Category Archives: Section 6

Palacio Captures the Championship; Grey, Realbuto, Hudson and Dean All Place at the FILA Junior Freestyle Nationals

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Dylan Palacio captured a FILA Juniors National championship on Saturday at 74 kg (163 pounds) after collecting five victories in Las Vegas, including a three period win in the title bout against Matthew Gray of Bison Wrestling Club.

Joining him on the medal stand were three additional grapplers from the Finger Lakes Wrestling Club – Mark Grey (4th at 60 kg), Brian Realbuto (6th at 74 kg) and Gabe Dean (8th at 84 kg).

Also representing the Empire State with a medal was Blue and Gold Wrestling Club’s Jamel Hudson, who earned sixth place at 66 kg.

Palacio, Photo by BV

Palacio’s title run opened with a pair of pins before he took out returning placer Isaac Jordan of the Badger Wrestling Club 5-2, 6-1.  In the semifinals against Hawkeye Wrestling Club’s Patrick Rhoads, he dropped the opening period 3-0 but rebounded to grab the second 3-1, fueled by some early pushouts.  In the third, he fell behind again but came back to win 6-3 and punch his ticket to the finals.

In that first place contest, Palacio lost the first stanza 3-0, and gave up a takedown early in the second to fall behind.  However, the former Section 8 standout took over from there, tying it up with about 1:30 left.  He then tiptoed the line to avoid a late pushout by Gray to win the stanza 1-1 (by virtue of scoring last).

In the decisive final period, Palacio moved ahead with a takedown and tacked on two points for exposure to grab a 3-0 advantage.  Gray responded with a pushout to make it 3-1, but the Long Beach native shot a single leg and drove his opponent out of bounds to take a 4-1 lead with about 40 seconds to go.  A late takedown made the final score closer, but Palacio got his hand raised and a national title.

His future Cornell teammates Grey and Dean earned their spots on the podium the hard way, as both lost in the opening round before going on long winning streaks during the day.

In a back-and-forth match with a lot of scoring, Grey began the tournament with a loss to eventual champion Ben Whitford of Michigan. However, he bounced back with a technical fall over Jake Marr, followed by six more victories to earn his spot in the third place bout, where he was defeated by Zane Richards.  Along the way, he notched a number of impressive wins, including a 6-1, 6-0 decision over highly regarded Cory Clark of the Hawkeye Wrestling Club.

Meanwhile, Dean also faced a high placer in Round 1 – Sam Brooks of the Hawkeye Wrestling Club (4th). After that tilt, Dean captured five in a row, including four in straight periods, to get onto the medal stand at 84 kg (185 pounds).

Realbuto opened with a win over Patriot Elite’s Ryan Forrest before dropping a decision to Micah Barnes of NWTC.  The Section 1 native then went on winning streak, picking up four consecutive victories on his way to sixth place.

In 2012, both Palacio and Realbuto were New York State champions as seniors in high school.  The same was true of Jamel Hudson, who redshirted for Hofstra this year.

Hudson also stood out in Nevada on Saturday, grabbing sixth at 66 kg (145.5 pounds). The former St. Anthony’s grappler began with a technical fall before falling to eventual champion Jason Tsirtsis.  However, he went on a tear in the consolations, winning six in a row and not yielding a single point in four of those matches.

FILA Junior Freestyle Placers (Saturday)

60 kg: Mark Grey (Finger Lakes Wrestling Club) – 4th

66 kg: Jamel Hudson (Blue and Gold Wrestling Club) – 6th

74 kg: Dylan Palacio (Finger Lakes Wrestling Club) – 1st

74 kg: Brian Realbuto (Finger Lakes Wrestling Club) – 6th

84 kg: Gabe Dean (Finger Lakes Wrestling Club) – 8th

In Friday’s FILA Junior Greco competition, Columbia University had several representatives on the podium as Connor Sutton, Chris Loew and Matthew Idelson all placed in the top six.  Also making their presence felt were Cheektowoga’s Renaldo Rodriguez-Spencer, who was fifth at 63 kg and former Section 4 wrestler Jessy Williams, who notched 6th.

FILA Junior Greco Placers (Friday)

60 kg: Jessy Williams (NYAC/USOEC, Windsor) – 6th Place
63 kg: Renaldo Rodriguez-Spencer (Buffalo Grapplers, Cheektowoga) – 5th Place
70 kg: Connor Sutton (NYAC Harlem, Columbia) – 4th Place
84 kg: Chris Loew (NYAC Harlem, Columbia) – 6th Place
96 kg: Matthew Idelson (NYAC Harlem, Columbia) – 5th Place

Vegas Recap for Thurs: Goldman Wins Another Title; Sluberski, Anderson and Koll Take Third

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Jason Goldman of Thorobred made it two-for-two at the Veterans Nationals in Las Vegas, winning the 58 kg freestyle title a day after grabbing the championship in the Greco competition. On Thursday, Goldman won all four of his bouts, including two pins and a technical fall. He has now been a double champion at this event for three consecutive years.

At the U.S. Open:

A number of wrestlers with connections to the Empire State participated in the third place matches at the U.S. Open on Thursday.

Former Fredonia star Carlene Sluberski earned the bronze at 51 kg in women’s action, pinning Amy Fearnside of Jimmie Wrestling Club in her final contest. Also taking third was Army graduate Jon Anderson at 74 kg in Greco Roman, while Long Island native Jenna Burkert picked up fourth at 59 kg.

Two grapplers with New York ties – Kyle Borshoff and Army assistant coach Enock Francois advanced to Friday’s freestyle action at 66 and 84kg, respectively, with their showings in the Challenge tournaments on Thursday.

Western Junior Freestyle

Koll, Photo by BV

Lansing’s two-time state champion William Koll took third at 126 pounds, racking up a 6-1 record with three technical falls. His only setback was to the eventual champion, Zahid Valencia of California, in three periods. Koll only surrendered one point in his victories and defeated Jens Lantz of Wisconsin 3-0, 1-0 for the bronze.

