1/23/25 Highlight: Varsity Wrestling

By KAYLEE GONG and LYDIA KUHNERT

This past Saturday, Jan. 18, Exeter Wrestling participated in the Eight Schools Duals Tournament, a collection of highly competitive matches in which teams from the Eight Schools Association compete head-to-head in a dual meet format. Exeter competed against Choate Rosemary Hall at their campus, Deerfield Academy, Northfield Mount Hermon, and Hotchkiss School. The Exonian wrestlers defeated Deerfield in a decisive victory of 39-29 but sadly lost against the remaining opponents, with final scores of 27-54, 36-42, and 30-53, respectively.

Prep Catherine Chen, a new wrestler, explained, reflecting on her original stereotypes, “Wrestling is much more physically intense than I thought it would be, and it’s put me into a lot better shape. Everyone thinks for wrestling you have to be big and strong, but it’s honestly a lot about explosivity and flexibility.”

Wrestling is not only physically beneficial but also mentally. Prep Alex Luo reflected on the rewarding nature of wrestling, “I think wrestling has helped me persevere more. If you can be in the middle of a wrestling match and not tap out, then you can probably continue to do your homework and not ‘tap out.’”

Chen concluded with her advice for new wrestlers looking to join the team or any curious onlookers, “Please don’t be scared [to join], and don’t be intimidated. I’m a new wrestler, and there are a lot of new prep wrestlers. If you’re a girl, please join. It’s not as scary as you think it is, and it just makes you a better athlete. You need to be explosive; you need to be flexible. After you wrestle, everything in life becomes easier.”

With such a multitude of wrestling benefits, spectacles, and great people, come out and support Big Red at their next home match against Seabrooke and Bidstrup on Saturday, Jan. 25!