When the conversation comes up about North Atlanta’s most entertaining winter sports, wrestling almost always comes into the discussion, with its wide variety of fast-paced action, diverse techniques, and team spirit and showmanship, it is perceived as one of the most popular and cherished sports North Atlanta has to offer. With the hire of a new head coach Dillan Schouw in May of last year, the Warriors had high expectations going into the winter season. The hype of the team at an all-time high due to new coaches and new players stepping onto the mat, it is time to take a look at how the Warriors wrestled in the 2023-2024 season.
To start the season, it looked like Coach Schouw’s new coaching techniques proved successful for the Warriors, as they started off the season hot, winning meets against LaGrange, Northgate, and Starrs Mill in November, to get their record to 3-0. Although they placed 8th at the Battle at the Briar Patch, the Warriors were still able to get both wins on December 6th versus Alpharetta and Roswell, at the start of December. “Starting the year off well was very important to us,” said senior star wrestler Will Lazarus, “It is always important to gain some momentum as the mid-season starts to roll around and regional meets start to come up.”
As the mid-season started to roll around for the Warriors, the wrestlers were able to keep up the same pace as at the start of the season, winning ¾ of their meets at the Comet Clash on December 9th and having three wrestlers go undefeated at the Atlanta Invitational. In the later part of the month, the Warriors found individual success at the Rumble at the River Tournament on December 23, and the Rockmart Jacket Invitational on December 28th. To wrap up 2023, the Warriors maintained a record of 5-1 while placing 8th, and 2nd in each of their team tournaments. “Finding success individually is very important in wrestling,” said junior Carlos Hernandez, “Whenever one of our teammates succeeds, it helps build the energy that the team needs to thrive.”
When 2024 started for the Warriors and back-to-back regional meets rolled around, the competition started to ramp up, and the Warriors lost both of their 2024 regional meets in a close finish against Marist and a disappointing performance against St. Pius. However, the Warriors were able to finish the regional tournament in 4th place and go undefeated at home beating Locust Grove and Hiram on January 11th to send the 2024 senior class out with two huge victories. “Finishing the year of positive was very important to us,” said junior Jack Shultz, “It felt good to have the seniors end their high school wrestling careers off on a positive note and capping off a great season.”
As the sport of wrestling continues to grow throughout the halls of North Atlanta, it’s no secret that the Warriors will keep getting better as the years go on. When looking back at the 2023-2023 season it’s amazing to see the great season that the Warriors had with their new coach, while also acknowledging the opportunity for growth this team will have in the seasons to come as the sport becomes a larger part of North Atlanta Culture.
