For the second consecutive weekend, our #1 program in the DII polls, Tioga, lived up to their topper status, crowning four individual champions, advancing two others to the finals, and concluding the weekend with 12 overall place-winners on their way to 50+ point (186.0-135.5 over Spaulding; VT) victory in the team race at the 2022 Saratoga Invitational!
Winning gold on behalf of the Tigers were a quartet of respective top-4 (in their weights) ranked competitors in the persons of Gianni Silvestri, Caden Bellis, Donavan Smith, and Ousmane Duncanson, who combined on a monster stretch that witnessed the Section 4 juggernaut win four out six weight classes from 118 thru 152 pounds!
Getting the proverbial ball rolling at 118 pounds was the 2020 NYS DII State titlists/current DII #1, Silvestri, who after sticking 2020 Vermont champion, Caleb Huntington (Spaulding) In 3:26 of their semifinal showdown, finish what he started behind an impressive 5-1 decisions in the finals over 3x S2 medalist/2020 champ, Michael Santore (Shaker; currently ranked 13th in DI).
After a heartbreaking loss in the finals of the Windsor during the Holiday break, the two-time NYS 4th, Bellis (currently #3 on the small school charts), climbed back a top that title horse and galloped his way to a dominant effort, finishing with two falls and a 17-1 technical fall to claim the brass ring at 132 pounds...The tech in the finals came against 2020 S2 silver medalist, Vincent Grembocki (Shenendehowa), who has now been forced to settle for runner-up distinction at both the Cole and Saratoga...
Smith and Duncanson went back-to-back at 145 and 152 pounds, with the former [Smith] picking up wins over 2019 S2 6th/2021 Cole titlist, David Ensminger (Shenendehowa; fall in 2:59 in the semis), and 2x Section 7 champion/present DII #12, Collin Clancy (Saranac; 8-2 decision in the finals)...On the year, Smith has advanced to the finals of all four tournaments attended, seizing the top prizes at the Marino and Saratoga, while serving as bridesmaid at the Rogers Memorial and Windsor!...
The latter [Duncanson], who dropped down to 152 despite being the #4 man at 160, turned In perhaps the most impressive display of all Tiger personnel, as he pinned 2020 S2 4th, Nick Tempel (Averill Park) in 4:57 in the quarters, followed it up with a 5-2 semifinal victory over teammate/2020 NYS 7th, Emmett Wood (#3 in the polls), and then cemented the hardware in the finale via a 3:46 slap of the mat over 2x S7 finalist/2020 champ, #8 Hunter Devins (Saranac)!....Devins reached the finals with a 5-3 SV decision against DI #5/2x S2 bronze medalist, Connor Gregory (Ballston Spa)
Deakon Bailey (110) and Tyler Roe (126) were also finals for Tioga, but fell a tad short of making it a six-piece sweep for their school as Bailey was pinned in 3:11 by Glens Falls’ Avi Berg In a clash of the #6 and #8 DII wrestlers, while Roe was a stick victim in 4:35 at the hands of 2x Vermont State 2nd, Nick Pierce (Spaulding)...Prior to the title losses, both put forth strong showings in the semis, as Bailey won a 5-2 decision against 2020 S2 champ/DI #10 Clayton O'Connor (Mohonasen), and Roe was an 8-2 victor over defending S7 titlist, Ashton Seymour (Saranac)…
In what is becoming a weekly ritual, another #1 fell down, as 2020 Section 2 3rd, Dylan Schell (Queensbury) remained unblemished in 2021-2022 when he recorded a 5-3 decision in the 172-pound finals versus Reed Douglas (Canajohaire-Ft. Plain), who also entered unbeaten!...The decision over Douglas was one of two triumphs against polled opponents posted by the Spartan 12th grader [Schell]. In the semis, he was a winner by way of an 18-3 technical fall over DII #5 Dominick Weaver (Windsor)
2x NYS placer, Gabriel Monroe (Windsor), the third of our “top dogs” would enjoy the fate of Silvestri and not the curse of Douglas, as he mowed his way through the 189-pound bracket, pinning all three of his foes in times of 3:33 or less...His finals opponent, Ahmad Farzad (Shaker), punched his ticket to center mat when he needed just 74 ticks to pin 2020 Vermont State silver, Landen Farnham (Spaulding), in the bottom half semi!
