Dapper Dan Classic matchups

By Sal Interdonato | Published: March 16, 2010 | 0 Comments

Newburgh Free Academy 130-pounder Taylor Laraia will meet Frank Martellotti of Shady Side Academy in Pittsburgh at the Dapper Dan Classic Saturday in Pittsburgh, Pa.

Martellotti, who will walk on to Penn State’s wrestling team in the fall, won a state title at 103 pounds as a freshman.

Team New York wrestles an all-star team from the Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League at 6 p.m.

Valley Central’s Cody Ruggirello, the state’s all-time wins leader (275-20) wrestles Colton Blumer of West Greene (123-29), at 135. Ruggirello was originally slated to compete at 140 because state champ Andrew Lenzi of Fordham Prep was Team New York’s 135-pounder. Guess Lenzi decided not to wrestle.

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Friends of Section 9 wrestling awards

By Sal Interdonato | Published: March 15, 2010 | 0 Comments

The Friends of Section 9 wrestling held its banquet at The Meadowbrook in New Windsor Sunday night.

Here are the awards, which were recognized:

Troy Bouzakis Senior Wrestler of the Year: Cody Ruggirello, Valley Central
D’Aliso Most Improved Wrestler: Trent Costello, Kingston
D’Aliso Scholarship Award: Xavier Clair, Valley Central
Cpt. Stephen Leslie Most Courageous Award: Mike Vespa, Monroe-Woodbury
Comeback of the Year: Julio Gonzalez, Middletown
Orange/Sullivan Officials Sportsmanship Award: Chris Vealey, Warwick
DeCapua Scholarship Award: Chris Sweeney, Cornwall; Peter Behnke, Highland; Vinny Barber, Highland; Mike McGrath, Kingston; Henry Marley, Kingston; Devin Senning, Monroe-Woodbury; Dan Smith, Monroe-Woodbury; Mike Vespa, Monroe-Woodbury; Taylor Laraia, Newburgh Free Academy; John Moriarty, Port Jervis; Justin Mentz, Saugerties; Cody Ruggirello, Valley Central.
Frank Tschan Team of the Year: Valley Central
Most Improved Team of the Year: Saugerties
Friends of Section 9 Coach of the Year: John Canty, Warwick
Mark Faller Coach of the Year: Kevin Gallagher, Minisink Valley
Modified/Youth Coach of the Year: Jim O’Donnell, Monroe-Woodbury
John Bell Lifetime Achievement Award: Bob Zifchock
Assistant Coach of the Year: Scott Hendershot
Friends of Section 9 Referee of the Year: Glen DeJong
Scorekeeper of the Year: Britta Januszkiewicz, New Paltz
Special Recognition Award: Kevin Halperny, Tim Monahan, Sandy Strauss, Gaynor family
Friends of Section 9 Presidents Award: Bob Christensen, Keith Dommreis
Friends of Section 9 Person of the Year: Butch Taft
Parents of the Year: Mark and Kelly Nicholas
Fan of the Year: Rich Bouzakis, Pine Bush
Coaches Wife of the Year: Sue Rich, Pine Bush

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Palmer takes third in Pa.

By Sal Interdonato | Published: March 13, 2010 | 0 Comments

Delaware Valley (Pa.) sophomore 112-pounder C.J. Palmer defeated Dereck Enders 3-1 to take third place Saturday night at the Pennsylvania Class AAA championships in Hershey, Pa.

After falling to Enders of Big Spring 4-2 in a quarterfinal, Palmer reeled off three straight wins in the wrestlebacks to wrestle for third place.

Palmer’s finish is the second-best by a Delaware Valley wrestler in the state tournament. Joe Kennedy won the 189-pound title in 2008.

Palmer knocked off Paul Bewak of Hempfield, a semifinalist, 3-1 in a consolation semifinal. He also defeated Devon Lotito of Liberty 2-0 in overtime, avenging a 5-2 loss to Lotito in the Northeast region quarterfinals. Palmer started his wrestleback run with a 6-0 win over Daniel King of Susquehanna.

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Koonz going home

By Sal Interdonato | Published: March 9, 2010 | 0 Comments

Bob Koonz, who wasn’t rehired after 13 seasons at Marlboro, will be the offensive coordinator at Wallkill this fall.

