Dylan Fischer has been down this path before. Now the former West Deptford High wrestler hopes he can repeat last season's success in this weekend's Eastern District Wrestling Championships at Lackawanna College – and he looks to bring along a whole gang of teammates to the National Championships in March in Council Bluffs, Iowa as well.
Fischer will look to repeat as 165-pound champion and Most Valuable Wrestler at Lackawanna, each a key part of his goal to win a National Championship this season.
"You need to wrestler well in all tournaments at all levels, and the Districts are pretty big," said Fischer. "I definitely have set my big goal of winning a national championship, but it won't happen without staying consistent and wrestling well in the Districts."
Fischer also expects to see a large contingent of his teammates qualify for the National Championships coming out of Districts. Last season the Roadrunners, coached by Dan Antonelli, advanced six wrestlers to the National tournament while finishing as District runner-up to Lackawanna. This winter, said Fischer, the goal is higher.
"We have a great lineup and everyone is working hard," he said. "If everyone wrestles to their potential, we have a shot at bettering what we did last season."
Other returning national qualifiers from 2019 include Jared Carr (157 pounds), Tyler Baer (174) and John Fountain (heavyweight). Coach Antonelli also has several additional wrestlers who should perform well, including 125-pounder Nick DiGiacomo and 197-pounder Curtis Thomas.
"Everyone's had a great season, and hopefully we'll perform well this weekend," Antonelli said. "We've made some adjustments in practice and we've worked hard. Everyone has placed high expectations on themselves."
WATCH THE ACTION LIVE STARTING AT 10AM ON SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 22: https://lackawannafalcons.com/sports/2020/2/14/njcaa-region-xix-wrestling-championships.aspx
Here is the tentative Roadrunner lineup once the actions kicks off at 10 am, at Lackawanna.
125 Nick DGiacomo
133 C.J. Mazzarelli
141 Mike Rubino
149 Atlee Cullison
157 Jared Carr or Justin Boylan
165 Dylan Fischer
174 Tyler Baer
184 Jaden Roberts
197 Curtis Thomas
285 John Fountain
Click here to follow tournament results through weekend