For full results, see http://www.trackwrestling.com

'Striking Back' With Top Notch Wrestling: This Weekend's Empire Nationals Recap

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Numerous wrestlers flocked to the campus of SUNY Brockport this weekend for the two-day Brute Empire Nationals.

On Saturday, the individual tournaments took place, with over 60 brackets ranging from 43 pounds to the 285-pound high school division.  And for those who wanted more, Sunday provided a dual meet competition, with 14 squads fighting it out in the Kindergarten-8th grade group and another 10 squaring off at the high school level.

When all was said and done, it was Cobra Wrestling Academy that came out on top in the high school dual tournament and New Jersey’s A & B Core that captured the dual title in the youth division.

Cobra won all five meets, with a team that offered quality wrestlers from top to bottom, including many who competed (and placed) in Albany in February.   In the championship contest against Superior Black, Cobra earned a 46-16 victory.

“Our team was strong across the whole lineup and got a lot of bonus points when the opportunities were there,” said Cobra Executive Director Keith Maute. “We didn’t have close duals, but we did have some great matches.”

Among the highlight bouts, according to Maute, were victories by Tito Colom over All-State lightweight Kelan McKenna and by Matt Booth over Trent Egenlauf, the number two seed at this year’s state tournament.  In addition, Maute mentioned a pair of wins by his team members over 2013 New York second place finishers (Kellen Devlin over Sean Peacock and Nathan Schwab over Rowdy Prior).  For the full list of Cobra grapplers, see the end of this article.

There were many winners in the individual action, but one name that came up quite a few times was “Kropman”.  That’s because the Penfield-based family boasted four first place finishes as well as a runner up showing.  Cooper, Max, Parker and Skylar Kropman all took gold, while Max (first at 70 pounds in Division 3) competed again in Division 4 at 73 pounds and grabbed silver there as well.

Another member of the Kropman clan was well represented at the event as well.  Scott Kropman, the father of all the previously mentioned wrestlers, is currently battling cancer.  In order to raise funds to help in this fight, t-shirts and hoodies that said “Empire Nationals Wrestling Tournament Strikes Back Against Cancer” sold prior to and during the event.

Courtesy of the Empire Nationals Website

“Scott Kropman has always been a supporter of the Empire Nationals as well as a friend to all!” the event website said. “We are very appreciative of everything he has ever done for this tournament and mindful of everything he means to youth wrestling in our area. Scott is a loving husband and father of seven! He is a positive influence and an inspirational person.”

The Kropmans weren’t the only New York family to collect several awards.  Brothers Hector and Tito Colom both competed in two different divisions on Saturday.  Hector won the 105-pound bracket in Division 5 while taking third at the same weight in Division 4.  Meanwhile, Tito was second at 113 in Division 6 and third at 112 one Division down.  Also of note, Journeymen’s Michael Gonyea made the finals twice – grabbing top billing at 73 pounds in Division 4 while recording second at 78 pounds.

In addition, Division 6 featured 2013 New York state placers atop the podium at a number of weights, including Jonathan Haas (113), Bryan Lantry (120), Sean Peacock (126), Dan Reagan (145) and Sam Eagan (220).

For the top four finishers in the individual competition, see below (from KapWrestling):

Division I

43 Pounds
Darren Bailey (Thorobred, NY)
Ethan Illerbrun (Kane, PA)
Cooper Gronowski (Cobra, NY)
James Leuer (Lockport, NY)

48 Pounds
Jaden Crumpler (Power Cats, NY)
Ashton Seymour (Mike’s Garage Grapplers, NY)
Trey Kimball (Camden, NY)
Lucas Tirpak (Rock Solid, PA)

53 Pounds
Ashton Homan (Btw, OH)
Cole Murray (Mineral Wells, WV)
August Hibler (New Canaan, CT)
Ayden Woolston (Nt Sprawlers, NY)

60 Pounds
Julien Griffith (Palmer, OH)
Max Hermes (Edison, OH)
Jack Clough (Ihc Cavaliers, NY)
Jeremiah Russell (Team Erie Vipers, PA)

70 Pounds
Wesley Holley (Gilead Christian, NY)
Mason Maring (Westfield, NY)
Landon Kelly (Rrwc, PA)
Timothy Connolly (Olympic, NJ)

95 Pounds
Ethan Gallo (Underground, NY)
Kevin Daskavitz (Lockport, NY)
Aric Bloomquist (Jamestown, NY)
Troy Legault (Brockport, NY)

Division 2

50 Pounds
Nic Allison (Siglerville, PA)
Jaden Pepe (Rock Solid, PA)
Wesley Wydick (Mt. Vernon Killer Bees, OH)
Michael Santore (Journeymen, NY)

55 Pounds
Jake Craig (Mat Cats, ME)
Jacob Van Dee (Ragin Raisins, PA)
Chase Liardi (Long Beach Gladiators, NY)
Colin Bradshaw (Pin2Win, NY)

60 Pounds
Carson Alberti (Iroquois, NY)
Mark Botello (Smitty’s Barn, MA)
Maximilian Leete (Mercury Rising, MA)
Evan Maag (Rsw, PA)

65 Pounds
Peter Ruiz, (Northeast Elite, RI)
Nolan Fenton (Pa Rednecks, PA)
Andy Lucinski (Lockport, NY)
Nico Berlingeri (Olympic, NJ)

70 Pounds
Shawn Russell (Team Erie Vipers, PA)
Nick Fea (Goshen, NY)
Jacob Deguire (Journeymen, NY)
Ian Darling (Mercury Rising, MA)

75 Pounds
Blake Clayton (The Beast, NJ)
Paniro Johnson (Team Erie Vipers, PA)
Nicholas Fine (NE Elite, RI)
Ethan Sanderson (Titletown Fight Club, NY)

80 Pounds
Nicholas Crisp (Prescott, PA)
Jack Brantly (Olympic, NJ)
Justin Onello (Olympic, NJ)
Aydin Rix McElhinney (Southern Maine Trappers, ME)

