NEWS & UPDATES

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03.07.10 - Nuss Finishes 3rd in the State
Hammond Senior Captain Sam Nuss finished 3rd in the 1a/2a State Tournament this past weekend at 171 lbs. Hammond sent 9 wrestlers to the state tournament and put through 6 to the 2nd day of wrestling. Payton Rose (215) and Ryan Norton (285) both went 2-2 in the tournament. Jonathan Goodwin (125), Eric Roher (135) and Baldwin Asala (189) each went 1-2. Brandon Campbell (130), Mathias Ngang (140) and William Kelly (152) went 0-2 in the event. Congratulations to all state qualifiers. Hammond finished 20th as a team. 7 of Hammond's 9 qualifiers were first time qualifiers and 6 of them return to the team next season. HeadHunters wrestling club begins Monday, March 29th at 6:30pm at Hammond.

02.28.10 - Bears get 4 Region Champs, Send 9 to States
Hammond qualified a total of 9 wrestlers for next weekend's Maryland 1a/2a State Tournament at Cole Field House at the University of Maryland. The team tied a school record with 4 regional champions including Mathias Ngang (140), Sam Nuss (171), Payton Rose (215) and Ryan Norton (285). Brandon Campbell (130) was a runner-up, qualifying for his 3rd state tournament. Jonathan Goodwin (125), Eric Roher (135) and William Kelly (152) placed 3rd with Baldwin Asala (189) placing 4th. Matt Beck earned an alternate spot at 112 lbs. by placing 5th to bring Hammond's total to 10 Regional Placewinners.

The State Tournament begins Friday, March 5th at 2:30pm at University of Maryland's Cole Field House in College Park, Maryland.

02.24.10 - Hammond Crowns 2 JV District Champions
Hammond sent 6 wrestlers to the JV District V Championships at North County High School this evening. The District V JV Tournament pits the top 4 placing Howard County JV Wrestlers vs. the top 4 placing Anne Arundel County JV Wrestlers to crown a District V Champion. Sophomore Wilson Low (125) and Freshman Bryan Overton (130) both won their weight classes to become District Champions. Kyle Jackson (285) placed 2nd. Donnie Thomas (130), Raven Coleman-Brooks (135) and Zach Futrell (152) also qualified for the event. Listed below were the JV Howard County Tournament Placewinners.

• Wilson Low (125) - 1st
• Kyle Jackson (285) - 1st
• Bryan Overton (130) - 2nd
• Raven Coleman-Brooks (135) - 2nd
• Donnie Thomas (130) - 4th
• Zach Futrell (152) - 4th

02.21.10 - Hammond Qualifies 12 Wrestlers for Regionals
The Hammond Bears put 12 guys into this coming weekend's 1a/2a South Regional Tournament held at Glenelg High School. Wrestling begins at 5:00pm on Friday. Listed below are the qualifiying wrestlers and their seeds. Congratulations to all Regional Qualifiers. Seeds and qualifiers are based on the # of Regional Points earned throughout the season. The top 8 highest point totals qualify for each Region. The top 4 placers in the Region will qualify for the 1a/2a State Tournament at Cole Field House during the first weekend in March.

• Matt Beck (112) - #5
• Jose Aguilar (119) - #6
• Jonathan Goodwin (125) - #3
• Brandon Campbell (130) - #2
• Eric Roher (135) - #3
• Mathias Ngang (140) - #2
• William Kelly (152) - #3
• Mark Walters (160) - #8
• Sam Nuss (171) - #1
• Baldwin Asala (189) - #5
• Payton Rose (215) - #2
• Ryan Norton (285) - #2

02.20.10 - Nuss Wins Second County Title, Hammond places 4th
171 pound Senior Captain Sam Nuss won his 2nd county title in dominating fashion with a 18-6 victory over Joey Yarn of Oakland Mills. Hammond placed 4th as a team behind Champion Reservoir, Glenelg and River Hill. Brandon Campbell (130) placed 2nd. Mathias Ngang (140) and Payton Rose (215) placed 3rd. Jonathan Goodwin (125), Eric Roher (135) and Baldwin Asala (189) placed 4th. Ryan Norton (285) placed 5th with William Kelly (152) placing 6th. Matt Beck (112) and Jose Aguilar (119) placed 7th.

02.17.10 - Bears finish 2nd in 1a/2a South Region Duals
Hammond defeated Oakland Mills 37-32 in the Region Dual Semi-Finals before falling to Glenelg 55-6 in the Finals. Jose Aguilar (119) and Sam Nuss (171) were double winners for Hammond with Nuss scoring two pins on the night. Hammond avenged an earlier season loss to Oakland Mills who defeated the Bears during the regular season.

02.02.10 - Hammond Falls Short to River Hill, 31-34
Hammond won 7 out of 14 matches but fell three points short to defending county champion, River Hill. Pins were recorded by Matt Beck (112) and Eric Roher (135). Defending County Champion Sam Nuss (171) scored a technical fall. William Kelly (152), Baldwin Asala (189) and Payton Rose (215) scored major decisions and Jonathan Goodwin (130) scored a 7-4 decision. The Bears are set to face Parkdale tomorrow at Parkdale at 5:30 in their last regular season dual of the year.

01.31.10 - Bears Beat Atholton, 40-21
Hammond won its second straight league match with a 40-21 victory over Atholton on Saturday. Brandon Campbell (135) scored the only pin with William Kelly (160) earning a major decision. Matt Beck (112), Jonathan Goodwin (130), Eric Roher (140), Devin Mundy (145), Mathias Ngang (145) and Payton Rose (215) all scored decisions. Sam Nuss (171) and Ryan Norton (285) both received forfeits. Hammond travels to River Hill on Tuesday to take on the Hawks in their final league match. JV begins at 4:00pm and Varsity at 5:30pm. Varsity will then travel to Parkdale on Wednesday for its final regular season dual meet, the Parkdale match begins at 5:30pm.

01.28.10 - Hammond Takes Care of Centennial, 56-18
Hammond scored a decisive victory over Centennial in it's last home match of the season, 56-18. Jose Aguilar (125) scored a pin and technical falls were recorded by William Kelly (160) and Payton Rose (215). Jonathan Goodwin (130) scored a major decision and Matt Beck (103) and Eric Roher (140) each scored decisions. Mathias Ngang (152) won by injury default while leading 6-2. Brandon Campbell (135), Sam Nuss (171), Baldwin Asala (189) and Ryan Norton (285) each received forfeits. The Bears next take on Atholton at Atholton on Jan 30th at 9am.

01.27.10 - Bears Split 3rd Tri-Meet of Season
Hammond scored a decisive victory over Wilde Lake, 42-22 before dropping a close dual to Oakland Mills, 31-27. The Bears are now 5-3 in the county and 11-10 overall. Double winners on the night were Jonathan Goodwin (125 & 130), Brandon Campbell (135 & 140), Eric Roher (145), Sam Nuss (171) and Baldwin Asala (189). Hammond hosts Centennial on Thursday, JV Starts at 4:00pm and Varsity at 5:30.

01.22.10 - Hammond Drops Close Dual to Harford Tech
Splitting the 14 matches, 7 and 7, Hammond was defeated 33-27 by Harford Tech. Wins were recorded by Matt Beck (112), Eric Roher (140), William Kelly (160), Mark Walters (171), Sam Nuss (189), Payton Rose (215) and Ryan Norton (285). The Bears next will travel to Oakland Mills to take on the Scorpions and Wilde Lake in a tri-meet next Tuesday January 26th. Wrestling begins at 4:00pm.

01.14.10 - Hammond Splits Tri-Meet with Glenelg and Howard
Hammond scored a large victory 58-10 over Howard before being handed a large defeat by Glenelg, 48-12 this past Tuesday in a tri-meet at home. Double Winners on the night were Sam Nuss (171) who earned a pin and a win over Region Champ Mike O'Leary from Glenelg. Payton Rose (215), who moved his record to 19-3 on the year with a decision and a pin. Mathias Ngang (145) with a pin and a decision and Eric Roher (140) who also had a pin and a decision. Hammond is now 4-2 in Howard County and has a 10-8 overall record. The Bears next face Harford Tech at home on January 22nd.

01.11.10 - Bears Finish 5th at Northern, Campbell Wins Title
Hammond traveled to the Northern Patriot Classic for the first time and came home with 7 placewinners, including one champ, Brandon Campbell at 130 lbs. The Bears finished 5th out of 20 as a team. Sam Nuss (171) placed 3rd, William Kelly (152) and Payton Rose (215) placed 4th. Ryan Norton placed 5th at Heavyweight while Mathias Ngang (145) and Baldwin Asala (189) placed 6th. Hammond hosts a tri-meet Tuesday with Glenelg and Howard. Wrestling starts at 4:00pm.

01.05.10 - Hammond Slips Past Mt. Hebron, 33-27
With a 30-27 lead in the last match, Junior Captain Matt Beck (112) scored a 4-0 decision to seal Hammond's 33-27 victory over Mt. Hebron. Sam Nuss (171) and Eric Roher (140) scored pins. Brandon Campbell (135) scored a 17-0 technical fall and Jose Aguilar scored a 13-3 major decision at 125 lbs. Other Winners on the night were Jonathan Goodwin (130), William Kelly (160) and Payton Rose (215) who scored a 3-2 triple overtime victory with just 3 matches remaining in the dual.

01.04.10 - Bears Get 2 Champions at JV Tournament
Hammond had two JV Champions at the South River JV Tournament this past weekend. Sophomore Wilson Low (130) won his weight class, as did Freshman Devin Mundy (140). Sophomore Kyle Jackson (HWT) placed 2nd. Zach Futrell (160) placed 3rd, TJ Janasek (140), Raven Coleman-Brooks (135) and Denzel Asala (171) placed 4th. Chance McMurdy (125) and Donnie Thomas (130) placed 5th. Shreif Shata (119), Kyle Harrington (171), Adama Shata (152) and Michael Waters (160) placed 6th. Josh Peart (119) placed 7th and Joey Donato (125) placed 8th.

12.30.09 - Hammond Finishes 2nd at Bulldog Duals
The Bears placed 2nd at a shortened version of the Bulldog Duals last week. Hammond went 3-1 falling in the championship match, 34-32 against Georgetown Prep. They had previously been defeated by Georgetown Prep, two weeks earlier, by a score of 46-22. Undefeated on the day was Jose Aguilar (119), Michael Waters (152), Sam Nuss (171) and Baldwin Asala (189).

12.15.09 - Hammond Splits First Tri-Meet of the Year
Hammond notched a 62-15 victory over Long Reach but fell to Reservoir, 41-24. Double-winners on the night were Baldwin Asala (189, Decision & Forfeit), Payton Rose (215, Decision & Forfeit), William Kelly (152, Two Decisions), Sam Nuss (171, Two Pins) and Jonathan Goodwin (130, Decision & Tech Fall). The Bears travel to Churchill this weekend to compete in the Bulldog Duals Tournament. Hammond last attended this event in the 2004-2005 season where it placed 1st.

12.12.09 - Bears Fall to Loyola
Hammond lost it's first non-tournament dual meet of the season to Loyola last night, 43-24. Pins were recorded by Sophomore Jonathan Goodwin (130) and Senior Sam Nuss (189). Ryan Norton (285) received a forfeit while Brandon Campbell (135) earned a 1-0 victory and Payton Rose (215) scored a 11-6 victory to remain unbeaten at 8-0. The Bears take on Reservoir and Long Reach in a tri-meet at Reservoir this Tuesday. Wrestling begins at 4:00pm.

