Commanding Presence, Future of Service: State Champion Luis Weierbach Pledges to Army

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It was summer break, but Hoosick Falls state champion Luis Weierbach was up before 6:00 in the morning and running by 6:30.  At the Ranger Intensive wrestling camp at West Point in July, that was just the start of the day’s exercise, which also included three practices per day.

“I got an inside look at Cadet life,” Weierbach said of the experience. “The counselors were Cadets, so they gave us inside knowledge on what to expect and I got to know the coaching staff.  It was intense. The atmosphere there reaffirmed what I already thought I wanted for my future and told me that West Point was where I needed to go.”

Weierbach captured the attention of the Army staff during his time on campus and a few days ago he made things official, as he gave a verbal commitment to head coach Joe Heskett and the Black Knights.

The decision wasn’t a surprise to those familiar with the Section 2 star.  Weierbach has known for quite some time that the military would be an important part of his life. (He also considered the Naval and Merchant Marine Academies).

“At a very young age, I knew I wanted to serve,” Weierbach said.  “My grandfather was a Marine. He left service life behind when he passed, and I felt that legacy was left to me.  I realized early on that service academies have a lot to offer.”

He saw a lot more of what the United States Military Academy offers during his time at the Ranger camp.

“We ran a lot, so I had a chance to see a lot of the campus,” Weierbach said. “Additionally, there were leadership seminars, where we learned about West Point and the military.  The speakers talked about qualities common among Cadets and also general life lessons. I really took a lot from these leadership seminars – it was really insightful information.”

While Weierbach was the recipient of insightful information at those presentations, he also has experience on the other side of leadership seminars – as the teacher.

Earlier this year, the senior was a keynote speaker at the “Life of An Athlete” conference in Lake Placid along with his school’s superintendent.  The audiences included students from various parts of the country as well as school administrators and staff.

“The conference in general was about how an athlete should live including nutrition, fitness and a healthy lifestyle,” Weierbach said. “We talked about our Hoosick Falls Code of Conduct and how implementing it has impacted our sports performance over the past few years.”

Weierbach knows plenty about successful performance in sports.

As a freshman, he qualified for the state tournament and went 2-2, just missing All-State status.  As a tenth grader, he moved up the ladder, earning fifth place at 99 pounds.  Then, in 2012-13, Weierbach made another leap, putting together a perfect 37-0 campaign at 106 pounds in which he won 30 bouts by bonus points.

What helped him get to that next level?

“The mental game changed for me,” he said. “I realized that while this sport is largely defined by athleticism, strength, speed and technique, a lot of it comes down to the mental aspect. It’s one of the things my coach, Landon Nelson, has helped me with – being mentally prepared, envisioning possible scenarios and taking no opponent lightly.  Whether it’s the first match of the season at a small tournament or the state finals match, you need to have the same mentality.”

That approach definitely came in handy in Albany, in his third appearance at the biggest event of the New York high school season.

“The atmosphere at the state tournament can make or break any wrestler,” Weierbach said. “Having that experience before was definitely an advantage.  I was nervous my freshman year, but by last year, I was used to it.  I would go so far as to say that having my supporters there empowered me and motivated me to do better.”

He began strong, pinning Brody Sheppard in just over three minutes in his opening contest before recording a pair of shutout decisions in rounds two and three.  And then, wearing a “throwback” Hoosick Falls singlet, Weierbach defeated Dolgeville’s Danny Fox 3-1 in the title bout to strike gold.

“The state title was the product of so many hours of hard work, so in that regard, I appreciate it more than anything else in my career,” he said. “But what was most special about the state title was that it was the first one in my school’s history. More exciting than hearing them say ‘Weierbach’ when they were announcing the winners was when they said ‘Hoosick Falls’.  I wore the throwback singlet to show that I represent Hoosick Falls.  I would not have accomplished it without the support of my team, my coach and the whole community.”

That’s a theme that’s very important to the future Army 125 pounder. Weierbach emphasized on a number of occasions that his championship was the product of the efforts of many around him.

“We set the goal of bringing home a state title at the beginning of the season – myself, my coach and my team – not just me,” he said. “I think in wrestling it’s often misunderstood that it’s an individual sport because you’re the only one on the mat.  I’ve played football, baseball and soccer and I think wrestling is just as much a team sport. In the room, behind the scenes, when the opponent isn’t watching, there’s a team effort to develop the speed, technique and toughness to go out on the mat alone.  Nolan Foster was my main workout partner and he really stepped up his game this year.  He was excellent.  He pushed me and I wouldn’t have done what I did without him, my other partners or my coach.”

So what’s next?

Weierbach said his offseason regimen “isn’t typical of a state champion.” He wrestles with Journeymen at some tournaments, trying to get in around 20 matches.  But he also has a lot of other things on his plate, including working at his high school doing maintenance and being a lifeguard at the town pool.