90 Pounds
Cooper Kropman (Penfield, NY)
Jeffrey Crooks (Journeymen, NY)
Connor Haroutunian (Waldwick, NJ)
Michael Main (Fusion, NY)

100 Pounds
Hunter McKenna (Journeymen, NY)
Joseph Delgado (Jamestown, NY)

115 Pounds
Mason Lazorchak (Cannonball, NJ)

135 Pounds
Cael Black (Eisenhower, PA)
Mason Lazorchak (Cannonball, NJ)

Division 3

60 Pounds
Jacob Brumett (Ragin Raisins, PA)
Joe Scheeren (Journeymen, NY)
Luke Hoerle (Drill Masters, NJ)
Tyler Bartolomei (Cobra, NY)

65 Pounds
Myles Griffin (Mexico, NY)
CJ Composto (Apex, NJ)
JJ White (Rock Solid, PA)
Alijah Seymour (Mike’s Garage Grapplers, NY)

70 Pounds
Max Kropman (Penfield, NY)
Nicolas Botello (Smitty’s Barn, MA)
Nicholas Sabin (Lake Catholic, OH)
Hunter Adrian (Mercury Rising, MA)

75 Pounds
Nicholas Burgard (Conneaut Cougars, OH)
David Krokowski (Rock Solid, PA)
Jack Darling (Mercury Rising, MA)
Brock DelSignore (Journeymen, NY)

80 Pounds
Kyle Mosher (Long Beach Gladiators, NY)
Noah Castillo (Drill Masters, NJ)
Caleb Dowling (Juniata, PA)
Justin McDougald (Cobra, NY)

85 Pounds
David Berkovich (Long Beach Gladiators, NY)
Jimmy Kramer (Warren, PA)
Noah Strout (Smitty’s Barn, NH)
Cole Hivnor (Lake Catholic, OH)

90 Pounds
Benny Baker (Rock Solid, NY)
Warren McDougald (Cobra, NY)
Ed Scott (Dubois, PA)
Willie McDougald (Power Cats, NY)

100 Pounds
Dempsey Carroll (Copenhagen, NY)
Anthony Hinson (Roughneck, PA)
Tyler Kellison (Vvs, NY)
Joseph Koplow (Lake Catholic, OH)

110 Pounds
Carter Starocci (Team Erie Vipers, PA)
David Cumberledge (Ashtabula, OH)
Harrison Shapiro (Mercury Rising)
Gabriel Onorato (Raw 241, NJ)

135 Pounds
Drew Butera (Lake Catholic, OH)
Colby Johnson (Vvs, NY)
Shaine Luzietti (Newtown, CT)
Cael Black (Midget)

Division 4

73 Pounds
Michael Gonyea (Journeymen, NY)
Max Kropman (Penfield, NY)
Matthew Mustakis (Long Beach Gladiators, NY)
Evan Lesher (G2, NY)

78 Pounds
Sam Bacon (Ragin Raisins, PA)
Michael Gonyea (Journeymen, NY)
Owen Kissell (Viper Garage, NY)
Sam Baker (Cobra, NY)

83 Pounds
Dillan Palaszewski (Journeymen, NY)
Cole Rhone (Benton, PA)
Joe Klock (Benton, PA)
Sam Sallot (Ragin Raisins, PA)

90 Pounds
AJ Burkhart (Superior, NY)
Sebastian Comejo (Drill Masters, NJ)
Jonathan Gomez (Long Beach Gladiators, NY)
Cody Craig (Mat Cats, ME)

95 Pounds
Jacori Teemer (Long Beach Gladiators, NY)
Matthew Cabezas (Smitty’s Barn, MA)
Colton Babcock (Benton, PA)
Farouq Muhammed (Shaker, OH)

100 Pounds
Devon Briton (Rsw, PA)
Creighton Edsell (Wyalusing, PA)
Connor McGonagle (Smitty’s Barn, ME)
Matthew Maquet (Long Beach Gladiators, NY)

105 Pounds
Wade Unger (Olympic, NJ)
Shayne McCann (Smitty’s Barn, NH)
Hector Colom (Scorpion Cobra, NY)
Luke Wymer (Akron, OH)

115 Pounds
Mike Stuart (Rock Solid, PA)
Anthony Martoccio (Drill Masters, PA)
Carnell Andrews (Coldsteel, PA)
Philip Conigliaro (Smitty’s Barn, MA)

125 Pounds
Joshua McKenzie (Triumph, NJ)
Chris Barker (Fairport, NY)
Tyler Barnes (Journeymen, NY)
Kevin Ciresa (Apex, NJ)

135 Pounds
Joseph Giorlando (Long Beach Gladiators, NY)
Blake Aina (Brockport, NY)
Danny Contino (Marcaurele, CT)
Jacob W (Spencerport, NY)

150 Pounds
Frankie Gissendanner (G2, NY)
Gavin Hoffman (Rock Solid, PA)
Anthony Walters (Young Guns, PA)
Ryan Fredette (Cummings Compound, ME)

175 Pounds
Jerry Ogurkis (Dallas, PA)
Calvin Hayford (Winooski, VT)
David Clayton (The Beast, NJ)
Dominic Salerno (Thorobred, NY)

230 Pounds
Nick Jones (Cobra, NY)

Division 5

98 Pounds
Kelan McKenna (Superior, NY)
Troy Keller (Cobra, NY)
Derek St. James (G2, NY)
Dylan Arena (Cobra, NY)

105 Pounds
Hector Colom (Scorpion Cobra, NY)
Vincent Falvo (Nwaa, NY)
Eli Yoho (Akron, OH)
Kaleb Pascoe (Spencerport, NY)

112 Pounds
Jimmy Hoffman (Rock Solid, PA)
Ta’ Nauz Gregory (Ragin Raisins, PA)
Tito Colom (Scorpion Cobra, NY)
Isaac Yoho (Akron, OH)

