Category Archives: Division 2

'A Unique Opportunity for NY Kids': SUNY Sullivan Adds Wrestling Program Starting This Fall

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For years, SUNY Sullivan has welcomed some of the best wrestlers in New York to its Loch Sheldrake campus for a weekend in January for the Eastern States Classic.

And grapplers have again ascended on the campus in the summertime for top-notch camps, including the J Robinson Intensive Camp in 2012, run by the longtime University of Minnesota head coach.

Now, wrestling will be a fixture at SUNY Sullivan year round, as President Dr. William Murabito and Director of Athletics Christopher DePew announced earlier this month that wrestling will be one of two sports added, beginning this fall.  (Women’s volleyball is the other).

According to DePew, the move to bring wrestling to Loch Sheldrake was in the making for some time, as he and the institution have become more and more connected to the sport over the years.

“We have developed very strong relationships with the Friends of Section 9 wrestling and also with members of Beat the Streets such as Al Bevilacqua and Bill Crum,” DePew said.  “Those individuals have been suggesting starting a wrestling program here for a while.”

DePew began to look at the possibility but was uncertain whether some of the start up costs, like new mats, might be prohibitive.

But when a new mat arrived, courtesy of Beat the Streets wrestling, the enthusiasm continued to grow.

And when DePew presented the proposal to add wrestling, as well as women’s volleyball, to the leaders of the institution, the Board not only approved it, but demanded that it go forward as part of the college’s five-year growth strategy.

It is believed that the programs will be an important recruitment tool for up to 40 new students in the next year and will be the first step of an overall plan to add four more athletic programs by 2015.

In addition to meeting the strategic needs of the institution, DePew believes there will also be a profound impact on the wrestling community.

“There are limited opportunities for wrestlers on the collegiate level and we’re happy to be providing a great option,” he said. “We believe we offer a unique opportunity for New York kids to get away from home and have the true college experience, but still be close enough to get home if they need to.  There is a bus from the Port Authority in New York City that goes to the flagpole at our school. We know there are so many good high school wrestlers in the state of New York, including in the Beat the Streets program, and we want to offer them a place to continue wrestling.”

There are of course some things currently being worked out.  Student housing is currently at capacity and there is an ongoing initiative to expand on-campus living.

And the leader of the program is still being determined, with the search for the head coach underway.  According to DePew, a number of candidates have already expressed interest and he is hoping to have the coach on board by mid February.

Even without the staff in place, the enthusiasm for the sport came through in conversations with DePew and was very clear during the Eastern States Classic.  In fact, DePew worked in the concession stand from the opening of the tournament in the morning through its close on both Friday and Saturday.  His excitement about making wrestling events a bigger fixture at the Paul Gerry Fieldhouse was palpable.

“I think this is a great opportunity for SUNY Sullivan and for the New York wrestling community,” he said. “We have some work to do, and I would say I’m cautiously optimistic.  We have seen NJCAA programs like Nassau and Niagara do very well in New York and we expect that we can have that kind of success as well. This fits in well with our continued quest to be the very best Junior College Athletic Program in the country.  I believe that the success of our current programs will breed immediate success for our future programs. We expect to become a national Junior College power in year one.”

Back on Top: South Jefferson and Johnson City Capture Dual Meet Titles in Sections 3 and 4

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It had been three years for South Jefferson and a decade for Johnson City, but the wait is over for both. The squads captured the Section 3 and 4 Dual Meet titles, respectively, after living up to their number one seeds.

For South Jefferson, the run had a lot of similarities to the one in 2010.  In that year, the Spartans came into the Section 3 dual tournament undefeated and left as champions.

But the path wasn’t all the same, according to head coach Pat Conners.

“This was a new role for our program,” Conners said. “Instead of being the underdog this year, we were the favorite.  That definitely wasn’t how it was three years ago.  No one believed then that we could beat Fulton in the dual meet finals.  I had people tell me if we even made the finals, it would be great for us.  Then we knocked off Fulton to win it.  There were people who felt that was an ‘on any given day’ kind of thing where the better team doesn’t always win.  This weekend was different because I think our team proved that we are the best in Section 3 this year.”

It certainly looked that way.  Prior to the tournament, (last Thursday) South Jefferson faced off with General Brown in a battle of teams ranked in the latest New York State dual meet poll.  The lower-ranked Spartans came out on top, 40-25.

“Having that huge dual and knocking off General Brown only a few days before actually made me a little nervous,” Conners said. “We were confident going into the weekend, but sometimes it’s tough to get everyone refocused and ready so soon after a big win. But our team has a good mix of veterans and young kids and our six seniors did a nice job of leading.”

Things started off a little slow, according to Conners, in the first meet against Cicero-North Syracuse but the Spartans emerged with a 51-23 victory and followed that up with a 58-22 win over Cazenovia.

The next round brought Baldwinsville.  The Bees took a 10-3 lead after three bouts, but South Jefferson responded, recording falls in four of the next five matches to take a commanding advantage.  Registering pins were Trevor Cowles (160), Daniel Smith (170), Logan LaFlamme (182) and Ryan Charlebois (up a weight at 220). Despite forfeiting the last bout, the Spartans punched their ticket to the finals with a 43-31 result.

“In that case, the 160 to 195 pounders did the job,” Conners said. “They are all good wrestlers and when we get there, we count on bonus points.  We’ve had solid balance all the way through the lineup this year, though. Our 99 and 106 pounders (Jared Carroll and Caleb Beach) are a combined 62-4. [132 pounder] Jon Crast has made a nice comeback from surgery. Many other guys have wrestled very well. What’s been really great to see as a coach this year is that the bigger our matches have been, the better the kids have wrestled.  Our top wrestlers have won with bonus points and the kids who aren’t our top wrestlers have wrestled hard and given up only three points.”

That was true as South Jefferson topped squads such as Northern Adirondack, Victor and Cortland earlier in the campaign.  And it held true in the finals when the Spartans met General Brown for the second time of the week.

In the championship dual, the Lions won five of the first eight matches.  However, all five victories were by decision and with South Jefferson’s two pins and a decision, the score was knotted at 15.  That was the last time it was close.

“Losing five matches but all of them only three point losses was big,” Conners said. “When you wrestle the other team’s top kids and keep it close, it’s as important as a big win on your side.  We were tied and in good shape. And then we got on a roll and poured on points after that.  We only lost one match the rest of the day.”

So a 15-15 tie turned into a 45-19 rout.

“Each week, we’ve been challenging the kids and they’ve stepped up stronger and stronger,” Conners said.  “It’s rare to have a team wrestle well every weekend without real letdowns but this group did that.  It was a total team effort and our depth played a big role.  We had some guys stepping on the mat for the first time in the semis or finals while other teams were exhausted.”

That was one of the reasons Conners cited for the lopsided scores in the event.

“Our goal was to win the duals,” the coach said. “But I never, ever thought we would be as dominant as we were because of the caliber of teams in Section 3.  I was not surprised that we won but very pleasantly surprised that our kids were as dominant as they were.”

Dominant enough to stand atop Section 3.  But will that translate to the top of New York State?

Conners said he might reach out to Midlakes coach Steve Howcroft to see if a dual between the unbeaten Division II powerhouses could be arranged.  (Midlakes is ranked first among small school teams). But whether that happens or not, it’s been a great ride for the Spartans as they demonstrated that they are among the Empire State’s elite.

Johnson City’s Return to the Top

Being among the elite is something Johnson City head coach Jordan Glenn can relate to very well.  When he was a competitor for the Wildcats, he remembers his team being among New York’s best every season.

“In our heyday, from the early 90s to mid 2000s, there was a stretch where we didn’t lose to a Section 4 team for 10 years,” Glenn said.  “I don’t think we finished outside the top 5 at the state tournament very often.  Winning this weekend is absolutely a big deal for us because this is the first event we’ve won as a team in recent years.  The last time we won Section 4 Duals was in 2003.  This builds a good foundation for us and with a team full of juniors and younger wrestlers, we think we can raise the bar for next year and continue to excel.”