Jashon Holmes (Shenendehowa) and Ryan Stein (Shaker) would also win featured bouts comprised of state-ranked rivals at 138 and 215 pounds...
Holmes, who took 5th the Journeymen State Tournament last year, has yet to lose his swan song campaign for the Plainsmen, as he complemented the crown won at the Cole by nearly pinning his way to the gold at Saratoga...Posting nothing but pins up through the semifinal round (including a mat slap in 3:07 over 2x S2 medalist, Cody Haig, of Canajoharie-Ft. Plain), the DI #4 [Holmes] finally went the distance in his last appearance, prevailing 13-1 over 2x S3 bronze medalist/DII #5, David O'Neil (General Brown)...O’Neil’s journey to the finals was highlighted by a 3:30 fall on his semifinal match over 2020 Vermont State runner-up, Ryan Glassford (Spaulding)!
The Bison 12th grader, Stein (DI #2/2020 S2 champion ), upended a pair of polled opponents to earn his yellow medal...In the semis, he racked up a 16-1 tech against DII #12/2020 S3 3rd, Trey McGee (Northern Adirondack)...He the iced his crown with a hard fought 6-4 decision versus DI #6/2020 S2 runner-up, Darren Insogna (Ballston Spa)...Insogna may not have come away with the title, but he did look good all weekend, including a 2:58 fall in the semis against DII #9, Garrett Bidwell (Windsor)!
Rounding out our list of champs were: Ralph Keeney (102; Ballston Spa), Mason McCombs (160; Windsor), and Colton Perkins (285; Spaulding)!
Four seemed to be the magic number in the Evil Empire this past weekend, as identical to Tioga, it was the Warriors of Indian River boasting their own fearsome foursome en route traveling home with the team trophy at the 2022 Cazenovia Invitational...
Striking gold for our #8 (DI) squad was Alex Booth (132), Manuel Gonzales (138), Gabe Lynch, and big man, Davin Dewaine (285)…
Booth (DI #3), a returning Journeymen State 5th who suffered his lone loss of the season over the break at the Windsor (finished 3rd), would be nothing short of outstanding in picking up his second tournament win of the season (previously won North Country)...Winning his round-robin pool with a 17-3 major decision over DII #8, Culley Bellino (Canastota), the IR senior [Booth] secured a berth in the finals by pinning Edward Geer (Chittenango) in :47 as part of the crossover semis, and then completed the mission when he pitched a 1-0 shutout over 2020 S5 runner-up, Caleb Sweet (DII #4 @138) of South Seneca, in the finals!..Sweet stuck Bellino in 1:30 in their semifinal showdown!
Gonzales, who took 5th in Section 3 as a freshman, has been a utility man extraordinaire thus far this year...Competing as high as 152 and as low as 132, the DI #14 (@132) was at 138 this past Saturday and could not have performed better, winning three of his four pool bouts by fall (the other an injury default while leading 13-4), before lighting up the scoreboard to the tune of a 10-0 major decision in the finals over his Warrior teammate/2020 S3 runner-up, Brady Lynch... Aaron Briones-Cooper (South Jeff Sandy Creek), who we regarded as a sleeper in the bracket, claimed a strong 3rd with his only loss being that ID to the eventual champ in the last of his round-robin bouts.
Following the cited result at 138, it was Gabe making sure the Lynch name would be headed home with at least one individual title, as the 2020 S3 bronze medalist shined his brightest on the big stage, flattening Groton’s Isaac Allen in 3:02 to win a collision of the #12 DI and #14 DII ranked student-athletes at 152 pounds...
Dewaine continued his steady junior season, winning his first tournament crown of the year after prior placements of 2nd at North Country and 3rd at Windsor...A beast among mortals in a 5-man round-robin field, the 2020 Sectional 6th was a perfect 5-for-5 in pins, with only his last victory (over Korben Haney of Baldwinsville) going beyond the 1st period (2:53)!