“I try to stay active all the time,” he said. “I drill with the New York National Guard, so that certainly keeps me in shape. Right now, I’m playing varsity soccer, which I love too. But once the wrestling season starts, it’s game on and wrestling gets my attention.”

It’s had his attention in the winter season since he first discovered the sport upon arriving in Hoosick Falls as a seventh grader.

“I grew up in New York City and I never knew about the sport of wrestling until I moved,” he said. “I never even heard of it outside of what we see on TV [in the WWE].  I’m certainly glad that I got involved.  I never would have thought I’d end up where I am now with wrestling.”

He did, however, think he’d end up serving his country.  That journey begins next fall when he moves to West Point.  For now, though, he has a few more things left to achieve.

“I haven’t decided on what weight I’ll wrestle next year, but one thing’s for sure,” he said. “We will work harder than anyone in New York State and refine and perfect and do whatever is necessary to win another state title.”

———————————————–

Luis Weierbach said that there were so many people who have helped him behind the scenes that he couldn’t mention them all by name and didn’t want to leave anyone out. He wanted to thank Hoosick Falls – a community that has supported him over the years and made his accomplishments possible.

 

All-American Donnie Vinson Joins Binghamton Staff for 2013-14

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Photo by BV

 

—Courtesy of Binghamton wrestling

Binghamton Wrestling is happy to announce that Donald Vinson will be joining Binghamton’s staff for the 2013/2014 wrestling year. Vinson is the program’s winningest wrestler and ended his career a four-time National Qualifier and an All-American, finishing 3rd in the country in 2012.

Vinson, who will be finishing his masters program during the year, will be working directly with our student-athletes academically and athletically. He will be working with our academic advisor (Jenny Barbee) to see that our wrestlers are getting things accomplished in the classroom and meeting their academic goals. He will assist our wrestlers with tutor scheduling, teacher hours, and study hall, overseeing that each individual is doing everything he can to get the best academic experience out of Binghamton University.

On the mat, Vinson will have two responsibilities: assisting with player development and directing our Binghamton Wrestling Camp sessions. He will be working with our athletes one-on-one throughout the week, perfecting their baseline wrestling technique and working on each individual’s strengths and weaknesses. As director of our fall wrestling camp, Vinson will be able to interact with wrestlers from the local community, building strong relationships with area athletes and coaches, while teaching our techniques and philosophies to a younger generation of great wrestlers.

After a Championship Year, NY's Top Freshman Yianni Diakomihalis Aims For Even More

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Over the next few weeks, we will be discussing some of the top wrestlers in New York for the upcoming campaign.  We started with our #1 Junior High School grappler in the state, Penfield eighth grader Frankie Gissendanner (see link).  The following takes a look at top freshman Yianni Diakomihalis of Hilton High School.  A glance at more ninth graders to watch will be next.

It was a time of celebration at the Times Union Center last February, but Yianni Diakomihalis didn’t scream or pose or run around.

“I just went into relaxed mode,” he said. “I won the state championship and it was over.  A lot of people get really excited in that type of situation, but I kind of shut myself down and relaxed.”

He deserved the relaxation after finishing off a tremendous eighth grade campaign at 99 pounds in which he went 51-0 with 45 victories by bonus points.  In fact, according to the NWCA Scorebook, Diakomihalis won his first 34 bouts by either pin, technical fall or forfeit.

Photo by BV

His domination continued after those first 34 matches and even into the state tournament as he outscored his first three opponents in Albany 31-3 before taking on Syosset’s Vito Arujau in the championship contest.

It was not the first showdown between the eighth grade superstars.  In October of 2012, the two met in an entertaining battle in North Carolina that Diakomihalis won 10-8.

The state title bout was also exciting.  It went to the ultimate tiebreaker, where Diakomihalis grabbed a 3-2 victory and his first state crown.

“Winning the states was a pretty cool thing as an eighth grader,” he said when asked about the victories that stood out most to him over the past few years. “And winning the Super 32 was also really cool. It’s such a big tournament with so many top wrestlers from all over.  It was a big deal to me, especially beating a really good kid in the finals.”

The grappler he beat for the Super 32 title was Oklahoma’s Daton Fix in a 7-1 decision. Fix was a Cadet Triple Crown winner this year, including Fargo titles in Freestyle (113 pounds) and Greco Roman (106) this summer.

Diakomihalis was not in the field at either of those events in North Dakota as he wasn’t old enough to compete this year.  However, he looks forward to challenging himself in the international styles in 2014.

“I practiced a little bit in Freestyle this year, but I was too young for Fargo,” he said. “Next year, I plan to go to the big Freestyle tournaments.”

