DANVERS — Even though the Danvers/Hamilton-Wenham co-operative wrestling team is a brand new member of the Northeastern Conference, that hasn’t stopped coach Mark DeCiccio from setting the bar high for his team in this, its first varsity season.
DeCiccio, a physical education teacher at Danvers High, started a club team with seven wrestlers at the school last year. There are now 23 grapplers in his program: 20 from Danvers and three others from Hamilton-Wenham (which for years had its own wrestling program).
The Falcons’ first time out was a very good showing, with the team placing third out of seven squads in the first-ever NEC Dual Meet with a 2-1 record on the day. Only traditional powers Beverly and Salem were ahead of them.
“The purpose this year is to win and come in first place in the league championship,” said DeCiccio. “I believe we have the talent to do it. I know every coach wants to win, but that’s only part of it.
“The other main goal is to teach the discipline and dedication it takes to win both on and off the mat. I’ve set high expectations for this year — and the kids are responding.”
Danvers is the host for the squad, so the three H-W members of the team carpool to the Thorpe Elementary School in Danvers for practice each day with their teammates.
“Over the past couple of years the numbers in our program at Hamilton-Wenham had declined, and last year the decision was made to end it,” said junior Matt Chigas, who competes in the 182-pound weught class. “The AD (H-W athletic director Don Doucette) approached me and a senior on the team to tell us about the opportunity to wrestle for a co-op team.
“I’m very happy to be here because it gives me a place to finish my high school wrestling career,” added Chigas, who wants to continue wrestling in college at either the varsity or club level. “I’ve been wrestling since my freshman year and didn’t want to stop. I really appreciate the opportunity Danvers is giving us to be part of a team.”
Chigas admitted he and the other two Generals worried about being able to make practices on time, but said they haven’t had any problems thus far. He hopes to get other students at his school interested in the sport and, over the course of time, get their own program back.
“The North Shore has a couple of other co-op teams, because the idea is to build new programs,” said DeCiccio. “Once that happens, you can split off.”
DeCiccio has only one returning wrestler from the club team in John Giacalone, a sophomore in the 138-pound weight division. Sophomore Sam Anderson (152 pounds) is the only captain and one of the most experienced wrestlers, along with Chigas.
“There are only two juniors; the rest of the team are all sophomores and freshmen,” said DeCiccio. “That gives me a chance to develop their talent and grow with them for the next couple of years. There’s a lot of teaching to do because most of them are new to the sport.”
Anderson’s father Mike started a youth wrestling program in Danvers, and his son loved it from the start.
“I’ve been wrestling for four years now,” said the younger Anderson. “We’re looking good for a first-year team and everybody is working hard. Coaches from other teams see us and say it looks like we’ve been wrestling for 5-6 years.”
The team features a full lineup. But because of the ongoing construction at Danvers High, the Falcons will not have any home matches.
DeCiccio wrestled all four years at Springfield College and was a three-time NCAA qualifier. He coached at the high school level in Maryland for a year and spent three years coaching at his alma mater.
“In the future I expect our numbers to go up by 10-20 kids,” said DiCiccio, who lives in Boston. “There will be good problems of boys fighting for weight classes. The youth program and new high school will hopefully result in coming to wrestle for us instead of going to St. John’s Prep.”
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