Michael Mocco (right) wins Gillis Strong Invitational. (Courtesy Coach Perez}
By: Matt Rothman
In their third tournament of the season, the Coral Springs Charter wrestling team saw eighth-grader Michael Mocco win a championship in his weight class.
On Dec. 17-18, Mocco went 5-0 in the Gillis Strong Invitational at Archbishop McCarthy High School in Southwest Ranches in the season’s first individual bracket tournament.
Mocco recorded three wins by pinning his opponent and winning via a tech fall —when a wrestler beats an opponent by 15 points or more. In the final, he won 9-1 against a senior and was also named southeastwrestling.com as their Florida 182 lb. Hammer of the Week.
“Michael’s wrestling IQ is very advanced for someone his age,” said Head Coach Eric Perez. “The only thing he has to do to keep improving is to continue being coachable — and the sky is the limit for him.”
As a team, CSC finished in eighth place out of 20 schools. Hannah Mader came in second place and went 2-1, while Preston Lindsay and Brock Wilson combined to win ten of their 12 matches to come in third.
The Panthers had three other wrestlers finish in the top-5 in Jaiden Valentin, Keon Taylor, and Griffin Perko. Owyn Vargas and Hunter Perez.
Next, Coral Springs Charter competes at the Bobby Stanley Duals held at the Broward Convention Center on December 27-28 for their fourth tournament this season.
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