12.10.09 - Hammond Handles Marriotts Ridge, 52-12
In it's first home match of the season, Hammond scored a 52-12 victory over Marriotts Ridge this Tuesday recording 5 pins and 4 major decisions. Pins were recorded by Mathias Ngang (145), Michael Waters (152), Mark Walters (171), Sam Nuss (189) and Ryan Norton (285). Andrew Neuman (119), Jonathan Goodwin (130), Eric Roher (140) and William Kelly (160) scored major decisions. Brandon Campbell (135) scored a 6-0 victory over Jeff German and Payton Rose (215) scored a 5-3 win over county-runner up Greg Stokes. (Full Box Score Here) The Bears next match is this friday at Loyola, JV begins at 5:00pm and Varsity at 6:30pm.

12.06.09 - Bears Finish 5th at Panther Duals
Hammond earned a 5th placed finish at this year's Panther Duals at Patuxent High School. The Bears scored victories over North Hagerstown, Northern Calvert and Bowie and fell to Georgetown Prep, South River, Good Counsel and McDonogh. Team Scores, stats and Box Scores coming soon.

03.12.09 - Josh Halper Earns 1st Team All-Academic
Senior Josh Halper earned 1st Team All-Academic for the state of Maryland at 135 lbs. The MSWA All-Academic team chooses the top ranking wrestler in the state with combined achievements both in the classroom and on the wrestling mat. Josh's brother Zach also earned 1st team honors in 2007.

03.12.09 - Halper Takes First at Senior All-Star Classic
Hammond Senior State Runner-up Josh Halper (135) took 1st at the Annual MSWA Senior All-Star Classic which pits the top placing senior in each classification (1a/2a, 3a/4a and Private Schools). Halper earned the gold by defeating 4th place 3a/4a state placewinner Jack Western of Centennial for the 3rd time this year and by edging Private Schools State Runner-up Ryan Owens of John Carroll, 5-4. Josh is the 4th Hammond wrestler to win this event. The others were Ryan Mackin (2001), Vaymond Dennis (1999) and James Burrell (1991).

03.08.09 - Bears Place 2 at States
Josh Halper (135) lost in overtime 4-2 to Northern Garrett's Adam Moranduzzo to finish as a state runner-up. Nick Croninger battled from an alternate spot to place 5th at 171 lbs. The Bears finished 17th overall as a team.

02.28.09 - Hammond Finishes 2nd in 1a/2a South Region Tournament
The Bears edged third place Oakland Mills but fell well short of Champion River Hill at this weekend's 1a/2a South Regional Tournament. Hammond crowned champion Josh Halper (135) along with 8 other placewinners to send a total of 7 wrestlers to states next weekend.

Sam Nuss (160) placed 2nd, while Dylan Gillett (125), Brandon Campbell (130), Scott Irons (152) and Danny Flanagan (189) placed 3rd. Pablo Aleman (285) placed 4th. The top 4 finishers in the region will move on to next week's state tournament at the University of Maryland's Cole Field House.

Nick Croninger (171) placed 5th earning an alternate spot and Roberto Aleman (145) placed 6th.

Wrestling begins next weekend, Friday at 2:30pm at Cole Field House.

02.27.09 - Bears Put All 9 Through to Semi-Finals
Hammond went 9 for 9 in Quarter-Final bouts to start off the 1a/2a South Region tournament. The Bears are in 2nd place behind leader River Hill. Josh Halper (135), Sam Nuss (160), Nick Croninger (171), Danny Flanagan (189) and Pablo Aleman (285) all advanced via fall. Dylan Gillett (125), Brandon Campbell (130) and Scott Irons (152) earned major decisions. Roberto Aleman (145) received a forfeit.

The Semi-finals will begin tomorrow morning at 10:30am at Oakland Mills High School.

02.22.09 - Hammond Qualifies 9 for Regions
Hammond qualified 9 wrestlers for this year's 1a/2a South Region Tournament. Josh Halper (135) is Hammond's lone #1 seed. Sam Nuss (160), Nick Croninger (171) and Danny Flanagan (189) are all seeded 2nd. Brandon Campbell (130) is seeded 3rd. Dylan Gillett (125) is seeded 4th, Roberto Aleman (145) earned a 5th seed and both Scott Irons (152) and Pablo Aleman (285) earned 6 seeds. Jonathan Goodwin (112) and Sam Henig (140) both earned alternate spots.

To see the full seeds visit this link.

02.22.09 - Hammond Crowns 3 Champs and Finishes 3rd in County Tournament
Hammond finished 3rd at the 40th Annual Howard County Tournament this weekend behind Reservoir and Champion River Hill. The Bears crowned 3 champs in Josh Halper (135), Sam Nuss (160) and Danny Flanagan (189). Nick Croninger (171) was runner-up. Dylan Gillett (125) and Brandon Campbell (130) both finished 3rd. The Aleman brothers, Roberto (145) and Pablo (285) both finished 5th. Jose Aguilar (119) and Scott Irons (152) placed 6th. Jonathan Goodwin (112) and Sam Henig (140) placed 7th, Matt Beck (103) and Ryan Fitzpatrick (215) placed 8th.

Hammond also crowned one JV Champ, Mark Walters at 171 lbs and finished with 3 other finalists. Mathias Ngang (140), William Kelly (145) and Payton Rose (215) all finished 2nd. Wilson Low (119), Eric Roher (130), Ryan Norton (189) and Ben Haase (285) all finished 3rd.

01.15.09 - Reservoir Match Re-Schedule for 01/15/09 @ Reservoir
The Reservoir vs. Hammond match originally scheduled for 01/13/09 @ Hammond has been rescheduled for 01/15/09 @ Reservoir. JV Match begins at 4:00pm and Varsity at 5:30pm.

01.08.09 - Bears Go 2-0 During Week After Break
Bouncing back from a loss to Old Mill last Saturday, Hammond scored two big wins this week, 57-15 over Atholton and 55-15 over Catonsville. Freshman Jonathan Goodwin was 2-0 this week with two pins. Dylan Gillett, Brandon Campbell, Sam Henig, Josh Halper, Scott Irons, Sam Nuss, Nick Croninger, Danny Flanagan and Pablo Aleman were all 2-0 this week. Flanagan scored a 3-2 victory over Catonsville's Tyler Weedon (Ranked #5 in MD) while Irons and Pablo Aleman got wins over two state qualifiers from Atholton and Catonsville respectively. Nick Croninger and Roberto Aleman both scored tech falls vs. Catonsville.

Hammond, now with a 12-4 record, faces off against undefeated Reservoir next Tuesday at home.

01.04.09 - Hammond Goes 1-1 During Christmas Break
The Goldenbears scored a 50-10 victory over league foe Mt. Hebron last Friday before dropping a 48-9 match to perennial power Old Mill. The team is now 10-4 overall and 2-2 in Howard County.

JV competed in two tournaments over the holiday, crowning a champion at each. Baldwin Asala (215) won the Reservoir JV tournament while Eric Roher (135) took 1st at the South River tournament. Michael Waters (140), Charlie Rose (160) and Payton Rose (215) all reached the finals at Reservoir while Mathias Ngang (140) and William Kelly (152) both reached the finals at South River. Wilson Low (119) and TJ Janasek (135) took 3rd at both tournaments, full results can be found here.

12.16.08 - Bears Downed in Tri-Meet
Hammond lost two close matches to league rivals Glenelg and Oakland Mills on Tuesday. The Bears scored 6 wins in a 36-24 loss to defending State Tournament Champs Glenelg and also won 6 matches vs. Oakland Mills in a tight 32-24 loss. The Bears are now 9-3 in dual meets. Double winners for Hammond on the night were Josh Halper (140) with a pin and a major decision, Nick Croninger (171) with a pin and decision, Danny Flanagan (189) won by decision and received a forfeit, Pablo Aleman (285) won two decisions and Dylan Gillett (125) won by pin and a 10-8 decision over state runner-up Brendan Conway of Glenelg. Gillett is now 12-0 on the year and ranked 4th in the state. Josh Halper holds an honorable mention ranking in the state at 140 lbs.

The next event for Hammond is the Reservoir JV Tournament at Reservoir High School on Saturday, January 27th.

12.09.08 - Hammond Squeaks by Marriotts Ridge, 39-37
Hammond avenged a loss from last year's season opener with a 39-37 win over Marriotts Ridge. Recording pins for the Bears were Brandon Campbell (130), Sam Henig (135), Josh Halper (140), Roberto Aleman (145) and Danny Flanagan (189). Dylan Gillett (125) scored a techfall and Nick Croninger (171) scored a major decision.

12.07.08 - Hammond Finishes 2nd at Panther Duals
The Goldenbears competed in their first tournament of the 2008-2009 season; a dual tournament at Patuxent High School. Hammond finished with an 8-1 record and earned 2nd place honors behind Mountain View of Virginia. The Bears earned victories over Northern Calvert, North Hagerstown, Lackey, Eleanor Roosevelt, Westlake, Bowie, South River and Patuxent.

15 wrestlers finished with winning records on the weekend.

Dylan Gillett (125) finished undefeated with a 9-0 record. Brandon Campbell (130-135) and Josh Halper (140) both finished with 8-1 records. Roberto Aleman (145) went 6-1, Nick Croninger (171) went 6-2, Danny Flanagan (189) went 7-2, Sam Henig (130-135) went 7-2, Sam Nuss (160) went 6-3, Pablo Aleman (285) went 5-3, Jonathan Goodwin (112) went 5-4, Matt Beck (103) went 5-4, Scott Irons (152) went 5-4, Jose Aguilar (119) went 3-5, Baldwin Asala (215) went 5-4, Ben Haase (285) went 1-0, William Kelly (152) went 1-0, Shiv Patel (112) went 0-1 and Brian Lis (145) went 0-2.

03.08.08 - Mitch Cowger is State Runner-up, Hammond Places 3 at States
Hammond Senior Mitch Cowger (215) advanced to the State Finals and lost a close 3-2 decision to Noah Devore of Mountain Ridge for the title. Sophomore Dylan Gillett (112) placed 5th and Junior Josh Halper (125) placed 6th to bring home 3 state placewinners for Hammond this season.

Congratulations to all state placewinners and qualifiers, Hammond finished 12th as a team with 43 points.

03.07.08 - Hammond Advances 3 to State Semi-Finals
The Golden Bears put 3 wrestlers into Saturday morning's Maryland State Semi-finals. Dylan Gillett (112) scored a win over East Region Champ Ethan Ulrich to advanced to the Semis. Josh Halper (125) won a victory over East Region Champ Matt Taylor and Mitch Cowger (285) defeated the East Region Champ in the first round by fall and also scored another fall in the quarterfinals to advance to the Semi-finals. After the quarter-final round, Hammond was in 7th place with 30 points. Sophomore Brandon Campbell (119) won his first round bout 8-2 before falling to North Region Champ Earl Eppard of Landsdowne in the quarter-finals. Campbell is still alive in wrestle-backs.

Senior Nathan Bolton and Junior Nick Croninger lost close matches in their consolation bouts to finish 0-2.

03.01.08 - Hammond Qualifies 6 for States
The Hammond Golden Bears placed 2 wrestlers in the Region Finals and qualified a total of 6 wrestlers for next weekend's State Tournament. Dylan Gillett (112) lost 9-6 to State Champ Scott Mantua in the finals and Josh Halper was defeated by Glenelg's State Runner-up Brian Marcoux in the Championship bout at 125 lbs. Sophomore Brandon Campbell (119) and Junior Nick Croninger (171) placed 3rd. Seniors Nathan Bolton (140) and Mitch Cowger (215) placed 4th, also qualifying them for States. Junior Roberto Aleman placed 6th at 145 lbs.