Koonz, a 1978 Wallkill graduate, coached under his brother, Jeff, and Steve Barone at the school before leaving for Marlboro.

He led Marlboro to the Section 9 Class B title game in 2004 and 2006. Marlboro was 9-1 in 2004 but only 2-7 in 2009.

Check out Wednesday’s editions for more on the Marlboro situation and new coach Rich Ward.

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Collins to coach Kingston boys lacrosse

By Sal Interdonato | Published: March 4, 2010 | 0 Comments

Jeramie Collins is the new Kingston boys’ lacrosse coach, athletic director Glen Maisch said Thursday afternoon.

Collins, the school’s football coach, was slated to take over the boys’ golf team this spring.

That was until Mike Fratto, who was entering his second season as Kingston’s varsity coach, resigned Wednesday from his coaching position.

Fratto, a 2000 Middletown position, lost his permanent physical education substitute position on Tuesday. He lives in Middletown and could not afford to commute for a per diem position.

“The timing was not the greatest,” Fratto said. “I found out the night before about my job-situation status.
“Coaching for Kingston was an amazing time. Kingston is an amazing community with an amazing bunch of kids. I worked for a great administration…With budgets across the country, harsh decisions have to be made. In the end, the kids are hurt in the end because of the inconsistency with coaching. Every year, they have a new coach and new face.”

Fratto took over for longtime coach Tony Tocco, who retired, last season.

Spring practices start Monday.

Check out my story on Collins.

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Making the grade: Middletown wrestling

By Sal Interdonato | Published: March 4, 2010 | 0 Comments

The Middletown wrestling team has earned its first-ever New York State Public High School Athletic Association scholar-athlete award, coach Jason Lictenstein said.

The award is given to teams, which have 10 student-athletes with a combined 90.5 grade-point average of better.

Middletown’s top 10 were senior David Abt, juniors Brendan Gonzalez, Adam Velazquez and Justin Benbow, sophomores Jesse Dunitz, Vivek Sood, Johnny Donohue, Jorge Ochoa and William Perez and freshman Royce Pilkington.

“This is big for us,” Lichtenstein said. “It’s nice for us to get on there for the first time. It let kids know what to expect in the future.”

Lichtenstein said Abt, a section finalist at 145 pounds, is looking into wrestling at Exeter (N.H.) Academy, a prep school, next season.

“He didn’t expect to be in the final,” Lichtenstein said. “He’s only 17. With another year, I think he could wrestle in college.”

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Section 9 Division I state match-by-match

By Sal Interdonato | Published: March 3, 2010 | 0 Comments

Division I
96 pounds
Pine Bush eighth-grader John Stramiello (0-2)
Round of 16: L 8-6, No. 9 seed  Kyle Kelly (Chanango Forks-4)
First-round wrestleback: L, 7-3 to Nathan Marshall (Massena-10)

103 pounds
Cornwall sophomore T.J. Kreider (0-2)
Round of 16: L 8-0, No. 1 Mike Soria (Kings Park-11)
First-round wrestleback: L, pin 3:53 by Isaiah Perry (Massena-10)

112 pounds
Warwick sophomore Shane Connolly (1-2)
Round of 16: L 9-1 to Sean McCormick (Johnson City-4)
First-round wrestleback: W, pin 2:21, Cody Cook (Massena-10)
Second-round wrestleback: L 10-3 to Nick Oliveto (Suffern-1)

119 pounds
Monroe-Woodbury junior Gary Wolff (3-2)
Round of 16: W 12-0, James Montante (Penfield-5)
Quarterfinal: L, pin 3:02 to Mike Gentilcore (Olympia-5)
Second-round wrestleback: W 8-5, Dylan Kavanaugh (Vernon Verona Sherrill-3)
Third-round wrestleback: L, pin 3:57 to Alex Gomez (Brentwood-11)
Sixth-place state consolation: W, 4-1, Luke Alber (Farmingdale)
Minisink Valley junior Richard Dennison (0-2)
Round of 16: L 6-2 to eventual state champion Damon McQueen (Huntington-11)
First-round wrestleback: L 8-1 to Luke Alber (Farmingdale-8)

