Wrestlers in a wide range of ages took the mat on Saturday in Pennsylvania for the Northeast Regional Freestyle championships. New York had success across the groups, boasting first place finishers in the Novice, Schoolboy, Junior Women and Senior competitions.
Leading the way in the Senior division was the Finger Lakes Wrestling Club (FLWC) which featured three titlewinners and two third place finishers. Standing on top of the podium were Lucas Malmberg at 55 kg, Mark Grey at 60 and Cam Simaz at 84. Malmberg didn’t give up a point in his matches, while Grey eased his way through the competition with a technical fall and pin in the semifinals and finals, respectively. Meanwhile, Simaz defeated Enock Francois of the West Point Wrestling Club for the crown, a wrestler who placed at the U.S. Open recently in Las Vegas. Grabbing bronze for the FLWC were Alex Cisneros at 66 kg and Gabe Dean at 84.
Blue & Gold Wrestling Club also made a very strong showing, with Hofstra assistant coach Dan Vallimont winning at 74 kg. He was joined on the medal stand by a trio of Pride grapplers that took second place – Jamie Franco (63 kg), Luke Vaith (70) and Frank Affronti (79).
A number of New York natives also made an impact on Saturday in the Senior action. Monsignor Farrell alum Kevin Hartnett was the champion at 70 kg. In addition, former state champions Sean McCabe (4th at 60), Maverick Passaro (4th at 63) and Anthony Volpe (third at 79) all placed, as did Shenendehowa graduate Cole Lampman (second at 120) and Buffalo All-American Kyle Cerminara (champion at 96). In the same bracket as Cerminara, St. Anthony’s coach Antoni Walters notched fourth.
In the novice competition, five New Yorkers made the podium, including first place finisher Andrew Grechko at 130 pounds. Meanwhile, in Schoolboy action, a trio of Empire State grapplers made the finals, with Tyrese Byron defeating Mack Berkowitz for the 136 pound title.
Numerous New Yorkers earned medals in the Cadet brackets, including 145-pound runner up Joseph Clemente. Taking bronze at the Cadet level were John Busiello (106), Leonard Merkin (138), Jesse Porter (152) and Jacob Woolson (170).
Making trips to the finals in the Junior division were Alpha Diallo (113), Burke Paddock (160), Andrew Psomas (170) and Nick Weber (195). Paddock defeated 2012 Fargo freestyle champion Anthony Collica of Ohio on his way to the title bout. Those wrestlers all took silver, while several others notched bronze (Trevor Hoffmier at 152, Daniel Smith at 170, Thomas Murray at 195, Richard Duermeyer at 220 and Quasar Hampton at 285).
While New York didn’t have a gold medalist in the Men’s Junior action, the Empire State had plenty of crowns on the women’s side. Those titlewinners included Ronnie Green (97), Katherine Sumner (105), Jennifer Juarez (117), Samantha Ouye-Gonzalez (121), Karen Koag (125), Rosemary Flores (139), Idalis Graciano (148), Destane Garrick (159), Fataya Larry (172) and Mariana Olalde (198).
For the full results, see http://www.trackwrestling.com. For Sunday’s Greco summary, see This link.
