Humility and Excellence; a winning combination

There were two things that Kirk Salvo took away from his high school wrestling days at Mount St. Joseph, Baltimore, humility and excellence. Now into his second season as the Gaels head coach, Salvo, ’84, challenges his wrestlers to focus on the same.

The Gaels, who are ranked second in the Metro Prep poll, compete in the MIAA “A” Conference and post a 4-0 league record, 9-2 overall. As part of their regular season, Mount St. Joseph hosted their fourth annual Mount Mat Madness wrestling tournament Jan. 12-13 at Goucher College in Towson. In a competitive field of 27 top high schools, the Gaels placed fourth overall behind the performance of a young but talented team.

After graduating seven starters last year, the Gaels responded by bringing six freshmen into the varsity program. And though the underclassmen have done their fair share of shining this season, it’s senior co-captain Jake Bohn(189) who is consistently pacing the team.

Bohn posts a 30-4 record after coming off of an excellent Mount Mat performance by capturing first-place in his weight class. Bohn, a three-sport athlete, was the Gaels lone first-place finisher this past weekend and joins alum, Mack Lewnes as the only three-time tournament champion. Bohn, a perennial favorite, collected his 19th pin of the season during the Mount Mat tourney and remains top-ranked in both the metro and state polls.

In addition to Bohn, senior co-captain Austin Clouse (112) also had a good tournament, placing third. Clouse (15-7) is top-ranked in the metro and second in the state with a career record of 63-31.
Freshman Frank Goodwin (103) has been a whirlwind of excitement for the Gaels this season, fulfilling a hope out of junior league competition to wrestle for Mount St. Joe. Goodwin has taken the competition by storm, touting an overall record of 20-4 with first-place finishes in the Germantown Academy tournament and the War on the Shore tourney earlier this season. Goodwin took runner-up in the Mount Mat Madness weekend.

Also stepping up for the Gaels are freshmen Ben Schaufele (130) and Bobby Bowman (140). Schaufele brings a 16-5 record and Bowman a 9-9 record to date. Sophomore Danny Orem (125) has been on a tear as well, according to Salvo, working hard with Schaufele to improve his skills.
Balancing out the younger wrestlers are seniors Chris King (160) and Jake Selba (215). King, an MIAA champion in 2006, carries a 17-7 record.

The Gaels have handily defeated their league competition thus far but meet their toughest challenge Feb. 2, against McDonogh, Owings Mills, the Gaels last regular dual meet of the season.