Fargo is a place where many wrestlers make a name for themselves.  Diakomihalis has already done that, as he is ranked in the top five in the country by both Intermat and Flowrestling in the Class of 2017.

“It’s really nice to see your hard work paying off and other people recognizing your hard work,” Diakomihalis said. “It’s exciting to see your name on those national rankings.”

But he mentioned that there’s work to be done to continue his climb.

“My dad always tells me that the summer is where you pass kids by and get a lot better,” he said. “During the season, everyone’s working hard.  If you put in the work in the summer, you can really pass other guys.”

He said in the “offseason”, he typically practices around five or six days a week, often in “The Garage” at his house, a wrestling room where grapplers such as Vincent, Anthony and Lou DePrez come to train.  In addition, he puts in significant time at the G2 World Wrestling Academy.

“When I’m home, I’m always thinking about wrestling,” Diakomihalis said. “I like watching videos or talking to my dad about wrestling.  When I’m at tournaments, I’m always watching, trying to see what I can learn from the high level guys. I also watch a lot of college wrestling and some of the world championship wrestlers.”

He mentioned Jordan Burroughs, Jordan Oliver and Kyle Dake as three of his favorites.  He also follows Dake’s former teammates as a big fan of the Cornell wrestling team.  [He even sports headgear with a “C” modeled after the equipment worn by Big Red All-American Nahshon Garrett at the NCAA tournament].

So while he enjoys thinking about the next level, his focus is on the high school scene for now.  He made an immediate impact for Hilton as a seventh grader in 2011-12, racking up a 35-3 record at 99 pounds with his only setbacks coming against All-Staters Jon Haas of Spencerport and Bryan Lantry of Wayne.

As an eighth grader, he avenged those losses to Haas, bumping up to 106 pounds to defeat the Spencerport grappler 3-2.  [Haas took third at the state tournament at that weight].

So, how does Diakomihalis improve upon an undefeated, state championship season?

“I’ve gotten bigger and I think I’ve become more explosive,” he said.

Diakomihalis said he may start out at 113 this year, with the current plan to drop to the 106-pound class after Christmas.  But while his weight will be different than last year, his goals are similar.

“I’m definitely looking to win states again,” he said. “That will always be a goal.  But I also want to win big tournaments on the national level.  I’ll be in the high school division of the Super 32 this year, which is huge.  My goal is to win that and then after the season win at FloNationals too.”

If he does all of those things, people around him will likely celebrate. And like in Albany in February, Diakomihalis may then take just a few minutes to relax.

Cornell Releases 2013-14 Schedule, Including the Las Vegas Invitational, Southern Scuffle and Grapple at the Garden

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The Cornell wrestling team has finished in the top five at the NCAA tournament each of the past five years, while also winning seven consecutive EIWA championships.  The Big Red will try to keep those streaks alive in 2013-14 while facing a tough schedule that features a mix of strong tournaments and dual meets.

The Ivy League squad will begin for the second straight time with the Red vs. White Eliminations, which will take place at the Friedman Center on November 16.  That will be followed by a pair of home events later in the month – a dual versus Binghamton and the New York State Intercollegiates on November 23 and 24, respectively.

Afterwards, on December 1, the Big Red will participate in the Grapple at the Garden in New York City, squaring off with Illinois and Maryland before entering two of the nation’s toughest tournaments – the Las Vegas Invitational and the Southern Scuffle.

In mid January, Cornell will face Lehigh, starting a string of seven duals in a row against conference foes.  The team will take part in the National Duals in February and finish regular season action against Hofstra before going for a record eighth consecutive EIWA crown in Philadelphia on March 8-9.  The NCAAs will be held in Oklahoma City, beginning March 20.

To see the entire schedule on the Cornell Athletics website, click this link.

Next Stop, Binghamton: State Finalist Steve Schneider of MacArthur Selects the Bearcats

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When asked about his goals, MacArthur senior Steve Schneider didn’t hesitate.

New York State champion. High school national champion.  NCAA champion.

On that last one, he and Binghamton University head coach Matt Dernlan are certainly on the same page. And that’s one of the reasons Schneider committed to the Bearcats a few days ago.

“Coach Dernlan sat across the table from me in my dining room with my parents and said that he would make me a national champion,” Schneider said. “To hear that in his voice, especially after all he did for Penn State, it gave me great vibes.  He sees my potential and my dedication and my motivation to get things done even though on paper, I don’t have all the trophies.”

He may not have all the trophies, but he has racked up plenty of impressive wins.  As a sophomore in 2011-12, he went 41-4 at 152 pounds and went into the Section 8 championships as the top seed.  However, he was upset by Mepham’s Dan Tracy, a wrestler he had defeated earlier in the year, and took third.  He waited patiently to see whether he would get the opportunity to compete at the Times Union Center.

