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Last week did not go well for Davie’s wrestling team. It absorbed eight losses in a span of three days.

The downward spiral began in a tri-meet at Davie on Dec. 12, when Piedmont and Southeast Guilford defeated Davie 50-25 and 39-38, respectively.

Piedmont, which finished second in the 3-A state in 2017 and won the whole thing in 2018, beat Davie handily. The match against SEG was a virtual coin flip that went the Falcons’ way.

The War Eagles found themselves behind 24-0 and 39-12. They won the last five weight classes; the teams split 14 matches in all. But the Falcons avoided pins where they had to and clinched the verdict in the 12th match.

“We needed some pins late,” coach Perry Long said. “Their kids didn’t stall out. They did what their coach told them to do and stayed off their back.”

Tyler Snyder (132/138), Collin Bailey (138/145), Tyris Griffin (160) and Jack Jarvis (170) went 2-0 for the night. Davie got 1-1 showings from Kevin Morgan (106), Lawson Hire (113), Adam Szewczyk (126) and Isaac Webb (152).

Although Davie was saddled with two Ls, three War Eagles left the mat hotter than fish grease.

Jarvis, who started on varsity as a freshman at 145/152, has been unfazed by the jump to 170/182 as a sophomore, winning 13 of his first 14 matches.

“He’s adjusting to the heavier weight,” Long said. “Last year he (mostly) wrestled 145. When you bump up to 170/182, it’s a different style of wrestling.”

Bailey, a sophomore at 138/145, ran his record to 12-1.

“He’s an all-around wrestler,” Long said. “He’s good on his feet and when he’s on top, Collin tries to rip people. He’ll put a little sauce on you.”

Seeing Jarvis and Bailey flourish has not been a shock. Bailey was 37-14 last year; Jarvis went 28-16 and qualified for the state meet. Meanwhile, Snyder has improved immensely since his sophomore year, when he saw little varsity time and went 2-3 at 132. A year later as a junior, he started 10-1 at 132/138.

“Tyler’s tough, man,” Long said. “His technique is good and he’s decent on his feet. You think you’ve got him and then he’ll get out of something in a minute.”

2 Long Days At N-C

Davie suffered more agony in the Red Devil Super Duals at Newton-Conover on Dec. 13-14.

On Friday, the War Eagles beat North Gaston 42-25, lost 52-25 to Science Hill (Tn.), won 40-36 over Newton-Conover and lost 53-25 to Rock Hill (S.C.). After starting Saturday with a 50-24 win over Morehead, they took a nosedive, losing 39-31 to Avery, 48-13 to Foard, 43-33 to Hickory Ridge and 45-36 to Mooresville.

The 3-6 showing left Davie’s season record at 12-10.

Szewczyk (7-1 at 126), Lane Hill (7-2 at 120) and Bailey (7-2 at 138) were the top performers. Only five War Eagles, though, enjoyed winning records, the others being Snyder (6-3 at 132) and Jarvis (5-3 at 170). Matthew Downey went 4-4 at 145/152.