Dylan Fischer and Dylan Skidmore are in a groove, and that is great news for RCGC's wrestling team. 

 

Fischer, a 165-pounder, and Skidmore, a 157-pounder, are hitting their peaks just in time under coach Dan Antonelli. 

 

In Saturday's Long Island Open at Nassau Community College, Fischer rolled to a 4-0 record in capturing the 165-pound title. The West Deptford High graduate prevailed over Cortland St. University's Charlie Spada. 

 

Skidmore, meanwhile, a former Glassboro High star, dropped his first match of the day but finished a respectable 4-1 overall in claiming a fifth place showing at 157. 

 

Those efforts led the Roadrunners to a solid fifth place team showing in the 14-team tournament won by Baldwin-Wallace College, a perennial NCAA DIII power.

 

"These guys have shown a lot heart and they're beginning to finish their matches nicely," said head coach Dan Antonelli. "It's great to see their improvement over the course of the season."

 

Fischer had been bothered by a shoulder injury over the past two weeks, but jumped back into the lineup to win his individual title on Saturday. 

 

"The shoulder is feeling better and I'm starting to get back into shape," said Fischer. "This was my best outing of the season. and I hope to keep moving forward."

 

Skidmore, who excelled in last season's NJCAA National Championships, is returning to his late 2017-18 form and hopes to be ready for GSACs and the regional meet in early 2019.

"Overall I felt great today," he said. "I'll keep focusing on practicing well during the week and be even more prepared for the next tournament."

Additional top performers included Tyler Baer, Bubba Norris, Jared Carr, Riley Onorato and Pasquale Locantore. Baer finished 3-1 at 174 for a third place showing while Norris continued a nice comeback following an early season injury, winning two of his three matches at 197. Anthony Pencook also took home a win against a defending national champion from Nassau CC in one of the most exciting matches of the event.

 

While Pencook battled from behind in a closely watched match to score the win, Skidmore was on an adjoining match also against Nassau. The two wins back to back may have signaled the return of Roadrunner Wrestling to prominence and as a force to be reckoned with on the national level. Fischer followed that match up with his championship win and then Baer collected his final win of the day by fall all within an outstanding 30-minute stretch for the Roadrunners.

The Roadrunners are scheduled next to take part in the Franklin & Marshall Open on January 5th.

 

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