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Rocco Duygulu Wins Wrestling BCAA Championship For Marjory Stoneman Douglas; Team Finishes 4th

by Matt Rothman January 30, 2023

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Rocco Duygulu Wins Wrestling BCAA Championship; Team Finishes Fourth

Marjory Stoneman Douglas Wrestling. {Courtesy}

By: Matt Rothman

Rocco Duygulu of Marjory Stoneman Douglas had an incredible performance in the BCAA Championship at Fort Lauderdale High School last weekend.

Not only did he win a Championship in the 106 weight class, Duygulu also helped lead the Eagles to a fourth-place finish in a tournament with 48 teams.

Duygulu went 3-0 in his matches to take first and came into the final with a rematch against a wrestler who he lost 10-2 earlier this year. Despite being down 2-0 with 15 seconds left in the match, Duygulu turned his opponent over and recorded a 3-2 win on something Head Coach Ken Gendason said they worked extremely hard on in practice over the past few weeks.

“Both of our emotions were high when he jumped into my arms to celebrate,” said Gendason. “Not only did he win, but he was my first ever BCAA champion in my 12 years of coaching, so it was kind of like a double celebration at that moment.”

MSD also had one runner-up finish with David Levia. He advanced to the final before falling to Jordan Escarra of Cypress Bay. James Messmer, Vincent Dion, Jackson Kajkowski, and Alexander Kooby all came in third. Despite falling in the semifinals, they managed to win their final conciliation match to make the podium.

Charles Dion and Daniel Alvarez also placed, coming in sixth and eighth, respectively, while Lorenzo Pellegrini, Alexander Kooby, and Caleb Hebert had wins. Lucas Sigueira, Scott Walker, and Kevin Murray competed for the Eagles.

“I think we are really peaking at the right time,” Gendason added. “I always say, this group of wrestlers are the most coachable wrestlers I have coached. They are a lot of fun to coach and be around. They feed off each other, and it shows in their performances.”

Next, MSD will prepare for the District Tournament at Cardinal Gibbons High School on Feb. 15.

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Matt Rothman

Matt Rothman is a 2018 graduate from Florida Gulf Coast University receiving his bachelor’s degree in journalism and then graduated from the University of Florida as a graduate student. He also works for the Mohave Valley Daily News in Bullhead City, Arizona covering high school sports.