“I had a heartbreaking loss in the semis, but I beat everyone in my weight class during the year,” he said. “My coaches thought I would get a wildcard to states, but it didn’t happen.”

Schneider still made the trip to Albany to cheer on some of his teammates, including 2012 state finalist Justin Cooksey.

“Even going just as a fan to support Cooksey let me get some nerves out,” Schneider said. “It’s important to go to big events like that because when you’re there for the first time it can affect you on the mat.  Being there before was a big part of why I did so well this year.”

It may have played a role in Schneider’s stellar junior campaign, but so did all the offseason work.

“After I lost in the counties, I was so motivated to devastate the county and win it all the next year,” Schneider said. “I trained my butt off. I did a lot of wrestling — so many tournaments — and a lot of lifting. I got a lot bigger and stronger. I didn’t only want to win the county, I wanted to win the state tournament too.”

It was an objective that he reminded himself about constantly.

“Last year, I wrote ‘160-pound New York State champion’ in my book every day,” Schneider said.

And he did make it to the 2013 state finals bout after an impressive campaign, which featured a third place showing at the Eastern States Classic. At that event, Schneider topped several wrestlers who placed in Albany in 2013, including Nick Gallo, Mike Beckwith and Andrew Psomas.

Photo by BV

That showing at SUNY Sullivan, his first Nassau County title, as well as his performance throughout the 47-4 season earned him the second seed at the Times Union Center.  But he found himself in a battle in the opening round with Amsterdam’s James Marquez, a bout he won 3-1 in extra time. [Marquez then won five in a row to take third].

“My first match – the nerves were there,” he said. “You have to feel it to totally understand it.  I felt like I had stone feet. It was more mental than physical.  In overtime, I woke up and snapped right out of it.  After that, I felt like I opened up more each match. I thought I was getting better and better and I was ready to take another shot at Grimaldi.”

Tyler Grimaldi of Half Hollow Hills West was a returning state runner up who had handed Schneider two of his three losses during the season.  The two did indeed square off in the state title match this February, with Grimaldi (now a freshman at Harvard), grabbing a 9-3 victory.

“When you look up on that yellow mat in the finals and see all those faces – it’s just a different level of excitement,” Schneider said. “It was good to experience it already.  So next year in the state finals, I’ll be ready to take it home.”

Taking home a state championship in wresting isn’t something Schneider was thinking about when he first began in the sport in elementary school.  In fact, he said he got involved simply to “keep in shape for baseball.”

However, due largely to the efforts of youth coach Colin Curnuck, Schneider said he continued in wrestling and was hooked, especially when he began working out at Vougar’s Honors Wrestling in eighth grade.

“As soon as I walked into Vougar’s gym, he threw me in there with the big guys,” Schneider said. “I got pulled up to varsity as an eighth grader and started to really take it seriously.  I also started training with Jamel Hudson when I was a freshman and I stopped playing baseball. I chose wrestling.”

And last week, he chose Binghamton as his future home after also considering Hofstra and North Carolina.

“The coaching staff seems great – I think they are a great combination together,” Schneider said. “It feels like a good fit for me athletically and academically.  Not only am I going to Binghamton for wrestling, but I’m also going because it’s a great school and I know I’ll be able to achieve all of my academic goals while I’m there.”

Those academic goals include majoring in computer engineering.

Schneider, who said he will likely wrestle at 174 or 184 pounds for the Bearcats, mentioned that he is also excited about training with so many familiar faces.

“When I went for the unofficial visit, I felt like I knew almost everyone on the team already,” he said. “I feel like it will make me more comfortable there.  I’ve won with a couple of these guys already – Rob Person in Section 8 and Nick Kelley on the national level in Florida [Disney Duals]. There’s already a bond.  Also, Ryan Conrad was my drill partner in high school.  I think it will make the experience even better.”

As for now, he’s looking for an ‘even better’ high school season as a senior.  After the state tournament was over last season, he began writing ‘2014 New York State champion’ in his book every morning.

And whether he winds up going for the title at 170 or 182 pounds in 2013-14 (he said he isn’t sure yet), Schneider feels that he has benefited from nationally ranked competition at offseason events such as the Pop & Flo, Waterway and Disney Duals.

“The Disney Duals changes you – I came out a totally different person and wrestler,” he said. “Everybody that I lost to was top 10 in the country. The level of competition is insane.  It’s the best thing that happened to me before my senior year because I learn more from my losses than my wins.  I’ve gotten so much stronger since last year and I have so much motivation from the loss in the state finals. It’s not how you start; it’s how you finish.  My sophomore year was ok, my junior year was better and in my senior year, I’m ready to take home the gold.”

 ——————————————————-

Steve Schneider wanted to thank his youth coach, Colin Curnuck who kept him involved in wrestling.  He also wanted to thank his parents for all their support and Vougar Oroudjov for “always making sure there is someone in the room for me to train with, keeping my wrestling and academic goals on my mind and always having confidence in me.”

