The Emmaus High School boys wrestling team is coming off a 7-7 season in which it went 5-6 in East Penn Conference matches. The Hornets have some of their top talent returning, including state medalist Emilio Albanese, a sophomore, and returning regional qualifiers in sophomore Teagan Caciolo, junior Xayden Sallit and senior Jesse Scott.

Some other top returning wrestlers include seniors Chancellor Henry, Ashir Choudhry and Massimo Tranguch, juniors Jackson Max, Aiden Bayard, Logan Armstrong and Logan Roth, and sophomores Logan Maher and Tommy Fallstich.

Key newcomers that will be competing for spots in the lineup include sophomore Levi Max and freshmen Cam Martinez, Talan Springer, Xyler Sallit and Jacob Strauss.

Head coach Jim Best is excited about the numbers and competition in that of the program heading into this season. Last season, the team placed eighth at the District 11 tournament, 11th at Regionals and 44th at states.

“A core group of 15-plus high school wrestlers committed themselves to an offseason structure that included strength training, learning and drilling new techniques, and seeking opportunities to practice and compete against wrestlers from different schools and different areas,” said Best. “As a result, those wrestlers have made substantial gains since the end of last season. Now that the season is underway, we expect to continue that progress by refining individual techniques and consistently analyzing our competition benchmarks to make necessary adjustments. With that expectation being implemented, our goal as a team is to qualify for and compete in the District 11 Dual Championships in early February, and to be wrestling at individual peak performance levels for the post - season individual tournament championships in late February/early March.”

A projected lineup for this season so far consists of 107 - Jackson Max/Cam Martinez; 114 - Emilio Albanese; 121 - Logan Maher/Levi Max; 127 - Tegan Caciolo; 133 - Aiden Bayard/Tommy Fallstich; 139 - Xyler Sallit; 145 - Chancellor Henry; 152 - Logan Armstrong/Gabe Zavecz; 160 - Jesse Scott; 172 - Xayden Sallit; 189 - Ashir Choudhry; 215 - Massimo Tranguch and 285 - Logan Roth.

“As a coaching staff, our outlook on the team is positive and optimistic,” Best said. “The observable progress we saw during the offseason leads us to believe that we have a balanced dual meet team, and we also have individual wrestlers that have potential to be place winners at the P.I.A.A. state championships in March, but they need to qualify for that tournament first. Overall, the coaching staff is grateful for a hardworking, committed and coachable group of wrestlers. Based on my coaching experience, this is a very special team, and they are a pleasure to coach.”

Emmaus begins Wednesday night in an Eastern Pennsylvania Conference dual match at Bethlehem Catholic. The Hornets’ home opener is set for next Wednesday night against East Stroudsburg South.