Mills earlier in the night.
In the back-and-forth dual, both teams were hyped as the second-to-last match of the night put Rodrigues against Nick Haughty with the teams tied at 30.
Rodrigues, one of three returning state champions for the Cavaliers, came out much more aggressive compared to his loss earlier in the night. The 170-pounder earned redemption and pushed his team to the brink of victory with a technical fall that included thunderous takedowns that echoed across the gym, much to the delight of the South Carroll crowd.
“I just kept scoring points and never let off the gas pedal,” Rodrigues said “I couldn’t get [a six-point pinfall], but the tech fall is just as good.”
Rodrigues’ victory was followed by one from his younger brother Manny, who won his match and sealed the tri-meet sweep with a decision to finalize the 38-30 victory.
South Carroll also picked up pinfall victories from Grayson Barnhill (106), Evan Owen (113), Gage Owen (145) and Rylan Moose (195).
In a highly anticipated bout between two of the state’s best at 138 pounds, Gilman sophomore Emmitt Sherlock handed South Carroll senior Michael Pizzuto, a two-time state champion who entered the season a perfect 99-0, his first loss to another Maryland wrestler with a 2-1 overtime decision. Tied at 1 after regulation and the first one-minute overtime period, Sherlock rode out Pizzuto in the second extra session and then escaped in the third to secure the win.