They excelled this weekend, beginning with a dominant 50-24 victory over Sidney in the first round of the event. The Wildcats got out to a 31-6 advantage and never looked back.  The second dual was similar, in a 42-27 triumph over Vestal.

“In those first two matches, we were in control most of the way,” Glenn said. “We never take anything lightly because with duals it can come down to matchups and a coin flip. We knew those teams had potential to match up with us, but we were solid all the way through. Our depth also was important. We had a couple of guys injured and we were fortunate to have some other guys fill in and do very well.”

That was the case in the finals match against Union-Endicott.  With the loss of state qualifier Greg Kleinsmith to injury, Johnson City bumped a number of wrestlers up a weight and adjusted the lineup.

One of the wrestlers stepping in was one of the squad’s few seniors, Ben Fay. With his team trailing 6-0 (Johnson City forfeited at 132), he took the mat for his first action of the tournament against  Xavian Hughes, the top-ranked wrestler in the Section.  He held the Tiger wrestler to a decision.

“Ben hasn’t necessarily been one of the guys competing for individual championships, but he had a solid performance. He filled a void and allowed maneuverability that we otherwise wouldn’t have had,” Glenn said. “He preserved points when we needed him to.”

Facing a 9-0 deficit, Johnson City took over, capturing the next six bouts.  It started with a decision by Nick Bidwell at 145 and was followed by another three points for Joseph Hamdan at 152.

“Joe Hamdan was out of the lineup for the better part of a month with injury,” Glenn said. “This was his first competition back and he came through with three wins.  The first two were by pin. In the finals, it was tougher.  The lack of mat time got to him a little. But he found a way to win a close match in overtime. That turned out to be huge.”

Photo by BV

Also huge were the flurry of bonus points the Wildcats racked up next with pins by Zach Colgan (160), Dominic Taylor (182) and Reggie Williams (195).  Added into the mix was a technical fall by Conner Halladay at 170.

“When you have anchors you can count on like Zach Colgan and Reggie Williams, it sets the tone,” Glenn said. “We have a very strong core from 138 to 195 and those guys really came through for us.”

After Williams stuck his opponent at 195, Johnson City had a 29-9 lead.

Union-Endicott mounted a comeback, with Lucas Depofi and Andrew Brinser coming out on top at 220 and 285 to cut the team score to 29-18.

But lightweights Tyler Brazinski (99 pounds) and Isaiah Colgan (106) picked up victories by technical fall and pin, respectively, to put their team up 40-18 and clinch the championship.

“Tyler has had a really good week,” Glenn said. “He was bumped out of lineup last year and didn’t place in the section.  But he came back ready this year and this past week alone he’s beaten three of the four top ranked kids in the Section. He didn’t get scored on by any of them. And Isaiah Colgan has been really solid all year. He won three matches at Eastern States and is certainly on a level where he can compete for a Section championship, as he did last year.”

Union-Endicott finished strong as Mikey Carr, Anthony Noce and Zack Bendick recorded falls in the final three matches of the dual to make the final score 40-36.

“We had the dual meet clinched, but their 113, 120 and 126 wrestled really well with three pins in a row,” Glenn said. “We did our jobs to have the lead that we did. We were talking [Saturday] night that we’re starting to develop a little bit of a rivalry with U-E after they beat us in the semis last year at this tournament. We know they are getting better and developing; you can see the progression with their wrestlers.  As for us, we set lofty goals this year and even though we didn’t do as well as we hoped at U-E Duals [in early January], we are excited to be back as the top Dual Meet team in Section 4 this year.”

Back at the top.  South Jefferson and Johnson City earned it after their performances this weekend.

 

Weekend Notes: New Dual Meet Champs in Sec 3 and 4, Fairport Earns First Monroe Title Plus Recaps from Shen, Edgemont, Kohl, Islip Cup and More

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What a weekend. From dual meet championship tournaments to tough individual events, there were great matchups all over the state. The following touches upon some of the notable results and more may be added later.

South Jefferson and Johnson City captured Dual Meet Championships in Section 3 and 4, respectively. The Spartans dominated their finals matchup with General Brown while the Wildcats won a four-point dual over Union-Endicott. 

In individual tournament action:

• Shenendehowa won its own event with five champions, with St. Anthony’s and Yorktown taking second and third. Among the titlewinners for the Plainsmen were highly ranked Nick Kelley, David Almaviva and Levi Ashley.

• Monroe County in Section 5 has a new champion for the first time in 22 years. Spencerport had captured the last 21 titles, but this weekend it was Fairport earning that school’s first county championship. A number of wrestlers who appear in our latest state rankings won titles at this event, including Colton Kells of the champion Red Raiders, who topped Spencerport’s Collin Pittman in overtime at 195.

• At the Islip Cup, a pair of New York contenders at 170 pounds, Joe Piccolo of Half Hollow Hills West and Carlos Toribio of Brentwood, squared off for the second time this season. Toribio took the first meeting by decision but in the rematch, Piccolo recorded an early pin. It continues a strong run by Piccolo, who was third at the Eastern States Classic last Saturday.

• Huntington took first at the Kohl Invitational with five titlewinners, including Most Outstanding Wrestler Joseph Puca at 152 pounds. Puca upset state ranked Dan DeCarlo of Port Jervis.

• Edgemont, led by 120-pound winner Trey Aslanian, was the team champion at its tournament over the weekend, finishing ahead of Section 1 foe Pearl River.

• Clarence took the ECIC Championship, led by champions Ryan Burns (106), Jake Weber (160) and Nate Ward (285).  Taking MOW honors was Cheektowoga’s Renaldo Rodriguez-Spencer, who won the 132 pound class with a pin.

• At the Beacon, Valley Central won a close team race by three points over Arlington. Leading the way was top ranked Alex Delacruz of Ossining, who notched a technical fall in the finals.

For more details on these stories, read on:

Section 3 and 4 Dual Meet Championships

Johnson City, the top seed in Section 4, opened with a 50-24 victory over Sidney before defeating Vestal by a 42-27 score in the semifinals. In the championship dual, Johnson City took a commanding lead, clinching the dual with three matches remaining. Union-Endicott’s late rally made the final score 40-36.

In Section 3, the conclusion lacked drama. Top seeded South Jefferson, ranked seventh in the latest state dual poll, looked like one of New York’s elite squads throughout the competition. The Spartans began with a 51-23 result against Cicero-North Syracuse before topping Cazenovia 58-22. In the semifinals, the team had its closest meet of the event, 43-31, over Baldwinsville. In the finals, South Jefferson left little to chance, emerging with a dominant 45-19 score.

Earning wins in the opening three duals for the champions were Jared Carroll (99), Caleb Beach (106), Trevor Cowles (160), Dan Smith (170), Logan LaFlamme (182) and Ryan Charlebois (220).

For more on the championships by Johnson City and South Jefferson, check back tomorrow for a more detailed story.

Shenendehowa Tournament

The host team collected 209.5 points, well ahead of St. Anthony’s at 149 and Yorktown’s 95. The Plainsmen received championship performances from five grapplers – Kevin Parker (120), Nick Kelley (138), David Almaviva (145), Chris Naccarato (160) and Levi Ashley (195).

A host of additional wrestlers ranked statewide took the mat in Section 2. At 113 pounds, returning state runner up Cheick Ndiaye edged St. Anthony’s Ben Lamantia 3-2 and Joe Mastro of Yorktown grabbed gold at 152.

A pair of ranked wrestlers were upended in the finals – Luis Weirebach of Hoosick Falls topped Eastern States medalist Golan Cohen of Colonie at 106 while Elliot Antler of Xavier edged St. Anthony’s Johnny Vrasidas at 170. In a battle of 182-pound wrestlers we expect to make some waves in Albany, Thomas Murray of Yorktown topped Hoosick Falls’s Brad Burns.

For further results from the event, see here.