02.29.08 - Bears Advance 3 to Region Semi-Finals
Hammond pushed through 3 wrestlers to Saturday's 1a/2a South Regional Semi-Finals. Dylan Gillett advanced at 112 lbs. Josh Halper (125) scored a pin to advance and Nick Croninger (171) scored a major decision to advance. Brandon Campbell (119), Nathan Bolton (140), Roberto Aleman (145), Ben Gillie (152) and Mitch Cowger (215) are still alive in the wrestle-backs. Wrestling begins tomorrow at 10:30am at Oakland Mills.

02.26.08 - Hammond Qualifies 9 for Regions
Hammond Qualified nine wrestlers for this weekend's 1a/2a South Region tournament at Oakland Mills High School. Dylan Gillett (112), Brandon Campbell (119), Josh Halper (125), Zach Ganoe (135), Nathan Bolton (140), Roberto Aleman (145), Ben Gillie (152), Nick Croninger (171) and Mitch Cowger (215) all qualified for this weekend's event. Sam Henig (130), Colin Weber (160) and Pablo Aleman (285) earned alternate spots. 189 pounder Danny Flanagan is out for the season with a shoulder injury.

Dylan Gillett, Josh Halper and Mitch Cowger are all seeded 2nd in their weights. Nick Croninger is seeded 3rd at 171 lbs., while Brandon Campbell earned a #4 seed at 119. Nathan Bolton is seeded 5th at 140 lbs. and Roberto Aleman is seeded 7th at 145 lbs. Seniors Zack Ganoe and Ben Gillie earned #8 seeds at 135 and 152 lbs. respectively.

Wrestling begins Friday at 4:00pm at Oakland Mills.

02.25.08 - ALUMNI UPDATE: Ethan Cohen Wins New England Conference!
2005 Hammond Graduate Ethan Cohen won the New England Wrestling Conference this past weekend with two pins over the #1 seed to earn a birth to the National Tournament. Click Here to see Ethan's bracket. Ethan, wrestling for Williams College in Massachusetts, took home the 125 lbs. title in a division that only qualifies the champions for the National tournament.

Ethan began wrestling as a freshman at Hammond and went on to become a 2x County and Regional Champ, and a 2x State Finalist. Congratulations Ethan and good luck at Nationals!

02.25.08 - Hammond Finished 8th at County Tournament
Hammond finished 8th with 104 points at this year's Howard County Tournament. The Bears placed 9 wrestlers in the top 6. Nick Croninger (171) finished 2nd. Josh Halper (125) and Mitch Cowger (215) finished 3rd while Dylan Gillett (112) finished 4th. Seniors Zach Ganoe (135) and Nathan Bolton (145) both finished 5th while Brandon Campbell (119), Colin Weber (160) and Danny Flanagan (189) each finished 6th. Roberto Aleman (145) received 7th, Sam Henig (130), Ben Gillie (152) and Pablo Aleman (285) finished 8th.

On JV, Sophomore Sam Nuss (160) and Junior Ryan Fitzpatrick (171) both won their weight classes for County titles. Freshman Brian Lis (135) finished 3rd with Junior Scott Irons (152) and freshmen William Kelly (145), Mark Walters (160) and Baldwin Asala (215) finishing 4th.

02.21.08 - 7 JV Wrestlers Advance to Semi-Finals
Seven Hammond JV Wrestlers advanced to the JV County Semi-finals tonight. Brian Lis (135), William Kelly (145), Scott Irons (152), Mark Walters (160), Sam Nuss (160), Ryan Fitzpatrick (171) and Baldwin Asala (215) all advanced to the Howard County Semi-Finals. Eric Roher (125), Matt Shiflett (145) and Anthony Zhou (215) also earned wins on the day. Wrestling is scheduled to resume tomorrow afternoon at Atholton.

01.20.08 - 3 Advance to Day 2 at MMM
Three Hammond Wrestlers advanced to Day 2 at Mount Mat Madness, Maryland's toughest wrestling tournament. Dylan Gillett (112) went 3-2, Zach Ganoe (135) went 1-2 and Mitch Cowger (215) went 2-2 with a pin and all three advanced to the 2nd day of competition. Josh Halper (125) and Danny Flanagan (189) both went 1-2 also as Hammond finished in 27th place with 15 points.

01.08.08 - Upperweights Seal Win Over Howard, 40-36
Down two starters, Hammond Upperweights Pablo Aleman (215) and Mitch Cowger (285) sealed a 40-36 win over Howard on Tuesday night with two pins. Other winners for Hammond included Dylan Gillett (112), Josh Halper (130), Nathan Bolton (140), Roberto Aleman (145) and Sam Nuss (160). Hammond also scored a 75-5 victory over Long Reach, more results to come.

01.07.08 - Hammond Places 2nd at Bengal Brawl
Hammond went 6-1 and finished 2nd at the Bengal Brawl at James Hubert Blake High School this past weekend. Winning their weight classes and going undefeated for the Bears were Josh Halper (125), Nathan Bolton (140) and Mitch Cowger (215). Dylan Gillett (112), Sam Henig (130), Zach Ganoe (135) and Danny Flanagan (189) went 6-1. More Results to come.

01.06.08 - 9 Wrestlers Place in Top 4 at South River JV Tournament
The Hammond JV squad traveled to the South River JV Tournament and came home with 9 wrestlers placing in the top four included 3 finalists and one champion. Ryan Fitzpatrick took home the title at 171 lbs. with Scott Irons and Freshman Matt Shiflett placing 2nd. William Kelly (140), Lowell Sanders (145) and Pablo Aleman (215) placed 3rd and Jose Aguilar (119), TJ Jannasek (135) and Ben Haase (285) placed 4th. For Full Results click here.

12.27.07 - 6 JV Wrestlers Place at Reservoir
Ryan Fitzpatrick (171) and Mark Walters (160) placed 2nd, Scott Irons (152) placed 3rd and William Kelly (140), Matt Shiflett (145) and Pablo Aleman (215) placed 4th at the Reservoir JV Tournament. 18 wrestlers competed for Hammond and gained valuable experience in the process.

12.14.07 - Hammond Defeats Reservoir, 37-27
The Bears moved to 1-1 in County competition with a win over Reservoir 37-27. Colin Weber clinched the win at 215 lbs. with a pin. Other winners for Hammond were Josh Halper (125), Sam Henig (130), Zach Ganoe (135), Roberto Aleman (145), Nick Croninger (171), Danny Flanagan (189) and Mitch Cowger (285). The Golden Bears face defending County Champs Glenelg next Tuesday at a Tri-Meet at Hammond along with Oakland Mills.

12.12.07 - Results Updated
The Results page has been updated with results from Hammond's first three events of the year. The Bears lost a dual with Old Mill to start off the year, 12-47, which dropped Hammond's overall series record with the perennial power to 2-6. Old Mill won the class 4a-3a state tournament last season.

Hammond then competed in the Bowie Duals and finished with a 3-5 record including wins over Northern Calvert, Quince Orchard and Bowie. Dylan Gillett (112) and Josh Halper (125) were undefeated on the weekend.

The Bears then dropped a close dual meet to Marriotts Ridge, 30-36 this Tuesday. Scoring wins for the Bears were Gillett, Halper, Sam Henig (130), Nathan Bolton (140), Nick Croninger (171), Danny Flanagan (189) and Mitch Cowger (285). Hammond meets Reservoir this Thursday @ Reservoir for another league dual meet.

11.25.07 - Croninger Named 3rd Captain
Junior Nick Croninger was named the third captain for 2007-2008 Hammond Golden Bears. Nick was a starter on last year's team at 160 lbs.

10.09.07 - Captains Named for 2007-2008 Season
Senior Nathan Bolton and Junior Josh Halper were named as Captains for the 2007-2008 Hammond Wrestling team. Bolton enters his fourth year at Hammond--he started at 125 lbs and was a Regional Qualifier last season. Halper is a 2 year varsity starter and a 2x State Qualifier at 103 & 112 lbs. Congratulations to both for being named Captains, they replace the four graduating Captains Vince Taweel, Zach Halper, Devon Gillett and Ryan McKevitt.

03.10.07 - Halper Named to All-Academic Team
Senior Zach Halper was named a starter at 140 lbs. on the Maryland State All-Academic Team. This team rates wrestlers based on the combination of their performance on the mat and in the classroom. Vince Taweel was also named as an Honorable Mention pick on the team. Congratulations!

03.07.07 - Gillett wins 2nd State Title!
Devon Gillett (119) won his 2nd State title on Saturday with a 1-0 victory over Glenelg's Brian Marcoux. Gillett was never scored upon the entire tournament and was Hammond's only finalist. Zach Halper (135) placed 5th, making him a 3x State Placewinner. 3x State Champ Vince Taweel was unable to capture his fourth title after suffering an injury in the quarter-finals and having to default the rest of the tournament. Senior Ryan McKevitt (152) went 1-2 at the tournament, losing to the runner-up and the 5th place finisher and Sophomore Josh Halper (112) went 2-2, losing to the 4th & 5th place finishers while coming within one match of placing in a very tough weight class. Joe Burns (130) and Adam Claudy (189) also had strong performances. The Bears finished 14th with 45 points.

02.25.07 - Hammond Gets 3 Region Champs, Finishes 2nd
Hammond finished 2nd at this past weekend's 1a/2a South Regional Tournament, 4.5 points behind 1st place Glenelg, and 1 point ahead of 3rd place Atholton. The Bears crowned 3 Regional Champs, including Devon Gillett (119) with a triple overtime victory over Glenelg's Brian Marcoux to avenge last weekends overtime loss in the county finals. Zach Halper (140) earned his first Regional title after finishing 2nd the past three years, and Vince Taweel earned his 4th Regional title to go with his 4 county titles. Senior Joe Burns (130) finished 2nd, reaching his first finals ever, and sophomore Josh Halper (112) wrestled back after losing to the eventual champ 3-1 in the first round, to take 3rd in the Region. Senior Ryan McKevitt (152) bounced back from a semi-final loss to take 3rd and avenge his season-opening loss to Oakland Mills' Jovaan Saunders. Senior Adam Claudy (189) finished 4th in the Region and qualified for states in just his first year wrestling. Freshman Dylan Gillett (103) finished 5th as did Junior Mitch Cowger (285); both qualified for alternate spots for the state tournament. Senior Matt Ketchum (145) placed 6th bringing Hammond's total placewinners in the tournament to 10, with seven qualifying for the state tournament next weekend.

Rundown of Hammond's state tournament results for the past 10 years.

2006: 10 Qualifiers, 6 place, 3 champs, Team: 2nd place
2005: 9 Qualifiers, 6 place, 1 champ, Team: 2nd place
2004: 8 Qualifiers, 2 place, 1 champ, Team: 8th place
2003: 7 Qualifiers, 3 place, Team: 18th place
2002: 6 Qualifiers, 2 place, 1 champ, Team: 10th place
2001: 8 Qualifiers, 7 place, 2 champs, Team: 2nd place
2000: 8 Qualifiers, 3 place, Team: 10th place
1999: 6 Qualifiers, 2 place, Team: 15th place
1998: 9 Qualifiers, 5 place, 1 champ, Team: 1st place
1997: 8 Qualifiers, 5 place, Team: 4th place

02.19.07 - Hammond Qualifies 11 for Regionals
The Hammond Golden Bears qualified 11 wrestlers for the 1a/2a South Regional tournament, as well as one alternate. Qualifiers were Dylan Gillett (103), Josh Halper (112), Devon Gillett (119), Nathan Bolton (125), Joe Burns (130), Vince Taweel (135), Zach Halper (140), Matt Ketchum (145), Ryan McKevitt (152), Adam Claudy (189) and Mitch Cowger (285). Danny Flanagan (215) qualified as an alternate, while Nick Croninger (160) and Billy Webbert (171) narrowly missed qualifying in their respective weights. Devon Gillett, Zach Halper and Taweel all earned #1 seeds in their weight class with Ryan McKevitt earning a #2 seed. Full seeds are posted here.

