Freedom and Liberty both competed in the Virginia Duals over the weekend and came away with mixed bag of results.

The Pates went 2-2 and finished in sixth place in the Cliff Keen Division and Liberty came away with the same split, going 2-2 but finishing in 11th place in the TowneBank Division.

Freedom defeated Heritage (Va.) 67-9 in their opener, but then lost to Great Bridge (Va.) 42-30. Great Bridge eventually reached the finals before losing to Erie Cathedral Prep.

On day two, the Pates knocked off West Deptford (NJ) 44-32, but then fell to another Virginia team, losing to Westfield 42-34 in the consolation round.

“I think the team performed OK at the duals,” said head coach Anthony Marino. “I don’t believe it was our best showing of what our guys are really capable of doing. I really wanted to get them in the coliseum to show them what it’s like to compete at a really big venue. I think this team is capable of doing big things if we can stay consistent.

“A lot of guys stood out to me. Dan Schiffert beat a Virginia state champion, which I think was really big for him. Nick Lyden and Ivan Bonilla also competed very well along with Noah MacIlroy. I think Keenan Ray looked good for the most part with the exception of a match or two. Cole Retos also stepped up to get a fall in one of our matches to secure a big win to move us into the fifth place match.”

Freedom (10-3) now has their toughest week of the regular season on tap with dual meets against Bethlehem Catholic (6-0) on Tuesday and Nazareth (8-0) on Wednesday.

Liberty (6-2) started out on the wrong foot at the tournament, falling to Mountain View (Va.) 51-21, but then knocking off Princess Anne (Va.) 78-6.

The ‘Canes lost a close one on Saturday to Independence (Va.) 38-36 but finished with a convincing win over McLean (Va.) 51-26.

Head coach Brandon Hall wanted better results, but was happy with some individual performances as well.

“Our goal was to leave with at least three wins,” he said. “As a young team we continue to struggle with regards to giving up max bonus in losses. There was certainly a lot of growth for the kids that competed. Elijah Heimbach and Jasiah Pagan didn’t give up an offensive point all weekend. Their maturation and effort in the room is evident in how they have been wrestling. Daniel Rivera and Ben Reid both had solid weekends and their confidence and belief in what they do well continues to expand.”

Liberty has a challenging week ahead as well with road trips to Northampton (9-2) on Wednesday and Emmaus (7-3) on Thursday.