Gilman sophomore Liam McGettigan performs a sacred, ceremonial practice before every wrestling match. That tradition was on display before Friday’s dual meet against fifth-ranked Loyola.
“Liam points his two index fingers skyward. He does this before every match,” said his father, Adam McGettigan. “One hand for God and the other for his mom. Some people don’t know that Liam tragically lost his mom four years ago. Liam wrestles a lot for her.”
Liam was 12 years old when his mother, Erin McGettigan, died of a pulmonary embolism, “and unfortunately, her three children saw it happen,” said Adam McGettigan.
“She passed at home while exercising in our basement from a pulmonary embolism. It was a blood clot, they think, from her leg [that] went to her lung, putting her into cardiac arrest,” Adam McGettigan said. “Malin, Liam’s sister, is 13, and Liam’s brother, Dylan, is 10. Dylan is wrestling now, and on his journey. It’s still emotional for us four years later. She was an amazing mother, wife and friend.”
McGettigan honored Erin McGettigan yet again during the Greyhounds’ 37-34 Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association victory over the Dons. McGettigan did so by winning a clash of defending MIAA champion wrestlers, 2-1, over Dons’ junior Jayden Jackson.
McGettigan rose from his regular position at 113, where he is top-ranked by Legacy Wrestling, to face Jackson, who is third-ranked at 120 pounds.
“Wrestling became an outlet or an escape for Liam and our family. The sport is a place we could go and forget about the harsh reality that hit us. The sport has helped us out so much in that way. It’s a tough sport,” Adam McGettigan said. “We have had our down times, but nothing is harder than losing your mom. Erin loved to watch Liam. Not so much in a wrestling way, but just a mom with love and support. We talk about her often, and how proud she would be of Liam. We continue to try and make her proud and hope the best is yet to come.”
McGettigan’s triumph set the tone for the defending Greyhounds (13-1 overall, 7-0 league), who are not only defending MIAA dual meet and tournament champions, but also, the returning Maryland Private Schools State Tournament title winners.
“Liam’s match was the difference for me. We bumped up against a guy I think is their best wrestler and Liam wrestled a smart match to win,” said Gilman coach Bryn Holmes, a three-sport All-Metro performer at McDonogh before graduating in 2006. “Liam had a significant injury, and because of that, he has been a little rusty. But as I coach, I can see he is peaking at the right time. I’m looking forward to the next few weeks to see what he can do.”
McGettigan has not lost to a Maryland public or private school wrestler, being named last season’s Legacy Wrestling’s Lowerweight Wrestler of The Year after his third-place finish at National Preps followed his title-winning efforts at MIAAs and private schools states all at 106 pounds.
Jackson was first and second at MIAAs and states at 113 pounds last year, the latter following a 1-0 loss to then-freshman Ethan Valdisera of St. Mary’s Ryken.
Now a third-ranked sophomore at Calvert High in Calvert County, Valdisera improved to 16-0 following a fall in 1:58 of his title bout with junior Will Buchbauer of Riverside High, Va., in last weekend’s Patriot Classic at Northern-Calvert County.
“Coach Holmes had told me before the match there was a 50-50 chance that I would bump up, depending on the coin flip,” said McGettigan, 16, who improved his record on the year to 25-5 with 14 pins and four technical falls. “I had a good feeling I would be bumped up, and I was prepared to go out and help my team. I have a lot of respect for Jayden Jackson and have seen him wrestle quite a few times. I knew it would be a challenge giving up some weight, but, coach thought that was best for the team and our chances. “
Gilman’s 15th-ranked junior Isaiah Trusty (215) clinched the match with one bout remaining, his 92-second pin against the Dons’ Brendan Kelly giving the Greyhounds an insurmountable lead of 37-28.
Trusty ended a five-bout sweep that transformed a 28-14 deficit into the winning margin.
The decisive run included a forfeit to top-ranked senior Emmitt Sherlock (190), major decisions by top-ranked senior John Jurkovic (175) and sophomore Sawyer Peck (157), and a decision by 10th-ranked sophomore Arthur Konschak (165).
Jurkovic earned a 12-3 victory over the Dons’ seventh-ranked sophomore Riley Miller, while Konschak earned a 12-7 win against Jimmy Lazzati.
The Greyhounds also received a 92-second fall from third-ranked senior Zach Glory (132) and an 18-1 technical fall from eighth-ranked freshman Christian Wirts (113).
The Dons received pins from 12th-ranked senior Cayden Farver (126), sixth-ranked junior Nevan McKneely (150) and top-ranked senior Luke Randazzo (285).
