Special to the Picayune 

In its first home meet since mid-December, Westlake rolled over District 26 rival Leander, winning 14 of 15 matches en route to a 75-6 victory. Chap wrestlers accumulated nine pins and two forfeits in the dual meet, accounting for 66 team points.

Senior co-captain Alex Hershey started the Chaps off with a pin over Marcus Wharton at 160 pounds. Fellow captain Grant Perry added to that by pinning Jadon Kempers at 171 pounds. Trevor Hershey made it three in a row with a pin over Wolfgang Averitt at 180 pounds.

The most exciting match of the night came at 189 pounds, where Curtis Loeffel was filling in for the injured Jon McMichael. With the score tied at 3-3 and seemingly going into overtime, Loeffel scored a last-second takedown against Cody Davidson to pull out the 5-3 victory.

“That was a huge win for Curtis,” Westlake coach Patrick O’Harra said. “I think it proved that he is ready for varsity competition.”

Sandwiched between a pair of forfeits was Westlake’s only setback. After David Durham received the forfeit at 215 pounds, Leander heavyweight Brian Solares earned the fall over raw but talented Jack Horn. 

But Sammy Ivester took the forfeit at 103 for Westlake, and the Chaps never looked back.

David Nickelatti pinned Anthony Faccone at 112 pounds, followed by a pair of decisions by Connor Shults and Zain Khan at 119 and 125 pounds, respectively. It was all pins for the Chaps after that. Chase Betzer (130), Jim Gianakopoulos (140), Sawyer Morris (145), and Peyton Burns (152) all earned falls, with co-captain Neils Hazen sneaking in a pin at 135 pounds.

“That was a pretty good showing for us,” O’Harra said. “Everyone wrestled well, and we did not lose any matches we expected to win. Even Jack Horn was aggressive in the heavyweight match. Leander has a strong tradition, but they are a little down this year. But their coach is too good to allow them to stay that way for long. I suspect they will be much stronger next year.”

Westlake hosts district foe Cedar Park Wednesday on Senior Parent Night,  which marks the final home meet of the year. The team will travel to Ohio this weekend to compete in the Marion Pleasant Invitational.

“Other Westlake teams have traveled out of state in the past, and now that we have a strong team, we wanted to opportunity,” O’Harra said. “Wrestling in Ohio is some of the best in the nation, and the guys will also get a chance to tour the wrestling facilities at Ohio State University and then watch a college dual between Ohio State and Minnesota. That is something they can’t do in Texas. It should be a great experience.”