Monroe County Tournament

As mentioned previously, Fairport won its first Monroe County league title after 21 consecutive years of championships for Spencerport. The Red Raiders had a large number of placers, including titlewinners Colton Kells at 195 and Jordan Seidel at 170.

Courtesy of Jason DePrez

This event featured a number of grapplers who are featured prominently in the latest individual state rankings. Among them were top 99 pounder, Yianni Diakomihalis of Hilton, who earned a major in the title match and took lightweight Most Outstanding Wrestler honors. He was joined on top of the podium by teammates Vincent DePrez (138), Anthony DePrez (145) and Mike Spallina (152), an eighth grader. Spallina wasn’t the only young wrestler to take top billing. After impressing nearly everyone in attendance at the Eastern States last weekend, seventh grader Frankie Gissendanner of Penfield put up another outstanding performance, taking the 126-pound crown over top seed Rosario Venniro, 3-1.

Spencerport was well represented among the titlewinners as well, with champions Jonathan Haas at 106, Trent Egenlauf at 182 and Austin Coleman at heavyweight. Grabbing heavyweight MOW honors was 160-pound champion Josh Powell of Churchville-Chili.

For more details, see here.

Islip Cup

Brentwood sat atop the team standings at the Kris McDonald Islip Cup, ahead of Sachem North and Islip. Leading the way for the top squad were champions Alex Romero (145), Luis Rodriguez (152) and David Rodriguez (285).

Photo by BV

Several state title contenders also picked up first place as the Half Hollow Hills West duo of Tyler Grimaldi (160) and Joe Piccolo (170) were victorious. As mentioned earlier, Piccolo avenged an earlier season loss to Brentwood’s Carlos Toribio with a first period pin. Both will be in the podium picture in Albany. Sachem North’s Gio Santiago has experience on the medal stand at the Times Union Center, as he took sixth a year ago. He continued his solid campaign with a fall over Jagger Rebozo in the 182-pound final.

For more results, see here.

Kohl Tournament

Huntington racked up 268 points, outdistancing Monroe Woodbury (201.5) and Port Jervis (166) for the title. The Blue Devils were led by Most Outstanding Wrestler Joseph Puca, who upset state-ranked Dan DeCarlo of Port Jervis for the 152-pound crown, 1-0. Also making the top of the podium for Huntington were John Arceri (99), Corey Jamison (126), Nick Lupi (220) and Anthony Puca (285).

For full brackets, see here.

Edgemont Panther Tournament

Photo by BV

Edgemont won its own tournament by five points over Pearl River on Saturday, spurred by champion Trey Aslanian at 120 pounds. Also making the finals for the host team were Kyle Aslanian (99), Chris Kim (170) and Jason Worobow (182). One of the top 145 pounders in the Empire State, Tom Grippi of Fox Lane, pinned his way to the title.

For more results, see 2013 Edgemont Bracket FINAL RESULTS

 

ECIC Championships

In Section 6, Clarence won the title by almost 100 points over Lancaster.  Clarence had eight finalists, including three title winners.  For full results, see here.

Beacon

In addition to the dominance of Ossining’s Alex Delacruz, there were many standout showings at this tournament. One of those was the 195-pound championship for Horace Greeley’s Scott Wymbs. When Wymbs, named the Outstanding Wrestler, beat Kingston’s Deon Edmond for the title, he became his school’s all-time wins leader.

Dual Meets

For additional dual meet results from the weekend, see here.

Cornell and Army Win on the Road; Hofstra and Binghamton Each Take Two of Three at CAA Duals

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Cornell moved to 3-0 in the Ivy League with a pair of road victories on Saturday in New England. The Big Red began the day with a 35-6 win at Brown before traveling to Cambridge for a 24-15 triumph over the Crimson.

Leading the way for Cornell were five wrestlers who went 2-0 on the day, including four grapplers who registered a pair of bonus victories.  Kyle Dake didn’t spent too much time on the mat as he recorded two first period pins.  Fellow returning NCAA champion Steve Bosak earned a fall against Harvard’s Josh Popple after majoring Ophir Bernstein of Brown a few hours earlier.  Meanwhile, 125-pounder Nahshon Garrett picked up two major decisions while 149-pounder Chris Villalonga had a successful return from injury, pinning Grant Overcashier of Brown before notching a technical fall against Todd Preston of the Crimson.  Stryker Lane ended both duals with decisions for the Big Red at 285.

Cornell will return home for two meets next weekend, hosting Penn and Oregon State.  For more on Cornell’s wins, see here.

 Binghamton and Hofstra Each Take Two of Three at CAA Duals

Undefeated performances by Donnie Vinson (149), Nate Schiedel (184), Derek Steeley (133), Tyler Deuel (285) and Mike Sardo (125) spurred the Bearcats to wins in two of their three matches on Saturday in Virginia.   Binghamton defeated Drexel (29-14) and George Mason (29-13) while falling against Rider (19-15).

With his third triumph of the day, Vinson moved into a first place tie with Josh Patterson for the most all-time wins in Binghamton history.  The Marathon native will attempt to become the sole record holder when the Bearcats take the mat next weekend.

For more on Binghamton at the CAA duals see here.

Meanwhile, at the same event, Hofstra also went 2-1, topping George Mason and Boston while dropping a dual to Old Dominion.

Leading the way for the Pride were Steve Bonanno (125), Jermaine John (174) and Paul Snyder (285).  All three were undefeated and each picked up crucial bonus points for the team during the course of the day.

 Army Wins Big Over Bucknell

Bucknell got out to a 6-0 lead at home early in Saturday’s dual with Army, but the Black Knights took over from there, winning eight of the nine remaining bouts in a 28-9 victory.  Putting up bonus points for the squad from West Point were Paul Hancock (major decision at 165) and Cole Gracey (injury default at 174).

For more on the dominant win, see here.

 

 

From Friday Night . . . To find out more about Buffalo’s first dual win of the season on Friday night against Eastern Michigan or Columbia’s loss against Bucknell, see Friday’s College Roundup here.

Eastern States Pick Your Champions Contest – Who Won?

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Congratulations to our Pick Your Champion Contest winner from Eastern States . . . who chose to be identified as “John Stamos”.  He correctly picked 11 out of the 15 titlewinners.  There were a number of people right behind him – 8 entrants accurately predicted 10 of the 15 champions.

A quick look at the contest results:

There were a number of weights where the champion was dominant in the voting, as well as on the mat.

Johnson City’s Reggie Williams was the top vote getter at any weight, picking up close to 75% of the tallies in the 195-pound class.

Coming in not too far behind were a pair of Long Island wrestlers who cruised through the weekend – Corey Rasheed of Longwood (152) and Nick Piccininni of Ward Melville (113). Both were just shy of 70% of the vote.

In addition, around 60% of the respondents chose returning state champion Zack Zupan of Canastota (182), Nick Kelley of Shenendehowa (138) and Columbia’s El Shaddai Van Hoesen (285).

On the flip side, some of the champions were more of a surprise to the participants in the contest.

A Section 9 wrestler collected over 40% of the votes at 99 pounds – but that was Monroe Woodbury’s Vinny Vespa. Champion Chris Cuccolo of Pine Bush received around 7% of the tallies.

The votes at 106, 120 and 126 were quite fragmented with more than 10 wrestlers getting support in each of those weights.  None of the winners of those classes, Nick Barbaria of New Rochelle, Kevin Jack of Danbury or TJ Fabian of Shoreham-Wading River were the top vote getters in their bracket, however they all gathered between 12 and 20% of the vote (as did Tristan Rifanburg at 132 and Dan Breit at 220).

Thanks to everyone that participated.  We appreciate your input and opinions!

 

 

 

Hofstra Wins First Dual of the Season, Tops Rider 17-15

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Hofstra won its first dual meet of the season on Wednesday night as the Pride topped Rider 17-15 in Hempstead.  Both squads captured five victories, but bonus points earned by Hofstra’s 125-pounder Steve Bonnano and 141-pounder Luke Vaith were the difference in the meet.