02.18.07 - Bears Finish 2nd at the County Tournament
Hammond finished second at the County Tournament, losing the championship they held for the past 2 years. The Golden Bears crowned two champions with Vince Taweel (135) and Zach Halper (140). This was Taweel's fourth county title, making him the seventh in County history to grab four titles. Devon Gillett (119) and Ryan McKevitt (152) finished 2nd. Josh Halper (112) and Joe Burns (130) took 3rd, with Dylan Gillett (103), Matt Ketchum (145), Adam Claudy (189) and Mitch Cowger (285) all placing 4th.

Brandon Campbell was crowned JV County Champion at 103 lbs, with Zach Ganoe (130) and Danny Flanagan (189) taking home second. Jon Nuss (140) and Colin Weber (160) finished 3rd.

02.16.07 - Hammond Leads After Day 1 of Counties
The Hammond Golden Bears are currently in 1st place in the county tournament, with a 10 point lead over 2nd place Atholton and Glenelg. Hammond pushed through 9 wrestlers into Saturday's Semi-final Round including Josh Halper (112), Devon Gillett (119), Joe Burns (130), Vince Taweel (135), Zach Halper (140), Matt Ketchum (145), Ryan McKevitt (152), Adam Claudy (189) and Mitch Cowger (285). Dylan Gillett (103), Nathan Bolton (125), Nick Croninger (160) and Billy Webbert (171) are all alive in the consolation bracket for the Bears.

The JV squad pushed through several wrestlers to tomorrow's Junior Varsity semi-finals including Brandon Campbell (103), Zach Ganoe (130), Mark Thomas (135), Jon Nuss (140), Roberto Aleman (145), Colon Weber (160) and Danny Flanagan (189). Good luck to all participating wrestlers on Saturday.

02.06.07 - Regional Duals Info
Hammond will compete at the Regional Dual Meet Championships tomorrow February 7th at Glenelg High School. This is the fourth straight time Hammond has qualified for the Regional duals and the 12th year out of 13 years that Hammond has qualified for these Championships. This years seeding is as follows:

1. Glenelg (14-0)
2. Atholton (11-3)
3. Calvert (10-3)
4. Hammond (9-5)

The semi-finals will be #1 vs. #4 and #2 vs. #3. Site will be Glenelg High School, Wednesday Feb 7th at 5:30pm, finals at 7:00pm. Weigh-ins at 4:30.

01.10.06 - Bears Get Six Seeded for MMM
Hammond has six wrestlers seeded for the Mount Mat Madness tournament to be held this weekend at Goucher College. Hands down the toughest tournament in Maryland one of the toughest in the country, the Bears will square off against teams from around Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia and Kentucky. 3x State Champion Vince Taweel earned a #2 seed at 135 lbs. in a weight that features 3 State Champions. County Champ and 2x State Placewinner Zach Halper earned a #2 seed at 140 lbs. and defending State Champ Devon Gillett was seeded 6th in what could be the toughest weight class in the tournament. Devon's younger brother Dylan earned a 13 seed at 103 as did Josh Halper at 112 lbs. Ryan McKevitt was seeded 10th at 152 lbs. Wrestling starts at 2:30 on Friday at Goucher College in Towson.

12.28.06 - Wrestling Room Boards Updated
The Hammond Wrestling Champion Boards have received a major update adding Champion wrestler names dating back from 2002 to the Present. All alumni are encouraged to stop by the room to catch a glimpse.

12.27.06 - JV Shows Strength at Reservoir Tournament
14 wrestlers placed in the top 6 and 3 made the finals at Reservoir's Annual Junior Varsity Tournament.

Zach Ganoe won his weight at 125 lbs. while Jon Nuss (145) and Ryan Fitzpatrick (189) both made the finals. Sam Henig (125), Matt Campbell (152) and Brady Oronce (189) all had only one loss on the day and placed 3rd. Brandon Campbell (112) and Julian Borelli (119) placed 4th while Ben Gillie (130), Mark Thomas (130), Ben Hawks (135), Austin Sherman (140), Roberto Aleman (145) and Sam Nuss (152) all placed in the top 6. (A 5th/6th match was not wrestled in the tournament) Others recording wins were Scott Irons (152), Danny Flanagan (215), James Douthwaite (103) and Brent Riddle (189). All wrestlers wrestled well and gained valuable experience.

12.08.06 - Directions to Bowie Duals
Hammond travels to Bowie High School in Bowie, Maryland for its first tournament of the season, a dual meet tournament involving 8 other teams. Wrestling will start at 4pm on Friday and 10am on Saturday. For directions, visit the following link: Driving Directions from Hammond High School, 8800 Guilford Rd, Columbia, MD to Bowie High School, 15200 Annapolis Rd, Bowie, MD

11.19.06 - Directions to Walkersville
Directions to Walkersville for Hammond/Walkersville/Damascus Scrimmage on November 25th:

Driving Directions from Hammond High School, 8800 Guilford Rd, Columbia, MD to Walkersville High School, 81 W Frederick St, Walkersville, MD

10.11.06 - Hammond Schedule Released
To view the Bears tentative schedule for the upcoming 2006-2007 season, go here. See details below.

07.04.06 - Bears Set Toughest Schedule in Years
Hammond will compete in arguably the toughest MD public school schedule next season, traveling to two National caliber tournaments, and a third dual tournament. The Bears will return to MMM to compete among the best of the East Coast, more information can be found here. They will also travel to Virginia to compete in the Battlefield Duals with nationally ranked Pennsylvania squads Upper Perkiomen and Connelsville as well as VA's top team Great Bridge. Other tough squads include Colonial Forge, Hayfield, Robinson and many others. The 1st tournament the defending State Dual Champs will compete in next season will be a return to the Bowie duals where Hammond suffered their only dual loss in the past two seasons, to East Regional Champions Broadneck. In addition to County dual meets with 2004 Regional Champs Glenelg and 2003 State Champs River Hill, the Bears will take on last year's #2 team and 05' Nationally ranked Mt. St. Joe in a tri-meet with highly ranked Archbishop Curley, as well as a seperate dual meet with Anne Arundel Perennial Power Old Mill.

04.01.06 - Sessa & Taweel are Wrestlers of the Year!
State Champion Stephen Sessa (189) was named the Flier/Times Wrestler of the Year for Howard County. You can read the full article here. 3x State Champion Vince Taweel (140) was named the Wrestler of the Year for Howard County in both the Post & the Sun. Congratulations to both Stephen and Vince!

03.25.06 - Taweel Becomes Junior All-American
Vince Taweel placed 4th at the NHSCA Junior Nationals in Pittsburgh, PA, earning All-American Status. Taweel is Hammond's first All-American since Ryan Mackin in 2001. Congratulations Vince!

03.05.06 - Hammond gets THREE STATE CHAMPIONS!
The Golden Bears got a school record Three State Champions this weekend at University of Maryland's Cole Field House. Devon Gillett (112), Vince Taweel (140) and Stephen Sessa (189) all took home the gold! Devon defeated Harford Tech's Mark Taylor in the finals, Taweel defeated Decatur's Latra Collick to get his 3rd State title and Sessa defeated defending State Champion Brandon Gervie of Liberty to get his first State title. Zach Halper (125), Eric Yee (130) and Jose Maldonado (135) all placed to help Hammond place 6 wrestlers at the tournament. Halper placed 6th in arguably the toughest weight class. Yee wrestled back after a quarterfinals loss to take 3rd, while Maldonado finished with a 5th place finish. The Bears finished 2nd in the team standings to Harford Tech with 112.5 points. Congratulations to all of the placewinners and Champions!

03.03.06 - Hammond Leads After Day 1 of States
The Bears hold the #1 spot at the State Tournament with a 47.5 to 42 lead over second place Walkersville. Hammond pushed through 4 wrestlers to tomorrow's Semi-finals including Devon Gillett (112), Jose Maldonado (135), Vince Taweel (140) and Stephen Sessa (189). Five other Hammond wrestlers are still alive in the consolation round. Josh Halper (103), Zach Halper (125), Eric Yee (130), Ryan McKevitt (152) and Adam Blake (171). McKevitt and Yee both won their first round matches before falling in the quarters. Both Halpers and Blake lost their first one but came back and won their first consolation bout. Wrestling starts tomorrow at 9:30am.

03.02.06 - Bears go for 6th Title of the Year
Hammond enters tomorrows Maryland State Tournament with 10 wrestlers qualified to compete, the most in school history. Hereford, who the Bears defeated in the State Dual Meet finals, qualified 11 wrestlers. Hammond looks to get that 6th title that eluded them last season, when they finished winning the County, Region & State Dual Meet titles along with County & Region Tournament titles, but finished 2nd in the State Tournament. Below is a recent history of how Hammond has fared at Maryland's State Tournament.

2005: 9 Qualifiers, 6 place, 1 champ, Team: 2nd place
2004: 8 Qualifiers, 2 place, 1 champ, Team: 8th place
2003: 7 Qualifiers, 3 place, Team: 18th place
2002: 6 Qualifiers, 2 place, 1 champ, Team: 10th place
2001: 8 Qualifiers, 7 place, 2 champs, Team: 2nd place
2000: 8 Qualifiers, 3 place, Team: 10th place
1999: 6 Qualifiers, 2 place, Team: 15th place
1998: 9 Qualifiers, 5 place, 1 champ, Team: 1st place
1997: 8 Qualifiers, 5 place, Team: 4th place

02.25.06 - Hammond Wins Region Tournament, Sends 10 to States
The Hammond Golden Bears sent a school record 10 wrestlers to next weekend's State Tournament at University of Maryland's Cole Field House. Winners on the night were Devon Gillett (112), Eric Yee (130), Vince Taweel (140) & Ryan McKevitt (152). Zach Halper (125) and Stephen Sessa (189) were runners-up. Seniors Adam Blake (171) and Jose Maldonado (135) took 3rd while Freshman Josh Halper (103) and first year wrestler Josten Harding (215) placed 4th. Jay Miller (160) placed 6th. This is Gillett's 2nd Region title and Taweel's third, and is the first Region title for both Yee and McKevitt. Maldonado qualified for his 2nd state tournament and this will be the first trip to states for Josh Halper, Yee, Blake & Harding. Zach Halper finished 2nd for the third year in a row.

02.24.06 - Hammond Advances 9 to Semi's at Regionals
The Golden Bears advanced 9 of their 12 Regional Qualifiers to Saturday's Semi-final round. These were, Devon Gillett (112), Zach Halper (125), Eric Yee (130), Jose Maldonado (135), Vince Taweel (140), Ryan McKevitt (152), Adam Blake (171) and Stephen Sessa (189). The Semi-finals will start at 11am on Saturday along with the first round consolation matches. Josh Halper (103), Jay Miller (160) and Mitch Cowger (275) are still alive in the consolation bracket.

02.23.06 - 2006 Photo Gallery Updated
The 2006 Photo Gallery has been updated with photos provided by Mary Blake and other sources. Check out the gallery here.

02.19.06 - Hammond Qualifies 12 for Regions
Hammond qualified a wrestler in every weight class except 2 for this year's 1a/2a South Regional Tournament. The complete seeds can be viewed here.

02.19.06 - Hammond Wins County Tournament, Crowns 5 Champs
Hammond finished 1st at the Howard County Tournament defeating 2nd place River Hill 218-202. The Bears had five finalists and crowned all five including Devon Gillett (112), Zach Halper (125), Jose Maldonado (135), Vince Taweel (140) and Stephen Sessa (189). Sessa & Taweel became 3x County Champs with their victories. Maldonado earned his 2nd County title and Gillett added a Howard County title to go with his Anne Arundel County title. Halper defeated Glenelg's Chris Stinnett for the 3rd time this season to earn his first County title.

