The 2021 Pilots wrestling season was an up-and-down one under new head coach David Prince, who replaced present DLS athletic director Dennis Parks as head man in the fall 2020. 

Prince had a young team, consisting of eight freshmen, 11 sophomores, four juniors, and five seniors. Additionally, only two of those seniors were in the starting lineup -- Kenneth Ryder and Brett Stanley.

The Purple and Gold finished the regular season with a 9-12 mark, and defeated Sterling Heights and Fraser to be crowned district champions in the MHSAA Division 1 state tournament. The Pilots bowed out in the regional round of the tournament to Macomb Dakota, 46-24. 

From an individual standpoint, the Pilots were led by underclassmen Nathan O’Donnell (sophomore) and Joey Montilla (freshman), as well as upperclassmen Dominic Ragona (junior), Jeff Roskopp (junior), Clayton Beleshi (senior), Ryder, and Stanley. 

Ragona finished third in the 160-pound weight class in individual district competition. Additionally, Beleshi finished first in the 215-pound weight class, and Ryder finished first in the 171-pound division.

Meanwhile, Stanley, a two-time all-state wrestler, finished first in district competition in the 189-pound class, and logged a record of 24-2 for the season. 

Other individual district highlights included Roskopp finishing second in the 285-pound division, senior Michael Olind finishing third in the 285-pound class, Montilla finishing third in the 125-pound division and O’Donnell finishing fourth in the 125-pound class.

All of the aforementioned individuals subsequently qualified for regional competition.  

Ryder, Beleshi, and Roskopp all proceeded to finish in second place in their respective weight classes at regionals, while Olind recorded a third-place finish and Montilla logged a fourth-place finish in their respective divisions. 

Each of their performances was good enough to qualify for the MHSAA individual state championships at the Wings Event Center in Kalamazoo. It gave the Pilots five state qualifiers -- the most in school history. 

Of the five student-athletes, Roskopp was the lone Pilots wrestler to receive all-state honors, as he placed eighth at the Div. 1 state finals. 

"This season was a roller coaster, going from not being sure if we’ll have a season (due to the coronavirus pandemic), to being told we can start competing all of a sudden," Prince said. "We worked hard to get in as much wrestling as we possibly could, in the limited time we had on the mats, before competition started. I'm proud of the boys and how they adapted to the adverse circumstances."

Junior Jeff Roskopp, center, with head coach David Prince (second from left).