Bullis sophomore Salah Tsarni made a bold request for coach Drew Robertson in advance of last weekend’s Ray Oliver Tournament at McDonogh: He wanted to bump up into the 175-pound weight class for a clash of nationally-ranked wrestlers against Gilman senior Emmit Sherlock.
“I had heard that Emmitt was going to wrestle at the same tournament as me,” said Tsarni, 15. “I couldn’t miss the chance to test myself. I just wanted to wrestle Emmitt and have some fun.”
A 1999 DeMatha graduate, Robertson is a four-time Washington Catholic Athletic Conference champion, winner of three state titles in four final appearances, and two National Preps crowns after having placed fifth and third.
So, Robertson knows toughness when he sees it, and he embraced that in Tsarni.
“When Salah told me was going to wrestle 175 for Ray Oliver, I immediately knew why he wanted to go 175,” Robertson said. “Salah wanted to see Emmitt in the finals. I just verified quickly by asking if he was sure. He said ‘Yeah coach, I'm going 175,’ to which I replied, ‘yeah, you are.’ What a great attitude.”
The 6-foot-3 Sherlock is top-ranked by Legacy Wrestling and seventh at SB Live’s National Rankings at 175, while Tsarni is top-ranked by Legacy Wrestling and 13th nationally at 165 pounds.
“Salah walks around at 167 pounds and stands at about 5-foot-8. I wasn't worried about him losing or looking bad,” Robertson said. “I was more concerned for his well-being as we have Beast of the East coming up this weekend. I wanted to make sure we would be healthy and ready to go.”
Tsarni proved himself worthy of the task, losing a nailbiter, 1-0, to Sherlock, a returning National Preps runner-up who is after his third straight titles in both the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association and Maryland Private Schools State tournaments.
Sherlock was named Outstanding Wrestler after defeating Tsarni for his second straight Ray Oliver title in four championship berths at the event.
“We’ve never had a full, six-minute match before, but we have drilled together during camps,” said Tsarni, who improved his record to 6-1 with six falls. “I wanted to see how I would wrestle against a world team member and one of the best in the country.”
Sherlock expressed respect for Tsarni after the match.
“I really didn’t expect Salah to be here because he’s a 165-pounder as well. So he’s sort of moving in between the two weights. I thought he was going to go 165, but he came up to 175,” Sherlock said. “This was an awesome opportunity for me to be tested by another great wrestler in the state. You know that people are going to be coming after you when you’ve got a name in the state and in the country, so you have to put the work in every week.”
At McDonough, Tsarni reached the championship bout following a 48-second pin and consecutive technical falls of 19-4 and 16-1, the latter against junior Anthony Verdi of eventual tournament champion St. Peter’s Prep of New Jersey.
“I was honestly a little concerned because of his potential semifinals matchup against the kid from St. Peter's Prep,” Robertson said. “The kid looked good on paper and was much bigger than Salah as well. But Salah absolutely dismantled that kid and tech-falled him in the second period. I knew he was ready. He just seems to turn it up to another level when the stage gets bigger.”
Tsarni countered several of Sherlock’s first-period takedown attempts and managed to keep the bout scoreless entering the second period, where Greyhounds’ wrestler was able to secure a one-point escape after choosing the bottom referee’s position.
After having shifted the momentum in his favor midway through the third period, Tsarni followed Robertson’s directions, choosing neutral and nearly securing a three-point takedown as time elapsed.
By avoiding the referee’s position, and, in particular that of the bottom, Tsarni didn’t risk one of Sherlock’s many strong points as a leg-rider.
“Emmit’s got a long body, he’s nasty, he’s physical and he’s a great rider from the top position,” Robertson said. “Emmit’s also great with the scrambling and funk wrestling, so I felt like our best strategy for success was from the neutral position.”
Sherlock described his tenacity on the mats during an interview with Legacy Wrestling earlier this month.
“Leg-riding has been an essential part of my folkstyle career…The ability to take a guy down and to put a ride on him after you’ve already broken them on their feet, now they’re getting tired,” Sherlock said. “So, you put a ride on them, that’s really the end of the match. If you look at some of my scores against the top guys, I’ve won a lot of 1-0 matches. That’s just off of the rides. That’s a mindset thing. It sucks getting legs put on you, I’m not gonna lie.”