120 Pounds
Peter Delgallo (Mtn Valley, ME)
Tyler Craig (Mat Cats, ME)
Logan Gray (Ragin Raisins, PA)
Mitchell Shambo (Mexico, NY)

125 Pounds
Zack Barker (Fairport, NY)
Brian Earlston (Drill Masters, PA)
Brandon Saline (CC, PA)
Austin Coleman (Excelsior United, NY)

130 Pounds
Julian Sirois (Cummings Compound, ME)
Joseph Koontz (Awc, OH)
James Arao (Titan Worldwide, NY)
Paul Bavisotto (Ken West, NY)

135 Pounds
Cody McGregor (Cobra, NY)
Freddy Eckles (Cobra, NY)
Collin Edsell (Wyalusing, PA)
Alex Herringshaw (Vvs, NY)

140 Pounds
Matt Kloc (Cobra, NY)
Jakob Coad (Kenmore West, NY)
Julian Korfine (Finger Lakes, NY)
Connor Dowe (Brockport, NY)

145 Pounds
AJ Aeberli (Olympic, NY)
Nicholas Konovalchik (Mercury Rising, MA)
Corey Farrell (Knights, NY)
Matt Judge (Valley View, PA)

152 Pounds
Jason Hoffman (Journeymen, NY)
Avery Dinardi (Sepa, NJ)
Matt Azzano (Wayne, NY)
Jack Collins (NE Elite, RI)

160 Pounds
Nathan Schwab (Cobra, NY)
Trevor Allard (Mexico, NY)
Ethan Pansa (Mohawk, NY)

171 Pounds
Sonny McPherson (Indian River, NY)
Michael Hughes (Ragin Raisins, PA)
James Geiger (Dallas, PA)
Kameron Miller (Prescott, NY)

189 Pounds
Tyler Hall (NYSS, NY)
Michael Daskavitz (Lockport, NY)
Noah Siesto (Webster Schroeder, NY)

250 Pounds
Austin Slocum (Ragin Raisins, PA)
Lucas Silvis (Goldforce, NY)
Hayden Ricci (East Rochester, NY)
Nick Jones (Cobra, NY)

Division 6

106 Pounds
Parker Kropman (Penfield, NY)
Michael Wicks (Spencerport, NY)
Chris Hoerle (Apex, NJ)

113 Pounds
Jonathan Haas (Spencerport, NY)
Tito Colom (Scorpion Cobra, NY)
Aleksei Cartagena (Pittsford, NY)
Chase Jefferys (Mercury Rising, MA)

120 Pounds
Bryan Lantry (Superior, NY)
Doug Iadanza (Sachem East, NY)
Edwin Serrano (Titan Worldwide, NY)
Jacob Morley (Gates Chili, NY)

126 Pounds
Sean Peacock (Superior, NY)
Anthony Calvano (Iowa Style, NY)
Abdul-Fatah Alishawai (NY)
Daniel Sportello (Ilion, NY)

132 Pounds
Austin Acquard (Cobra, NY)
Kyle Lukowich (Ragin Raisins, PA)
Nick Toutant (Indian River, NY)
Jack Glasi (Brockway, PA)

138 Pounds
Sean O’Hagan (Sachem North, NY)
Keller Watkins (Rrwc, PA)
Codie Gillette (Saranac, NY)
Anthony Pesce (Fairport, NY)

145 Pounds
Dan Reagan (Ransomville, NY)
Daniel Anghelina (Olympic, NJ)
Noah Phillips (Cellar Dwellers, NY)
Deane Twitchell (Ragin Raisins, PA)

152 Pounds
Skylar Kropman (Penfield, NY)
Tristan Broddus (Fayetteville-Manlius, NY)
Hunter Proctor (Ragin Raisins, PA)
Anthony Bell (Hells Bells, NY)

160 Pounds
Kyle Bova (Coudersport, PA)
Rowdy Prior (Pin2Win, NY)
Mark Stucke (Cobra, NY)
David Burke (Danville, PA)

170 Pounds
Evan Delong (Kane, PA)
Cole Shirey (Ragin Raisins, PA)
Joshua Goodman, Gates Chili, NY)
Brayden Denk (Prestige, NY)

182 Pounds
Jared Mesiti (Brockport, NY)
Taylor Saline (CC, PA)
Marquis Buchanan (Cobra, NY)
Shane Currey (Kenmore West, NY)

195 Pounds
Troy Uhrin (Mat Assassins, PA)
Andrew Phelps (Ragin Raisins, PA)
Trent Egenlauf (Spencerport, NY)
Dan Norris (Hilton, NY)

220 Pounds
Sam Eagan (Empire, NY)
Connor Calkins (Finger Lakes, NY)
Paul Herrera (Wolf Pack, NY)
Dylan Grant (Cobra, NY)

285 Pounds
Wyatt Morris (Morrisville-Eaton, NY)
Jakob Rowe (Mat Assassins, PA)
Mason Cross (Titans, NY)
Kasey Kubiniec (Newfane, NY)

High School Dual Team Champions – Cobra Wrestling Academy (as provided by Keith Maute)

101 Troy Keller and Dylan Arena

108 Tito Colom

115 Michael Wizniewski

122 Ryan Burns and Nick Gaiser

128 Kellen Devlin

134 Cody McGregor and Freddy Eckles

140 Matt Kloc

147 Danny Graham

154 Jude Gardner

162 Nathan Schwab

172 Matt Weber

184 Anthony Liberatore and Marques Buchanan

197 Matt Booth

222 Marshall Taylor and Mike Ziolo

285 Matt Montesanti and Nick Jones

McFarland, Schubert and Scott Win Championships at NUWAY Nationals in Michigan

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It was a small but successful New York contingent that traveled to Michigan this weekend for the NUWAY National Championships.

Both Carter Schubert (58 pounds) and Jayden Scott (72 pounds) won titles in Division 2, while Andrew McFarland captured first place as well at 118 pounds in Division 5.

