WINSLOW – It was evident to each Maine individual that his physical conditioning was lacking at Friendship Series wrestling at Winslow High School on Tuesday night.
Mountain Valley teammates Aaron Arsenault, Ben Madigan, Chris Smith and Brendan Bradley came up short, as did almost the entire Maine team. Nebraska won 17 of 18 matches.
“I never thought that I’d be so out of shape for wrestling,” Smith said. “This was a great opportunity. I was trying to get inside against him, but my arm kept slipping off and I was getting mad.”
Smith, a three-time Class B state champion, battled to a 1-1 tie and a 6-5 loss. The draw resulted after an overtime period. In the second match, Smith led 5-4, but Brandon Hadiburgh executed a double-leg takedown with 16 seconds left. Smith was countered, by a stepover, while attempting a reversal.
Madigan led late in the second period, but Jared Meister scored eight of the final nine points, to win 12-6. The Falcon graduate was stuck in a spladle in a second match.
“You can’t defense against that,” Madigan said. “It was close entering the third period in my first match. I needed to catch my breath during the third period.”
Brothers Shane and Sam Webber of Mt. Blue had wrestled the previous night at Brewer. Shane, a two-time Class A state champion, lost 4-3 decision to Zach Small on a near fall and Sam was edged out 1-0 on an escape in the final minute. Nebraska won 17 of 19 matches Monday.
The Friendship Series, which is the longest running exchange of its type in the United States, was co-founded in 1984 by Wally LaFountain of Winslow.
“Hey, this is a lot of work,” said LaFountain, who organized the Winslow site. “But, like we know, it’s a labor of love. I’m very pleased that the program is still going well after 21 years.”
The Cornhuskers were the guests of Al Graceffa, owner of several Wendy franchises, last evening. Graceffa is a former Winslow wrestling coach and wrestling official. A Whitewater rafting trip on the Kennebec River is planned Wednesday.
Bradley escaped five times, but Tony Green had four takedowns in a 9-5 decision. The Falcons standout won a state championship in February.
“I wasn’t expecting this to be so tough,” Bradley said. “We were both too sweaty to tie up and all he wanted to do was shoot on me.”
Arsenault was overmatched in a 6-1 loss to Austin Carmicheal. Kyle Bonin of Belfast won the lone match by a Maine wrestler, 9-2.
Nebraska will wrestle again on Friday in conjunction with the Maine Games at the Portland Expo. The master of ceremonies is Olympic gold medalist Rulon Gardner.
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