Wellington Wrestlers Compete In Super 32 Qualifier

The Wellington Wrestling Club traveled to the Super 32 Qualifier tournament last weekend in Kissimmee for a chance to qualify for the Preseason National Super 32 tournament in Greensboro, N.C.

Nik Bonadies, an 11th-grader, qualified by placing fourth in the 129-pound weight class. He finished with a 5-2 record for the tournament and defeated a couple of Florida High School Athletic Association state qualifiers from last season. Bonadies also had to defeat the sixth-place finisher from last year’s state tournament to place in the top four, which qualified him to compete in the national tournament next month.

Other standout Wellington wrestlers who had winning records at the tournament but were unable to qualify were Briar Macfarlane (123 pounds), Brandon Paz (141 pounds) and Angel Lopez (195 pounds).

“This was a great experience for our guys, and we are very proud of Nik for qualifying this year,” coach Travis Gray said. “Our whole team was shut out last year, so we really wanted someone to break through to that next level. All of our wrestlers will be returning next year, so hopefully Nik has paved the way for them in the future. Many of the weight classes had 40 to 50 wrestlers, so it was a long, grueling tournament for all of our guys and will give them some motivation to work for moving into the high school season this year.”

 

Above: Nik Bonadies, Briar Macfarlane, Brandon Paz, Colton Macfarlane, Steven Hanford, Bryce Pfeil, Mathew Wunderlich and Angel Lopez.