After getting off to a rough start to this year (while up at 118), 2x S3 medalist, Aidan Cali (Baldwinsville), has most certainly found his groove at 110 pounds, as he utilized an 8-6 decision in the last round of the round-robin over current DII #2, Talan Hubbard (Homer), to clinch the gold...Indian River’s Tomah Gummow (who lost to Cali, 5-4, in Round 1) also bested Hubbard by decision, 6-4!
Canastota senior, Evan Austerman, also recorded a huge win over an opponent with a # next to their name, as his effort in his first match of the round-robin yielded a 5-0 goose-egging of DII #13 (@172), Luke Dendis (South Seneca), in what acted as the quasi 160-pound title bout!
Adirondack’s DII #14 Colin White (2020 Section 3 bronze medalist) will shooting up the polls when they are updated later this week, as he made a bold statement in the finals of the 189-pound bracket, winning a 7-4 decision against Homer’s Zander Johnson (DII #8)...White now has two tournament titles on his resume this season (Won the Captain Bailey in early-December; also has a 2nd at the Haines & a bronze at the Batavia Christmas tourney)…
Undefeated State Champion, Sam Sorenson (Homer) raised his tally to 27-0 In his junior season, pinning four of his five oppositions to hoist hardware at 215 pounds...As part of pool-play, he stuck fellow ranked (DII #13) Donovan Mitchell (Groton) in 5:30...In his two crossover matches, he blanked 2020 S3 6th/Haines runner-up, Casey Bixby (Canastota), 5-0, and then glued 2020 S3 4th/North County champ, Jake Whitmore (Indian River) at the 2:49 mark of their finals contest!
After silver medal performances at the Bailey & Haines Memorials, 2x sectional placer, Jacob Strain (Adirondack), ascended to the top step of the 126-pound podium after compiling a 5-0 record (including a pair of wins over Chase Waite of South Jefferson-Sandy Creek)...Waite reached the finals after pulling the upset in the crossover semis in the form of a 4-3 decision over his training partner/DII #7 Chase Lawton.
Other titlists were: Evan Rutecki (102; Cazenovia), Rocco DeGilormo (118; Liverpool), Jeter Neff (145; Groton), and DII #12 (@189) Dakota Stewart (172; South Seneca)!
BRACKETS
The Lions of Lackawanna Trail (PA) invaded the Empire State and capitalized on their five individual titlists as they squeaked out a mere half-point victory (308.0-307.5) over Maine-Endwell to emerge with the top spot in the standings at the 2022 Stan Elinsky Tournament (@Deposit)…
Relishing in successful road trips across state lines were Cole Henry (118), Ethan Lee (132), Deegan Ross (152), Robbie Schneider (160), and Seth Ross (189).
Henry, a 2021 District Champion/PIAA Regional qualifier, pinned his way through pool action before tacking on a 7-2 decision in the semifinals (against Jake Thiel; Sidney) and a fall in in the title bout (0:44) over Ellenville rep, Cristian Disessa-Leon!
Lee, who has advanced to the regional level in both of his two prior years on the varsity (6th in 2020), notched a trio of falls in his run up to the finals. The title bout proved to be a different story with the same happy ending for the 11th grader, as he got his arm raised via a 3-2 decision over 2021 Doane Champion/Cole 4th, Lucas Demott (Sidney).
D. Ross, the most credentialed of the ensemble, having qualified for the Pennsylvania State tournament in 2020, posted a stat sheet that read as follows: three 1st period pins + a 17-0 technical fall in his one-man show of pure control and/or domination...In his last outing, he required 36 ticks before securing the fall versus Bobby Struble (Owego Free Academy)
Schneider, who has placed twice at the regionals (2021 runner-up), earned his yellow medal when he twice defeated Greene-Oxford's Tyler Brown, by scores of 6-1 (to win pool) and 3:44 fall (finals)...Brown has now been a runner-up on two separate occasions this season, as he previously was 2nd at Cole!
S. Ross, who has yet to place in two appearances at the PA Regional tournament, was the only guest who denied a crown to a NYWN ranked foe...After pinning his first four opponents to earn the berth to the title match, the Lion 11th grader added one additional smack of the mat at the 3:04 mark versus DI #14/2020 Section 9 5th, Braydon Pannell (Pine Bush)!