Hammond placed 12 wrestlers in the tournament. Ryan McKevitt (152) and Josten Harding (215) placed 3rd, Joe Burns (119), Eric Yee (130) and Adam Blake (171) placed 4th. Mitchell Cowger (275) took 5th and Josh Halper (103) took 6th in arguably the toughest weight class in the tournament.

The Golden Bears also got two JV County Champs in Matt Ketchum (140) and Jeff Campbell (160). Nathan Bolton (119) and Francisco Borelli (130) were finalists.

02.18.06 - Bears Lead County Tournament After Day 1
The Golden Bears have a 16 point lead over 2nd place Glenelg 88-72 after the first day of the Howard County Tournament. Hammond advanced 9 wrestlers to Saturday's Semi-finals including Devon Gillett (112), Zach Halper (125), Eric Yee (130), Jose Maldonado (135), Vince Taweel (140), Ryan McKevitt (152), Adam Blake (171), Stephen Sessa (189) and Josten Harding (215). Josh Halper (103), Joe Burns (119), Josh Davis (145), Jay Miller (160) and Mitchell Cowger (275) are all alive in the consolation bracket.

02.14.06 - Hammond Repeats as State Duals Champs!
Hammond scored a semi-final win 39-36 over Liberty and then defeated Hereford 35-30 in the finals to become 2006 Maryland State 1a/2a Dual Meet Champions. This is Hammond's 4th Dual Meet title, which is a state record. Freshman Josh Halper sealed the deal with a pin at 103 and 2x State Champion Vince Taweel (140) earned a pivotal decision over State Champ Josh Asper of Hereford. Double winners on the day were Josh Halper, Devon Gillett, Zach Halper, Eric Yee, Jose Maldonado, Vince Taweel, Adam Blake & Stephen Sessa. Congrats Bears!

02.13.06 - County Seeds Released, Hammond gets 2 #1 Seeds
Howard County Tournament Seeds have been published and can be found by clicking here. Junior Devon Gillett (112) and Senior Jose Maldonado (135) earned #1 seeds both earning an 11-0 county record this year.

02.11.06 - State Duals Postponed until Tuesday, Hammond to Host
Due to Snow, the State Duals set to take place at Thomas Johnson High School have been postponed until next Tuesday the 14th. Hammond will now host the 1a/2a event as it is the top seed. Weigh-ins will take place at 4:00pm. Semi-finals at 5:00 & Finals at 7:00.

02.08.06 - Hammond Wins South Region, Heads to States
The Hammond Golden Bears successfully defended their 1a/2a South Region Dual Meet title with a decisive win over Oakland Mills. The Bears defeated Glenelg for the 2nd time in 5 days, 38-27; then bested Oakland Mills 36-32 to win the Title. Hammond now heads to Thomas Johnson for the State Duals on Saturday and will likely be the #1 seed. More info to follow.

02.08.06 - Bears Set to Defend Region Title

REGIONAL DUAL MEET CHAMPIONSHIP INFO

Date: Wednesday, February 8th, 2006
Location: Hammond
Time: Semi-finals @ 5:30pm (2 mats), Finals at 7:30pm (1 Mat)
Weigh-ins at 4:30pm
Match-ups:

#1 Hammond (14-0) vs. #4 Glenelg (10-4)
#2 Calvert (13-1) vs. #3 Oakland Mills (12-2)

02.05.06 - County Dual Meet Champs, 2 in a row
Hammond defeated River Hill 36-30 and then edged Glenelg 36-33 to bring their regular season record to 14-0 and earn a #1 spot in Wednesday's Regional Duals competition. This brings Hammond's in county dual meet win streak to 24 and is Hammond's 9th County Dual Meet title. The Bears finished a perfect 11-0 in county (18-1 overall including dual tournaments). Hammond will host Wednesday's Regional which will start with semi-finals at 5:30pm and Finals at 7:30pm. More details to follow. Congratulations Golden Bears!

01.31.06 - Glenelg & River Hill Tri-meet Times

Location - Marriotts Ridge
Start Time - 3:00 PM
Weigh In - 2:00 PM

Two Mats - JV and Varsity matches concurrently

Match 1 - Glenelg vs River Hill 3:00 PM

Match 2 - Hammond vs River Hill 5:00 PM (Approximately)

Match 3 - Glenelg vs Hammond 7:00 PM (Approximately)

01.29.06 - Ketchum wins Tournament, Remains undefeated
Junior Matt Ketchum (140) was victorious at John Carroll's 2nd annual junior varsity Wrestlefest. Jeff Campbell (171) and Erick Sealfon (160) both placed 2nd in their weights. Other semi-finalists included Sophomore Tom Bradtke (112) who finished with a 3-1 record on the day, and Matt Campbell (145) who finished with a 2-3 record on the day. Nathan Bolton (119), Zach Ganoe (119), De'Yonte Wilkinson (130) and Brady Oronce (215) all finished with only 1 loss on the day. Congrats to all the Junior Varsity wrestlers for a well wrestled tournament.

01.26.06 - Directions to John Carroll School
JV will compete at John Carroll's annual JV tournament on Saturday, bus leaves Hammond at 7:30am & wrestling will begin at 9:00am. Directions from Hammond are below:

• Take I-95 North into Harford County
• Take exit 77B (MD-24 N) towards Bel Air
• Turn right onto US-1 Business Route
• Stay straight to go onto Fulford Ave / MD-22 E
• School is 3/4 mile on right.

John Carroll School
703 E Churchville Rd
Bel Air, MD 21014-3408

Total Distance: 47 miles

01.22.06 - Hammond Finishes 12th & Places 3 at MMM3
The Bears finished 12th out of 24 teams at the 3rd annual Mount Mat Madness Tournament, widely agreed to be the toughest tournament in the state of Maryland. Hammond had one finalist in Stephen Sessa (189), who finished 2nd to Mt. St. Joe's #1 ranked state champion, Jake Bohn in a close 5-2 decision. Zach Halper (125) finished an excellent weekend of wrestling with a 3rd place finish, defeating Pennsylvania State Qualifier Luke Chohany of Susquenita, 1-0 in the Consolation Finals. Halper also defeated Mt. St. Joe's Greg Gold in overtime before falling to St. Mark's Delaware State Champ Jeremy Shaw in the semi-finals. Junior Devon Gillett (112) placed 6th in arguably one of the toughest weight classses in the tournament. Ryan McKevitt (152) and Jose Maldonado (135) were both 1 match away from placing in the top 6.

01.20.06 - Golden Bears Have 10 Alive for 2nd Day of MMM
Hammond was in 14th place following the 1st day of competition at the prestigous Mount Mat Madness tournament held this weekend at Goucher College. Competing at the event are 6 of the top 10 ranked teams in Maryland, as well as top ranked teams from Pennsylvania, Delaware and Virginia. The Bears pushed through 5 to Saturday mornings Quarter-final round, including Devon Gillett (112), Zach Halper (125), Jose Maldonado (135), Vince Taweel (140) & Stephen Sessa (189). Still alive in the consolation round are Josh Halper (103), Joe Burns (119), Eric Yee (130), Ryan McKevitt (152) and Adam Blake (171). Wrestling starts on Saturday morning at 9:00am, visit www.mountmatmadness.com for more details.

12.29.05 - Bears get 4 Champs, but finish 2nd to Liberty
Hammond finished a close second to the Liberty Lions at the Damascus Tournament, by a score of 210-205. The Golden Bears got Championship performances from Zach Halper (125) with a win over Glenelg's Chris Stinnett, Eric Yee (130), Jose Maldonado (135) and State Champion Vince Taweel (140). Devon Gillett (112) and Stephen Sessa (189) finished 2nd, Sessa falling to State Champion Brandon Gervie of Liberty, 8-4. Adam Blake (171) finished third scoring a big pin over state placewinner Nick Fenn of Liberty. Josh Halper (103), Joe Burns (119) and Jay Miller (160) all placed 6th. Mitchell Cowger (275) took 8th. Captain Ryan McKevitt (152) was injured in his first match and did not compete the rest of the tournament.

12.28.05 - Hammond Advances 8 to Damascus Semi-Finals
The Bears advanced eight wrestlers to tomorrow's Semi-finals at this year's Damascus Tournament. Devon Gillett (112), Joe Burns (119), Zach Halper (125), Eric Yee (130), Jose Maldonado (135), Vince Taweel (140), Adam Blake (171) and Stephen Sessa (189) all advanced and will wrestle tomorrow at 10 in the Semi-Finals. Josh Halper (103), Jay Miller (160) and Mitchel Cowger are all alive with wins in the consolation bracket. Eric Yee had a huge upset win in the quarterfinals over #1 seed state placewinner Justin Krop from Urbana to advance.

12.21.05 - Hammond tops Centennial, 49-15
The Bears scored their 2nd in county dual meet win of the season over the Centennial Eagles. The Bears move to 2-0 in county and 6-1 overall. Big wins were recorded by Josh Halper (103) with a 6-4 victory over Jack Western and Devon Gillett (119) with a 4-2 victory over Region Champ Mike Neuberger. Zach Halper (135) and Ryan McKevitt (152) also were victorious over their opponents. Vince Taweel (140), Jose Maldonado (145), Adam Blake (171), Stephen Sessa (189), Josten Harding (215) and Mitchell Cowger (275) all took forfeits. JV also won big over Centennial with a 49-18 victory. View detailed varsity results here, and detailed JV results here.

12.11.05 - Dual Win Streak Snapped at Bowie
Hammond won 4 consecutive matches at the Bowie Invitational Dual Tournament before falling 31-33 to Anne Arundel County's Broadneck High School. Hammond was unable to overcome the absence of Stephen Sessa (189), Chris Dolin (275) and Bryce Harley (119) and finished 2nd to Broadneck. Devon Gillett (112), Antonio Alonso (125), Eric Yee (135), Vince Taweel (140), Jose Maldonado (145) and Ryan McKevitt (152) finished with undefeated records in the tournament. Josh Davis (145) also went unbeaten with a 14-0 victory vs. Wheaton. Zach Halper (130) and Adam Blake (160/171) won all but 1 match on Saturday. The Bears scored victories over Bowie (45-22), Southern (67-7), South River (45-21), Wheaton (61-15) and now have a record of 5-1 this season in dual meet competition, bringing their two season total to 31-1. Hammond has off next week and won't compete until the following Tuesday when they travel to Centennial.

12.08.05 - Hammond Defeats Atholton, 41-25
The Bears started off the 2005-2006 season with a win over Atholton High School, 41-25. Pins were recorded by Devon Gillett (112), Zach Halper (130), Vince Taweel (140), Stephen Sessa (189) and Josten Harding (215). Jose Maldonado (145) and Jay Miller (160) scored majors and Adam Blake (171) scored a dominating decision 9-4. Freshman Josh Halper (103) fought hard, avoiding a pin over Atholton's highly ranked Robbie Eloshway. The Bears will compete at the Bowie Invitational Duals this Friday and Saturday. Junior Varsity also scored a win over Atholton, 45-15. Pins were recorded by Francisco Borelli (130), Josh Davis (152), Jeff Campbell (160) and Roberto Aleman (130). Also scoring wins were Ben Gillie (112), Nathan Bolton (119), Matt Ketchum (140), Matt Campbell (145), Xavier Langley (171), Brady Oronce (189), Mitch Cowger (215) and Mark Thomas (125).

12.07.05 - Blake and Maldonado named Captains
Seniors Adam Blake and Jose Maldonado were named captains last week to the 2005-2006 Hammond Wrestling team. They join Junior Captains Vince Taweel and Ryan McKevitt as captains for this year's squad.