 

Waterway Duals Recap: Six NY Teams Compete; 631 Elite Earns Third Place

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A year ago, a team from Long Island captured the title at the Waterway Duals in Pennsylvania.  On Saturday, Long Island was again well represented at the 2013 version of the tournament, as 631 Elite grabbed third place in the 26-team field.

“This is a great event,” said John Passaro, who was an assistant for the team. “There are quality matches all over the place. You go to tournaments like these to be exposed to great competition and to see what you need to work on. This time of the year, every match is important. September and October are about preparing for states and nationals in February and March.  The tremendous competition at Waterway Duals definitely helps to do that.”

631 Elite began with a bye and then had a meeting with Malvern in a rematch of last year’s Waterway Duals finals.  Things didn’t get off to an ideal start.

“Momentum wasn’t going our way at first – it was a little bit scary,” Passaro said. “We got pinned in the first match and then Vito [Arujau] was thrown to his back right away at 113 [pounds].  We could have been down 12-0. But Vito fought off his back and came back and showed tremendous heart.  He not only won the match with a pin, but he turned around the whole dual.”

Vito Arujau, Photo by BV

Arujau’s fall knotted the score at 6 and the Long Islanders took over from there, with Nick Piccininni (120) and Travis Passaro (126) giving the squad the lead for good with back-to-back triumphs.  In the end, 631 Elite won 12 of the 14 bouts in a 52-9 result.

Next up was another Empire State group – Journeymen, which had notched victories in the first two rounds.  In the quarterfinal showdown, 631 came out on top 39-15 behind bonus point wins by Arujau, Piccininni, Jimmy Leach (145), Steve Schneider (170), Nick Weber (195) and Peter Strassfield (heavyweight).  According to Passaro, one of the most exciting contests was at 132 where Journeymen All-American Kevin Jack (an Eastern States champion for Danbury, CT) edged NHSCA Freshman National Champion Chris Mauriello, 3-2.

In the semifinals, 631 met Bison Legend, another Pennsylvania squad.  It was close early, with Arujau and Piccininni giving the team a 7-3 advantage after the first three weights.  However, the Keystone State squad then took control, ending with a 37-10 victory.  (Also coming out on top for the Long Island group was Mepham state champion Louis Hernandez, who had an 11-5 decision at 152).

“Bison came in with a stacked lineup – Fargo All-Americans and quality guys up and down the lineup,” Passaro said. “They were accomplished, hungry and in shape. There were a bunch of close matches that could have gone either way and we lost all of them. But that’s the exact reason to wrestle there.  We got humbled a little bit, but we know what we need to work on.  You want to wrestle those elite kids.”

631 rebounded well, finishing the day on a high note in the third place contest with a 49-12 win over Defiant.  The Long Island wrestlers registered nine wins in the 14 matches, including pins by Leach, Hernandez and Weber.

“The team wrestled really well in the third place match,” Passaro said. “These kids have been doing this long enough to know you only remember your last match on the ride home.  They wanted to have a good ride home and they did.”

Going unbeaten for 631 were Vito Arujau, Nick Piccininni and Louis Hernandez. Meanwhile, Travis Passaro, Jimmy Leach, Greg Cherry, Steven Schneider and Nick Weber all compiled 3-1 records. (The full roster of the bronze medal team is listed at the end of the article).

While 631 Elite earned third with a 3-1 record, another New York squad also registered a 3-1 mark on Saturday.   Team Long Island opened against Contender in a close match that finished deadlocked at 30. After the tiebreaking criteria were applied, Contender was declared the winner, sending Team Long Island out of the placement bracket. (According to Passaro, both teams had two falls during the dual, but a forfeit by Long Island was counted as a fall and Contender moved forward on the ‘most pins’ criterion).

The team bounced back strong, outscoring its opponents 164-18 to win the last three duals in commanding fashion.  Leading the way were undefeated wrestlers James Szymanski (120), Jack Taddeo (132), Sean O’Hagan (138), Ed Ramirez (145) and Gino Titone (152).

“Being in that tournament, in that environment will only help everyone’s development,” Passaro said. “It was tough to lose on the tiebreakers like that, but the positive way to look at it is that the team had three matches where they did extremely well afterwards.”

Also doing extremely well were a number of other wrestlers.  For Journeymen, Kevin Jack, Brett Perry (182) and Youssif Hemida (220) collected four victories apiece, according to the online results.

That wasn’t all for New York wrestling. Iowa Style also took the mat on Saturday, nabbing a victory over fellow Empire State grapplers from Beat the Streets Red.