125 pounds
Valley Central senior Nic Smith (3-3)
Round of 16: L 7-0, Anthony Finocchairo (Baldwinsville-3)
First-round wrestleback: Pin 2:19, Ryan Spinner (Franklin-10)
Second-round wrestleback: Pin 5:00, Adam Wallace (Fulton-3)
Third-round wrestleback: W 6-4, Cam Kelly (Pittsford-5)
Consolation semifinal: L 10-2, Steven Rodriques (Fox Lane-1)
Fifth-sixth place consolation: L 7-3, Vin Fischetti (Monsignor Farrell-CHSAA)

130 pounds
Newburgh Free Academy senior Taylor Laraia (3-1)
Round of 16: W 5-0, Wesley Blanding (Chittenango-3)
Quarterfinal: W 5-0, Jason Chudzinski (Colonie-2)
Semifinal: W 7-5, Casey LaNave (Chenango Forks-4)
Final: L 6-0, Nick Meinsen (John Glenn-11)

Valley Central senior Robert Bailey (1-2)
Round of 16: L 10-5, Patrick Dyer (Cicero-North Syracuse)
First-round wrestleback: W 9-5, Dan Gewolb (Syosset-8)
Second-round wrestleback: L 6-2, Henry Stauber (John Jay Cross River-1)

135 pounds
Valley Central senior Cody Ruggirello (3-1)
Round of 16: 16-0, 5:44, Matt Gray (Indian River-3)
Quarterfinal: W 7-2, Kevin Panebianco (Hauppauge-11)
Semifinal: Pin 1:43, John Belanger (Shenendehowa-2)
Final: L 2-0, Andrew Lenzi (Fordham Prep)

140 pounds
Kingston junior Trent Costello (0-2)
Round of 16: L 5-2 to Daniel Cataldi (Great Neck South-8)
First-round wrestleback: L 3-2, 2 OT to Dan Tower (Franklin-10)

145 pounds
Warwick junior Mitch Wightman (3-2)
Round of 16: W 4-3, Josh Halladay (Johnson City-4)
Quarterfinal: W 5-1, Jacob Beichner (Williamsville East-6)
Semifinal: L 2-1 to Tony Carlo (Monsignor Farrell-CHSAA)
Consolation semifinals: L 6-4 to Vinnie DiGravio (Wayne-5)
Fifth-place match: W by forfeit over Paul Morabito (Spencerport-5)

152 pounds
Monroe-Woodbury senior Mike Vespa (4-2)
Round of 16: L, pin :53 by Kyle Wade (Islip-11)
First-round wrestleback: W 17-5, Joe Halkias (Townsend Harris-PSAL)
Second-round wrestleback: W, 25-10, Ben Villaret (Monsignor Farrell-CHSAA)
Third-round wrestleback: W, 10-7, Jordan Barnett (Chenango Forks-4)
Consolation semifinals: L, pin 4:33 by Nick Terdick (John Glenn-11)
Fifth-place match: W, pin 2:53, Jacob Burke (Mexico-3)

160 pounds
Monroe-Woodbury senior Dan Smith (1-2)
Round of 16: L 8-7 to Joe Inzana (Spencerport-5)
First-round wrestleback: W 8-6, Tyler Lusht (Chenango Forks-4)
Second-round wrestleback: L 8-2 to James Holden (Curtis-PSAL)
Cornwall junior Tyler Lawlor (1-2)
Round of 16: L 12-2 to Lamont Fleming (Corcoran-3)
First-round wrestleback: W, 17-0, Jacob Moose (Canton-10)
Second-round wrestleback: L, 19-3 to Joe Chamish (Jericho-8)

