Soaring start

Pennsville opens its wrestling season with a 58-24 win over Palmyra; Lussi, newcomer Shinn score two of Eagles’ six pins

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNSVILLE – When Elias Lussi walked into the Pennsville wrestling room for the first time three seasons ago he knew absolutely nothing about the sport other than what he might have caught on TV growing up in a tough but loving neighborhood in Miami Gardens.

He was 260 pounds, didn’t know the difference between a take down and back points and the only reason he was there at all was because he tagged along with his only friend in a new school, Ayden Perez.

In the time that has transpired, Lussi dropped 70 pounds, became the leader in the wrestling room and finally stopped throwing up before practices, which had been an everyday occurrence when he first got involved.

Now he has designs on qualifying for the state tournament. He got that goal off to a good start Thursday with a third-period pin in the Eagles’ 58-24 season-opening victory over Palmyra.

“I had no clue, I came into it completely blinded,” Lussi recalled. “I just got lucky with the community and got two amazing coaches who continued following me and were always by my side.”

His first year on the mat was a rough one. He was the backup varsity heavyweight who spent most of his mat time with the JVs and more often than not ended up on his back. But there was this one exhibition match against Overbrook in which he put a cross face on his opponent and turned him and that got his coaches’ attention.

The next year he slimmed down to 190, because the Eagles already had two guys at 215.  He went 17-22 with the varsity and qualified next to last for the regionals and lost his opening match. But he was steadily making progress.

“To this day I still can’t believe it,” Lussi said. “I virtually think about this every day and every day I remind myself that I still can’t believe it because it’s an incredible journey. I would never imagine myself to lose 80 pounds and being able to discipline myself any time I want.

“There’s not just one word that can describe it, it’s a whole bunch of words. Getting beat up by my teammates, my life in general, so many things happening. Wrestling is the toughest sport and everybody says if you can get through wrestling you can get through life. It completely shows it now.”

On Thursday he weighed in at 189.2 pounds and had his way with opponent Joe Garrison. He scored the pin with 1:03 left in the third period and was leading 10-0 at the time of the pin.

“From a coaching perspective, there’s no better feeling than to take a kid who knows nothing and turn him into a region qualifier in his first year wrestling varsity,” Pennsville coach John Starcevich said. “He just made this transition as a person. Now he’s our senior captain, he’s the leader in the room, he’s the voice of our room.

“Rewind two years ago he was the most quiet person in the room. So, for him to learn the sport, love the spot and project his knowledge and his love of wrestling onto others right now, there’s no better feeling. That just lets us know we can take kids as freshmen and develop them by the times they’re sophomore, juniors – the earlier the better – to be able to compete.”

Another one of those success stories was looming at the other end of the lineup. Sophomore Gina Shinn was making her varsity debut as a new-to-the-sport wrestler. She won her match at 113 with a second-period pin to give the Eagles their first on-the-mat win of the season.

It was 50-50 whether she was going to get on the mat Thursday. She was listed as an either/or with Lucas Thomas at 106 and 113. When Pennsville sent out Thomas at 106 and Palmyra forfeited, the Panthers moved Gabriella Alves de Sousa to 113 for the matchup with Shinn.

It was a tight match throughout. Shinn fell behind 6-4 in the second period, then “my anxiety kicked in” and she quickly turned the tables on the match. The pin came with 32 seconds left in the period.

“It was really tough, like really tough,” Shinn said. “She definitely put up a really good fight. It was a good match and that win felt like I was in a whole ‘nother world. It was amazing. It’s a once in a lifetime experience. You never forget the first match, the first pin.”

Shinn was never one to shy away from contact. She played football in middle school and was always up for a challenge. Her Pennsville Little League World Series softball teammate Kloi Tighe, who wrestles for Gloucester City, influenced her to give that sport a try.

With the first win under her belt she could retire tomorrow undefeated as a varsity wrestler. But she believes she’ll stick with it.

“The coaches told me I should wait for my first match and depending on the outcome I can choose if I want to quit or I want to stay,” she said. “I never had doubts of quitting, but they told the whole team wait for your first match, so that’s what I did. I waited until my first match.

“Knowing I can do something like that, it definitely gives me the ability to keep going and have more confidence in myself. No quitting. They said they knew they were going to lose people, but I said I’m not a quitter.”

The Eagles won 10 bouts in the match – six by pin, three by forfeit and one major decision. They’re back on the mat this weekend in the two-day Howdy Duncan Classic at William Penn in New Castle.

“That’s a great start.” Starcevich said. “There were a lot of positives, there were some negatives as well, but it’s the first match of the season.

We had a great practice yesterday, we had a great preseason, back it up even further, this was the most active offseason we’ve had … and that’s showing. Guys who might have struggled at the varsity level last year or even wrestle with the varsity, those guys are now our team leaders, the guys we depend on. The offseason for our team right now has made all the difference … tonight.”

PENNSVILLE 58, PALMYRA 24
106: Lucas Thomas (Pv) won by forfeit
113: Gina Shinn (Pv) pinned Gabriella Alves de Sousa, 3:28
120: Chris Daniels (Pv) pinned Chase Moritz, 1:29
126: Kameron Drummond (Pv) maj. dec. over Toaha Sajim, 10-0
132: Trevor Young (Pal) pinned Randy Hall, 1:24
138: Aiden Hines (Pal) pinned Joey Maurer, 2:40
144: Travis Hagan (Pv) pinned Ben Still, 1:46
150: Sky Eppes (Pv) pinned Elliott Jackson, 1:12
157: Robbie McDade (Pv) won by forfeit
165: Cole Campbell (Pv) won by forfeit
175: Pat Daly (Pal) won by forfeit
190: Elias Lussi (Pv) pinned Joe Garrison, 4:57
215: Deakon Haines (Pal) won by forfeit
285: Trevor Waddington (Pv) pinned Stephen Hankey, 1:36