Salvaging the cause in defense of their native state were the likes of Trevor Tufano (Port Jervis), George Oroudjov (Ithaca), Daniel Parker (Ithaca), Trevor Harrington (Sidney), and Shamus McGuire (Maine-Endwell), who all won signature finals bouts at 110, 138, 145, 172, and 215
Tufano, the two-time defending S9 titlist, had the overall best win of the tournament among New York’s title contingent, as the present DII #3 would upend DII #10/2019 S4 bronze medalist, Owen Marcin (Greene-Oxford), by a score of 9-4, in the 110-pound finale...
The 2020 NYS DI silver medalist (while competing for Syosset), Oroudjov (DI #2 @145), remained immaculate in his brief time as a Little Red student-athlete, as he improved to 17-0 in his senior season by doing nothing but pinning anyone that dare step on the mat against him...4 appearances, 4 falls for the son of former 2x Freestyle World Champion/1992 Olympic Bronze medalist, Vougar Oroudjov... After sticking 2x PIAA regional qualifier, Max Bluhm (Lackawanna Trai), in 3:39 of the semis, the youngest of the three Arujau/Oroudjov siblings (older brothers---Nick and Vito combined to win SEVEN NYSPHSAA State titles before both competing collegiately for Cornell) pinned 2020 S4 6th, Owen Emmick (Lansing) at 1:53 as a punctuation!
Defending S4 champ, Parker, made it two in a row for Ithaca, when he bested the other Bluhm [Michael], 7-4, in the 145-pound finals...Like Oroudjov, Parker remains perfect in 2021-2022, as he has now won brass rings at the Goodrich Invitational, the Buck Memorial, the Doane, and now the Elinsky...Earlier in the event, Bluhm got past DII #13/2020 S9 champ, Ryan Ross (Port Jervis), 3-2, in the last bout of their pool round-robin!
At the onset of the weekend, DII #7 Harrington had revenge on the brain...However, because the opportunity to avenge his only loss of the year [to DII #6 Hunter Page of Greene-Oxford) never materialized, he instead found solace in grabbing a crown instead...A pin machine (4 up, 4 flat) for the Warriors, Harrington was the upper-weight O.W. after decking Tyler Rozanski (Lackawanna Trail) in 5:05.... Rozanski spoiled the much-anticipated Harrington/Page rematch when he won a 3-2 UTB decision in the semis against the Blackhawk junior [Page]…
State pride would be the “name of the game” at 215 too, as DII #11, McGuire, registered his fifth and final pin of the tourney over 2x PA Regional participant, Jonah Houser (Lackawanna Trail), in a time of 3:25...
The crowns at 102, 126, and 285 were claimed by: Quentin Getzin (Ithaca), DII #5 Aiden Marcin (Greene-Oxford), and Sam Stanton (Maine-Endwell)!
They don’t like 2nd place in Massapequa; in fact, if this past weekend was barometer on how they feel on the topic of being #2, then you clearly see that they absolutely DESPISE it!!!!
Runners-up (to Long Beach) at their own tournament over the Holiday break (their first “imperfection of the year), the Chiefs responded by going on the road to Staten Island and terrorizing competition worse than the killer clown of 2014!!!!
Darn-nearing coming home with half of the individual hardware tucked under their arms, SIX members of the Blue & Gold tribe--- Carlos Arango (102), Nick Minichiello (110), Anthony Conetta (145), Alex Giuliani (152), Luke Ciolino (160), and Anthony Digennaro (172)---all were golden this past Saturday...
Arango, in his first outing since taking over as the DI #1 man at the lightweight class, did nothing to discourage the state title hype, as he amassed falls up through the semifinal round before locking up the crown via a 16-5 major decision over Commack’s Nicolas Barber....Even though he went home with silver, Barber undeniably improved his stock, as he pinned DI #9, Aiden Donohue (Rocky Point), in 47 seconds of their All-Suffolk semifinal affair. The win for Barber avenges a previous 9-8 loss from last month...
