Nicco Pappalardo encountered few surprises when he entered Gorham High School as a freshman. With five older siblings, Nicco, now a sophomore, was as prepared as anyone. With five family predecessors, anonymity would not be a problem.

However, Nicco does bring something overtly unique to the Pappalardos’ participation and contributions to the community. In a sports’ loving family of athletes, Nicco is the only wrestler of the generation, and the first to do so in Gorham. When asked why he chose wrestling, Nicco answered, “I wasn’t as into team sports, so I liked the one-on-one aspect, while being part of a team.”

When the topic of family support and inspiring people came up, Nicco and his father, Jeff Pappalardo, paused. Jeff, a New Jersey native who speaks quickly and with a fun wit to match, offered that, “I only wrestled one year in high school.” He then slowed his words and said, “It was really Nicco’s grandfather who was a serious wrestler and was Nicco’s biggest fan. He was so happy when Nicco decided to wrestle.” He added, “Nicco’s grandfather passed away a year ago.”

Nicco’s grandfather, Joe Pappalardo, and his wife, Joan, were 2014 inductees into the St. Joseph’s College Sports Hall of Fame for their avid loyalty as fans. They even followed the Monks to basketball tournaments in Hawaii and the Virgin Islands. Joe’s bleacher support for Nicco began early. Jeff sometimes yells out Joe’s name for encouragement during a match.

Nicco, who came to Maine from Vietnam when he was three years old, began his journey on the mat around third grade, participating in a Gorham program at Robie Gym, later participating in Scarborough and Portland programs, taking him through eighth grade. With unwavering commitment, he wrestled on the varsity team as a freshman in 2015.

During his freshman season, he wrestled as an independent, training and traveling with the Westbrook High School squad. This year, he is a point- scoring member of the Westbrook/ Gorham team. He wrestles in the 106- lb. class. The other Gorham wrestler with the squad is Henry Kuntz, a freshman who is new to the sport, competing in the 138-lb. division.

Nicco quickly and unhesitatingly offered that, “Henry is really talented, and a great teammate.” Jeff concurred, and added, “You’ll be hearing about Henry.”

Nicco is having a very successful season, 26-8 as we went to press. In the off season, he does weight and conditioning training with lacrosse and football players, and is regularly and necessarily nutrition and calorie conscious.

He is quick to reiterate that academics are his priority, and spoke of his leadership roles in the school community with equal passion. He is currently the class treasurer, and serves as student representative with the Proficiency Based Learning team (PBL), which he explained as, “made up of principals, teachers, and a student rep to explore curriculum effectiveness,” and as Nicco put it, “making sure the curriculum can be applied and prepare us for the business world.” Math is his favorite subject, and he is considering astrophysics or civil engineering as college majors.

As we went to press, Nicco said that Westbrook/Gorham hit a milestone with the program’s 500th victory. He did not wrestle in this meet against Bonny Eagle, as they didn’t have a 106- lb. grappler. He informed me that the rookie Henry Kuntz dropped a tight match against Tyler Fitz, a top contender with Gorham ties.

Nicco’s immediate goal is to qualify at the February 11 regionals for the state meet on February 18. Don’t be surprised to hear Joe Pappalardo’s name coming from the stands.