Schubert registered a pin and otherwise outscored his opponents 10-0 on his path, while Scott won three of his five matches by bonus points, including a 16-5 major in the finals.  McFarland outpointed his foes 17-1 and also had a fall on his way to the top of the medal stand a week after becoming an All-American at NHSCAs in Virginia Beach.

Meanwhile, Ethan Ferro dropped his opening bout at 76 pounds but bounced back with five straight wins in the wrestlebacks to record fourth place in Division 3.  Also making the podium was Dylan Ellingsworth, who was eighth at 140 in D5.

Gary McDowell entered in the youngest division at 40 pounds.

For full results and brackets, see http://www.trackwrestling.com and search for NUWAY Nationals.

Beat the Streets's "Rumble on the Rails" Will Feature Team USA vs. Russia and Iran in NYC in May

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For years, the annual Beat the Streets event in New York City has featured some of the best wrestling talent around.

2013 will be no exception.

On May 15, Grand Central Terminal’s Vanderbilt Hall will be the host of the “Rumble on the Rails”, involving three of the world’s top wrestling nations – the United States, Russia and Iran.  Action is scheduled to begin at 3 p.m. when the United States takes on the Iranians.  Shortly afterwards, Beat the Streets exhibition matches will take place before the US and Russia square off in another dual at 6 p.m..  Following the competition, the annual Beat the Streets Gala will begin at the Bryant Park Grill.

The nations will come together to support both the Beat the Streets program as well as show unity for the Keep Olympic Wrestling movement.

For more information, see Here.

 

 

Aerial Conquest: Rodriguez-Spencer Uses the Flying Squirrel to Win National Championship

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For Renaldo Rodriguez-Spencer, it was time to take flight.

Trailing by a point with under 15 seconds to go in the NHSCA 138-pound Junior Nationals title bout on Saturday, the Cheektowoga junior knew he’d have to try something different as his previous offensive attempts had been thwarted by his opponent, Maryland’s Alfred Bannister.

“He was pretty low and I couldn’t get to a shot,” Rodriguez-Spencer said. “The obvious option was to go over the top. Once I decided to do it, I knew I had to hit it hard and do it strong.”

That’s what he did, using the “Flying Squirrel” to earn the winning takedown and a 4-3 victory over Bannister, a champion at this event the past two years and Intermat’s #14 ranked recruit in the Class of 2014. See it here.

The triumph made him a national champion at an event he hadn’t attended in the past. In fact, Rodriguez-Spencer, who enjoys wrestling the international styles in the offseason, wasn’t really considering attending the NHSCA event until his high school coaches persuaded him to do so.

Photo by BV

“I initially wasn’t planning to go,” he said. “I was going to get ready for the freestyle season, but my coach thought I could be a national champion and talked me into it. I’m glad I went, it was a good tournament overall and a good time.”

He certainly made the most of the trip, even playing some golf at a driving range in Virginia Beach.

But when it came time for competition, Rodriguez-Spencer was all business at 138 pounds (up from 132, where he was the 2013 Division II New York State Champion).

He majored his first two opponents and then doubled up fellow New Yorker Matt Caputo, 6-3. The Section 6 wrestler then showed his offensive explosiveness again in a 11-3 quarterfinal victory and in his 13-8 semis win over Brock Wingbermuehle, leading him to the title bout where he would win in dramatic fashion with the Flying Squirrel.

It wasn’t the first time he used the maneuver famously utilized by Greco star Ellis Coleman.

“I sometimes do it in practice and I think it did it twice during the year,” he said. “I know it’s there if I need it. It’s one of those moves that no one expects and I know it works.”

Those in attendance certainly appreciated it.

“I normally don’t hear much when I wrestle,” he said. “But I heard the crowd a little bit when I hit the move. And then once I got my hand raised, it was pretty loud.”

Beating an accomplished foe like Bannister and adding a new trophy to his collection made it a great weekend for Rodriguez-Spencer, but he said on Sunday that he already moved on.

“It’s nice to beat good opponents, but it doesn’t change much for me,” he said. “I went there to win and now it’s time to get back to practice to win more national tournaments.”

Photo by BV

Next on the schedule: the FILA Juniors, a freestyle and Greco event in which Rodriguez-Spencer has been successful in the past.

“My goals now are of course to win FILA Juniors in Las Vegas, make a World Team and finally win a Fargo national championship this summer,” he said.

He has placed at Fargo before, including a bronze showing in Greco in 2012.

But he emphasized that it’s time for him to take gold in North Dakota. Who knows, he could get to the top of the podium by going over the top of his opponents again, Flying Squirrel style.

Fabian and Burgos Capture Championships, Many Others Make the Podium as NHSCAs and FloNationals Come to an End

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A weekend full of national-level competition came to an end on Sunday, with many more trips to the podium for New York wrestlers.

Fabian, Photo by BV

TJ Fabian capped off his spectacular senior year by adding a national title to the state gold medal he earned in Feburary. The Shoreham Wading River wrestler won six matches in Virginia Beach, including a 10-4 decision over Pennyslvania’s Kyle Krasavage in the 126-pound championship bout at the NHSCA Senior Nationals.

He was joined on the medal stand by a number of other Empire State grapplers on Sunday, including fellow Long Islander Michael Hughes of Smithtown West, who was the runner up at heavyweight. For a full list of New York All-Americans at the Senior NHSCA competition, see below.

In addition, a number of Middle School and Elementary wrestlers put their talent on display at the FloNationals in Pennsylvania, with G2 World Wrestling Academy’s Ryan Burgos winning a national crown of his own at 75 pounds. Burgos pinned his way to the finals, where he captured an 8-4 decision over Jimmy Carmany of Ohio.

See below for more information on additional New Yorkers who placed at the event.

For the NHSCA Middle School, Freshman, Sophomore and Junior medalists as well as the FloNationals High School All-Americans, see this link.

