VERGENNES — Vergennes Union High School senior Brandon Cousino won the 182-pound title at the annual VUHS Bob Benoure Invitational Tournament on Saturday, while Mount Abraham rode second-place finishes by sophomores Roman Mayer and Kevin Pearsall at 120 and 182, respectively, to earn fourth place overall among the 23 teams competing.
Cousino, who recently earned his 100th career pin and broke the VUHS record for victories, submitted arguably the most dominant performance of any wrestler in the tournament. He pinned all four of his opponents in 1:07 or less, including Pearsall in 1:00 in the 182 final.
Mayer earned a quick pin and a 17-1 technical fall before losing by technical fall, 15-0, to Peru, N.Y., wrestler Carson Dobozy in the 120 final.
Pearsall earned a forfeit win and two second-period pins before settling for second place behind Cousino at 182.
Peru coasted to the team win with 243.5 points, followed by Essex (141.5), Franklin Academy, N.Y., (87.5) and Mount Abe (65.5). VUHS was 16th, with Cousino racking up all of the Commodores’ 28 points.
Also scoring points for the Eagles were Gary Conant and Christian Little, each of whom won a match at 132; Josh Hardy, who won twice at 145; and Dylan Little and Kobe Loftus, who won three matches each at 170 and 195, respectively.
Also competing for Mount Abe were Parker Gero and Dawson Phillips at 120, Justice Green at 160, and Hailey Trayah at 220.
Troy Provencher at 132 and Zander Wildasin at 182 also took to the mat for the Commodores.
VUHS, Mount Abe and Middlebury are all scheduled to compete at Mount Mansfield’s annual tournament on Saturday.