11.19.05 - ALUMNI NEWS: '05 Graduate Ethan Cohen Places 5th in College Wrestling Debut
2005 Hammond Graduate Ethan Cohen wrestled in his first College Wrestling Tournament placing fifth for Williams College at the Doug Parker Tournament in Springfield, MA. Ethan made the Semi-finals knocking off the #2 seed along the way before finishing with a 4-2 record and a 5th place finish. Congratulations to Ethan on his very successful college wrestling debut.

09.15.05 - Taweel & McKevitt Named 2006 Captains
Sixth Year Head Coach Pedro Barbosa named Juniors Vince Taweel and Ryan McKevitt captains of the 2005-2006 Hammond Wrestling team.

Vince Taweel

Ryan McKevitt

Taweel and McKevitt will join returning Senior Captain Bryce Harley to lead this year's defending State Dual Meet Champions into the new year. Taweel comes off his 2nd State Title in as many seasons, finishing with a 41-1 record last season and a #2 overall ranking in the state. McKevitt enters the season after a stellar off-season following his Sophomore year which earned him over 30 wins, a 2nd place County finish and his 2nd trip to states.

As we approach the beginning of the new season, keep checking the website for more news and updates including upcoming events, schedules and news involving the team. Any questions or comments can be posted on the message board or directed to jfreiert@yahoo.com.

09.09.05 - Williams College Wrestling Schedule
2x State Runner-up and 2005 Hammond Graduate Ethan Cohen will be wrestling for Williams College in Massachusetts this winter at 125 lbs. The Williams College Wrestling schedule can be found here. Good luck to Ethan on his first season of College Wrestling.

08.24.05 - Coach Mackin Wins MMA Professional Debut
Hammond Assistant Coach Ryan Mackin was victorious in his Mixed Martial Arts Professional debut. Mackin competed in a UFC sanctioned fight in Chicago and used his wrestling skills (honed here at Hammond High School) to win a unanimous decision over his opponent. More info can be found here.

05.30.05 - Taweel Ranked #12 Nationally by Intermat
Hammond's Vince Taweel is ranked #12 among High School Sophomores at the 130 lbs. weight class. State Champ and Beast Runner-Up Tim Darling of Nazareth PA earned the weight's top spot in Intermat's Sophomore Class ranking. Taweel, a 2x Maryland State Champ, is now ranked nationally by two wrestling publications #12 by Intermat and #27 by Wrestling USA. Click Here to view the entire Sophomore rankings by Intermat.

05.11.05 - Taweel Ranked Nationally by Wrestling USA
Sophomore and 2x State Champ Vince Taweel earned a National Ranking by Wrestling USA Magazine. Vince is currently ranked #27 among Freshman and Sophomores at 130 lbs. Congratulations to Vince for representing Hammond and Maryland well. Click Here to view the complete Fresh/Soph ranks.

04.16.05 - Severna Park Falcon Open Results
Several Current & Former Hammond wrestlers competed at the Severna Park Falcon Open Wrestling tournament held at Severna Park High School. Results were as follows.

135 lbs: Antonio Alonso (11) 1st Open, 2nd Senior
139 lbs: Vince Taweel (10) 1st Senior
109 lbs: Jacob Sams (9) 2nd Junior, 2nd Senior
120 lbs: Joe Burns (10) 2nd Senior
135 lbs: Matt Ketchum (10) 4th Senior
150 lbs: Brian Cridlin (12) 4th Senior

Hammond Alumni Tony Tan placed 1st in Open 162 lbs.

04.11.05 - Hammond Ends Successful Season with Banquet
Hammond ended its championship winning season with an awards Banquet honoring the achievements of this year's squad. The following individuals earned awards.

Varsity
Most Valuable Wrestler: Vince Taweel, Sophomore
Kenny Webster Award: Adam Blake, Junior
Coach's Award: Ryan McKevitt, Sophomore
Rookie of the Year: Jose Maldonado, Junior

Senior Inductees
Hall of Fame: Ethan Cohen
Honor Roll: Andrew Smith

Junior Varsity
Most Valuable Wrestler: Antonio Alonso, Junior
Most Valuable Wrestler: Eric Yee, Junior
Coach's Award: Josh Davis, Junior
Coach's Award: Brian Cridlin, Senior

04.06.05 - Ethan Cohen is Most Successful at Senior Nationals
Hammond's 119 lbs. Senior Captain and 2x State Runner-up Ethan Cohen traveled to Cleveland, Ohio last weekend to compete in the NHSCA Senior National Championships, the toughest folkstyle High School Tournament in the country. Ethan dropped his first match of the tournament to California Placewinner Brandon Zoeteway, Zoeteway was pre-season #1 in California and would go on to finish 5th in the tournament earning All-American status. Ethan then rebounded with three straight wins in the consolations, earning a technical fall 16-0 in his first consi bout. He would then defeat a Kansas State Champ, coming from behind to earn a last second 10-8 victory. Following that victory, Ethan defeated an Ohio State Champion, also in come from behind fashion. Down 4-0 in the third, he rallied to tie the score at 5 by the end of regulation and converted a leg up roll for a takedown in overtime. Ethan would drop his next match 12-6 and come within 2 matches of being a NHSCA Senior National All-American. His three wins make Ethan the most successful Senior National wrestler to compete for Hammond in the tournament. State Champions Ryan Mackin and Vaymond Dennis both won 2 matches before being knocked out. Other Hammond Wrestlers to compete at the Senior Nationals were Chris Williams and Scott Osborn (Only State Finalists & Champions qualify for this event). Congratulations to Ethan for representing Hammond and the state of Maryland with pride! Ethan will wrestle for Williams College in Massachusetts next year at 125 lbs. Good luck!

03.25.05 - Taweel Named Flier/Times Wrestler of the Year
It's a clean sweep for Hammond's 2x State Champion Vince Taweel. After winning the Washington Post & Baltimore Sun's Howard County Wrestler of the Year, Taweel was also named as Co-Wrestler of the Year in the Columbia Flier/Howard County Times along with Howard's Mingo Grant. The full article can be seen here. Also named to the Flier/Times All-County team were County Champions Ethan Cohen (119), Jose Maldonado (135), AJ Smith (152) and Stephen Sessa (189). Click here to view the All-County article.

03.21.05 - All-County & All-Metro Teams Announced
All-Metro: Congratulations to All-Metro Coach of the Year, Hammond's Pedro Barbosa. The Bears' Head Coach was named the Baltimore Sun's All-Metro Coach of the Year for the 2nd time in 5 seasons. Barbosa was the youngest coach ever to receive the honor at age 24 in 2001 and now is a 2x winner at the age of 29. Hammond has a record of 71-24 in the five years under Barbosa. 2x State Champion Vince Taweel was named to the Sun's All-Metro first team for the 2nd straight year. Senior Captain Ethan Cohen (119) was named to the All-Metro second team. Click here for All-Metro Picks

All-County: Head Coach Pedro Barbosa winning the Howard County Coach of the Year brings the honor to a Hammond Coach for the sixth time in the past 9 years. The Bears' Vince Taweel was named 'County Wrestler of the Year' for the 2004-2005 season. Vince is the first Hammond Wrestler to receive the honor from the Sun since Chris Williams in 1994. Ethan Cohen (119, 2nd time), Jose Maldonado (135), AJ Smith (152) and Stephen Sessa (189, 2nd time) were all named to the All-County first team. Bryce Harley (112), Zach Halper (125), Ryan McKevitt (140) and Jeff Nuss (145, 2nd time) were all named to the All-County 2nd team. Congratulations to all of the All-County and All-Metro recipients. Click here for All-County Picks

03.13.05 - Cohen Victorious in MD vs. VA All-Star Dual
Hammond 119 lbs. Senior Ethan Cohen won by technical fall 15-0 over Virginia AA State Runner-Up Bryan Pewitt of Manasass Park at this years Maryland vs. Virginia All-Star Dual. The dual pits some of the top Seniors in both Maryland and Virginia from the past season. Congratulations to Ethan for representing Maryland and Hammond extremely well at the All-Star event. Ethan as well as Vince Taweel were also named to this year's MSWA All-Academic Team. The All-Academic team consists of individuals who displayed exceptional accolades on the mat as well as in the classroom. This is the first time in Hammond history we've had two members on the All-Academic team. Congrats to both Vince and Ethan.

03.06.05 - Taweel 2xer, Hammond & Cohen Fall Short
Hammond's Vince Taweel became the schools first 2x State Champion with a 4-2 decision over Antonio Josiah in the State Finals. Hammond finished 2nd at this year's State Tournament with 103 points behind champion Owings Mills. Ethan Cohen (119) placed 2nd for the 2nd straight year. Sophomore Zach Halper (125) placed 4th, Senior AJ Smith (152) placed 5th while Senior Jeff Nuss (145) and Junior Stephen Sessa (189) placed 6th. Juniors Bryce Harley (112) and Jose Maldonado (135) were both one match away from placing in the tournament. Sophomore and 2x State Qualifier Ryan McKevitt (140) won one match before being knocked out of the tournament. The Bears finished a stellar season with five post-season titles including County & Region Tournament and Duals title as well as the 1a/2a State Dual Meet Championship. They completed the schools 3rd ever undefeated season with a 26-0 dual record.

03.04.05 - Hammond Leads After Day 1
The Bears advanced 4 to Saturday's State Semi-Finals. Ethan Cohen (119), Zach Halper (125), Vince Taweel (130) and Stephen Sessa (189) all will wrestle in the semi-finals which begin Saturday at 11:00am. Hammond still has 5 other wrestlers alive in the consolation wrestle-backs. Jose Maldonado (135), Jeff Nuss (145) & AJ Smith (152) won their first matches before falling in the quarter-finals. Bryce Harley (112) and Ryan McKevitt (140) dropped their first bouts but won their first preliminary consolation matches. All five will wrestle in the Consolation Round that begins at 9:30am on Saturday.

02.28.05 - State Tournament Information
State Tournament Schedule. The 1a/2a State Tournament will be wrestled in conjunction with the 3a/4a State Tournament this weekend Friday, March 4th and Saturday, March 5th at Cole Field House at the University of Maryland College Park. Below is an APPROXIMATE time schedule released by the MPSSAA. Click here for directions. Click here for the MPSSAA Fan Focus.

Friday, March 4th
2:30 p.m. Preliminary Round (8 mats)
6:00 p.m. Quarterfinal Round (8 mats)
8:00 p.m. Consolation Preliminary Round 1 (8 mats)

Saturday, March 5th
9:30 a.m. Consolation Preliminary Round 2 (8 mats)
11:00 a.m. Semifinal Rounds (4 mats)
1:00 p.m. Consolation Quarterfinal Round (8 mats)
2:15 p.m. Consolation Semifinal Round (8 mats)
4:00 p.m. Consolation Finals (4 mats)
6:30 p.m. Championship Finals (2 mats)

Hammond's first round state tournament match ups
112: #2 Bryce Harley vs. #3 Steve Willingham (27-6) South Carroll, SO
119: #1 Ethan Cohen vs. #4 Miguel Contreras (25-10) Elkton, SR
125: #2 Zach Halper vs. #3 Alex Weber (28-4) Sparrows Point, SR
130: #1 Vince Taweel vs. #4 Bryan Mounts (22-14) Kent Island, SR
135: #2 Jose Maldonado vs. #3 S. Germanhausen (11-2) Kent Is., SR
140: #3 Ryan McKevitt vs. #2 Chris Clark (22-5) Eastern Tech, SR
145: #3 Jeff Nuss vs. #2 Dylan Morris (27-6) North Harford, SR
152: #1 Andrew Smith vs. #4 Syed Raza (18-17) Pikesville, SR
189: #1 Stephen Sessa vs. #4 Elliott Simmons (20-13) Beall, JR

Click Here to view the 1a/2a State Tournament Brackets

02.26.05 - Hammond takes South Region Tournament Title
Five titles down... one to go. Hammond won its 5th post season title of the season tonight at Glenelg High School, finishing at the top of the 1a/2a South Region Tournament ahead of Glenelg and Oakland Mills. Hammond crowned a record 4 Region Champions in Seniors Ethan Cohen (119) & AJ Smith (152) as well as Sophomore Vince Taweel (130) and Junior Stephen Sessa (189). This is Cohen and Taweel's 2nd region title. Bryce Harley (112), Zach Halper (125) and Jose Maldonado placed 2nd rounding out Hammond's 7 Finalists on the night. Ryan McKevitt (140) and Jeff Nuss (145) also both qualified for the State Tournament by placing 3rd in the region pushing Hammond's number of State Qualifiers to 9. Adam Blake (171) placed 6th after suffering an elbow injury in the semi-finals, and injury defaulting to 6th place. 9 is Hammond's most state qualifiers since they won the State Tournament in 1998. State Tournament information to come.