Minichiello is a first-time tournament winner this season (6th at Battle At the Beach) after pinning his first two opponents in sub-1:00 times and then attaching a bow to his perfect display with a 9-2 decision in the finals against Sean Hicks (Rocky Point)!
2019 State 3rd/current DI #3, Conetta, started the string of FOUR crowns in a row for the Section VIII powerhouse when he pinned his way into the title contest and then accepted a forfeit from teammate, Jake Ciolino!...Ciolino recorded a very formidable 5-4 decision in the bottom half semi over 2021 CHSAA State silver medalist, Sean Degl (Iona Prep)!
2021 J-Men State 8th, Giuliani, who is determined to climb back into the polls after being formerly ranked, was a bridesmaid no more, as he connected all of the dots en route to earning bonus point outcomes In all three of his matches...Pinning 2021 Catholic State 4th, Nick Gebbia, of host Monsignor Farrell in 56 ticks of their finals bout, Giuliani has some gold to complement the silvers he won at BATB and the Massapequa Holiday Tournament...
Because his brother willingly deferred to the program’s senior anchor [Conetta] at 145, it was fitting to see Luke [Ciolino] win at 160 on behalf of the sibling duo...Ranked 13th on the large school chart, the 2020 Nassau County blood rounder never went the distance in any of his bouts, as he accumulated three falls (including a 5:39 pin in the title match over former CHSAA State medalist, Mike Casserta, of Farrell) and a 19-3 technical fall on the day!
Digennaro closed out the streak at 172 when he pinned fellow Chief, Antonio Arango, in 3:36 (while up 9-2)...His teammate was actually the only foe that mustered a point against him as he outscored his other two opponents by a margin of 28-0 on his way to a 15-0 tech (over Xavier’s Matt Scariano) and a 13-0 major (Farrell’s Dean Panteleakis) in the quarter and semifinal rounds...
While nothing would/could compare to the damage inflicted by ‘Pequa, Monsignor Farrell and Iona Prep did find light at the end of the tunnel, as both schools were proudly represented by a pair of titlists.
For the gents of Amboy Road [Farrell], 2x NYS 5th, Michael Adams, and 2x Catholic placer (4th in ‘21), Max Borowiec, answered the bell at 118 and 126 respectively...
Adams, who is committed to wrestle collegiately at Ursinus, entered as the DI #2 and will remain in that spot after a comfortable 4-0 body of work that witnessed him alternate between pins and major decisions...In a bout that we pinpointed in our preview, he solidified his status as the co-favorite in the Catholic League this season when he beat heralded [Iona Prep] Gael 9th grader, Paolo Ciatto, 11-2, in the quarterfinals...After a semifinal stick in 4:20 over Massapequa’s Matt Reehil, Adams polished off his Saturday with a 10-2 major versus Vasili Ragavanis (Commack).
Contrary to the ease that Adams enjoyed, Borowiec found himself in a dogfight in the finals, as he was stretched all the way to the ultimate tiebreaker before eventually escaping to win 5-4 against top-seed, Jackson Corobois (Rocky Point)...In an early match (quarterfinals), the Lion upperclassman also had to sweat out a 7-6 decision over fellow 2x All-Catholic performer, Kevin McCarvill (Iona Prep)!
Eric “Diesel” Grant (138) and Gabriel Garibaldi (215) would be the titlists for Iona Prep, with the former [Grant] using two techs and a pin (2:50 over #1 seed, Matthew Leyberman, of Commack in the finals), while the larger latter [Garibaldi] announced his candidacy to join the top-15 when he won an 8-1 decision over the man currently sitting in that position, Commack’s John Darrell!...The triumph over Darrell was the only non-bonus point effort for Garibaldi, who "hit for the cycle" with one victory apiece by all classifications (decision in the finals, major in the semis, tech in the quarters, and pin in his 1st round bout)…
Nick Lamorte (Rocky Point) had reason for celebration too, as the 2020 Suffolk County champ #DI #4 at the moment) kept his perfect season intact when he built a 14-0 edge before pinning Dylan Vanegas (Lynbrook) at the 5:40 mark in a showdown of top-15 personnel (Vanegas is DI #15)…
Otega Uwode (Holy Trinity) and Ralph Caputo (Lynbrook) seized gold at 189 and 285 pounds!