For the New York results summary in Freestyle, see below:
Novice Placewinners
70: Logan Gumble, 4th
80: Nathan Lehr, 3rd
85: Daniel Butavicius, 5th
130: Andrew Grechko, 1st
130: Shavail Bond, 2nd
Schoolboy Placewinners
136: Tyrese Byron, 1st
136: Mack Berkowitz, 2nd
160: Vito Smolyak, 2nd
Cadet Placewinners
106: John Busiello, 3rd
138: Leonard Merkin, 3rd
145: Joseph Clemente, 2nd
145: Logan Brunick, 4th
152: Jesse Porter, 3rd
170: Jacob Woolson, 3rd
Junior Placewinners
113: Alpha Diallo, 2nd
120: Ryan Burns, 4th
126: Trey Aslanian, 4th
138: Anthony Messina, 4th
145: Codie Gillette, 4th
152: Trevor Hoffmier, 3rd
160: Burke Paddock, 2nd
170: Andrew Psomas, 2nd
170: Daniel Smith, 3rd
182: Cedrick Stephens, 4th
195: Nick Weber, 2nd
195: Thomas Murray, 3rd
220: Richard Duermeyer, 3rd
220: Paul Herrera, 4th
285: Quasar Hampton, 3rd
285: Mark Ifraimov, 4th
Junior Women Placewinners:
97: Ronnie Green, 1st
105: Katherine Sumner, 1st
105: Estrella Velez, 2nd
112: Lissette Ruiz, 2nd
112: Alexandria Salmos, 3rd
112: Ana Salanor, 4th
117: Jennifer Juarez, 1st
117: Susan Yang, 3rd
121: Samantha Ouye-Gonzalez, 1st
121: Keandra Weekes, 2nd
125: Karen Koag, 1st
125: Miranda Gilbert, 2nd
125: Jerra Kohlbrenner, 3rd
125: Leslie Schoberl, 4th
139: Rosemary Flores, 1st
139: Tracy Smith, 3rd
139: Shirley Duman, 4th
139: Shannon Henry, 5th
148: Idalis Graciano, 1st
148: Sashoya Williams, 2nd
159: Destane Garrick, 1st
159: Vivian Vu, 3rd
172: Fataya Larry, 1st
172: April Duncan, 2nd
198: Mariana Olalde, 1st
198: Bria McLaurin, 2nd
Senior Placewinners – NY-Related Wrestlers in Bold Italics
Senior – 55
1st Place – Lucas Malmberg of FLWC (Marathon HS)
2nd Place – Desmond Moore of Lehigh Valley Athletic Club
3rd Place – Jan Rosenberg of SKWC
Senior – 60
1st Place – Mark Grey of FLWC
2nd Place – Jake Calhoun of Modern Day Gladiators
3rd Place – Bryan Heller of Triumph
4th Place – Sean McCabe of SKWC (Connetquot HS)
Senior – 63
1st Place – Vinnie DelleFave of Unattached
2nd Place – Jamie Franco of Blue & Gold WC
3rd Place – Matt Bryer of Mat-Town
4th Place – Maverick Passaro of SKWC (Eastport South Manor HS)
Senior – 66
1st Place – Rollie Peterkin of New York Athletic Club
2nd Place – Mike Depalma of Edinboro Scotsman Club
3rd Place – Alex Cisneros of FLWC
4th Place – Daniel White of White wrestling
Senior – 70
1st Place – Kevin Hartnett of Husky wrestling club
2nd Place – Luke Vaith of Blue & Gold Wrestling Club
3rd Place – Michael Testen of Husky wrestling club
4th Place – Nicholas Maselli of PAWS RTC
Senior – 74
1st Place – Dan Vallimont of Blue & Gold Wrestling Club
2nd Place – Nestor Taffur of Brickhouse
3rd Place – Brandon Rolnick of PAWS RTC
4th Place – Casey Fuller of Edinboro Scotsman Club
Senior – 79
1st Place – Michael Dessino of Husky wrestling club
2nd Place – Frank Affronti of Blue & Gold Wrestling Club (Wayne HS)
3rd Place – Anthony Volpe of Unattached (Rocky Point HS)
Senior – 84
1st Place – Cameron Simaz of FLWC
2nd Place – Enock Francois of West Point Wrestling Club
3rd Place – Gabe Dean of FLWC
4th Place – Scott Gibbons of PAWS RTC
Senior – 96
1st Place – Kyle Cerminara of NYSS
2nd Place – Dan Seidenberg of SKWC
3rd Place – Donald Mcneil of Broncs Wrestling Club
4th Place – Antoni Walters of Quiet Storm East
Senior – 120
1st Place – Billy Smith of Clarkstown
2nd Place – Cole Lampman of PAWS RTC (Shenendehowa HS)
3rd Place – Lex Knapp of SKWC
Sr 70 kg champ Kevin Hartnett is from Msgr Farrell. 4th place at 96 kg, Antoni Walters is the St. Anthony’s head coach.