The Lakeland High School Cavs wrestling team has continued to improve throughout the season.

As the wrestling season inches closer and closer to the postseason, Coach Nathan Hoffman feels good about where his team is at the moment. The Cavs came into the season with a very young team filled with first-year wrestlers, and halfway through January, Hoffman is pleasantly surprised with where his team is.

“As a group, I’ve been surprised by where some of these guys are at,” he said. “They have been working hard, and I’m feeling pretty good about them, and I’m certainly looking forward to the future.”

On Wednesday night, Lakeland wrestled in a dual meet against Nansemond River High School and Deep Creek High School. Overall, Lakeland competed hard against two tough teams. It was senior night as well as Tristan Jolley, John Brinkley and Wyatt McCloud were recognized. The Cavs have been seeing some tough competition throughout the year as a Class 3A school in a district filled with Class 5A and 6A schools. Hoffman has been continuing to encourage his team, letting them know that he has been seeing the growth even if it doesn’t directly correlate to wins and losses.

“I just want to keep emphasizing that we are improving and that we are working hard,” he said. “I know it may be hard to see sometimes, but I let them know we are doing some good things out there. I am excited to see what types of things we will be able to accomplish at regionals.”

Lakeland will wrestle one more time between now and postseason time in February. When Lakeland has wrestled against Class 3 competition, they have looked strong, and Hoffman believes with the Cavs’ work ethic along with the tougher competition they will face, it could be a recipe for some kind of success when it all counts.