The Pride will look to build on the momentum as they travel to Virginia for the CAA Duals this weekend.

Results

174: Jermaine John (Hofstra) dec James Brundage (Rider), 3-2

184: Taras Luzhnyy (Hofstra) dec Ryan Wolfe (Rider), 6-4

197: Donald McNeil (Rider) dec Tim Murphy (Hofstra), 10-6

285: Paul Snyder (Hofstra) dec Greg Velasco (Rider), 5-1

125: Steve Bonanno (Hofstra) maj Patrick Skinner (Rider), 20-8

133: Jimmy Morris (Rider) dec Jamie Franco (Hofstra), 8-2

141: Luke Vaith (Hofstra) maj Vinny Fava (Rider), 17-9

149: Curt Delia (Rider) dec Cody Ruggirello (Hofstra), 7-2

157: Zac Cibula (Rider) dec Tyler Banks (Hofstra), 3-2

165: Ramon Santiago (Rider) dec Nick Terdick (Hofstra), 8-6

New York State Rankings #2 for 2012-13 Season

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We said the first set of rankings of the year would probably be the toughest. We were wrong. These were much tougher.

However, after much discussion and debate, here are the current opinions of those who collaborated on this project. We will once again consider all of your feedback . . . as long as it’s done respectfully.

So, here you go . . .

Photo by BV

99 Pounds:

  1. Yianni Diakomihalis, Hilton (5)
  2. Vito Arujau, Syosset (8)
  3. Jesse Dellavecchia, East Islip (11)
  4. Ryan O’Rourke, Adirondack (3)
  5. John Arceri, Huntington (11)
  6. Chris Cuccolo, Pine Bush (9)
  7. Jake Yankloski, Wayne (5)
  8. Garrett Baugher, St. Joseph’s Collegiate (C)

A Few Notes: Diakomihalis remains at number one despite winning a tournament title up at 106 over Jonathan Haas this weekend.  The Eastern States Classic featured some close bouts at this weight, including Cuccolo’s overtime triumph over Yankloski for the title. That came one round after Yankloski’s extra time victory over Eastport South Manor’s John Busiello in the semis. There’s no doubt that Busiello will be heard from in the postseason as well.

106 Pounds:

  1. Alex Tanzman, Westhampton Beach (11)
  2. Nick Barbaria, New Rochelle (1)
  3. Kyle Quinn, Wantagh (8)
  4. James Szymanski, Shoreham Wading River (11)
  5. Jimmy Overhiser, Corning (4)
  6. Golan Cohen, Colonie (2)
  7. Jonathan Haas, Spencerport (5)
  8. Tony Recco, Lyndonville (5)
A Few Notes: Tanzman remains in the top spot, followed by Barbaria. The New Rochelle wrestler had an impressive Eastern States, earning the crown with victories over Overhiser and Quinn in tight matches in the semis and finals. Szymanski and Cohen enter the rankings after taking third and fourth at that event, featuring several quality victories.

Photo by BV

113 Pounds:

  1. Nick Piccininni, Ward Melville (11)
  2. Kyle Kelly, Chenango Forks (4)
  3. Anthony Orefice, Lockport (6)
  4. Dillon Stowell, Gouverneur (10)
  5. Bryan Lantry, Wayne (5)
  6. Joe Calderone, Walt Whitman (11)
  7. Johnny Stramiello, Pine Bush (9)
  8. Cheick Ndiaye, Brooklyn International (P)

A Few Notes: The makeup of the top 8 here hasn’t undergone too much change since the last rankings. (Barbaria, previously here, moved down to 106 and Calderone joined the list while Orefice has spent some time up at 120).  Piccininni dominated at the Eastern States while Kelly did the same the previous week at the Union-Endicott Duals.

120 Pounds:

  1. Alex Delacruz, Ossining (1)
  2. Mike D’Angelo, Commack (11)
  3. John Muldoon, Pearl River (1)
  4. Blaise Benderoth, North Rockland (1)
  5. Travis Passaro, Eastport South Manor (11)
  6. Nick Tolli, Arlington (1)
  7. Blake Retell, Shaker (2)
  8. Sean Peacock, Midlakes (5)

A Few Notes: This weight took more time than most of the others combined. What has changed? Honestly, what hasn’t? The Eastern States tournament was loaded at this class and a number of highly accomplished wrestlers, including the #2, 3, 4 and 5 seeds at the event didn’t place. Why this arrangement? Yes, Delacruz was disqualified while trailing during his semis bout with Muldoon. However, looking at the matches that have taken place among these wrestlers this season, Delacruz pinned D’Angelo, who in turn beat Muldoon earlier this year.  Muldoon topped Benderoth, who defeated Passaro for bronze at SUNY Sullivan. (Passaro won their meeting the previous day by fall).

Tolli and Retell turned in strong performances in Loch Sheldrake as well, with Tolli topping Steve Michel and Chris Cataldo on his way to fifth while Retell also placed after beating Santo Curatolo, Cataldo and two-time state runner up Trey Aslanian.

Photo by Josh Conklin

126 Pounds:

  1. TJ Fabian, Shoreham Wading River (11)
  2. Dylan Realbuto, Somers (1)
  3. Chris Araoz, Wantagh (8)
  4. Mark West, Hauppauge (11)
  5. Corey Jamison, Huntington (11)
  6. William Koll, Lansing (4)
  7. Dakota Gardner, Fredonia (6)
  8. Mike Raccioppi, Minisink Valley (9)

A Few Notes:  Most of the names are the same here with the order slightly rearranged. Fabian’s championship over the weekend, in which he defeated Realbuto and Koll, puts him on top. Realbuto beat Araoz, who topped Koll.  One of the new additions to the list is Mark West, a former state champion who was fourth at Eastern States and will be no doubt be a factor in the postseason. Islip’s Brad Wade is among the many others to keep an eye on.  He recently avenged two early season losses and has solid wins over Jamison and state runner up Justin Cooksey.

132 Pounds:

  1. Renaldo Rodriguez-Spencer, Cheektowoga (6)
  2. Tristan Rifanburg, Norwich (4)
  3. Sam Melikian, Fordham Prep (C)
  4. Matt Leshinger, Sayville (11)
  5. Vinny Turano, Wantagh (8)
  6. Brandon Lapi, Amsterdam (2)
  7. Conor O’Hara, Sachem East (11)
  8. Jacob Sepor, Pavilion (5)

A Few Notes: Rodriguez-Spencer has continued to roll but there was a little shakeup behind him. Two-time state finalist Rifanburg takes the second slot after winning Eastern States this weekend, while the wrestler he defeated for the title, Melikian, is next. Then comes bronze finisher Leshinger, who split contests with Turano at SUNY Sullivan. O’Hara has been on a tear since moving down to 132 pounds.

Photo by BV

138 Pounds:

  1. Nick Kelley, Shenendehowa (2)
  2. Nick Tighe, Phoenix (3)
  3. Connor Lapresi, Lansing (4)
  4. Tom Dutton, Rocky Point (11)
  5. Vincent DePrez, Hilton (5)
  6. Dan Reagan, Lewiston Porter (6)
  7. Derrick Gray, Indian River (3)
  8. Skylar Kropman, Penfield (5)

A Few Notes: While the match many were hoping to see, Kelley vs. Tighe, didn’t materialize (Tighe forfeited in the semis), Kelley reinforced his hold on #1 with his outstanding showing. Joining the fray is Penfield’s Skylar Kropman after making the medal stand from an unseeded spot in the bracket at Eastern States.

