Linganore senior Brennan Considine was in a tough match on Saturday with 132-pound junior Anthony Allen of Arundel in their title bout of the Knightmare Invitational at Parkville High.
The sixth-ranked Considine led by three points early in the third period before exploding from the bottom position for a two-point reversal and separate sets of two- and four-point nearfalls in an eventual 16-4 major decision.
“I pride myself on my gas tank,” said Considine, who reached finals on a 36-second pin and a 14-2 major decision which raised his early-season record to 3-0. “When I can sense that my opponent is wearing down, that’s when I can become energized and deliver that kill shot.”
Considine executed an even more impressive performance during last year’s 120-pound Class 4A-3A state title bout at The Show Place Arena in Upper Marlboro, where he overcame a 9-4 deficit against Broadneck junior Branden Whyte-Taylor for a fall in 5:20.
“I felt a little nervous at first, but I felt comfortable when I got the bar-arm in,” said Considine of Whyte-Taylor, who had pinned his way to Anne Arundel County and Class 4A-3A East Region titles. “I pinned [Whyte-Taylor] with an arm-bar. That was a big step, but it feels really good to have achieved my goal of being a state champion.”
Considine paced the 14th-ranked, two-time defending Class 3A state dual meet champion Lancers (134.5 points) to a fifth-place finish at the 17-team Knightmare Invitational behind 26th-ranked Champion Archbishop Curley (208) and 22nd-ranked runner-up Calvert Hall (205.5).
Joining Considine on the victory podium was sixth-ranked senior teammate Peyton Pickett (175), with freshman Trey Covey (106) finishing second, and sophomore Lincoln Zirk (138) placing third. Pickett is a returning county champion who placed third at both regionals and states last season.
Considine and Pickett were members of a Lancers’ squad which earned its second straight Class 3A state dual meet title by winning a clash of defending state duals champions, 34-31, over South River to finish the year with a record of 17-1.
The Lancers did so under Legacy Coach Of The Year Ben Arneson, a 1994 Linganore graduate who was a Class 4A-3A state runner-up at 140 pounds. Arneson will be an assistant this year to head coach Bill Swaney, as well as former state champion and Damascus High graduate Randy Pickett, Peyton’s father.
“My teammates often follow what I do, so being a leader is very important on the team. I believe that working hard and putting in extra effort will make my teammates do that,” said Considine, who carries a 3.8 grade point average. “I want to help lead the team to our third state title as a team and I also want to win another individual state title for myself. I am taking every match as seriously as if it is a state title match.”
Linganore has graduated Upper Weight Wrestler Of The Year Ethan Arneson, winner of last season’s 175-pound state title after having placed second and fourth over his previous two seasons. A three-time county champion who won a pair of regional titles in three appearances in that event’s final, Ethan Arneson is playing football at Shippensburg.
“Ethan never seemed to falter under pressure, and I’m trying to take after him. There is absolutely no one that I should be underestimating on the mat, but Ethan taught me the ability to remain calm in the face of big matches,” Considine said. “I believe that everyone who wrestles me is going to give me all they’ve got, so every match I’m in is going to have to be intense. I am going to have to give it a lot more than an average match that I wrestled last year.”
As a freshman 126-pounder, Considine finished third at both the Frederick County and regional tournaments. Considine was a 120-pound sophomore when he became a county and regional champion and placed third at states.
As a junior, Considine returned to 120 pounds, where he finished second at counties before winning his second straight regional crown, his first state title, and ended last season with a record of 38-3.
A year ago, Considine was a county runner-up to third-place Class 2A-1A state finisher Seth Crawford of Brunswick, a returning junior, who finished with a record of 50-1 last year and is currently ranked eighth by Legacy Wrestling at 138 pounds.
“Losing to Seth Crawford was a setback at the moment, and I beat myself up over it,” said Considine, whom Crawford defeated by major decision. “But the loss definitely fueled me to work harder toward my goal and did not completely stop me from getting to it.”
Considine used falls in 2:27 and two minutes to reach his regional title bout with then-sophomore Xavier Ford of Tuscarora (now at Middletown), an eventual sixth-place state finisher he defeated by an 8-1 decision. At states, Considine used pins in 71 and 83 seconds as well as a 12-6 decision to reach his title bout with Whyte-Taylor.
“After losing to [Seth Crawford,] I had to take a step back and look at the bigger picture. I still had the opportunity and the goal of winning a state title in my mind,” Considine said. “The way I overcame a deficit like that [against Whyte-Taylor] is by pushing all the way through the last period and not giving up on myself. By doing that, I know that I’m always going to be able to secure a win.”
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