NY College Weekend Recap

This article is from 12/08/13

CORNELL'S GARRETT AND DEAN WIN IN VEGAS, PLUS MUCH MORE FROM AROUND NEW YORK

The Cliff Keen Las Vegas is always one of the toughest in-season tournaments in the country.  This year was no exception, as some of the nation’s best gathered in Nevada on Friday and Saturday.

Cornell, Hofstra and Army were the New York squads in the field, with the Big Red finishing fourth overall, despite having only nine grapplers competing.

The Big Red featured six placers, including champions Nahshon Garrett at 125 and Gabe Dean at 184.

Garrett, ranked second in the nation, was the runner up at this event last year, but this time he picked up the top prize with a 6-1 decision over #5 Jarrod Patterson of Oklahoma.  (Garrett had defeated Patterson in an unofficial bout at the NWCA All-Star Classic in November as well).

Dean, a freshman from Michigan, registered some impressive victories during his 5-0 weekend.  In the quarterfinals, he topped last year’s EIWA bronze medalist Ophir Bernstein of Brown, and in the semis, he knocked off #5 Jacob Swartz of Boise State in overtime.  The title contest was less dramatic, as Dean took the lead early and continued to build on it during a 13-3 major over Tim Dudley of Nebraska.

Those weren’t the only finalists for the Big Red.  Freshman Brian Realbuto dominated #20 Justin DeAngelis of Oklahoma and then came back from an early deficit to record a pin in sudden victory over Virginia’s Blaise Butler in the semifinals.  In the championship round, he came up just short against two-time All-American James Green of Nebraska, currently ranked fourth in the nation, 6-5.

In addition to Dean and Realbuto, two more Cornell rookies made a strong impact.  133-pounder Mark Grey nabbed fourth after compiling four wins at the event, while Dylan Palacio also won four times at 165, to take sixth.  Palacio was unseeded, but bested three seeded opponents along the way, including #19 Alex Elder of Oregon State and #10 Joe Booth of Hofstra.

Speaking of Booth, the Pride graduate student was seventh at 165, capturing his final match by major decision over Navy’s Peyton Walsh.  His teammate Luke Vaith also earned a spot on the podium, taking fourth at 141, with both losses coming to Oklahoma’s Nick Lester.  Vaith won five bouts at the tournament.

A few New York natives also placed in Vegas.  Nebraska’s Anthony Abidin, a former star for Half Hollow Hills East, was the runner up to two-time NCAA champion Logan Stieber at 141.  In addition, Duanesburg’s Nick Gwiazdowski nabbed third at heavyweight after a 6-1 weekend.  And Warsaw’s Ian Paddock grabbed fifth at 149 for Ohio State after a 5-2 performance.

For the final brackets from the event, see this link.

Binghamton and Buffalo in Dual Action . . .

Both Binghamton and Buffalo competed in a pair of dual meets on Sunday, with both coming out on the losing end twice.

The Bearcats hosted New Jersey squads Princeton and Rider on Saturday, with the Tigers winning 27-5 and the Broncs notching a 29-6 triumph.

Heavyweight Tyler Deuel went 2-0 on the day, picking up a technical fall over New York native Cole Lampman of Princeton before topping Greg Velasco of Rider by a 11-7 decision.  Also victorious against the Broncs was 184-pounder Caleb Wallace, who bested Jim Resnick by decision.

The Bulls traveled to the Midwest for some MAC competition.  On Saturday, Kent State came out ahead 38-3, with Max Soria putting Buffalo on the board with a 9-7 win over Alfredo Gray at 125.  The following day, Central Michigan scored a 29-6 victory.  Angelo Malvestuto got things off to a good start with a victory at 197 in the opening bout, however, the Chippewas took control from there until Tony Lock ended the dual on high note with a decision at 184.

And in More Action . . .

SUNY Sullivan, in its first season of action as a program, featured placers at the Southern Maine Invitational.  Leading the way for the squad were Amon Gervais (second at 157), Deon Edmond (third at 184) and Josh Bonneau (fourth at 197).  Also making the podium was Rensselaer Polytechnic’s Conner Burns at 165.

Back in the Empire state, at the RIT Invitational, Oswego took third in the team standings, with Oneonta fourth and RIT sixth.  Alfred State was also in the field.  Oswego's Scott Bova was second at 184, while James Ronca and Jake Yankloski were third and fourth, respectively at 125. Abubakarr Sow was also fourth at 149.

Earning top three finishes for Oneonta were champions Chad Obzud (197), Daniel Graff (174), second placers Stephen Provenzano (285), Benjamin Mikac (141) and Shaun Gillen (third at 165).

RIT boasted a pair of champions at home – Rory Bruce at 133 and Brad Mayville at 149.

For full results of the Southern Maine Invitational and the RIT Invitational, see www.trackwrestling.com.

Also in New York, Niagara CCC hosted the Thunderwolves Open.  A number of Division I wrestlers participated, with Penn State grabbing first in six of the brackets.  Taking home the title at 149 was former Holley star Quinton Murphy, competing unattached for Clarion.

On home turf, Niagara boasted a number of second placers - Cody Carbery at 125, Eric Velez at 133, Kevin Strong at 149, Chris Nevinger at 165, Brian Kerwin at 197 and Jim Donner at 285.

For the full brackets, see this link.

To report results, email newyorkwrestlingnews@gmail.com.