145 Pounds:

  1. Louis Hernandez, Mepham (8)
  2. David Almaviva, Shenendehowa (2)
  3. Drew Hull, Royalton Hartland (6)
  4. Eric Lewandowski, Lancaster (6)
  5. Tom Grippi, Fox Lane (1)
  6. Jackson Mordente, Sachem East (11)
  7. Frank Garcia, Norwich (4)
  8. Jude Gardner, Fredonia (6)

A Few Notes: Hernandez is the new #1 here after leading the way at the Eastern States. The Mepham wrestler was in great form over the weekend, beating Almaviva in the semifinals before taking out the tournament’s top seed in the finals. State runner up Hull enters the 145 pound rankings after moving down from 152.  Garcia missed a portion of the season with an injury but has made an effective return, including a podium showing at the Eastern States. While not presently included, Anthony DePrez is putting together a very solid season for Hilton.

Photo by BV

152 Pounds:

  1. Corey Rasheed, Longwood (11)
  2. Tyler Spann, Adirondack (3)
  3. Angelo Kress, Columbia (2)
  4. Chris Koo, Great Neck South (8)
  5. Rowdy Prior, Phoenix (3)
  6. Brendan Goldup, LaSalle (2)
  7. Dan DeCarlo, Port Jervis (9)
  8. Joe Mastro, Yorktown (1)

A Few Notes: Corey Rasheed made a strong statement about who the best in New York is at 152 by rolling through the tournament at SUNY Sullivan, which included a number of ranked opponents. DeCarlo and Mastro made the list after their performances over the weekend as well. Kyle Halliday of Chenango Valley also continues to have a strong campaign, with his only loss coming up a weight to Vestal’s Alex Francik, a wrestler who was strongly considered at 160.

160 Pounds:

  1. Burke Paddock, Warsaw (5)
  2. Tyler Grimaldi, HHHW (11)
  3. Steven Schneider, MacArthur (8)
  4. Mike Beckwith, Greene (4)
  5. Jake Weber, Clarence (6)
  6. Andrew Psomas, Monsignor Farrell (C)
  7. Austin Weigel, Onteora (9)
  8. Nick Gallo, Schalmont (2)

A Few Notes: Paddock captured the battle of the top wrestlers at this weight over Grimaldi. Two of the fastest risers in the rankings were MacArthur’s Schneider and Monsignor Farrell’s Psomas, who battled for third at the Eastern States. Schneider also beat Weber the previous week at the Union-Endicott Duals.

170 Pounds:

  1. Dan McDevitt, Wantagh (8)
  2. Carlos Toribio, Brentwood (11)
  3. Christian Dietrich, Greene (4)
  4. Joe Piccolo, Half Hollow Hills West (11)
  5. Troy Seymour, Peru (7)
  6. Zack Buckley, Fredonia (6)
  7. Johnny Vrasidas, St. Anthony’s (C)
  8. Brett Perry, John Jay EF (1)

 A Few Notes: Another weight with a new #1. McDevitt takes over after coming out on top in a field full of stellar wrestlers and keeping his unbeaten streak as an upperweight alive. Dietrich and Piccolo both defeated Seymour on Saturday while Toribio, Buckley and Vrasidas have continued to wrestle well. Perry got the nod for the eighth spot but Brockport’s Jared Mesiti is also one to look out for at this weight class as is Mike Green of Cobleskill-Richmondville and the previously ranked AJ Voelker of Monroe Woodbury.

182 Pounds:

  1. Zack Zupan, Canastota (3)
  2. Shayne Brady, Carthage (3)
  3. Tim Schaefer, Warsaw (5)
  4. Trent Egenlauf, Spencerport (5)
  5. James Corbett, Wantagh (8)
  6. Levi Ashley, Shenendehowa (2)
  7. James Benjamin, Vestal (4)
  8. Gio Santiago, Sachem North (11)

A Few Notes: Zupan does have some blemishes on his record – a loss while wrestling up at 195 (he was winning at the time of the fall) and a disqualification. However, the former state champion demonstrated that he is the wrestler to beat with his showing at the Eastern States, including a championship win over Schaefer. Egenlauf defeated Corbett at Union-Endicott duals while the Wantagh wrestler responded at SUNY Sullivan by taking third with a win over Ashley. Section 6’s Anthony Liberatore, who wrestled well in Albany last year, continues to impress.

Photo by BV

195 Pounds:

  1. Reggie Williams, Johnson City (4)
  2. Bryce Mazurowski, Avon (5)
  3. Colton Kells, Fairport (5)
  4. Chris Chambers, East Islip (11)
  5. Steven Sabella, Yorktown (1)
  6. Joe Nasoni, Baldwinsville (3)
  7. Nick Weber, Kings Park (11)
  8. Dan Choi, Syosset (8)

A Few Notes: Sabella and Nasoni enter after picking up some solid victories as does Chambers after beating Weber (who beat Choi). According to the NWCA Scorebook, Chambers has won every match this year by bonus points (and has 17 first period falls). Reggie Williams stays on top after his weekend title while Mazurowski remains in the second slot as the favorite in Division II. Both Hunter Ayen of Gouverneur and Ben Honis of Jamesville-Dewitt/CBA put on strong showings at the Eastern States and will be threats in February along with Collin Pittman of Spencerport and Tyler Morris of Salem.

220 Pounds:

  1. Zack Bacon, Hornell (5)
  2. Ryan Wolcott, Waverly (4)
  3. Dan Breit, Nanuet (1)
  4. Nick Lupi, Huntington (11)
  5. Mike Silvis, Holley (5)
  6. Chris Saden, Fredonia (6)
  7. Richard Sisti, Monsignor Farrell (C)
  8. Joe Sprung, Berne Knox (2)

A Few Notes: Breit and Silvis traded positions after the Nanuet wrestler defeated the Holley grappler for the Eastern States crown. Minisink Valley’s Josh Bonneau made a statement with his bronze placement at the same tournament and is one we will keep close tabs on, along with Islip’s Ryan Hughes.

Photo by BV

285 Pounds:

  1. El Shaddai Van Hoesen, Columbia (2)
  2. Mike Hughes, Smithtown West (11)
  3. Matt Montesanti, Medina (6)
  4. Alex Soutiere, Ravena (2)
  5. Brandon Fayle, Lowville (3)
  6. James O’Hagan, Seaford (8)
  7. Austin DiCerbo, Colonie (2)
  8. David Varian, Yorktown (1)

A Few Notes: The top six didn’t change after the last set of rankings, however, DiCerbo makes his debut after pinning Varian for the bronze at Eastern States. It was one of four falls for the Colonie wrestler at the tournament.

Special thanks to Mike Carey for his tremendous work on these rankings.

* Results based on NWCA Scorebook

College Roundup: NWCA National Duals, Virginia Duals, Cornell Blanks Princeton

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Cornell Begins Ivy Slate By Blanking Princeton, 42-0

ITHACA, N.Y.—The No. 6 Big Red wrestling team opened in 2012-13 Ivy season off strong on Saturday afternoon, shutting out Princeton 42-0 at home in the Friedman Wrestling Center. Kyle Dake (165), Jace Bennett (197) and Jacob Aiken-Phillips led Cornell with pins, while Mike Nevinger notched a win by technical fall. Freshman Nahshon Garrett also added a bonus point for Cornell with a major decision at 125 pounds.

With the win Cornell improves to 6-2 (1-0 Ivy) on the season, while Princeton fell to 0-8 (0-1 Ivy).

The dual opened at 125 pounds, with Garrett facing Max Rogers. Garrett had a 4-0 lead after the first period with a takedown and two back points. The Big Red freshman racked up 2:42 in riding time in the first. Garrett chose to start the second down and nearly had a reversal but a stalemate was called and brought the action back to center. Garrett settled for an escape and added a takedown midway through the period. Rogers chose to start the third at neutral. Garrett grabbed a double leg takedown, and with 5:03 in riding time, won a 10-0 major decision.

At 133 pounds, sophomore Bricker Dixon took on Andrew Hirai. Dixon had an early takedown and tilted his opponent for three back points. Hirai escaped, but with a double leg, Dixon took him down once again. Dixon immediately reversed his opponent from his starting down position in the second and grabbed another takedown. Hirai chose to start the third down and was awarded a point when Dixon was penalized for locking his hands. Hirai escaped, but with 3:40 in riding time, Dixon won a 12-5 decision.