NHSCA SENIOR NATIONALS

Champion:

126: TJ Fabian (Shoreham Wading River)

Second Place:

285: Michael Hughes (Smithtown West)

Fourth Place:

106: Steven Lee (West Babylon)

Fifth Place

106: Jake Yankloski (Wayne)
138: Nick Tighe (Phoenix)
170: Carlos Toribio (Brentwood)

Sixth Place

113: Mat Bradice (William Floyd)
126: Chris Araoz (Wantagh)
160: Troy Seymour (Peru)
170: Dan McDevitt (Wantagh)

Seventh Place:

113: Dillon Stowell (Gouverneur)
132: Matt Leshinger (Sayville)
152: Chris Koo (Great Neck South)

Eighth Place:
113: Steven Sewkumar (Long Beach)
126: Dylan Realbuto (Somers)
170: Johnny Vrasidas (St. Anthony’s)

FLONATIONALS – MIDDLE SCHOOL AND ELEMENTARY

Champion:

Middle School (MS) 75: Ryan Burgos

Third Place:

MS 126: Louie DePrez
Elementary 68: Greg Diakomihalis

Fourth Place:

MS 119: Matt Grippi
MS 135: Conor Melbourne
MS 145: Andrew Passaro
MS 157: Mike Spallina
Elementary 105: Hunter John

Fifth Place:

MS 145: Ray Cotto
MS 157: Jason Hoffman
Elementary 78: Ethan Ferro

Seventh Place:

MS 95: Sammy DePrez
MS 135: Josh Shamp

Mauriello, Torbitt, Rodriguez-Spencer, Rasheed Earn High School National Titles; Numerous Others Become All-Americans at NHSCAs and FloNationals

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There’s going to be a lot of hardware headed back to New York. On Saturday, numerous Empire State wrestlers earned All-American status, including several who went all the way to the top.

At the NHSCAs in Virginia Beach, two ninth graders earned crowns as Hauppauge’s Chris Mauriello captured the 132 pound title and Whitney Point’s Jordan Torbitt joined him as a gold medalist at 152.

Later in the day, a pair of 2013 state champions – Renaldo Rodriguez-Spencer (138) and Corey Rasheed (152) added national titles to their resumes when they were victorious in the NHSCA Junior event. Also making it all the way to the finals were Reggie Williams (195) and James O’Hagan (285) in the 11th grade tournament and as well as a trio of freshmen – Kellen Devlin (120), Christian Araneo (182) and Edwin Rubio (285).

But that wasn’t all. The Empire State boasted some gold medalists in the Middle School competition as well – Mack Berkowitz at 127 and Travis Race at 165. (New York grabbed first in the team standings in both the Junior and Middle School competitions).

Tomorrow, two grapplers who stood atop the podium at the Times Union Center – TJ Fabian (126) and Mike Hughes (285) – will try to add their names to the list of champions when they take the mat in the finals of the Senior tournament.

Meanwhile, Virginia wasn’t the only place Empire Staters were showing off their skills. A number of New York wrestlers made the medal stand at the FloNationals, including runner up Nick Piccininni (113) and bronze medalist Tyler Grimaldi (160).

For more information on the placers at all of those events, see below.

FLONATIONALS

Second Place:
113: Nick Piccininni (Ward Melville)

Third Place:
160: Tyler Grimaldi (Hills West)

Fourth Place:
132: Nick Kelley (Shenendehowa)
170: Christian Dietrich (Greene)

Seventh Place:
152: Joe Mastro (Yorktown)

Eighth Place:
120: Travis Passaro (Eastport South Manor)

NHSCA NATIONALS

NHSCA JUNIORS

National Champions
138: Renaldo Rodriguez-Spencer (Cheektowoga)
152: Corey Rasheed (Longwood)

Second Place:
195: Reggie Williams (Johnson City)
285: James O’Hagan (Seaford)

Fourth Place:
220: Ryan Wolcott (Waverly)

Fifth Place
170: Adis Radoncic (RKA)

Seventh Place
106: Danny Murray (Brentwood)
120: Sean Peacock (Midlakes)
152: Derek Holcomb (Newark Valley)

Eighth Place
113: Bryan Lantry (Wayne)

NHSCA SOPHOMORES

Third Place
106: Kyle Quinn (Wantagh)

Fifth Place
106: Jesse Dellavecchia (East Islip)

Sixth Place
113: Nick Casella (Locust Valley)
138: Jakob Restrepo (Sachem East)
145: Brandon Aviles (Newfield)
160: Richie Jones (St. Joseph’s)

Seventh Place
113: Ben Lamantia (St. Anthony’s)
160: Trevor Allard (Mexico)

Eighth Place
132: Sam Ward (Locust Valley)
220: Vincent Feola (Whitman)

NHSCA FRESHMEN

National Champions
132: Chris Mauriello (Hauppauge)
152: Jordan Torbitt (Whitney Point)

Second Place
120: Kellen Devlin (Amherst)
182: Christian Araneo (Ward Melville)
285: Edwin Rubio (John Glenn)

Fourth Place
220: Owen Albanese (Canastota)

Fifth Place
170: Wil Hilliard (Phoenix)
182: Ricardo Dawkins (General Brown)

Sixth Place
106: Anthony Argentieri (Kenmore West)

Seventh Place
113: Andrew McFarland (Carthage)
132: Freddy Eckles (Lake Shore)
170: Sonny McPherson (Indian River)

NHSCA MIDDLE SCHOOL

Champions:
127: Mack Berkowitz
165: Travis Race

Second Place:
100: Hector Colom

Third Place:
85: John DeRidder
90: Dane Heberlein
100: Anthony Cirillo
154: Jeffrey Browne

Fourth Place
75: James Langan
85: Mitch Seaver
100: Benjamin Tepperman

Fifth Place

230: Larry Baker

Sixth Place
75: Riley Retell
105: Zachary Ancewicz
112: Hunter Dusold
180: Dominic Pistone

Seventh Place:
95: William Sims
142: Nick Bushey

Eighth Place
80: Christopher Rivera
90: James Trezza
100: Jacori Teemer
135: Nick Coppola
142: Richard Dawkins

