Published March 13, 2019

JOAO VALDEVINO

WAKEFIELD — The Div. 3 North champion Wakefield Warriors had seven wrestlers recently named as Middlesex League All-Stars.

Wakefield’s strong senior class was well-represented amongst the Freedom Division All-Stars as captains Aidan Armstrong (132 lbs.), Derek Dimascio (195 lbs.) and Mike Yirrell (182 lbs.) all got the nod. Additionally, junior Brock Johnson (138 lbs.) and sophomore Joao Valdevino (160 lbs.) got the call as did freshmen Ana Valdevino and Nathan Ickes (185 lbs.)

The Warriors finished the regular season at 20-5 and their three seniors captains, Armstrong, Dimascio and Yirrell finished their careers with a total of 75 regular season wins.

Wakefield lost to Melrose in the final meet of the season to get second in the Freedom Division but turned the tables on the Red Raiders and the rest of the North as they took home a sectional crown, thanks in large part to the work of their All-Stars. Dimascio and Valdevino took home first place finishes, Johnson and Yirrell both got second-place finishes, Armstrong took third and Ickes took fourth.

MIKE YIRRELL

New to the All-Star selections this year is the creation of an All-Conference team, which includes Middlesex League competitors from both the Freedom and Liberty Divisions. Mike Yirrell made the All-Conference team as the league’s best in the 182 weight class. Also getting the call was fellow captain Dimascio who was named to the All-Conference team at 195 lbs.

Ana Valdevino, who made history this season by becoming Wakefield’s first female state champion, was named to the Middlesex League’s girls’ All-Conference team. Valdevino competed with the boys during her freshman season and finished her campaign by being named Most Outstanding Wrestler in the state’s inaugural girls’ All-State wrestling tournament.

ANA VALDEVINO

Ana’s older brother Joao had an additional accolade to go along with his All-Star award at 160 lbs as the sophomore was named the Freedom Division’s Rookie of the Year.

Wakefield head coach Ross Ickes was once again named the Freedom Division’s Coach of the Year. Coach Ickes repeated last year’s feat of being named both the Div. 3 North Coach of the Year and the Freedom Division Coach of the Year. Ickes got his 350th career win this season when the Warriors beat Wilmington on Jan. 18.