For more from cornellbigred.com, see here.

Binghamton, Buffalo and Army Compete at the Virginia Duals

Contact: John Hartrick (hartrick@binghamton.edu)

HAMPTON, Va.—Binghamton wrestling (3-8) received a pair of six-point wins from its nationally-ranked duo but dropped the remaining eight bouts in a 30-12 loss to North Dakota State Saturday morning at the Virginia Duals. The defeat ends the tournament for the Bearcats, who split their two matches on Friday to start the event.

Against the Bison, BU dropped an overtime bout and a pair of four-point decisions which might have tightened the outcome.

Senior 197-pound Nate Schiedel provided the highlight of the match with his second pin in as many days. Schiedel, No. 6 in the latest InterMat rankings, needed just 1:24 to put Kallen Kleinschmidt to his back and end the encounter. Schiedel improved to 18-2 overall, 11-0 in duals.

Earlier, No. 7 Donnie Vinson received a forfeit win at 149 to also remain undefeated in duals. Vinson, who won twice on Friday, including a 6-3 decision over the No. 6 wrestler in the country, lifted his record to 21-1, 11-0 in duals.

The Bearcats will remain in Virginia all week training for the CAA Duals, hosted by George Mason next Saturday. There, BU will face the host Patriots, Rider and Drexel.

For more on Binghamton’s Virginia Duals results, see here.

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HAMPTON, VA – The Buffalo wrestling team dropped both matches Friday at the Virginia Duals tournament, forcing the team into an early exit from the event. The Bulls (0-5) lost to Boise State (2-5) 29-9 in the first round, and then was edged 20-16 by Bucknell (3-6) in the consolation bracket.

Wrestling with a shuffled lineup, the team hung tough with the Broncos, who were receiving votes in the NWCA top 25 at the beginning of the week. Max Soria opened with an 8-5 decision over Rami Haddadin, and Erik Gallowayreturned to the lineup at his new 141 pound weight to win 10-5 over Travis Himmelman. Then, down 9-6, Mark Lewandowski tied up the dual with a 9-2 win over Holden Packard. Boise State would finish with wins in the final four matches, including bonus points at 184, 197, and heavyweight.

Then in the consolation round, the Bulls were forced to rally against the Bison, losing the first four matches of the dual in close affairs. Five different UB wrestlers competed at brand-new weight classes due to severe depth issues, but three would pull of wins in their new divisions to lead the way. Blake Roulo snapped the team out of its slump in a big way in the 157-pound bout, winning 16-1 over Vincent Favia for a five-point technical fall (the first of his career in a dual meet). That would be the first of four straight wins for UB, giving the team a 16-12 lead in the team score.

For more from buffalobulls.com, see here.

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HAMPTON, Va. – Senior Connor Hanafee pinned his opponent at 141 pounds and two other Black Knights recorded wins by decision, but the Army wrestling team fell to 17th-ranked Boise State, 24-12, in the consolation quarterfinals at the 33rd annual Virginia Duals on Saturday at Hampton Coliseum.

Boise State (3-5) posted wins by decision in the first two bouts, but Hanafee drew Army (3-4) even when he pinned Ben DeMuelle in 2 minutes, 38 seconds.

The Broncos won five of the final seven bouts, however, to clinch the match. The loss eliminates Army from the Virginia Duals. The Black Knights posted a 1-2 mark at the event.

Junior Paul Hancock edged Holden Packard (1-0) in the 165-pound bout, and freshman Bryce Barnes upended Cody Dixon (7-2) at 197 pounds to account for Army’s other two wins.

Army returns to action on Saturday, Jan. 19, when the Black Knights travel to Lewisburg, Pa., to face EIWA rival Bucknell. The conference dual match is set to get under way at 4 p.m.

Match Notes: Army falls to 0-1 all-time versus Boise State … Paul Hancock improves to 7-0 in dual matches this season … Hancock boasts a team-best 20 wins this year (20-7) … Hancock and Bryce Barnes both authored perfect 3-0 records at the Virginia Duals.

goarmysports.com talks about the dual with Citadel here

goarmysports.com talks about the dual with Edinboro here

 NWCA National Duals – Cortland Takes Fourth

SPRINGFIELD, ILL. – The nationally third-ranked Cortland wrestling team finished fourth at the 16-team NWCA/Cliff Keen Div. III National Duals after dropping a 26-19 decision to second-ranked Elmhurst College in the semifinals and losing to fifth-ranked Centenary College (N.J.), 20-18, in the third-place match. The Red Dragons went 2-2 at the tournament, which featured the top 10 ranked teams in the country, and are now 11-2 on the season.

For more from cortlandreddragons.com, see here.

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SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – The Ithaca College wrestling team defeated eighth-ranked Coe and fell to top-ranked Wartburg and 30th-ranked Wesleyan at the NWCA Division III National Duals on Saturday. The Bombers are 5-3 in duals this season, and five of Ithaca’s eight duals have come against nationally-ranked opponents. Ithaca returns to action next weekend, with a Friday afternoon dual match against Waynesburg and the Empire Collegiate Wrestling Conference tournament on Saturday. Jules Doliscar (Dix Hills/Holy Trinity) was 3-0 on the day for the Bombers and Ricky Gomez (Brentwood/Brentwood) was 2-0 in his bouts.

For more from the Ithaca College website, see here.

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Niagara County Community College advanced to the semifinals in the NJCAA National Duals before losing to Labette, the eventual champion.

 

 

Catching Up With Cornell: Rob Koll's Update Following the Scuffle and Lehigh/Princeton

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By Rob Koll

It has been a busy couple of weeks with competition and two-a-day practices.

In the future we will not be wrestling Lehigh on the first weekend of January. When we returned to Ithaca from the Southern Scuffle the guys barely had enough time to have their singlets washed.  We immediately hopped on a bus for Lehigh, made weight, wrestled and returned to Ithaca. Considering the travel situation, I was pleasantly surprised that the team still wrestled well against Lehigh. I had been warned by more than a few Cornell wrestling fans, but primarily Buzz Bishop, that I might as well stay in Lehigh if we lost. I think he was kidding but there is almost always truth to humor!

Here is a quick rundown of recent activities.

Southern Scuffle (SS)/Lehigh/Princeton observations: 

125 Nahshon Garrett lost one close match at the SS to the eventual champion but scored major decisions and tech falls against every other opponent.  At Lehigh he got off to a slow start but kept the pressure on, ultimately racking up a technical fall. In the Princeton match, Nahshon was determined to register his first career fall. He is great at scoring points but terrible at pinning his opponents (25-3 no falls). With the Pin Pool currently at $1,268 per pin he knew he had to work on this weakness. Unfortunately he still has work to do. He looked good winning 10-0, but that will not keep the lights on! Nahshon grows a little more dominant and gains a little more confidence every day. He has the physical, technical and mental skills to win the NCAA title this year.

133 Bricker Dixon did not perform will at the SS. He lost two matches because he could not get off the bottom. He has been working on this weakness ever since the Las Vegas Invite but we have yet to see significant results. This is even more frustrating because he is so strong everywhere else. Against Lehigh, Bricker defeated #13 Cruz 2-1. Bricker dominated the first two periods. He took Cruz down and rode him and then rode him out the entire second period. In the third period Bricker’s bottom struggles continued as he was ridden for the entire period. Bricker looked great against Princeton on his feet but most importantly he quickly escaped from the bottom! We expected Bricker to contend for the 125-pound weight class this year but since Nick Arujau has struggled with his weight we have relied on Bricker to carry the load. He is finally lifting into the weight class and could contend for the Eastern title if he continues to improve on his bottom work.

Nick Arujau has finally gotten his weight back down, but he will have to prove himself in open tournaments before I give him an opportunity to regain the starting role.

