Methuen's John Sughrue toppled Mike Frick (left) of New Fairfield, Conn., en route to winning the 130-pound weight class.
(David Kamerman/Globe Staff)
New England wrestling championships
LOWELL - Tim Rich got his revenge.
The Chelmsford wrestler's 49-1 record had one blemish: a loss earlier this season to Crock Coutu of Griswold, Conn. So when Rich found out he'd be facing his nemesis last night in the New England high school wrestling championships, he was ready.
Rich picked up his 50th win with a dominating effort, pinning Coutu and taking home the 135-pound title.
The match was held at Lowell High School and drew approximately 2,500 raucous fans, one of the largest gatherings for this event. With the bleachers packed, many had to sit on the floor or search for a place to stand close enough to the action.
Rich came out on the warpath, racking up points in the first period and streaking to a 7-0 lead. Sensing the crowd on his side, he finished off Coutu with a pin midway through the second period.
"I was thinking about him all year," a smiling Rich said. "I wanted this one. I just tried to wrestle one second at a time."
But did he expect a pin?
"It just kind of happened," he said with a laugh. "He's a tough opponent and it was great to come out on top this time."
In other weight classes:
103 - Carlin Dubay of Caribou, Maine, doubled up the score on Cam Sullivan of Timberlain, N.H., 12-6. Sullivan rallied in the final period, but Dubay managed to hold him off.
112 - Lowell's Brandon Gauthier went up, 5-1, on Mike Meyers of Warwick, R.I., and held on to win, 7-3.
119 - It was a close call, but Billerica's Kenny Anderson completed his undefeated season after taking down Charlie Costanzo, from Danbury, Conn., 6-5. "He shocked me. Definitely the strongest kid I faced all year," Anderson said. "But I knew I just had to keep my composure and focus, and I was able to come out on top."
125 - Trevor Dearden of Salem made quick work of Anthony Medina of Putnam, pinning him with 51 seconds left in the first period. Dearden took home the night's award for outstanding wrestler.
130 - He only scored 2 points, both in the third period, but it was enough for Methuen's John Sughrue. He added another win to his undefeated season after taking down Griswold's Tyler Banks, 2-1. "It was my goal to go undefeated this year," Sughrue said. "I knew [Banks] would be tough, but even when I was behind I didn't get frustrated and just stuck to my game plan."
140 - Evan Connors delighted his hometown Lowell fans with a 5-1 victory over Middletown's Jacob Matthews.
145 - Derek Fish of Connecticut's Daniel Hand High School prevailed, 6-3, in a back-and-forth battle with Jon Smith of Dirigo High in Maine.
152 - Ronnie Tetrault of Ludlow came out strong and pinned Seth Carter of New Hampshire's Alvirne High with 18 seconds left in the first period.
160 - Kote Aldus from Belfast, Maine, scored 3 late points to pad his lead en route to a 6-0 win over Ron Thompson of Connecticut's Westhill High.
171 - Robert Hamlin of Mt. Mansfield High in Vermont held on and took down Josh Eon from Massabesic High in Maine, 5-4.
189 - With his season on the brink, Julian Hightower of Ledyard, Conn., scored a late point and sent his match with Central Catholic's Mike Leavitt to overtime. Leavitt had taken the lead with less than a minute left in the final period, but Hightower escaped his grasp to pick up a late point and eventually won in overtime, 5-4. It was voted the best finals match.
215 - Brett Wyman of Bridgewater-Raynham took home the title after defeating Richard Perry of Middletown, Conn., 4-1. Wyman became the first in his family to win a New England title; three of his uncles previously came up short. "Everyone said this one's for bragging rights," an exhausted Wyman said. "I'm not going to say much though - all of them can still beat me down."
285 - Timberlane's Brain Nicoll took down Nate Lavallee of Cape Elizabeth, Maine, 5-2, in a hard-fought contest.
© Copyright 2008 Globe Newspaper Company.
