Our very own William Henckel (140lbs) had a triumphant finish taking down Pierson Manville from Pennsylvania with 35 seconds left on the clock. He took home the Men’s Freestyle USA Wrestling 16U National Championship title at Fargo, North Dakota.
Henckel is due to wrestle at Blair Academy this winter, fulfilling a dream that has he had for many years.
Henckel shared some love for his Connecticut teammates and coaches, including Blair Tugman of Team Tugman in Branford.
“Coach Tugman has been with me forever,” Henckel said. “I started (wrestling) in the Newtown (Youth Wrestling Program) and I went to him once I thought I had the basics down and he really elevated my game and my arsenal and I took off from there.”
Before Henckel’s win, the last Connecticut 16U national champion was in 2005 with Anthony Vales from South Windsor.
Here’s what Henckel had to say after the match:
