By Kim J. Harmon

Will Hurley wanted to beat Steve Selezan something fierce – so bad that, to psyche himself up, he stuck pins in a picture, sent nasty letters, and even started shouting across the locker room during weigh ins.

Hurley wanted to beat Selezan.

But he just couldn’t.

Selezan had little trouble with Hurley in the 152-pound weight division, pinning the wrestler in 2:36 and not only raising his personal record to 33-1 but also pushing Newtown on its way to a 45-31 win over the Weston/Joel Barlow/Masuk Co-op.

Selezan, whose only loss was due to a disqualification in a tournament, stands as the odds-on favorite to win a South-West Conference title this weekend when the conference championship hits the mats at Newtown High School. Nick Feola, who raised his personal record to 32-1, is – like Selezan – undefeated in the SWC and is the odds-on favorite to win a title in the 130-pound weight division.

And the ‘Hawks also expect some great things from Dan Maley in the 125 pound weight class. Maley is 27-3 on the season, with just one loss coming in SWC dual meets.

But before the SWC conference championships can get here, Newtown had to first take care of the Co-op. And because the match actually started with the 130-pound weight division, Feola had a chance to set the tone for the night. He earned a pin in 1:17 that put the Nighthawks ahead, 6-0.

Jon Read got locked up in a brutal match at 103 pounds. He held a tenuous, 6-5, lead over Cliff Hu before Hu, in the third quarter, turned the match around. Hu had a 9-6 lead when Read hurt his shoulder, but Read returned to the mat (avoiding a forfeit) and suffered through the final 18 seconds.

With a forfeit at 112 pounds, Newtown was ahead 12-3, but that lead was trimmed a bit when John Dietter, at 119 pounds, was saddled with a major decision. Not to worry, though, because Dan Maley (125 pounds), Mike Daniels (135 pounds) and Adam Prokop (140 pounds) all earned quick pins in a combined 2:10.

Now Newtown held a 30-7 lead.

After Chris Donoto fell at 145 pounds, Selezan took to the mat and took the mat to Hurley to put Newtown ahead, 36-13. Tyler Miles was pinned at 160 pounds and Newtown forfeited at 171 pounds, knocking that lead right down to 36-25.

And with a forfeit coming at 215 pounds, it was up to either Chris Symes (189 pounds) or Tom Denninger (275 pounds) to come up with a win. Symes took care of that right away with a pin in 5:23, leaving Denninger to wage a thrilling battle – and earn a 5-2 win – to close out the victory for Newtown.

The Nighthawks raised their record to 6-3 in the SWC.