02.22.05 - 1a/2a South Region Schedule @ Glenelg *UPDATED*
Due to Inclement weather, the 1a/2a South Region Tournament at Glenelg High School has been postponed until Saturday, February 26th. Below is an APPROXIMATION of what time the rounds might begin and end on Saturday.

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2005
9:00 AM - 10:30 WEIGH-INS
11:00 - 1:00 QUARTER-FINALS
1:30 - 5:00 SEMI FINALS
CONSOLATION SEMI-FINALS
CONSOLATION WRESTLE BACKS
5:30 - 6:30 CONSOLATION FINALS
7:00 - 9:00 CHAMPIONSHIP FINALS

Click Here for Brackets

02.19.05 - Bears win 2005 Howard County Tournament
Hammond posted its first County Tournament Championship since 1999 with a 214-199.5 defeat of defending county champion River Hill. Champions included Vince Taweel (130, 2nd title), Jose Maldonado (145), AJ Smith (152), Stephen Sessa (189, second title) and Ethan Cohen (119, 2nd title). Ethan was also awarded the Glenn I. Devane Award for the most outstanding wrestler of the tournament with a 8-4 victory over David Heckmann of River Hill.

02.18.05 - Hammond Leads County Tournament After Day 1
Advancing 10 wrestlers to Saturday's Semi-Finals, Hammond leads 2nd place River Hill, 77 to 73.5 after the conclusion of wrestling on Friday. All fourteen of Hammond's wrestlers are still alive in the tournament. Hammond's Junior Varsity team advanced Joe Burns (112), Eric Yee (125), Matt Ketchum (125), Jimmy Parsells (130), Antonio Alonso (135), Brian Cridlin (145) and Josh Davis (152) to Saturday morning's JV Semi-finals. Wrestling begins tomorrow at 9am. Bus leaves Hammond at 7:00am.

02.17.05 - County Tournament Schedule
Listed below is this weekend's County Tournament Schedule. Times are subject to change based on how fast the tournament runs.

Friday, February 18
1:00 - 2:30 Weigh-in / Bus 12:30
3:00 - 10:30 Wrestle - Varsity and JV Prelims
Varsity and JV Quarters
Varsity and JV Consolation Prelims and Consolation Quarters

Saturday, February 19
7:30 - 9:00 Weigh-in / Bus 7:00
9:00 - 10:30 - JV Semis and JV Consolation Quarters
10:30 - 12:00 - Varsity Semis and Varsity Consolation Quarters
12:00 - 12:45 - JV Consolation Semi Finals
12:45 - 1:30 - Varsity Consolation Semi Finals
2:00 - 3:00 - Varsity and JV 5th and 6th
3:00 - 4:00 - JV 3rd and 4th
4:00 - 5:00 - Junior Varsity Finals
6:00 - 7:00 - Varsity Consolation Finals
7:00 - 9:30 - Finals

02.12.05 - Hammond Wins States! Finishes 26-0!
The Golden Bears defeated Harford Tech in a tight semi-final match and then took home the State Title with a 35-26 win over the South Carroll Cavaliers. Hammond is now the only undefeated dual meet team in the entire state of Maryland including Private Schools. Congrats to the Bears on their unbelievable dual meet season! Next up is the Howard County Championships which will be wrestled at Reservoir High School starting this coming Friday, details to come soon.

02.10.05 - Vince Taweel: Special Mention National Ranking
USA Wrestling released their updated overall and class national rankings. Hammond Sophomore Vince Taweel received a ranking of Special Mention among Freshman and Sophomores. Vince is the first Hammond wrestler to receive a national ranking since Stephen Sessa in 2003. Click here to view the full ranking list. Congratulations to Vince!

02.09.05 - Bears Crowned Region Champs, Head to States
Hammond defeated defending 3a/4a State Dual Champs Calvert, 52-18 in the Region Semi-Finals and then ousted defending 1a/2a South Region Champs Glenelg 42-24 in the Finals to become 2005 Regional Dual Champions. Double winners on the night were Bryce Harley (112) who edged Glenelg's Chris Stinnet for the 3rd time this season. Ethan Cohen (119), Zach Halper (125), Ryan McKevitt (140), AJ Smith (152), Adam Blake (160) and Stephen Sessa (189). State Champion Vince Taweel dropped his first loss of the season in a super close double overtime defeat to Calvert's Ryan Buff. State Duals will take place at LaPlata High School this Saturday, Semi-Finals for 1a/2a begin at 2:00pm, Finals at 6:00pm. Click here for directions.

02.05.05 - Hammond Finishes Regular Season Undefeated
Hammond finished its 2004-2005 Regular Season with an unblemished 22-0 record with its 74-3 victory over Laurel this Saturday. This is the 3rd time a Hammond team has finished its regular season undefeated. The previous two seasons, 1996 & 1998, Hammond finished with a State Dual Meet Championship. The Bears will host the 1a/2a South Region Dual Meet tournament this Wednesday. They will take on #4 seed Calvert in the first round match, and then face the winner of #2 City College and #3 Glenelg.

02.03.05 - WASH POST: "Hammond's Cohen an Artist on the Mat"
Post staff writer Jon Gallo produced a feature article on Hammond's Senior Captain Ethan Cohen, featured in the February 3rd issue of the Post. The Article can be viewed by clicking here.

02.01.05 - Hammond Pounds Howard, Grabs County Dual Title
The Hammond Golden Bears defeated Howard 64-16 to go to 10-0 in the county (21-0 overall) and wrap up their first Howard County Dual Meet title since 1999. Ethan Cohen (119), Zach Halper (125), Vince Taweel (130), Jose Maldonado (135) and Ryan McKevitt (140) all recorded pins in the victory. Bryce Harley (112), Jeff Nuss (145), AJ Smith (152), Adam Blake (160) and Stephen Sessa (215) took forfeits on the night, while Mark Greenstein (171) scored a 5-2 victory. The Bear's final regular season match will be wrestled this Saturday vs. Laurel starting at 2:00 @ Hammond.

01.31.05 - Photo Updates & King of the Mat
The Photo Gallery has been updated with Pictures for the Catholic Invitational, two full pages with pics provided by Jeff Cohen. Jeff's son Ethan Cohen was declared the victor of one of the most competitive King of the Mat competitions in recent history with a tie-breaking victory of Sophomore Ryan McKevitt.

01.28.05 - Bears Sweep Tri-Meets, Move to a Perfect 20-0
Hammond scored 4 dual meet victories in just two days with wins over Mt. Hebron, Long Reach, Harford Tech & Calvert Hall. The Bears outscored Mt. Hebron and Long Reach by a combined score of 135-12. Jamil Spears (275) scored his first match victory of the year with a pin vs. Mt. Hebron. On Wednesday, Hammond defeated highly ranked Harford Tech, 38-31, and narrowly edged Calvert Hall, 33-31 to get their 20th straight victory. Hammond's Vince Taweel earned his 26th straight victory this season by defeating 4th ranked Colin Goldsmith of Calvert Hall. Taweel surpassed assistant coach Ryan Mackin's previous mark of 25 straight victories set in 2001. The Bears now have 10 wrestlers who have over 20 wins on the year, a feat that hasn't been accomplished since 1998, Hammond's last State Championship season. The Junior Varsity Squad also notched 3 victories moving their record to an impressive 9-2. Full Results in the Results Section.

01.22.05 - UPDATE: Harford Tech / Calvert Hall Tri-Meet Info
A tentative schedule for Wednesday's Tri-Meet with Harford Tech and Calvert Hall is as follows.

3:00pm - Weigh-ins
4:00pm - Hammond vs. Calvert Hall
5:00 - 5:30 - Hammond vs. Harford Tech (Follows Calvert Hall match)

Directions to Wednesday's Tri-Meet with Harford Tech and Calvert Hall, which will be hosted by Harford Tech, can be found here.

01.17.05 - Bears Knock off Glenelg & Reservoir, Move to 16-0
Hammond knocked off Glenelg 46-24 on Tuesday giving them the inside track for this year's Howard County Dual Meet title. With a 7-0 county record and only Long Reach, Mt. Hebron and Howard remaining, the Bears seem inevitable to grab their first County title since 1999. The Bears also handily beat Reservoir 61-15 despite missing starters Bryce Harley (112) and Zach Halper (125). Adam Blake scored a key victory in the victory over Glenelg by pinning previously undefeated and former Region Runner-Up Bobby Kuczarski. Eric Yee (119) got his first varsity win of the year at 119 vs. Reservoir, earning a first period pin. Vince Taweel (125) earned a technical fall and a pin last week to move to 22-0, just three away from tieing Ryan Mackin's Consecutive Victories in a season mark of 25. Midterms are this week and no matches will be wrestled. The Bears will return to action in a Tri-Meet on Tuesday, January 25th against Long Reach and Mt. Hebron, Long Reach will Host. Hammond will then travel to Harford County to wrestle 6th-ranked Harford Tech in a tri-meet hosted by the Cobras with Calvert Hall.

01.09.05 - Taweel & Sessa Win Catholic Titles
Hammond placed 9 wrestlers including 4 finalists in Archbishop Curley's annual Catholic Invitational. Vince Taweel (130) and Stephen Sessa (189) both won Titles. Taweel remained undefeated moving to 20-0 on the season. Ethan Cohen (119) and AJ Smith (152) both took 2nd place. Bryce Harley (112) and Adam Blake (160) wrestled back to place 3rd. Jose Maldonado (135) and Jeff Nuss (145) placed 4th while Zach Halper (125) placed 5th. Hammond received 4th place with 170 points.

01.07.05 - Hammond Pushes 6 into Catholic Semi-Finals
The Bears advanced 6 out of 12 competing wrestlers into the Catholic Invitational Semi-Finals. Guaranteeing at least 6 placewinners at the tournament. #2 Bryce Harley (112), #2 Ethan Cohen (119), #1 Vince Taweel (130), #5 Jeff Nuss (145), #1 AJ Smith (152) and #1 Stephen Sessa (189) all will wrestle Saturday morning for a chance at entering the finals. The other 6 remaining wrestlers for Hammond are all alive in the consolation bracket. Freshman Jacob Sams (103) earned a pin his first consolation bout, while Ryan McKevitt (140) and Josh Keith (171) received byes. Zach Halper (125), Jose Maldonado (135) and Adam Blake (160) received 3 of a tournament high 6 byes that Hammond had in the first round before falling in the quarter-finals. All three will wrestle back in the consolation bracket beginning tomorrow morning. Team Scores were not immediately available.

01.04.05 - Hammond Downs Centennial, 58-18
The Hammond Golden Bears defeated Centennial for the first time in two years, 58-18. Pins were recorded by Jose Maldonado (135), Ryan McKevitt (140), Jeff Nuss (145) and AJ Smith (152). Stephen Sessa (189) earned a technical fall 20-5 over Centennial's Andrew Maas. Majors were recorded by Zach Halper (125) and Adam Blake (160) while Bryce Harley moved to 18-0 with an 11-4 decision at 112 lbs. Ethan Cohen (119), Vince Taweel (130) and Jamil Spears (275) all took forfeits on the night. Full scores in the Results section.

