THE 2010 STATE WRESTLING CHAMPS, including Craig Cook, Jake Essex and Anthony Corliss (front) with Coach Brian Whittemore.

Conval High will be the host site for the Division 3 state wrestling championships on Saturday, beginning at 9 a.m. No better time to revisit a magical moment in Cougar sports history—the 2010 state championship. Special thanks to the Monadnock Ledger Transcript’s Tim Goodwin who contributed to this article…

In his second season (1984-85), Brian Whittemore was concerned about the declining interest in wrestling at Conval, with only 16 athletes on the roster. He and assistant coach Andy Cowing began a middle school program in hopes of stirring up interest. The Conval wrestling and baseball alum from Bennington said: “We have to create more interest in the program, and get more students and parents involved. If we can expose the sport to more people, it has got to be a plus.”

Fast-forward to 2010 and his 28th season at the helm of Cougar wrestling, and Whittemore could see the fruit of his labors, his devotion to wrestling, and his long tenure as coach. The Cougars filled all 14 weight classes—a rarity for a small school. And not only that, almost everyone was experienced.

Conval had a stellar regular season, finishing 14-1, and “As the season went on, I grew more confident,” said Whittemore.

But the state meet.

For the previous few years, it had been Plymouth and Goffstown at the top, and then the rest of the division. The pre-tourney prognosis was more of the same. Who could unseat the dynamic duo? A team that filled every weight class had a shot, but since starting a wrestling program from scratch in 1971 (see “Wrestling: An Unbelievable Beginning” ), Conval had never won a state wrestling title in 39 seasons.

Little did Whittemore, and Conval Nation, and the rest of the New Hampshire wrestling community know what was to come on Saturday, February 20, 2010 at Bedford High School…

Heading into the finals, Conval, Goffstown, Plymouth, and Hollis-Brookline were in a tight contest, with a handful of points separating the teams. It’s here where the Cougars’ three standout seniors—Jake Essex, Anthony “AJ” Corliss, and Craig Cook—made a mark that would shock the New Hampshire wrestling world. All three wound up state champs in their weight class, and how they got there is the stuff of determined legends.

A key moment was the finals of the 140 lb. weight class between Essex and Goffstown standout Mal Shea. Conval trailed Goffstown at the time by 7.5 points.

“I knew we were still down and I was the only one that had a head-to-head with Goffstown,” Essex said. Shea had not lost all season and “Essex heard it loud and clear during the pre-match announcements.”

“Me and Whit just looked at each other and smiled,” Essex said.

Going into the third round, tied at seven, “Essex took the advantage by two points and then pulled off a feat that caught everyone off-guard—he pinned Shea!”

Whittemore said the crowd went crazy, especially the Conval section, as Essex brought the Cougars right back into it. “The whole gym—everyone was cheering for Jake,” Whittemore said.

Essex was a unanimous choice for the meet’s Outstanding Wrestler award, voted on by the coaches. His point total was a team best 28 points with a perfect four-pin day.

“After Jake beat Mal, I knew we were going to win,” Corliss said. Still trailing Goffstown, Corliss stepped onto the mat in the 145 lb. weight class and completed his winning day with a pin. Cook, the number one seed in the 215 lb. class, finished off his opponent with a convincing 6-0 win. Cook amassed 26 points, and the three captains combined for 80 of Conval’s 188 points.

Unbelievably, Conval had rallied in the final round to win the 2010 Division 2 state championship. (Note: this year, wrestling has been divided into three divisions, and Conval will host the D3 competition.) Goffstown took runner-up with 179.5 points, and Plymouth—champions of four of the previous six seasons—finished third with 174 points.

The Cougars also won the Division 2 Sportsmanship Award.

After serving 28 years as head coach, Whittmore was named Coach of the Year. Corliss, Essex and Cook were the only seniors on the team and four other Cougars qualified for the 2010 Meet of Champions: Dan Smullen (135 lb.). Jesse Mitchell (130 lb.), Kyle Brissette (103 lb.) and Chad Brouillet (160 lb.)

“It’s what I always dreamed about,” said Corliss. “I knew we couldn’t be beat if we worked our hardest.”

Cougars and their fans go wild after winning the 2010 championship.