Beat the Streets brought two teams to the event and the Blue squad notched a 2-2 record with wins over two Pennsylvania foes – 36-16 over Turks Head and 46-21 against MWA.   State champion Adis Radoncic picked up three wins, as did Saidyokub Kahramonov at 145 and Miguel Perez at 220.

One additional standout showing from New York at the event was that of Hilton state champion Yianni Diakomihalis.  The Section 5 star went 4-0 at 106 pounds for the first place team (Griffin Select, Pennsylvania), with three victories by bonus points.

—————-

Passaro mentioned a number of individuals who coached and/or contributed heavily to the success of the Long Island teams, including Mike Patrovich, Ed Ramirez, Matt DeVincenzo, Nick Mauriello, Vougar Oroudjov, Les Ware and Lance Banfi.

 

631 Elite – Third Place Roster

106 Matteo DeVincenzo

113 Vito Arujau

120 Nick Piccininni

126 Travis Passaro

132 Chris Mauriello

138 Evan Meyer

145 Jimmy Leach

152 Louis Hernandez

160 Greg Cherry

170 Steve Schneider

182 Dom Pirraglia

195 Nick Weber

220 Rafal Rokosz

Hwt Peter Stassfield

Wrestling Wins! International Olympic Committee Votes to Keep Wrestling in the Olympics

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On Sunday, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) voted to keep wrestling in the Olympics as a provisional sport in the 2020 and 2024 games.

The decision was made on the first ballot, as wrestling picked up 49 of the 95 votes, receiving the necessary majority right away.

For some of the articles on the decision, see below:

Link to the FILA article on the vote.

Link to USA response.

Link to Associated Press story.

NY's Top Junior High Wrestler Frankie Gissendanner Striving for the Top After Stellar Seventh Grade Season

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Over the next few weeks, we will be discussing some of the top wrestlers in New York for the upcoming campaign.  We begin with our #1 Junior High School grappler in the state, Penfield eighth grader Frankie Gissendanner. Stay tuned for more … the freshman class will be next.

Earlier this summer, Frankie Gissendanner opened the Flowrestling website and next to the main story about the top Junior High School wrestlers in the country was a photo of . . . Frankie Gissendanner.

“I was proud of myself when I saw my picture there,” he said.  “I was excited to achieve one of my goals to be nationally ranked, but I was a little surprised too.”

Courtesy of Nikki Gissendanner

The Penfield star may have been a bit surprised, but most of those who watched him in New York last year weren’t shocked at all.  After an offseason in which he seemed to win a championship just about every weekend, Gissendanner had a stellar campaign in his first year on the varsity squad, racking up a 44-6 mark while capturing multiple tournament titles and placing at the toughest in-season event in the Empire State.  And all of this happened as a seventh grader at 126 pounds.

Did Gissendanner expect so much success so quickly?

“I wanted to win a state championship or at least make the top three,” he said of his expectations for the 2012-13 season. “I thought it was possible as a seventh grader.”

He certainly started off with a bang.  On the first weekend of December, Gissendanner went undefeated at the Mark Stephens Classic, earning the Most Outstanding Wrestler award for the lightweights.  It wouldn’t be the last time he nabbed MOW honors. In fact, he did it again more than once, including later that month at the prestigious Top Hat tournament in Pennsylvania when he grabbed an individual title against tough Keystone State opposition.

“It motivated me when I was facing that kind of competition,” Gissendanner said.

He again faced top talent at the Eastern States Classic in January at SUNY Sullivan.  In fact, the 126-pound bracket included more than 10 All-State wrestlers, including four state champions.  Gissendanner was undaunted, going 5-2 and defeating a pair of New York state silver medalists on the way to the podium.

After dropping his quarterfinal bout to now two-time state champion William Koll, Gissendanner rebounded with an 8-4 victory over 2013 state runner up Keanu Thompson.  And then, in the seventh place match, he defeated 2012 New York second placer Justin Cooksey 3-1 in sudden victory.

“When I took seventh at Eastern States, I thought I had a lot of opportunities to win or place at big tournaments,” he said. “I thought I would do well at the state championships.”

But first, he had to get there.  And he got the job done, earning the right to represent Section 5 by winning the SuperSectional title in Division I.  Among his wins at the event was a decision over James Arao of Fairport, who had topped Gissendanner early in the season.  In the championship contest, Gissendanner bested Schroeder’s Rosario Venniro 3-1 in overtime to punch his ticket to the Times Union Center. He was again chosen as the MOW.

“I think my biggest win last year was my Supers match in the finals,” Gissendanner said. “It qualified me for states and I did it against a senior – I took his position.”

He was excited to make his debut in Albany.  But he was less excited about the way things turned out in his first appearance in the state capital as he went 1-2, with his second setback coming at the hands of multiple-time state finalist Dylan Realbuto.

