By Ryan O’connor

It’s a tough gig. There’s no denying it. But Jake Doerfler is doing everything in his power to make his job a little easier.

Wrestling wins, he said, will follow.

At Manchester Memorial – a school that shares a YMCA feeder program with fellow city schools West and Central, along with several private institutions, including Trinity – established talent is scarce.

“(The YMCA) has a great feeder program, but the problem is it feeds half a dozen schools, and if there are 10 eighth-graders coming up, we’re lucky to get one,” he said. “Typically, schools with pretty good teams have their own feeder programs, and they get a good crop of kids every year. Without a feeder program, it’s really tough. I mean, if you don’t get kids from eighth grade, you have to get them as freshmen and hope that, by the time they are juniors and seniors, they will be where they need to be.”

Recently, Doerfler and his staff hosted wrestling clinics in the area to attract participants.

While he noted greater numbers are a necessity to winning in wrestling, the third-year coach said he can’t sit around and hope his program grows.

Instead, he and his crew must coach that much harder, recruiting from the gridiron and elsewhere inside the school.

“We just try to work slow and just get their technique down to match up with those kids that have been wrestling for two or three years by the time they get to high school,” said Doerfler. “We have a few talented kids that came in this year – brand new to the sport – and a couple that started last year, but it’s always good to have a couple kids that have some experience.”

Memorial, currently 1-6 on the season following a 55-16 dual-meet loss at Goffstown on Jan. 23, graduates eight seniors this year, nearly half of the team’s 19-man roster.

The dropout rate is high during the season, added Doerfler. Wrestling is a sport in which total dedication is required, and the uninspired are manhandled on the mat.

The one positive of a small squad, said Doerfler, is he and his assistants have more one-on-one time with each athlete.

Those who stick with it reap the rewards. The importance of hard work and dedication, said Doerfler, is magnified in wrestling because of the individual nature of the sport.

Senior Jake Gagnon, for instance, the Crusaders’ 215-pounder, won the Lowell Holiday Tournament in December.

Other established senior wrestlers – 112-pounder Ha Hoang, 135-pounder Brandon Marquez, 140-pounder Jeff Stranzel and 160-pounder Brian Prindiville – stand out as well.

Against Goffstown, Marquez won a 7-3 decision, and Stanzel took a 9-2 victory in his match.

In addition, 189-pound senior Chris Violette won by pin; 112-pound sophomore Ben Brodeau netted a 14-2 decision; and 119-pounder Bryant Vallet earned a 7-4 decision.

“Every year is something to build upon. That may seem obvious, but another year’s experience is better than none,” said Doerfler. “They’re just a good bunch of guys who are all pretty close and all joke around with each other. They’re all friends, and I think that says a lot about the close-knit nature of the team.”

Others participating on this year’s squad include 112-pound freshman Chris Luzzi; 125-pound sophomore Denis Duquette; 145-pounders Jake Marcus, a sophomore, and Drake Mosman, a senior; 152-pound sophomore Eddie Cole; 160-pounders Seth Grimes, a junior, and Jon Gallego, a freshman; 171-pound sophomore Julian Alonso; 189-pound sophomore Binh Tran; and 285-pound junior Jeremy Bryant.