Shane Simononis didn’t really know what to expect coming into his final wrestling season. Not only was he entering his first season with head coach Juan Garcia, Simononis spent much of last year out of action with a concussion.

He did know one thing-he wanted to make 2017 a fun and memorable season. He surely did that.

Simononis capped his senior season on the mat this past weekend with a solid showing at the Southeast Region Class 2A Championships. He went 1-2 at the 182-pound weight class over the two-day event at Wilson West Lawn High School.

After wrestling in just eight matches as a junior, Simononis picked up yet another victory last Friday in the first round of the regional tournament. He finished his season with a 28-8 record with 22 pins.

“Coming into the year my goal was to just have fun with it,” Simononis said. “I wasn’t too surprised in districts. I knew just about everyone I wrestled and their styles, and I had been working on what I was going to do. I just had to execute. Regionals was a great experience, and I’m glad I performed well enough to win in regionals.”

A week ago, Simononis placed fourth at districts to earn a spot in regionals. It came with a bit of a price, however, as the Falcon senior suffered a leg sprain that initially left his future in doubt.

Simononis rebounded from that injury and put the pain aside, earning a win in his first ever match on the regional stage. His 22nd and final pin of the season came against Susquehanna’s Devin Evans. The fall in 1:34 second advanced Simononis into the quarterfinals round.

“The first match I was down in the beginning, and it was looking like I was going to be ridden out the rest of the first period,” Simononis said. “But we got into a scramble where I find myself most comfortable. I was able to capitalize and lock up a cradle. I just finished it.”

Simononis then ran into some tough competition as he moved forward. In the quarterfinals, Valley Forge Military’s Emmanuel Ahoua pinned Simononis in 3:28. Then, his run came to an end when Kutztown’s Logan Bachman won by fall in 1:35.

Despite the talented field in regionals, Simononis held himself to a high standard that he envisioned would hopefully lead to a berth in states. He wasn’t particularly pleased at how his run ended in regionals on Saturday afternoon.

“Overall I think I didn’t wrestle to the best of my capability,” Simononis said. “I was too conservative with my offense and that is what I had been winning with all year.

“I like ending on a high note and finishing strong, so I wasn’t happy with how it panned out.”

Simononis did, however, become the second Salisbury wrestler in as many seasons to qualify for regionals. It’s a position that not many recent Falcon grapplers can say they’ve been in. But Simononis now can.