"AROUND THE STATE"
Section III: Leo J. Sammon Tournament
Bringing the "Thunder" on behalf of Central Valley Academy was 8th grade standout, Gene Edwards...Ranked 9th in the DII polls, the youngster was one of two student-athletes from his school (Sixx Cook; Co-champ at 138 being the other) to win a crown last weekend at the Sammon as CVA went on to claim the overall team title....After pinning his way into the finals, Edwards posted a huge victory in the championship bout, knocking off 2021 Journeymen State bronze medalist/current DII #3, Liam English (Berne-Knox-Westerlo), by 7-3 decision....English reached the finals by beating his brother, Gabriel (2021 J-Men State 4th; present day DII #2), 4-3 in round-robin play!
In another of our marquee match-ups in the championship round, it was DII #3, Owen Hicks (Fonda/Fultonville/Johnstown) besting fifth-ranked (@152), Kace Cook (Central Valley Academy), 6-1, to strike gold at 145 pounds...Hicks has now won three separate events this season, as he was previously the last man standing at both the Andersen Memorial and the Wrangle In The Plains...
Copenhagen senior, Adam Ortega (DII #2), remained perfect in his last season as a Golden Knight versus fellow Empire State opponents (did suffer a loss to a wrestler from PA) when he pinned DII #9, Jordan Koenig (Holland Patent) at the 3:20 mark of their 172-pound finals bout...Ortega, who improved to 23-1 in 2021-2022, has already won FOUR tournaments in a little over a month. In December, he was a champ at the Marino Invitational, Sgt. Rogers Memorial, and the North Country...In addition, he lone blemish occurred in the finals of the Windsor!
While not constituting an upset on paper, respect must be given to Watertown's DI #12, Jack Clough, who handed previously undefeated/2019 S3 medalist, Aydin DeForest (Mount Markham), his first loss of the year when he pinned him in 1:28 of their 160-pound money match!
Contrary to 160, what transpired at 152 and 189 pounds were absolutely unexpected as Mason Rowley (Little Falls) and Jared Bilinski (Dolgeville) took turns upending polled opponents to seize their respective glory!
Rowley, who was able a champ at the Captain Bailey Memorial & the Cooperstown Invitational, has yet to lose since dropping down to 152 pounds just prior to the new year...After recording two pins and a 9-3 decision to punch his ticket to the finals, he emerged with a 10-4 decision over DII #11, Joey Reed (Mexico)
For the Blue Devil 11th grader, Bilinski, the big moment went down during the semifinal round as he posted a 9-5 decision over DII #3/2020 S3 titlist, Ethan Randall (Central Valley Academy)...As an encore, he stuck 2020 sectional placer (6th), Enver Bulatov (JD-CBA), with 25 ticks remaining in the 3rd period of their title contest!
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Section VI: Sectional Dual Championships
DI Summary: Like the "Little Engine That Could", nothing was going to stand in the way of Lancaster this past weekend, they claimed their first Section 6 Large School Dual crown since 2018!
The lowest (#4) of the four programs in attendance (on their campus), the Legend student-athletes (entered as Honorable Mention on the NYWN polls), successfully took out the top-2 seeds in back-to-back duals to hoist hardware and guarantee themselves a berth to Syracuse for the NYSPHSAA Dual tournament...
After dropping the first two bouts of the title dual against #14 ranked/second-seeded Starpoint, to fall into an early 10-0 hole, Lancaster representatives would issue an answer in the form of getting their arms raised in eight of the final 11 matches to emerge with the 38-26 triumph!
Rising to the occasion when the stakes were highest were the likes of: Myles Gronwoski (132), Carter Tadusz (138), and Thomas Carlsen (285)...
Gronwoski, a three-time S6 medalist/2x finalist, who is #6 @126 in the DI polls, would spark the comeback when he earned a 7-2 decision over 2021 S6 4th, Zach Caldwell to get his school on the scoreboard...