“I choked at states,” Gissendanner said. “I was really nervous. It was definitely a big change. It was so big with so many people, and it was like, ‘wow’. The atmosphere got to me.  I wish I went to states in sixth grade just to see what it was like to know what I was walking into.  But I hadn’t been there before and it was actually my first time being in an arena like that, ever.  It got to me.  But it will help me for the future.”

It may help this fall as he prepares for the upcoming campaign at high quality preseason events, where he said he plans to compete at 132 pounds.

“I’m going to Super 32 and the Journeymen Classic,” he said. “I’ll be ready. I’m really hyped.”

Gissendanner also gets hyped to talk about some of his favorites – Jordan Burroughs, Jon “Bones” Jones and the Iowa Hawkeyes.

“Iowa is my favorite college team,” he said. “Dan Gable was a great coach and I like the Brands brothers.  I like their motto in wrestling and their attitude. I went to see Iowa wrestle Buffalo last year.  That was a lot of fun.”

Gissendanner has fun on the mat, but also as a member of the Junior Varsity football and lacrosse teams.  Even in the other seasons, however, he can’t stay away from the wrestling room, training with the G2 World Wrestling Academy and Titan Worldwide.

The Penfield standout had ambitious goals going into his first varsity season a year ago and he once again has set the bar high as eighth grade approaches.

“I learned last year from the state tournament that every match should be treated like you’re just going live with your partner in the wrestling room,” he said. “You should always be calm and not let the crowd get to you.  This year, I want to win every tournament I step into.  And win every match.”

If he’s able to do that, there’s a good chance Frankie Gissendanner will find his photo on the front page of the national rankings once again. And instead being slotted in the #14 spot nationally, he could be ranked even higher.

From Shut Down to the Garden: Westchester Wrestling Ready to Grapple Again in 2013-14

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Wrestling was back at Westchester Community College for the first time in quite a while.  And then, all of a sudden, the season came to an abrupt halt. The planned trips to national qualifying and then Nationals were no longer possible.

It began in the fall of 2012 for head coach Joe Regan and the squad, operating as a club team out of the student FSA (Faculty-Student Association) office.  Westchester performed well early on, in a tri-meet against Stony Brook and the University of New Haven and then at the Long Island Open and the New York State Intercollegiate ‘B’ event on the campus of Cornell University.

“We had basically three or four weeks to get the guys prepared for the New York tournament, so it was an accelerated process,” Regan said. “Our guys got beat, but were competitive. We had some top five placers at the Long Island Open. I was pretty satisfied with how they competed against a lot of Division I and Division III wrestlers.”

Next up was another tri-meet, this time against Mount St. Vincent and a Division III squad from Ohio.

“We didn’t have a full lineup but it was tough,” Regan said. “We got our butts kicked by the Division III team. We were winning against Mount St. Vincent before we got pinned in two straight matches and wound up losing.  It was frustrating.”

Regan and the Vikings went from being a bit frustrated about the results on the mat to a more significant frustration.

“What happened next – we basically were shut down by the institution because we were being run as a club and clubs needed a faculty sponsor,” Regan said. “It was awful, just terrible.  We were looking forward to going to NCWA [National Collegiate Wrestling Association] qualifying tournament and then the national tournament.  We saw Stony Brook do pretty well at NCWA nationals.  We beat them and I thought we had a couple of guys who could have been All-Americans.  But it was out of our control.  We weren’t allowed to continue.”

According to Regan, the group was determined to find a solution, but didn’t find success initially. In essence, the season was over for the Vikings.

“It didn’t look good for the continuing of our team as a club. There were all these roadblocks,” Regan said. “And then the athletic department called and said they would take us on.  I was flabbergasted. We were working with Adam Frank [the Director of Student Involvement] and he went to bat for us.  He thought we didn’t belong with the Spanish club and all the other clubs – we belonged in athletics.  The Athletic Director told us he didn’t have much of a budget for us, but we could be a part of the department. It was incredible.”

So, according to Regan, the team will return to action in 2013-14.  The Vikings will compete as part of the NCWA, but there’s a different long term plan.

“The next goal is to join the NJCAA [National Junior College Athletic Association] and field a great junior college program in the future,” he said.

Whatever happens next, Regan believes the team has been embraced the surrounding area.

“There’s good support behind us,” the coach said. “We’re excited this is happening for the community. Wrestling is popular in Westchester and Putnam counties and we also draw from Beat the Streets.  It’s a fantastic thing to have an opportunity for wrestlers here.  Not everybody is ready to stop wrestling after high school and only a small percentage go to Division I. With student loans going the way they are, you’ll see more and more kids going local.  Here, guys can go to open tournaments to wrestle Division I and Division III guys but in the end have their own national tournament.”

The nationals won’t be the only big event next season.  The Vikings will also have the chance to take the mat at the World’s Most Famous Arena for the Grapple at the Garden on December 1 alongside some of the country’s top teams.  [Westchester will battle Stony Brook in a dual meet].

