It was Senior Night last Thursday in Duxbury, and it was fitting that seven of the eight senior Dragon grapplers won their matches, with five of those wins by pin.

Senior captains Justin Carroll (130 lbs.), Colin McKenzie (145), Johnny Barrett (152), and Tyler Genereux (171) finished the final home dual match of their careers in style by pinning their Hingham opponents and giving Duxbury 24 of the team’s 43 points. Senior Pat Murphy was not to be outdone in the 189 lbs. contest, as he pinned Hingham’s Matt Constantine from the takedown.

While the seniors certainly had an impressive night, Duxbury freshman Mikkel Linskey got the Dragons off on the right foot when he took the mat in the 119 lbs. weight class. Linskey went on the offensive and got the first takedown, but a quick reversal and back points by his Hingham opponent had the freshman down 5-2 at the end of one.  Linskey started the second period on top, and was called for a full nelson. The illegal hold gave Hingham another point, but Linskey narrowed the gap to 6-4 with two back points. Starting the third period on bottom, the hardworking freshman got an escape and a subsequent takedown. With a one-point advantage, Linskey held down his opponent for the remainder of the third period, giving him a hard fought 7-6 win.

The Duxbury lead would not last long, as Hingham senior Matt Mui made quick work of Duxbury junior Colin Connolly in the 125 lbs. match-up. Mui built a 5-0 lead with a takedown and three back points before pinning Connolly with less than a minute remaining in the first period.

After Duxbury returned the favor, senior Kyle Scola wowed the crowd with an immediate takedown of Hingham’s Max Goldstein in the 135 lbs. weight class. The overpowering senior never looked back, leading 5-0 at the end of one en route to a 12-1 major decision.

That set the stage for the match-up of the evening between Hingham’s top wrestler, Garrett Lincoln, and Duxbury senior Zach Sanchez in the 140 lbs. weight class.  Sanchez, who started wrestling as a sophomore wasn’t fazed by the senior captain’s credentials, taking the Hingham star to the mat for a quick 2-0 lead. Lincoln reversed to tie the score at 2-2, but another Sanchez takedown would give him a 4-2 lead at the end of one. Starting the second period on bottom, Lincoln earned a one-point escape, only to be taken down again. The frustrated Hingham captain escaped from bottom again to get within one, but that was as close as he would get, as Sanchez cruised to a 9-5 upset, much to the dismay of the Hingham bench.

After two Duxbury pins in the 145 lbs. and 152 lbs. weight classes, Hingham would get one back in the 160 lbs. match-up when Duxbury sent Brian O’Leary to the mat in place of junior John McGeady, who was out with a skin ailment.  The inexperienced grappler did everything to prevent a takedown in the first period, but hung his head just long enough to be taken down in a headlock, that led to a first-period pin.

With the score now 28-12 in favor of Duxbury, the Dragons dashed any hope of a Hingham comeback with two more pins before Hingham senior captain Oisin O’Donnelly took the mat against Duxbury senior Jake Roumacher in the 215 lbs. contest.  The Hingham captain led 5-0 after one when Roumacher lifted O’Donnelly to throw him back down on the mat only to have the weight of the senior captain fall on him. The mishap led to an O’Donnelly reversal, and a subsequent second-period pin.

Without a heavyweight, Duxbury was forced to forfeit the next match before Duxbury junior Tim Donoghue took the mat against Hingham’s Mike Mui in the 103 lbs. match-up. Donoghue got the first takedown, but couldn’t turn Mui and settled for a 2-0 lead after one. Mui chose bottom to start the second period, and earned a two-point reversal to tie the match at 2-2. Donoghue appeared to have control and the escape as time expired in the period, but was not awarded the point as the score remained tied. On bottom to start the third period, Donoghue would take the lead on a two-point reversal, but Mui kept fighting on bottom and his efforts would pay off, as he stunned the upperclassman by reversing and putting Donoghue on his back, earning the pin and the win.

With the Harbormen now on their feet after the Mui upset, Duxbury freshman Brendan Gillis (112) appeared to be in trouble when he went down first, but the determined freshman quickly escaped before the two wrestlers exchanged takedowns, giving Hingham a 4-3 edge after one.  The match would go back and forth until Gillis took a three-point lead heading into the third period en route to an 8-5 win, and a 43-30 victory for Duxbury.

The team traveled to Somerset for a quad on Saturday, but could not muster a team win with three of their key wrestlers out of the line-up. However, senior captains Colin McKenzie and Tyler Genereux, who pinned all three of his opponents, both went 3-0 with wins over Bridgewater- Raynham, Somerset, and Mansfield, extending their unbeaten streaks to 24-0. McKenzie and Genereux are the only two ranked wrestlers from the South Shore who remain unbeaten.

Duxbury will host their annual team tournament this Saturday at 9 a.m. before getting ready for the Sectionals.