In Sherlock, Tsarni nearly defeated a wrestler who is in pursuit of his third straight titles in both the MIAA and private schools state tournaments, and, who, in succession, has competed at 106 pounds as an eighth grader at National Preps, at 120 there as a freshman, at 138 as a sophomore, and at 165 last season.
After placing third at the National Preps as an eighth grader, Sherlock has finished fifth in that event as a freshman, sixth as a sophomore and was a runner-up last year, setting him up to become a rare five-time National Prep All-American. Sherlock has also placed first and third as a freshman and sophomore at the National High School Coaches’ Association National Wrestling Tournament.
Among Sherlock’s accolades of a year ago were his winning the Ray Oliver Tournament after having twice been a runner-up, placing seventh at the prestigious Ironman Tournament, finishing fourth at the Beast Of The East Tournament, and defeating National Preps runner-up Xavier Giles of Connecticut’s Green Farms Academy at the Gilman Duals.
Another of Sherlock’s career highlights occurred during the Greyhounds’ 43-22 victory over league power Mount St. Joseph a year ago, when he scored his 100th-career victory by second period fall over fellow MIAA and private schools state champion Nicolas Barnabee.
As a sophomore, Sherlock also defeated South Carroll’s eventual three-time state champion Mike Pizzuto and Centennial’s Calvin Kraisser. Pizzuto was handed his first career loss by Sherlock, and Kraisser is a senior projected to win his fourth state title at the end of this season.
But Tsarni had made his own mark as a freshman last season, winning titles in the Interstate Athletic Conference and Maryland Private Schools State tournaments. Tsarni also placed seventh at the National Preps Tournaments and earned a victory over Class 2A-1A state champion Gavin Solito of Stephen Decatur, who graduated as a three-time state finalist.
Tsarni placed third at the Super 32 in October, losing his semifinal bout, 8-3, to eventual champion, senior Asher Cunningham. A state title winner from State College Area High in Pennsylvania, Cunningham is ranked fourth, nationally, by SB Live and has committed to wrestle at Penn State.
Wrestling is a family tradition for Salah Tsarni, the fifth-born of seven children with four older sisters, a younger brother and a younger sister.
“Salah mean’s ‘Goodness’ and ‘Righteousness’” said Salah’s father, Ruslan Tsarni. “I named him after his great grandfather, who lived in Chechnya.”
Salah was the first of his siblings to wrestle, followed by his older sisters in succession, Seda, 21, and Nebi, 18. Then came his younger sister, Kesi, 14, a ninth-grader at Bullis. Tsarni’s younger brother, Zakey, 10, is a fifth-grader who also wrestles.
Seda became the first state champion for the Watkins Mill Wolverines of Montgomery County, winning the crown during the inaugural all-girls’ state tournament in 2018.
Nebi became the Wolverine’s second state champion as a sophomore and the program's first-ever three-time state champion as a senior last year. Nebi’s feat earned her honors as Legacy Wrestling’s female Middleweight Wrestler Of The Year.
Nebi was also a runner-up at 165 pounds in the senior division of last year’s National High School Coaches Association Tournament (NHSCA) held in Virginia Beach.
At the NHSCA's, Tsarni used technical falls of 19-3 and 21-5 to reach the semifinals, where she overcame an early 6-1 deficit for an overtime, 12-8, semifinal victory over Randallstown's three-time state champion Ugochi Anunobi, Legacy's Upper Weight Wrestler Of The Year.
Seda is in her fourth year at the Air Force, and Nebi, her first there.
Both were in attendance at McDonogh last weekend.
“Seda, Nebi, Kesi, my brother-in-law and my mother were at McDonogh to watch me wrestle,” Salah said. “With Nebi and Seda coming to see me at McDonogh, that gave me some extra energy for the finals.”
Tsarni is likely to compete at 165 pounds for the remainder of the season, but Robertson wouldn’t mind seeing a rematch with Sherlock.
“I wish I could watch those guys wrestle another period just because,” Robertson said. “Hats off to Emmitt, because he is an absolute hammer, and he handled everything Salah threw at him.”
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