Farver’s fall took 43 seconds to finish his opponent, and Randazzo’s fall was against ninth-ranked junior Noah Lawrence.
There was also a forfeit to the Dons’ second-ranked freshman Tyer Verceles (106) along with technical falls from 25th-ranked sophomore Lincoln Weeks (138) and fourth-ranked junior Josh Hale (144)
Trusty was also the deciding factor in defeating the Gaels. The Greyhounds trailed the Gaels, 35-33, entering the last bout when Trusty vacated his regular spot at 215 for a 12-4 major decision over 285-pound rival Thomas Brandel.
The Cavaliers succumbed to a similar fate against the Greyhounds, losing their clash in the evening’s last match. On that occasion, Lawrence (285) pinned his larger opponent, Michael Byrne, in 2:24, after having fought off of his own back.
“This week was one that we marked on our calendar as the biggest week of the season,” said Holmes, whose Greyhounds went 9-0 in the MIAA conference and 12-1 overall last season, dethroning fourth-ranked Mount St. Joseph for all three crowns.
“Both Spalding and Loyola have great teams, and we knew that to beat them, it would be a full team effort. During this time of the season, everyone has injuries and illnesses to deal with and we faced the same challenges. Because of these challenges we had to get creative and fortunately for us they paid off.”
Next up for the Greyhounds are 12th-ranked Saint Frances and eighth-ranked McDonogh, the latter, for the coveted Worthington Cup as part of a rivalry between the Greyhounds and the Eagles.
Having been archrivals since 1920, the Gilman and McDonogh wrestling teams have had an annual dual meet competition since 1987 for The Worthington Cup.
Holmes was a 152-pound winner of three each in MIAA and private school state titles and twice earned National Preps crowns after placing third and fourth as a sophomore and freshman.
"It’s [Gilman-McDonogh wrestling] a great rivalry,” said Holmes, who pinned his way through the MIAA and state tournaments as a sophomore, junior and senior. “Obviously, both schools are very similar. There are great people at both.”
The Dons’ coach is Steve Truitt, a 1994 graduate of St. Paul's, where he won two Maryland Scholastic Association titles after finishing third and fourth over the previous two years.
A wrestler who went 34-1 as a senior, Truitt called “The MIAA the toughest conference in Maryland” the day before losing, 39-34, to fourth-ranked Mount St. Joseph.
The Dons are 16-3 overall and 5-2 in the MIAA, with significant conference victories over eighth-ranked McDonogh, 12th-ranked Saint Frances and 25th-ranked Calvert Hall.
The Greyhounds’ other league victories have included those over the 25th-ranked Calvert Hall Cardinals (57-21), fourth-ranked Mount St. Joseph Gaels (37-35) and the second-ranked Archbishop Spalding Cavaliers (39-33).
Gilman 37, Loyola 34
106 Tyler Verceles (Loyola-Blakefield) over Unknown (For.) (6-0, L)
113 Christian Wirts (Gilman School) over Connor Moles (Loyola-Blakefield) (TF 18-1 0:00) (6-5-L)
120 Liam McGettigan (Gilman School) over Jayden Jackson (Loyola-Blakefield) (Dec 2-1) (8-6, G)
126 Cayden Farver (Loyola-Blakefield) over Anders Martin (Gilman School) (Fall 0:43) (12-8, L)
132 Zach Glory (Gilman School) over Evan Jackson (Loyola-Blakefield) (Fall 1:32) (14-12, G)
138 Lincoln Weeks (Loyola-Blakefield) over Brandon Yoon (Gilman School) (TF 17-2 0:00) (17-14, L)
144 Joshua Hale (Loyola-Blakefield) over Sawyer Enright (Gilman School) (TF 16-1 0:00) (22-14, L)
150 Nevan McKneely (Loyola-Blakefield) over Michael DeCosta (Gilman School) (Fall 4:15) (28-14, L)
157 Sawyer Peck (Gilman School) over Nathan Shepherd (Loyola-Blakefield) (MD 21-8) (28-18, L)
165 Arthur Konshak (Gilman School) over Jimmy Lazzati (Loyola-Blakefield) (Dec 12-7) (28-21, L)
175 John Jurkovic (Gilman School) over Riley Miller (Loyola-Blakefield) (MD 12-3) (28-25, L)
190 Emmitt Sherlock (Gilman School) over Unknown (For.) (31-28, G)
215 Isaiah Trusty (Gilman School) over Brendan Kelly (Loyola-Blakefield) (Fall 1:32) (37-28, G)
285 Luke Randazzo (Loyola-Blakefield) over Noah Lawrence (Gilman School) (Fall 3:43) (37-34, G)
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