NHSCA SENIORS – WRESTLING TO BE COMPLETED ON SUNDAY

Finalists:
126: TJ Fabian
285: Mike Hughes

Others All-Americans:
106: Steven Lee, Jacob Yankloski
113: Mat Bradice, Dillon Stowell, Steven Sewkumar
126: Dylan Realbuto, Chris Araoz
132: Matt Leshinger
138: Nick Tighe
152: Chris Koo
160: Troy Seymour
170: Johnny Vrasidas, Dan McDevitt, Carlos Toribio

In Contention: See the New York Wrestlers Still Battling at NHSCAs and FloNationals

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On Friday, FloNationals began in Indiana, Pennsylvania while the second day of the NHSCA Freshman, Sophomore and Junior events took place. Many New York wrestlers stayed in contention for national championships in both tournaments. All the remaining grapplers at the Freshman, Sophomore and Junior NHSCAs have clinched All-American honors.
Continue below to see who will be wrestling on Saturday both in Virginia Beach and at Flo. (We will update Senior NHSCAs on Saturday as well). Please provide comments below with any additions.

NHSCA Semifinalists

JUNIORS

138 Pounds: Renaldo Rodriguez-Spencer (Cheektowoga)
152 Pounds: Corey Rasheed (Longwood)
195 Pounds: Reggie Williams (Johnson City)
220 Pounds: Ryan Wolcott (Waverly)
285 Pounds: James O’Hagan (Seaford)

SOPHOMORES

106 Pounds: Kyle Quinn (Wantagh)
113 Pounds: Nick Casella (Locust Valley)
138 Pounds: Jakob Restrepo (Sachem East)
160 Pounds: Richie Jones (St. Joseph’s)

FRESHMEN 
106 Pounds: Anthony Argentieri (Kenmore West)
120 Pounds: Kellen Devlin (Amherst)
132 Pounds: Chris Mauriello (Hauppauge)
152 Pounds: Jordan Torbitt (Whitney Point)
170 Pounds: Wil Hilliard (Phoenix)
182 Pounds: Christian Araneo (Ward Melville), Ricardo Dawkins (General Brown)
220 Pounds: Owen Albanese (Canastota)
285 Pounds: Edwin Rubio (John Glenn)

NHSCA Wrestlebacks (Wrestling for 3rd-8th)

JUNIORS 
106 Pounds:
 Danny Murray (Brentwood)
113 Pounds:
 Bryan Lantry (Wayne)
120 Pounds:
 Sean Peacock (Midlakes)
152 Pounds: 
Derek Holcomb (Newark Valley)
170 Pounds: 
Adis Radoncic (RKA)

SOPHOMORES

106 Pounds: Jesse Dellavecchia (East Islip)
113 Pounds: Ben Lamantia (St. Anthony’s)
132 Pounds: Sam Ward (Locust Valley)
145: Brandon Aviles (Newfield)
160: Trevor Allard (Mexico)
220: Vincent Feola (Whitman)

FRESHMEN 

113 Pounds: Andrew McFarland (Carthage)
132 Pounds: Freddy Eckles (Lake Shore)
170 Pounds: Sonny McPherson (Indian River)

 

FLONATIONALS

Champions Bracket – Quarterfinalists

106 Pounds: Yianni Diakomihalis (Hilton)

113 Pounds: Nick Piccininni (Ward Melville)

120 Pounds: Travis Passaro (Eastport South Manor)

132 Pounds: Nick Kelley (Shenendehowa)

160 Pounds: Tyler Grimaldi (Hills West) and Andrew Psomas (Monsignor Farrell)

170: Christian Dietrich (Greene)

In the Consolations

138: Vincent DePrez (Hilton) will meet David Almaviva (Shenendehowa) Saturday morning

145: Zach Joseph (Shenendehowa), Mitchell Klein (Horace Greeley) will meet Anthony DePrez (Hilton) on Saturday morning

152: Joe Mastro (Yorktown)

170: Michael Green and Joe Piccolo (Hills West)

182: Daniel Norris (Hilton)

195: Collin Pittman (Spencerport)

220: Joe Sprung (Berne-Knox)

285: Alex Soutiere (Ravena CS)

Logan Barcomb (Hudson Falls)

NHSCA Nationals Underway: Who From NY Advanced to the Round of 16?

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On Thursday, the NHSCA Freshman, Sophomore and Junior National tournaments got underway in Virginia Beach.  Championship action ran through the Round of 16, with many New Yorkers making the cut.  The Empire State is well represented throughout, but has four or more representatives alive in the winners bracket to this point in:

  • Juniors 170 (Franky Nassivera of Queensbury, Ronnie King of Islip, Jake Weber of Clarence and state champion Adis Radoncic of RKA)
  • Sophomores 113 (Donny McCoy of Niagara Falls, James Szymanski of Shoreham Wading River, Chris Donnelly of Island Trees and Nick Casella of Locust Valley.  (Donnelly and Casella meet next).
  • Sophomores 160 (Ryan Marszal of Unatego, Richie Jones, Trevor Allard of Mexico, Nick Wentland of Minisink Valley and Anthony Ottaviano of Hauppauge)
  • Freshmen 132 (Connor Remy of Patchogue-Medford, Freddy Eckles of Lake Shore, Nathaniel Grubham of Whitney Point, Chris Mauriello of Hauppague and Holden Pelton of South Jefferson)

Radoncic, Photo by BV

Below is a list of wrestlers who advanced to the Round of 16 as well as those who are in the consolation bracket (as of Thursday evening on the official brackets).  With any additions, or changes, please comment below.

