Liberty ready to see fruits of its labor

Jasiah Pagan walked into Liberty’s Memorial Gym for the 2023 District 11 wrestling tournament with a 25-6 record and a lot of confidence.

He left disappointed with a 3-3 record and without a ticket to the Northeast Regional tournament.

“It was very humbling last year losing those couple big matches in districts,” Pagan said.

“This offseason, I had to get my mindset right and be better for my junior year.”

Pagan wasn’t alone. Though the effort was there, the results weren’t for the Hurricanes.

Instead of accepting the difficulty and outcomes or quitting, they collectively chose to increase their commitment to the sport. That meant more offseason training, more time in the weight room, more competitions.

It should lead to better results in 2023-24, and head coach Brandon Hall is confident that the hard work will continue during the season and good things will happen.

His wrestlers believe that, too. “We all know what we had to do,” senior Jack Evans said. “We are all willing to do whatever it takes to get that done.

“I think all of us had a productive offseason. This summer was a lot of fun. I think we all feel prepared for the season.”

Senior Sergio Laracuente was a first-year wrestler last season lured out by friend and fellow wrestler Levi Levy. He nearly walked out of the room.

Instead, the baseball player for 11 years trusted his new friends and coaches in the room.

“I had seen the work everyone put in and wanted to be part of that,” he said. “I wanted to try a new challenge. My friends have been trying to get me to join since freshman year. It’s one of the best ideas I could have hoped for.

“There were points when I wanted to stop wrestling because I felt I wasn’t able to compete with wrestlers who had experience. But it started to come to me.”

Laracuente was not alone. Liberty’s lineup last season had plenty of first-year varsity wrestlers struggling to come to grips with the challenges one faces in the sport.

Hall, however, could not be prouder of how those Hurricanes fought last season and showed up this season better prepared.

“Those kids worked their butts off,” he said. “This sport is not easy, man. They could have stopped.”

Adding a vital layer to the program:

Liberty has had its share of good teams, but there have been ups and downs for years.

The lack of a feeder program at the middle-school level was a cause, one Hall felt was a simple fix. Until he tried to fix it.

But Hall was determined to see it through. He turned to some friends in the school district’s middle schools and now that has come to fruition.

Liberty’s program numbers are up from last year. There also are a significant number of those participating in the middle-school intramural program.

In time, that feeder program will give Liberty a better chance to avoid the down years and hopefully eliminate varsity lineup holes.

The Hurricanes will be a little more seasoned this season.

Pagan, twice a 20-match winner, will be at 107 or 114 to start the season. Freshman Elijah Heimbach should see time at 107. He was a District 11 junior high seventhplace finisher last March at 87 pounds.

Laracuente is at 121 or 127. Evans could be anywhere from 127 to 139. He was a District 11 sixthplace finisher last season. Senior Derek Cruz, who got in five varsity matches last season, will be in that same range.

Senior Kam Abboud, who won 31 matches last season and was a Northeast Regional sixth-place finisher, will be at 133 to 145.

Sophomore Adriaan DeLeon, a 24-match winner and district sixth-place finisher, will be at 139 to 152 when he returns from an injury. Hall is optimistic DeLeon will be back by January.

Senior Wesley Koch, who competed in 16 matches last year as a first-year varsity competitor, will be anywhere from 152 to 172.

Sophomore Daniel Rivera, 3-5 last season in limited action, will be at 160 and 172.

Projected lineup:

“He put the time in this offseason,” Pagan said. “It’s his time to shine.”

The 189-pound weight class is open at this point. Junior Dante Morrison, 12-12 last season, is expected to take big jumps this year at 215 and 285.

“He is a very determined young man,” Hall said. “Guys struggled last year to hold him down. Those who work with him in the room know how strong he is. Others can’t believe he only weighs up to 215 pounds because when he gets on you, he feels like a whole lot more.

“He’s going to be one to watch.” Seniors Seth Kolb (17-12 last year) and Levi Levy will be at 285.