Isaac Novod leads Team Massachusetts freestyle men in wins

The 126-pounder picked up 7 after an opening round loss

By AJ Traub

Isaac Novod didn't let a tough first round draw slow him down

Win after win, Isaac Novod bulldozed his way through the consolation bracket.

Though he ended up one match shy of placing, the 126-pounder from Medford racked up a team-high seven wins at the Fargodome.

“I trained for this,” said the rising junior at Belmont Hill. “I trained my cardio a lot, so I just kept going and took the loss lightly. I kept my head in the game and didn’t worry about it, didn’t worry about how many matches I needed to win, just my next match.”

Novod battled New Jersey champion Paul Kenny, who placed third at world team trials, in the first round to a 4-2 loss, but gritted out a 6-5 win in his next match. He finished the day with a pin in 5:18 to reach the second day.

He started his Tuesday with a first-period technical fall, before winning another close decision 3-2. Two more technical falls later, and he’d reached the final day.

He owned the second period of his first Wednesday match to secure a 19-12 win over Czar Quintanilla (Washington), before Utah’s Lander Bosh put an end to his run.

“Proud of the heart Isaac showed to battle back and win seven in a row to blood round,” said coach Matt Dehney.

Isaac Novod racked up 19 points against Czar Quintanilla

Elliott Humphries went down with an injury in his blood round match at 175 pounds. The UPenn-bound grappler, whom Dehney called “one of the toughest kids I ever met,” had a breakout senior season, starting with last year’s finals run at Fargo and culminating in an NHSCA national championship.

Humphries, Reese Spiro (190 pounds), Yandel Morales (138), and Shea Morris (144) all finished with five victories in junior men’s brackets. Julian Rios (113) went the furthest on the top side, reaching the quarterfinals by recording four wins.

“Julian is one of the best kids in the country,” Dehney said. “I feel for him right now. Did everything right to prepare, just had a bad day.”

Julian Rios fought a pair of close bouts on the third day

Preston Burroughs led the 16U group with three victories at 165 pounds. He’s part of Team Mass competing in Greco-Roman, starting Friday.