One match later, Tadusz prevailed in a clash of respective 2x sectional placers, as the 2021 runner-up pinned the returning S6 bronze medalist, Christopher Uptegrove, to cut the deficit to 10-9!
Lancaster now leading 26-20 with just three matches remaining, it was Carlsen coming through with perhaps the biggest single win of the day when he not only defeated, but pinned 2021 S6 4th place finisher, Matthew Caldwell...
After a pin from Starpoint's Kole Haseley over Carter Hunter at 102 temporary preserved hope for the Spartans, it was fantastic filly, Trista Blasz (2021 Women's Nationals 14U All-American) delivering the death blow with a stick in the dual finale over Coen Freundschuh!
Micah Harry (152), Michael Schaefer (160), Evan Stencel (172), and Sam Judasz (189) were all also victorious and pertinent to the collective conquest
Gronwoski and Blasz also proved quite instrumental in the 30-25 semifinal win over #12 Niagara Falls...
In the first match of the dual, Blasz pitched a 5-0 shutout over 14th-ranked (@102) Eian Peterson, to give her school the immediate 3-0 edge!
At 126, Gronowski had his own goose-egg inducing showing, as he registered a 4-0 decision against 2x S6 medalist/defending champ, Jaden Crumpler (#14)!
The middle and upper-weights were equally heroic against lesser credentialed oppositions...
With Lancaster facing an uphill climb, Schaefer, Stencel, Judasz, and Carlsen strung together wins (3 pins, 1 major) in four of the last five matches to account for 22 total team points!
Semifinal Box scores:
Lancaster-30; Niagara Falls-25
Niagara Falls-35; Niagara Wheatfield-24
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DII Summary: Anchored by FIVE state-ranked student-athletes in the line-up, our #3 program, Newfane, seized the first Section 6 Dual Meet crown in school history behind a 43-24 victory over #16 Falconer...
Winning seven of their eight individual bouts by some accompanying form of bonus point outcome, Brayden Kellison-Neglia (110),
Aiden Harris (118), Ayden Buttery (126), Aidan Gillings (138), Adam Huntington (145), Simon Lingle (215), Charles Larose (285), and Jakob Lucinski (102) all handed their business...
A dual that was decided by a series of mini-streaks, the Panthers jumped out to the initial 18-0 lead after Kellison-Neglia, Harris, and 2021 NYS 7th/7th rated (118) Buttery reeled off three straight falls in times of 5:10, 5:38, and 3:14 over Karsen Lundgren, Hunter Paulisick, and Vinnie Bloomberg!
After Falconer drew their first blood of the title contest at 132 pounds when Karsen DePasquale upended #13 (@126), Miguel Salas, Newfane immediately regained momentum by winning the next two matches to increase their cushion to 27-3.
Two-time NYS medalist/#4 (132), Gillings, stuck Mason Kilmer in 3:40 to remain unblemished this season...
Huntington would then win the unofficial "main event" of the dual as he bumped up multiple classes from his #10 ranking at 132 pounds to win a controlled 4-0 decision over Austin Chase (#7 @138) in a bout where the two combatants have combined for five Section 6 medals (2x for Huntington; 3x by Chase)...
Riding their own foursome of thoroughbreds at the middle/upper-weights, the Falcons would bring themselves to within 27-24 as Jacob Clark, Dalton Caldwell, Brodie Little, and Devyn Morrison put together a four-bout run at 152-189.
Returning S6 bronze medalist, Clark, hung on for a 9-7 decision against Camden Rowles, while Caldwell and Morrison had 1st period pins versus Owen Schank (1:44) and Cade Miller (1:14)...#15 (@160), Little, received a forfeit at 172!
Facing adversity head-on, Lingle (#6 @189) and Larose (#9 @285) slammed the door at Falconer's attempt to steal the crown...
The 2021 Sectional 3rd, Lingle, pinned Kyle Keefe in 4:23, followed by a 4:57 slap of the mat secured by the defending S6 titlist, Larose, over David Stein!
The spoils no longer in question, Lucinski capped the celebration with an 11-2 major decision versus Dylan Newman!
Semifinal Box score
Falconer-39; Iroquois-30
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