The Merrimack Youth Wrestling Program competed in the annual Seacoast Youth Wrestling Tournament held at Winnacunnet High School in Hampton on Jan. 29. Merrimack brought nine wrestlers to compete with individual results below.

Kindergartner Grayson Chestnut competed in a very tough bracket with most people double his size but still was able to hold his own against the odds.

Second graders, Kael McAloon and Rhys Dewar took fourth and third place respectively. Each wrestler had two pins each on the day. Dewar dropped a tight OT match in opening round but rallied back with two wins to finish third place on the podium.

Gryffen Gelinas, grade 3, battled through his bracket against stiff competition. Third graders Jackson Meehan and Christian Chestnut both finished fourth with Meehan completing one win by pin on the day.

Ivey Johnson, grade 4 also took fourth place medal with two commanding wins by points.

Fifth grader Mitchell Krupp wrestled hard and narrowly fell in his final match by a mere two points against a familiar opponent. Owen Forrest grade 5, had two commanding wins by points to bring home second place medal.

The Merrimack Youth Wrestling Program is part of the Merrimack Youth Association.

It strives to provide a safe recreational activity for Merrimack children in grades K-8. The program promotes the sport of wrestling, the world’s oldest sport, by providing a safe practice environment, by delivering high quality instruction, and by facilitating tournament competition opportunities.

The Program is in its 12th season and currently has 46 wrestlers on its roster.