12.29.04 - Ethan Cohen Named Sun Athlete of the Week
119 pound Senior Captain Ethan Cohen was named the Baltimore Sun Athlete of the Week after his match clinching win over River Hill's David Heckmann. From the Sun:

The 119-pound senior went 3-0 with two pins last week, improving to 15-1 with 14 pins. A defending Howard County and region champion and Class 2A-1A state runner-up, Cohen has led No. 4 Hammond (13-0) to a 4-0 league record.

Cohen had pins in the first and second periods in tri-meet wins over Wilde Lake and Oakland Mills on Dec. 21. On Thursday, Cohen's takedown with 12 seconds left secured a 6-4 victory over previously unbeaten David Heckman, lifting Hammond to a 30-27 dual-meet win over fifth-ranked, defending county champ River Hill and avenging a 7-6 loss to Heckman.

Only a fourth-year wrestler, Cohen was ranked No. 2 in The Sun coming in against Heckman, who was rated No. 1. Cohen has a weighted 4.5 grade point average (3.8 unweighted) and scored 1,350 on his SAT. He is considering Brown, Duke, Franklin & Marshall and Williams College of Massachusetts.

Link to the article on the Sun website can be found here.

12.28.04 - MSWA Ranking Updates, Cohen on Top
The Maryland State Wrestling Association State Rankings were released today by editor Luke Broadwater. After avenging his loss to River Hill's David Heckmann, Ethan Cohen has earned the #1 ranking overall in the state of Maryland at 119 lbs. This is the first time a Hammond wrestler has earned the #1 spot since Ryan Mackin, 2001 graduate and current assistant coach for the Bears, earned the top spot at 135 lbs. in 2001 after defeating 2x State Champ Adam Decosmo. Hammond retained its #2 overall ranking in the State behind Mt. St. Joseph, and its #1 ranking in 1a/2a ahead of Harford Tech and South Carroll. Jumping into the rankings for the first time was 135 pound Junior Jose Maldonado (17-1), who slid into the #6 spot in the 1a/2a rankings. Sophomore State Champ Vince Taweel (130) remained ranked #3 in the State and Junior Stephen Sessa remained at #5 overall at 189 lbs. Also ranked in the 1a/2a rankings for the Bears were Bryce Harley (#4 @ 112), Zach Halper (#4 @ 125) and AJ Smith (#6 at 152).

12.27.04 - River Hill Dual Photos
National Sports Photographer of the Year Francis Gardler was present at the Hammond vs. River Hill Dual Meet on December 23rd and has provided several excellent action shots to the wrestling community. Click on the image to view a larger version.

	119 lbs. Senior Captain Ethan Cohen celebrates after a 6-4 victory to clinch the win for Hammond.		Senior Captain Ethan Cohen scrambles with River Hill's German Exchange Student, David Heckmann.
	2003 County Champ Stephen Sessa grapples with 2004 County Champ Ryan Deiter.		Hammond's Stephen Sessa finishes a Takedown to defeat River Hill's Ryan Deiter, 9-3.

12.27.04 - Two JV Champs Crowned at Reservoir
Hammond placed 5 wrestlers in Monday's Finals and took home two titles at Reservoir's 2nd annual Junior Varsity Tournament. Eric Yee (130) and Antonio Alonso (135) both won their weights while Jimmy Parsells (130), De'Yonte Wilkinson (135) and Josh Keith (160) all placed 2nd. Parsells' only loss was to his own teammate Yee in the tournament finals. Other Placewinners were Matt Ketchum, fourth at 125 lbs. and Wayne Bowdoin, fourth at 135 lbs.

12.23.04 - Hammond Defeats River Hill, 30-27
In what can be argued as the most exciting dual meet in Maryland thus far in 2004, Hammond defeated previously unbeaten defending County Champions River Hill 30-27. The final match of the evening placed #1 Ranked David Heckmann of River Hill vs. #2 Ranked Ethan Cohen of Hammond. After a hard fought match with many scrambles, Cohen came out on top with a 6-4 victory and brought home the win for the Golden Bears. Wins were recorded by Bryce Harley (112), Ethan Cohen (119), Vince Taweel (130), Jose Maldonado (135), Ryan McKevitt (140), Jeff Nuss (145), AJ Smith (152) and Stephen Sessa (189). The Bears are now a perfect 13-0 in dual meets thus far this season. Next event will be the Reservoir JV Tournament on Monday, December 27th. More info to come.

12.23.04 - Hawks Travel to Hammond
Defending County Champs River Hill travel to Hammond to take on the Golden Bears, match begins with JV at 4:00, varsity to follow. Both teams have combined to win the last 10 Howard County Tournaments, and 9 out of the last 10 Howard County Dual Meet Titles.

12.22.04 - Golden Bears Topple Scorpions & Wildecats
Hammond defeated Wilde Lake 47-24 and Oakland Mills 59-20 in a Tri-Meet yesterday at Home. This moves the Bears record to 3-0 in Howard County and 12-0 overall. Double winners for the Bears were Bryce Harley (112), Ethan Cohen (119), Zach Halper (125), Vince Taweel (130), Jose Maldonado (135), Ryan McKevitt (140), Jeff Nuss (145), AJ Smith (152) and Stephen Sessa (189). Taweel, COhen & McKevitt both scored 2 pins each. Harley scored a tech fall and a pin to move to 16-0 on the year. Sessa earned an 11-5 win over state ranked Zach Brown of Wilde Lake and Adam Blake (160) went 1-1 recording a near tech fall over Wilde Lake's Trevor Shipley, moving his record to 12-3 on the year. Next Match: River Hill @ Hammond, Thursday December 23rd. JV begins at 4:00, varsity to follow.

12.19.04 - Bryce Harley & Jeff Nuss Named Captains
Junior Bryce Harley (112) and Senior Jeff Nuss (145) will both join Seniors Ethan Cohen (119) and AJ Smith (152) as Captains of the 2005 Hammond Golden Bear Wrestling team. Bryce has a perfect 14-0 record this year with 11 pins while Nuss has an impressive 11-2 start with 6 pins to his credit. Next Event: Tri-Meet with Oakland Mills & Wilde Lake held at Hammond on Tuesday.

12.18.04 - Bears Take 1st @ Bulldog Duals
Hammond took home its 2nd tournament title of the season going an undefeated 8-0 at the Churchill Bulldog Duals Tournament to take home the title. 119 pound Senior Ethan Cohen took home Outstanding Lightweight honors for the Bears with a record of 7-0 with 7 pins, including one over 3rd place state finisher Casey Marwine of Linganore. Junior Bryce Harley (112) went 8-0 with 6 pins. AJ Smith (152) and Jose Maldonado (135) went 8-0 while Vince Taweel (130) and Adam Blake (160) both went 7-0. Zach Halper (125), Ryan McKevitt (140) and Jeff Nuss (145) all went 7-1 on the tournament. Stephen Sessa went 6-1 at 189 lbs. falling 3-2 to Arundel's Brad Pendock. Freshman Jacob Sams (103) went 4-4 including 3 pins. Jamil Spears (275) went 3-4 in his first varsity tournament and the Greenstein brothers earned 1 win a piece including a pin by Mark at 171. Box Scores will be posted in the results section.

12.14.04 - Hammond Defeats Old Mill, First Time Ever
The Hammond Golden Bears defeated perennial powerhouse Old Mill for the first time ever by a score of 35-33. Pins were recorded by Bryce Harley (112), Ethan Cohen (119), Zach Halper (125) and Jeff Nuss (145). Vince Taweel (130) and Stephen Sessa (189) both earned major decisions while Adam Blake scored a key victory at 160 lbs. Freshman Jacob Sams (103) fell to Greg Saumenig, who is currently ranked 4th in the State of Maryland, while Senior AJ Smith (152) fell to Old Mill Senior Chris Volker. Three Hammond wrestlers still remain undefeated, Bryce Harley (6-0), Vince Taweel (5-0) and Stephen Sessa (6-0). Hammond travels to Churchill High School this weekend to compete in the Churchill Duals Tournament. Directions coming soon.

12.11.04 - Hammond Captures Bowie Invitational Title
On the strength of 8 finalists, Hammond captured its first tournament title of the season, finishing first at the Bowie Invitational in front of county rivals River Hill and Glenelg. Despite missing heavyweight Jamil Spears, Hammond crowned 5 champions, two of whom are starting on varsity for their first year. Champions included Bryce Harley (112), Vince Taweel (130), Jose Maldonado (135), AJ Smith (152) and Stephen Sessa (189). Runner-up finishes were recorded by Ethan Cohen (119), Zach Halper (125) and Jeff Nuss (145). Ryan McKevitt (140) placed 6th. Junior Adam Blake (160) went 2-2, losing to the 2nd & 3rd place finisher in his weight. 171 pounder Mark Greenstein went 2-2 earning a forfeit and a pin. Freshman Jacob Sams (103) went 0-2 but led his last opponent before causing him to injury default with an illegal slam. David Greenstein competed at 215 lbs. and went 0-2 as well. Full Varsity and JV results coming soon.

12.07.04 - Bears Take Revenge on Raiders, 43-27
Hammond took revenge from two losses to the Atholton Raiders this evening with a 43-27 victory in their first match of the year. The Bears won 9 out of 14 matches including an upset victory for Sophomore Zach Halper (125) over County Runner-Up and state place winner Jeff Zillmer. Pins were recorded by Vince Taweel (130), Bryce Harley (112) & Ethan Cohen (119). Steve Sessa (189) recorded a forfeit victory in his first dual in more than a year. Jose Maldonado (135) scored a technical fall 16-0. Majors were recorded by AJ Smith (152) and Adam Blake (160), while Jeff Nuss scored a decision at 145 lbs. Click Here to view the article in the Baltimore Sun.

12.2.04 - WASH POST: Making the Team Number 1
The Washington Post's Joe Gallo published a story on Hammond in the December 2nd issue of the Washington Post, click here to read the article.

11.29.04 - Wrestle-off Results

145 -- Jeff Nuss, SR defeated Brian Cridlin, SR
125 -- Matt Ketchum, SO defeated Jared Greene, SR
125 -- Jared Greene, SR defeated Brenden Bussell, FR
103 -- Jacob Sams, FR defeated Ben Gillie, FR
103 -- Patrik Patel, FR defeated Ben Gillie, FR
125 -- Matt Ketchum, SO defeated Francisco Borelli, SO
130 -- Jimmy Parsells, JR defeated Andrew Kim, SO
140 -- Jimmy Angelo, SO defeated Dan Adams, FR
135 -- Jose Maldonado, JR defeated Eric Yee, JR
125 -- Zach Halper, SO defeated Eric Yee, JR
135 -- Jose Maldonado, JR defeated Jimmy Parsells, JR

11.24.04 - First Round Wrestle-offs
The first round of Hammond wrestle offs took place today, listed below are the results.

125 -- Eric Yee, JR defeated Matt Ketchum, SO
135 -- Jimmy Parsells, JR defeated Wayne Bowdoin, SR
145 -- Brian Cridlin, SR defeated Josh Davis, JR
171 -- Mark Greenstein, SR defeated Jay Miller, JR
125 -- Zach Halper, SO defeated Jared Greene, SR
140 -- Ryan McKevitt, SO defeated Jimmy Angelo, SO

11.13.04 - 2005 Season Preview Posted
While it is still early on and many things will change, a 2005 Hammond Golden Bear Wrestling Season Preview has been posted here. Check out the write up to see whats in store of the Bears this season. Practice starts Monday!

NEWS ARCHIVES