The Fairfield boys wrestling team survived a tense finish to secure a 42–41 victory over Burlington in its conference dual opener on Thursday, December 18th, with the outcome decided in the final bout of the night.
The dual marked Fairfield’s first competition since the Bob Murphy Invitational at West Delaware on December 6th. Weather-related postponements had kept the Trojans off the mat for nearly two weeks, and some early rust showed—though not enough to deny them the win.
Dual Recap
Fairfield held a 42-36 lead heading into the final match at 175 pounds, where Dain Burkhart—fresh off his 100th career win at the Bob Murphy Invitational—faced a crucial decision. If Burkhart lost by fall, Burlington would tie the dual 42-42 and send it to tiebreakers. However, Burkhart limited the damage, losing by technical fall 19-3 at 4:37 in the third period. The technical fall gave Burlington only five team points instead of six, allowing Fairfield to escape with the 42-41 victory.
Individual Highlights
Alex Hudson (215) provided an early spark for the Trojans, scoring a pin in just 37 seconds with one of his trademark headlocks. Noah Patel (106) followed with a dominant performance, winning by fall after leading in the match 10-1. Top-ranked Cael McCabe (120) earned a forfeit win.
Aiden Holthus (157) delivered a key pin at 1:10 late in the dual. His victory tied the dual at 36-36, which then allowed Kenneth Houston (165) to pick up a forfeit and push Fairfield to a 42-36 lead. Holthus’ win proved crucial, giving the Trojans the edge they needed to secure the team victory.
Fairfield also picked up forfeit victories from Aaron Wellnitz (132), River Fulton (144), and Houston (165), which proved pivotal in the final team score. Losses came from Calvin McClain (190), Sebastian Ftwi (285), Jensen VanSkike (126), Jasper Carpenter (138), Aarush Patel (150), and Burkhart (175), with several matches coming down to key moments late in the bouts.
Coach’s Perspective
Head coach Dane Kool credited his team’s toughness while acknowledging the effects of the long layoff.
“We did just enough to get the win over Burlington,” Kool said. “We haven’t competed in a while, and we came out flat. We lost several matches we felt we should have won, but our guys stayed tough and scored enough team points to pull it out.”
Kool also highlighted Hudson’s early pin as a momentum boost.
“Alex Hudson gave us a good spark with one of the many different headlocks he uses and secured a quick pin early in the dual,” Kool said.
Looking Ahead
Fairfield improves to 1–0 in conference action and will look to build momentum on Saturday, December 20th, at the Pella Boys Wrestling Invitational, beginning at 9:30 a.m.
