New coaches join wrestling team

The MHS wrestling team welcomes back coaches Tim Palermo and Phil Bidwell and adds two new coaches Donna Circe and Carl Gale to the program.

Last season ended with the departure of two long-term wrestlers Bobby Circe and Scott Little, whose shoes will be hard to fill and whose talent will be greatly missed. The crown jewel of the 2007 season was a 5th place finish by the varsity team in the N.V.A.C. team championships.

Several wrestlers return from a very strong 2006-2007 team – including senior captains Dustin Circe and Josh Bergeron. Also returning is sophomore Sam Weaver. New to the area but not to wrestling is Sam Alvarado (a.k.a. Sunshine), a fine young wrestler who brings a whole lot of talent to the team. Moving up to the varsity level after having completed two very successful years in the junior high program are freshmen Ethan Page and Tanner Palermo. New to the sport but showing tremendous talent and desire are senior Alisha Trayah, sophomore Joey Galloway and freshman Nathan Carner. According to head coach Tim Palermo the 2007-2008 year will be an open book for the varsity wrestlers.

(Photo above) The Wrestling team includes: (Back Row, L-R) Coach Phil Bidwell, Captain Dustin Circe, Sam Weaver, Kurt Alvarado, Tanner Palermo, Steven Little, Ethan Page, Captain Josh Bergeron, Coach Tim Palermo; (Bottom Row, L-R) Coach Donna Circe, Coach Carl Gale, Alex Burns, Eric Lavery, Dylan Hemsted, Michael McCellan, Wayne Bourne, Stephan Menard.

The junior high wrestling program is full of talent--the mix of returnees and newcomers is a recipe for a very successful year. The numbers are up from last year thanks to a successful youth program. This year’s team features the talents of Michael McClellan, Kaleb Fushey, Stephen Menard, Steven Little, Michael Boucher, Erik Lavery, Alexander Burns, Dylan Hemsted and Wayne Boure.

The varsity season starts Saturday, Dec. 8, when the team will compete in the Earlybird Classic hosted by St. Johnsbury Academy. The junior high season begins the following Saturday, Dec. 15, at the Otter Valley Open, hosted by Otter Valley Union HS.

Please note two home events: On Wednesday, Jan. 9, Milton varsity wrestling will host Enosburg in a home dual meet to be held at the Herrick Ave. School and on Saturday, Jan. 12, the annual junior high tournament will be held at the high school.

In the words of Palermo, “As always, good luck to all the winter’s sports teams and Go Yellowjackets!!!”