“I don’t want to take one ounce of credit for making that happen,” Regan said. “It was all [Stony Brook head coach] Shaun [Lally].  He’s doing a fantastic job and I’m grateful that he wanted to include us as a part of that great event.  He had a good idea to promote local teams at the NCWA level at the Grapple at the Garden and obviously we’re very excited to be a part of it.”

Regan’s also excited about what the future holds.

“We have a lot of work to do,” the coach said earlier in the summer. “We need to recruit and fill some spots. But we have some very good wrestlers back too.”

Among the grapplers that Regan mentioned were David Rivera (149), Justin James (157) and Ray Ramos (174).

Regan had positive things to say about the performances of those wrestlers on the mat and about their development throughout the course of the year.  And, they were also significant in another way, according to the coach.

“Those guys were a huge part of pounding the pavement on campus, fighting for our survival,” Regan said. “They were completely essential in fighting the good fight.”

Regan also thanked Dave Colagiovanni and Dominick Oddo for their help and acknowledged all the work of Alex Yntriago, who worked with the program from the start with initial head coach Joe Boxer, originally as an assistant and heavyweight coach and now in some other capacities as well.

“Alex [Yntriago] has a history with some of the kids from the Beat the Streets program and does a really good job with his relationships in the New York City area,” Regan said. “He likes the promotion side of things and does very well for us in that regard too.”

“Promotions is something I do for a living,” Yntriago added. “I like to work on ways to get coaches and wrestlers interested. My objective is to expand the program by getting New York City hyped about it. I think this program can be a launching pad for New York City, Long Island and local kids. My efforts are also on teaching guys how to be champions in life.”

His efforts also may be spent on the mat, as Yntriago has a year of eligibility left and could compete at heavyweight this season.

So, after a dramatic year, Westchester looks forward to competing again.  Regan discussed a solid schedule, including events such as the Grapple at the Garden, meets with Yeshiva and Bergen Community College, an invitational at the University of Southern Maine and the New York State Championships at Cornell.

“We didn’t think we were having a team for a while, so to be where we are is fantastic,” Regan said. “We have a lot to look forward to here at Westchester.”

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Westchester CC is working to raise funds to continue moving the program forward. (For more information on how to help, see this link).

Super 32 Qualifier Recap: Restrepo and Feola Win Titles; Calderone Takes Third and Several NYers Earn Fourth

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It’s less than 60 days until some huge national preseason tournaments begin, including the Super 32 Challenge in North Carolina.  After Sunday’s qualifying event in Shippensburg, Pennsylvania, we know some of the New York wrestlers that will be heading down to the Tar Heel state in late October to battle for the Super 32 championship belt.

Jakob Restrepo of Sachem East is one of them.  Representing Vougar’s Honors Wrestling (VHW), the Section 11 grappler went 5-0 to take first place at 145 pounds.  Along the way, he outscored his opponents 20-4, including a 3-0 victory in the title bout over Frank Carrozza of Pennsylvania.

Also winning his weight was Walt Whitman’s Vincent Feola at 220 pounds.  Feola made quick work of the competition, registering pins in 1:08 and :43 to capture the crown. (Carter Cooper of Falconer was third).

Feola’s high school teammate Joe Calderone also saw success, nabbing third at 113 pounds with a 5-1 mark.  Three of those wins were by bonus points (two majors and a fall).  To capture bronze, Calderone topped fellow New Yorker Jesse Dellavecchia of East Islip.  Dellavecchia also had five victories on Sunday on his way to fourth.

A number of other Empire State grapplers took fourth in the high school division as well.  They included several wrestlers representing Ascend, such as Mike D’Angelo (Commack, 132), Sam Ward (Locust Valley, 138) and Christian Briody (126) as well 631 Elite’s James Szymanski (Shoreham-Wading River, 120).  D’Angelo and Briody won five matches apiece while Ward traveled a different path.  The Section 8 standout began with a sudden victory loss in his first bout to Travis Roper of Pennsylvania.  He then responded by winning seven in a row in the consolations, including a 9-3 triumph in a rematch with Roper, before notching fourth.

The top four placers in the high school action qualified for early entry into the Super 32 Challenge.  Just missing top four status were the following grapplers: Matteo DeVincenzo (106), Danny Murray (113), Ben Lamantia (120), Joe Russ (126), Derek Holcomb (170), and Jeffrey Lombardi (170).

At the middle school level, a pair of New Yorkers grabbed top three spots, as 631 Elite’s Zachary Redding was the runner up at 70 pounds and VHW’s Ryan Meisner was third at 80.

The Super 32 Challenge takes place October 26-27 in Greensboro, North Carolina.

For the brackets from the event, see here.