On Saturday, Bangor’s first ever high school wrestling team capped off a successful regular season with its first ever Senior Day, putting on a show for friends and family at a raucous Brewer High School gym.
Composed of 20 high schoolers — half of whom have never wrestled before — and six co-head coaches from Greater Bangor, Penobscot County Wrestling is going toe-to-toe with some of the most established teams in the state, with a 17-8 record through eight meets this winter.
Saturday’s dual meet with Camden Hills, Maine Central Institute, Mt. View and Morse was the first time the wrestling team played host this season, providing a great opportunity for this newfound band of brothers to show the progress they’ve made in their debut season.
“We’re all coming together and we’re all working hard to shoot for a goal that no one’s ever set yet,” Bangor native and senior co-captain Parker Small (175 lb.) said. “It’s been awesome, seeing the growth we’ve gone through. I hadn’t wrestled in so long, and I feel like I’m getting a strong groove going — I’m grateful for sure.”
Similar to Small, senior co-captains Isaac “Ozzy” Osborne of Bangor (215 lb.), Elliot Gandarillas of Brewer (150 lb.) and Brody Simons of Hampden (120 lb.) were talented, passionate wrestlers during their middle school years at Bangor Parks and Recreation, but had their careers stopped short in 2020 due to the pandemic and the lack of high school teams in the area.
Across the state of Maine, 60-plus varsity wrestling teams have been in action for years, but the sport had eluded Penobscot County up until this winter — Bangor High School has never had a wrestling team, and Brewer’s mats hadn’t been used in more than a decade. Hampden Academy, Orono, Old Town and John Bapst are some of the other schools that Penobscot County Wrestling members attend.
“[Starting the team] is a huge accomplishment, something that we really all wanted for so long,” Danielle Simons, mother of Brody said. “Brody’s well-being and demeanor is never better than when he’s wrestling. His head is there, and in the game. His whole being is in this sport.”
On Saturday, Simons went a perfect 4-0, as did Osborne. Small went 2-2, but pushed Camden Hills’ Reilly Tanner-Watts — the No. 2-ranked 175 lb. wrestler in Maine — to the brink, leading until the final few seconds of the match and turning the home crowd into a madhouse.
Penobscot County Wrestling ended up beating MCI 66-12 and Morse 42-24, while losing to Camden Hills 42-39 and Mt. View 45-32.
“I really like the atmosphere of wrestling. Win, lose or draw, you’re really happy all the time; it’s just so tense and filled with adrenaline,” Bangor senior and first-time wrestler Armani Bastion (144 lb.) said. “I’ve always liked martial arts, and I wanted to test my luck with it. I’ve started getting a wrestling IQ — when I’m out there on the mat I can think of things better, what works and doesn’t work — which transfers over to jiu-jitsu and boxing. It’s been a wonderful experience, and I’ve gotten to meet a lot of wonderful people. We’re like a family.”
This upcoming weekend, the team will bus down to Morse High School to participate in the Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference championships, its biggest test yet. From there, Penobscot County Wrestling will compete in regionals, where the top four wrestlers from each weight class will qualify for states.
As an independent wrestler last year, Simons took second in the state. For everyone else, the postseason will be a fresh, unforgettable chapter of their wrestling careers.
“It’s a big deal for us. It’s another thing to build to,” Osborne said. “Our coaches are really high-level wrestlers, so it’s easy to learn stuff from them and get to a place where it’s like, ‘Whoa, we’re pretty good.’ They really push us and preach work ethic, which builds a winning culture.”
Penobscot County Wrestling is coached by locals Aaron James, Jordan Fogg, Curt Calovecchi, Connor Winchenbach, Caleb Pelletier and Jeff Whalen, with the latter two having wrestled at the Division I NCAA level.