141 Mike Nevinger has completely regained his swagger. He won the SS championship by defeating a returning All-American, and the country’s #4 ranked wrestler. Mike is finally scoring from the neutral position again after suffering through a painfully long scoring drought. That is not to say that Mike was not winning, just that he was relying too much on his top work to win matches.  Against Lehigh and Princeton, Mike dominated both matches, but since he failed to register any falls he is in our doghouse.

149 Chris Villalonga had to forfeit to 5th place after getting knocked out in the consolation wrestlebacks. The good news is Chris is doing well and has been cleared to wrestle.

149 Ryan Dunphy went 3-2 at the SS but failed to place. He lost an OT heartbreaker at Lehigh but then came back and avenged an early season loss by defeating the Princeton wrestler 5-3. Ryan is very tough and talented. He needs to make a better effort of riding his opponent. He will score three takedowns, quickly get away from his opponent when he has to go down, and still not even be close to securing riding time! That one point has cost him two to three matches this year.

157 Chris Dowdy is going to be very good but he needs to get a great deal stronger, and he needs to diversify his attacks. He has an explosive double leg that worked well in high school and currently works against weaker college opponents. Unfortunately once his momentum is stopped he doesn’t have the strength to finish his move. He is only 18 years old so I don’t expect that this problem will be a problem for long.

165 Kyle Dake defeated last year’s Hodge Award winner David Taylor to become only the second person to ever win four SS titles. Against Lehigh we bumped him up to wrestle #11 Nathaniel Brown. Kyle dominated the match, winning by six. Against Princeton Kyle finally helped us pay some bills by registering a quick first period fall.

174 Marshall Peppelman won four matches and placed 8th at the SS. He did not wrestle against Lehigh because Kyle moved up but he did win against Princeton. In the Princeton match Marshall put himself to his own back and had to come back from a five-point deficit. Marshall fought back and registered a 10-5 victory.

We need to figure out who will be our starter at this weight. Both Duke Pickett and Marshall have had respectable seasons thus far. We will wrestle these two off this week.

184 Steve Bosak defeated one returning All-American before falling in the finals to returning NCAA champion Ed Ruth at the SS. At Lehigh, Steve dropped a tough OT match to 2x All-American Rob Hamlin. Steve had 57 seconds of riding time but was unable to secure the last three seconds, sending the match into OT. To Steve’s defense he has only been back in the room for just over a month so I expect to see significant improvements in him up until the NCAA tournament.

197 Jace Bennett won five matches at the SS to place 7th.  In the Lehigh match he wrestled with absolutely no urgency and was rewarded by being ridden out for a one-point loss. For the most part I felt the team wrestled well against Lehigh with the exception of Jace. His opponent stopped Jace’s double leg and Jace made no adjustments. If Jace didn’t have such exceptional talent this would not bother me so much. He needs to stop trying to “win easy” and mix it up more. As irritated as I was at him over his Lehigh performance he did help himself out by pinning his Princeton foe.

285 Neither Stryker Lane nor Jacob Aiken-Phillips placed at the SS. I sent Stryker out against Lehigh and he registered a workmanlike 3-1 decision. Jacob got the nod against Princeton and he came through with a second period fall.

All the best, Rob

Eastern States Recap: The Champions and Other Highlights from the Weekend in Section 9

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Another Eastern States Classic is in the books. Wrestling fans were treated to a tremendous weekend of many of the best New York (and a few other states) have to offer.  Wantagh won the team title, led by heavyweight Most Outstanding Wrestler (MOW) Dan McDevitt, the champion at 170 pounds.  Also taking MOW honors were Shenendehowa’s Nick Kelley (middleweights) and Shoreham-Wading River’s TJ Fabian (lightweights).  Fabian had more hardware to take home as well as he captured Champion of Champions honors after winning an absolutely loaded bracket at 126 pounds.

There were many highlights over the two days. Let’s take a look at some of them.

99 Pounds:

Champion: Chris Cuccolo of Pine Bush came into the event as the second ranked wrestler in his weight . . . in Section 9. (He took fifth in the section in 2012).  Cuccolo has had success on the national level in the international styles and came up with a huge weekend in folk, outscoring his opponents 14-4 plus a pin.

And Also . . .  The semifinal matchup between Jake Yankloski of Wayne and John Busiello of Eastport South Manor looked like a battle between two wrestlers we will hear from in the postseason.  (Yankloski won in the tiebreakers). Yankloski began the season dominant up at 106 and has continued to look good at 99 while Busiello won his first three matches by technical fall or pin before a solid win over top seed Andrew Flanagan for third.

106 Pounds:

Photo by Josh Conklin

Champion: Nick Barbaria of New Rochelle was stingy on his path to the championship. After a first round technical fall, he shut out his next two opponents and defeated Wantagh’s Kyle Quinn in the title bout. Barbaria repeated victories over two of the state’s top grapplers  – Quinn and Corning’s Jimmy Overhiser on his way to gold.  He had defeated Quinn a few weeks ago and Overhiser at the Journeymen Classic.

And Also . . . Shoreham-Wading River’s James Szymanski, the eighth seed, impressed throughout the tournament, taking third.  He dropped a 3-2 battle to top-ranked Tony Recco in the quarterfinals but earned four straight wins in the wrestlebacks, including a pin against Overhiser and a major decision over Golan Cohen for bronze.  Cohen, the #10 seed from Colonie, also had a strong run in the consolations to take fourth.

113 Pounds:

Champion: Nick Piccininni began the event as the favorite and showed why as he cruised through a bracket filled with former state placers with a pair of technical falls, a pin, a major and a 5-0 victory in the finals against Gouverneur’s Dillon Stowell.

And Also . . .  There was only one wrestler on the podium at Eastern States who wasn’t All-State in 2012. Rafael Mateo of Midlakes, who made the medal stand in Loch Sheldrake after being seeded 14th, tallied four pins over the weekend and took eighth.

120 Pounds:

Photo by Josh Conklin

Champion: Danbury’s Kevin Jack was an Eastern States Classic champion for the second straight year, this time at 120.

And Also . . .  It’s clear that Section 1 is stacked at 120 pounds as three of the four semifinalists – John Muldoon, Alex Delacruz and Nick Tolli were from that area. Muldoon went all the way to the finals while Tolli was fifth after making an early statement by defeating highly regarded Steve Michel of Lancaster.  Delacruz was in medal position before being disqualified. But that wasn’t all.  Blaise Benderoth, the ninth seed, grabbed third with an 8-1 showing. The North Rockland wrestler was pinned by Eastport South Manor’s Travis Passaro in the Round of 16 but then responded with six consecutive victories, including a win over state champion Sean Peacock and a 7-2 triumph over Passaro in the third place bout. Throw two-time state runner up Trey Aslanian of Edgemont and Nanuet’s Anthony Calvano into the mix (both were at the tournament) and it should be a very interesting postseason for Section 1 at this weight.

126 Pounds:

Champion: When the #8 seed is a recent national champion (Wantagh’s Chris Araoz), you know you have a tough bracket. Emerging above the rest in a field with a plethora of accomplished wrestlers was Shoreham-Wading River’s TJ Fabian, a fourth place finisher at the state tournament in 2012.  Fabian demonstrated his outstanding mat wrestling and his ability to come through in close matches on his way to the title.  He topped former state champions in both the semis and finals (William Koll and Dylan Realbuto, respectively).

And Also . . . There was a lot of talk about seventh grader Frankie Gissendanner of Penfield, and with good reason.  He placed at 126 pounds in a deep weight in which multiple All-State wrestlers didn’t make the medal stand. Gissendanner, who has made a rapid adjustment to the varsity level, reached the quarterfinals before losing to Koll.  He bounced back like a veteran, beating Grand Street’s Keanu Thompson (who was top 8 in Albany last year) in the consolations before edging 2012 state runner up Justin Cooksey to take seventh.  For more on Gissendanner, from an article we published back in May, see here.

132 Pounds:

Champion: Tristan Rifanburg, the number two seed, controlled his matches on the way to the crown. He picked up an opening round fall before outscoring his next three foes 20-0.  In the finals, he defeated Sam Melikian of Fordham Prep, 8-5.