JUNIORS – In the Championship Round of 16:

106 Pounds:

Danny Murray

113 Pounds:

Johnny Stramiello and Paul Capobianco

120 Pounds:

Joseph Russ and Sean Peacock

126 Pounds:

Blake Retell

138 Pounds:

Renaldo Rodriguez-Spencer and Matt Caputo (Will meet each other in the Round of 16)

145 Pounds:

Dennis Ferro

152 Pounds:

Corey Rasheed

160 Pounds:

Burke Paddock

170 Pounds:

Franky Nassivera, Ronnie King, Jake Weber and Adis Radoncic

182 Pounds:

Connor Watson

195 Pounds:

Reggie Williams

220 Pounds:

Ryan Wolcott and Matt Kaminer

285 Pounds:

James O’Hagan

 

JUNIORS – Consolations

106 Pounds:
David Yablans

113 Pounds:
Matt Boyle
Joseph Hill
Timothy Johnson
Bryan Lantry

120 Pounds:
Joshua Straub
Thomas Hill
Abdul Fatah Alshawai
Nathan Gilligan and Danny Amancio

126 Pounds:
Jake Lerner
Ryan Snow
Marshall Winston
Paddy Quinlan
Anthony Messina
Tom Reina
Carter Merecki

132 Pounds:
Brandon Hill
Jack Reina
Said Kahramonov
Ralph Cazzetta
JP Ascolese
Mat Lauro
Oran Revivo
Zach Ayen
Eric St. John
Adrian Berry

138 Pounds:
Nick Forget
Matt Langan
Ryan Kromer
Jon Silveri
Anthony Feola
Warren Oderkirk
Daniel Lucey
Corey Ashe

145 Pounds:
Eduardo Ramirez
Marc DChutiis
Zachery Lugo
Raymond Prouty
James Farrell
Trevor Hoffmier
Nate Martin
Vinny Romeo
Jimmy Devine
Frankie Hernandez
Nigel Williams

152 Pounds:
Michael Pistone
Angelo Kress
Cory Kostrzycki
Derek Holcomb
Daniel Jones
Vincent Drago
Alex Smythe
Will Jacobs

160 Pounds:
Michael Peterson
Daniel Kerr
Konstantin Parfiryev
Tyler Silverthorn
Erik Adon
Jaison White

170 Pounds:
Isaiah Zimmer
Mark Tracy
Joseph Russo
Jordan Formicola

182 Pounds:
Jake Horton
Dominic Pirraglia
Dominic Holder

195 Pounds:
Nick Weber

220 Pounds:
Bryan Tenny
Luke McKee
Charles Pederson
Sean Ferguson
Caden Watson

 

SOPHOMORES – In the Round of 16

106 Pounds:

Kyle Quinn and Jack Scurti

113 Pounds:

Donny McCoy, James Szymanski, Chris Donnelly and Nick Casella (Donnelly and Casella meet next)

120 Pounds:

Dandre Norman and Mike D’Angelo

126 Pounds:

Nick Toutant, Blaise Benderoth and Mike Raccioppi

132 Pounds:

Tyler Gross, Chris Truglio and Sam Ward

138 Pounds:

Donny Donnelly and Jakob Restrepo

145 Pounds:

Brandon Aviles

152 Pounds:

Vincent Darpino and Nathan Schwab

160 Pounds:

Ryan Marszal, Richie Jones, Trevor Allard, Nick Wentland and Anthony Ottaviano

195 Pounds:
Andrew Rakitzis and Nathaneal Rose

220 Pounds:

Brad Cunningham and Vincent Feola

285 Pounds:

Garrett Rath

 

SOPHOMORES – Consolations

106 Pounds:
Joe Abelgore
Dominick Mazzella
Joe Barber
Lucas Yankloski
Jesse Dellavecchia

113 Pounds:
Hector Guerrero
Joseph Rorick
Logan Robinson
Ben Lamantia
Christian Briody

120 Pounds:
Andrew Taber
Mitchell Shambo
Chris Meloni

126 Pounds:
Dashea Edwards
Austin Whitney
Alan White
Joseph Loconte
Cody McGregor

132 Pounds:

Hunter Hulse
Christian Hollister
Andrew Shomers
Zack Bendick
Nick Nieves
Matt Gund
Naquan Warren

138 Pounds:
Francisco Bisono
Peter Pasqualino
Sheldan Clute
Joseph Demasi
Kevin Jackson
Jordan Bushey
Danny Murphy
Kyle Greene

145 Pounds:
John Donohue
Elias Kokalis
Bailey Phelps

152 Pounds:
Nick Wyckoff
Ricky Panciroli

160 Pounds:
Greg Kleinsmith

170 Pounds:

Brett Lewis
Marcello Gennaro

182 Pounds:
David Hamil

 

FRESHMEN – In the Round of 16:

106 Pounds:

Anthony Argentieri and John Arceri

113 Pounds:

Ryan O’Rourke

120 Pounds:

Kellen Devlin

126 Pounds:

Jack Taddeo and Nick Garone

132 Pounds:

Connor Remy, Freddy Eckles, Nathaniel Grubham, Chris Mauriello and Holden Pelton

138 Pounds:

Joshua Farrar

152 Pounds:

Nick Saporito, Jordan Torbitt and Jack Freischlag

160 Pounds:

Timothy Heitmann and Luke MacIntosh

170 Pounds:

Sonny McPherson, Aaron Paddock and Wil Hilliard

182 Pounds:

Christian Araneo, Ricardo Dawkins and Nick McShea

195 Pounds:

Ryan Gray

220 Pounds:

Owen Albanese

285 Pounds:

Edwin Rubio

 

FRESHMEN – Consolations:

106 Pounds:
Brandon Gould
Derek Spann
Theo Powers
John Kalinoglu
Hunter Olena
Bobby Pease
Dominic Poggoli
Shawn Bourne
Tyler Ayers
Kelan McKenna
Thomas Michel

113 Pounds:
Ramel McIntosh
CJ Archer
Chris Pereira
Zachary Burke
Andrew McFarland
Dakota White
Andrew Hollister
Hunter Owen
Tito Colom
Dylan Wood
Jack Gold

120 Pounds:
Nick Shenck
Michael Berkowitz
Josh Bressette

126 Pounds:
Andrew Garcia
Devin Wrieth
Jeremy Boyle
Zach Bierfeldt
Owen Bachelder
Marc Paez

138 Pounds:

Jordan Kayes

145 Pounds:
Bryce Dusold
Dylan Studer