And Also . . . Melikian came within one victory of placing in the state capital last year.  However, he seems to have taken his wrestling to the next level, dominating in his first five bouts before dropping the finals contest to Rifanburg.

138 Pounds:

Champion: Nick Kelley of Shenendehowa repeated as a champion at this event after winning at 132 last season.  Westfield’s Derek Arnold gave Kelley a battle in the semis (a 3-2 Kelley victory), but otherwise, the future Binghamton Bearcat cruised.  He notched pins in his first three bouts and recorded a 9-1 major over Lansing state champion Connor Lapresi for the title.

And Also . . . Unseeded Skylar Kropman of Penfield took fifth place, including victories over the number six and eight seeds, John Diekel of Whitehall and Joey Butler of Burnt Hills.  Rocky Point’s Tom Dutton, an All-American at both the NHSCAs and Fargo this offseason, once again was impressive to watch.  He took fourth after a pair of losses to Arnold, the Virginia native.

145 Pounds:

Champion: One of the matches we were looking forward to after the brackets were released was Mepham’s Louis Hernandez versus Shenendehowa’s David Almaviva, two of the best in the state.  Hernandez not only beat the number two seed Almaviva 4-2 in that match but also top-ranked Beau Donahue of Westfield, 7-3, to win the championship.  Hernandez came into the event seeded seventh, but will be a force in Albany.  A year ago, he went 1-2 wrestling with a significant injury at the Times Union Center.  This time, he expects much more.

And Also . . . There could be some great matches in late February between wrestlers who looked very good this weekend – Hernandez, Almaviva, Lancaster’s Eric Lewandowski and Fox Lane’s Tom Grippi. On the Division 2 side, Frank Garcia of Norwich, who came within a match of placing last year as a freshman, took fifth.  He had missed a chunk of the season with an injury but has made a nice return.

152 Pounds:

Champion: Not much doubt about the top wrestler here. Corey Rasheed of Longwood pinned his first three opponents, then won 15-4 and 13-0 to earn gold.  He has racked up numerous honors, including three All-State medals, in his career and is the favorite to win his first state title next month.

And Also . . . Although he lost to Rasheed in his last bout, Phoenix’s Rowdy Prior showed that he takes the “Pin2win” mentality of his head coach Gene Mills to heart. Prior registered falls in all four of his matches prior to the finals, including over the sixth and seventh seeds, Dan DeCarlo of Port Jervis and Zach Joseph of Shenendehowa.

160 Pounds:

Photo by Josh Conklin

Warsaw’s Burke Paddock positioned himself for a run at his first state title when he dispatched two top small school opponents in Mike Beckwith and Austin Weigel and then defeated Division I returning runner up Tyler Grimaldi of Half Hollow Hills, 8-4.

And Also . . . While some New York fans may have been surprised by MacArthur’s Steve Schneider’s third place finish, those on Long Island certainly weren’t. The Nassau County wrestler lost to Grimaldi for the second time in the past few weeks, but captured his other six bouts and showed his ability to win the close ones.  All four of his consolation victories came by two points or less, including over the fifth-seed Nick Gallo and the sixth-seed Mike Beckwith.  The performance of Schneider’s third place match opponent, Andrew Psomas of Monsignor Farrell, should also be mentioned.  Psomas was unseeded coming into the event and went all the way to fourth, including victories over four seeded grapplers (Tyler Silverthorn, Stephen Aiello, Austin Weigel and Nate Bomysoad).

170 Pounds:  

Champion: If anyone was unsure whether Dan McDevitt could make the leap from 138 pounds to 170 and stay among the state’s elite, this weekend provided the answer. The Wantagh wrestler showed he belongs in the upperweights, topping Christian Dietrich of Greene 6-2 for the title. He also defeated the third and fifth place finishers, Joe Piccolo and Brett Perry.

And Also . . . Both Dietrich and Piccolo defeated top-ranked Troy Seymour, boosting their stock for the rest of the season.  It wouldn’t be very surprising to see a rematch of Dietrich’s 3-2 semifinal win over Seymour in the Saturday night finals in Albany for Division II gold.

 

182 Pounds:

Champion: Zack Zupan was in charge all the way through.  We may get to see him wrestle multi-time state placer Tim Schaefer again in Albany, after Zupan earned a 5-2 win over the Warsaw grappler in the championship tilt.

And Also. . . Several wrestlers outperformed their seeds.  Yorktown’s Thomas Murray was in the eighth spot in the bracket but came in fifth, with his losses to Zupan and in the tiebreakers to Shenendehowa’s Levi Ashley.  Speaking of Ashley, the Shenendehowa wrestler topped unseeded Andrew Grella from Beacon in the first round, 8-6, but Grella then won five straight to eventually grab sixth.  Also making a solid run was #15 Christian Araneo of Ward Melville, a freshman, who took eighth after three consolation wins.

195 Pounds:

Williams, Photo by BV

Champion: Reggie Williams had a very exciting and interesting weekend. He had two matches come down to the wire – his opening bout against Garrett Duval, which he won 12-11, and a 7-5 victory over Steven Sabella in which he scored the winning points close to the buzzer.  The Johnson City star also won two bouts by fall, including his title victory over Gouverneur’s Hunter Ayen.

And Also. . .  Ben Honis of Jamesville-Dewitt/CBA made a statement this summer when he earned All-America status at Fargo. He made another statement over the weekend when he took third place, including a win over All-Stater Tyler Smith of Midlakes. The only loss for Honis was a default in the semis against Ayen.

The opening round match between #15 seed Dan Fowler of Chaminade and Jeff Senecal of Duanesburg probably didn’t get much attention (Fowler won by fall).  However, both wrestlers made the medal stand, with Fowler defeating seeded wrestlers Deon Edmond and Scott Wymbs to take fifth and Senecal beating Wymbs and Canastota’s Wyatt Albanese to notch seventh.

220 Pounds:

Champion: Dan Breit of Nanuet breezed through the competition early with big wins in his first three bouts and then won close ones late, picking up 3-2 victories in the semis and finals against Dillon Hurlbert of Marathon and Mike Silvis of Holley, respectively.

And Also . . . During our Pick Your Champions contest, Minisink Valley’s Josh Bonneau received quite a few votes.  The #15 seed showed why. He lost to Breit in his first bout but then picked up six consecutive wins to finish third. Among the wrestlers he beat were Alex Ortiz of Middletown, Hurlbert and Holland Patent’s Josh Langley.

285 Pounds:

Van Hoesen, Photo by BV

Champion: El Shaddai Van Hoesen continued his winning ways.  It’s become customary for him to pin nearly everyone in his path and he did record three falls, including over Alex Soutiere in the title bout.  He also had an 8-1 decision and a 1-0 victory over Rocky Point’s Brennan Strovink.

And Also . . . Strovink proved that his close match with Van Hoesen wasn’t a fluke when the #16 seed made the podium in the sixth position after a solid tournament.  We also saw that the quality 285 pounders in Section 2 go beyond Van Hoesen and Soutiere. Austin DiCerbo of Colonie was pinned by Van Hoesen but picked up four falls of his own, including over Yorktown’s David Varian, on his way to third place.

Team: It was another great weekend for Wantagh. After capturing the Union-Endicott Duals last Sunday, the Warriors again finished on top with 138.5 points.  Shenendehowa was second with 111.5 while Westfield, Virginia (102.5) and Danbury, Connecticut (77) were next.  Tied for fifth were Colonie and Eastport South Manor with 73.5 points.

For full results, see here.

The results of our Pick Your Champions Contest will be released soon.

Congratulations to the Friends of Section 9 Wrestling, including Tournament Director Jeff Cuilty and the many others involved, who made this an outstanding event.  Thank you to SUNY Sullivan, especially Director of Athletics Chris DePew, for assistance with our live coverage.

And a huge thank you to Matt Diano for his incredible work on the live coverage on Saturday!