171 pounds
Minisink Valley senior Ryan Nicholas (2-3)
Round of 16: W, 16-7, Cody Cleveland (Canton-10)
Quarterfinal: W, 10-9, Nick Matthews (Kingston)
Semifinal: L 15-8 to eventual champion Billy Coggins (Rocky Point-11)
Consolation semifinal: L, pin 2:53 to Dustin Moss (East Syracuse Minoa-3)
Fifth-place match: L 5-1 to Francisco DeCristo (Springfield Gardens-PSAL)
Kingston senior Nick Matthews (1-2)
Round of 16: W 7-5, Zach Ward (Clarence-6)
Quarterfinal: L 10-9, Ryan Nicholas (Minisink Valley)
Second-round wrestleback: L, pin 2:28 to Ryan Lusht (Chenango Forks-4)
Warwick junior Sean Prell (0-2)
Round of 16: L, 21-6 to Chad Obzud (Lansingburgh-2)
First-round wrestleback: L, pin 1:25 by Troy Benjamin (Mexico-3)

189 pounds
Kingston senior Mike McGrath (4-2)
Round of 16: W 2-1, Chris Ohnsman (Ballston Spa-2)
Quarterfinal: L, 5-1 to Brandon Contreras (Penfield-5)
Second-round wrestleback: W, 10-3, Paul Alessandrini (St. Anthony’s-CHSAA)
Third-round wrestleback: W 2-1, Tony Fusco (Queensbury-2)
Consolation semifinal: W, 6-5, Chris DiIorio (Sachem East-11)
Third-place match: L 5-4 to Brandon Contreras (Penfield-5)
Newburgh Free Academy senior Marcus Spearman (1-2)
Round of 16: L 2-1, Joe Giaramita (John Glenn-11)
First-round wrestleback: W, pin 4:56, Brandon Keys (Thomas Edison-PSAL)
Second-round wrestleback: L, 3-1 to Tony Fusco (Queensbury-2)

215 pounds
Port Jervis junior Andrew Smith (1-2)
Round of 16: L, 3-1 to Henry Marley (Kingston)
First-round wrestleback: W, 17-2, Roland Patnode (Massena-10)
Second-round wrestleback: L, 9-4 to D.J. Ingram (Fulton-3)
Kingston senior Henry Marley (1-2)
Round of 16: W, 3-1, Andrew Smith (Port Jervis)
Quarterfinal: L, 14-1 to eventual champion Kyle Colling (Pioneer)
Second-round wrestleback: L 4-2, Brandon Fowler (Chaminade-CHSAA)

285 pounds
Newburgh Free Academy senior John Carey (1-2)
Round of 16: L, pin 1:10 by eventual champion Lance Moore (Johnson City-4)
First-round wrestleback: W, pin 1:36, David Brown (Flushing-PSAL)
Second-round wrestleback: L, 6-4, Jonathan Desir (St. Anthony’s-CHSAA)

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Afterthoughts: State tournament

By Sal Interdonato | Published: February 28, 2010 | 0 Comments

Tough tournament for Section 9 wrestling.

Section 9’s Division I team scored 108 points, its lowest total since the state tournament went to two divisions in 2004.

For the second straight season, the section didn’t bring back a state title. Expected Valley Central senior Cody Ruggirello to go out a champion.

Think Fordham Prep’s Andrew Lenzi definitely had a gameplan going into their 135-pound state final. Lenzi didn’t take many chances and really slowed down and controlled the match’s pace.

I was waiting all second period for Lenzi to be warned for stalling. He wasn’t improving his position on top at all. Finally, the referee put up his fist warning Lenzi as he blew the whistle to end the period.

Lenzi caught a break with 1;22 left in the match when Ruggirello had legs in deep and a stalemate was called. He took injury time immediately, caught his breath and was able to score the only points with 11 seconds left to win 2-0.

Ruggirello should keep his head held high. Lenzi’s a great wrestler. He won the 130-pound state title as a sophomore and took second at 135 last season. Lenzi (39-0) is headed to Division I Pennsylvania.

And how many Section 9 wrestlers can say they placed five times in the state? Three. Pine Bush’s Troy Bouzakis, Monroe-Woodbury’s Jamie Franco and Ruggirello. He finishes his state tournament career with a title as a freshman, two seconds and two thirds.

Newburgh Free Academy’s Taylor Laraia gave it his best in a 130-pound final against Nick Meinsen of John Glenn. Meinsen was just impossible to score on. He was a big strong 130-pounder. Laraia is a smaller 130-pounder. And the size difference worked a little against Laraia. Meinsen (42-0) knocked off top-seeded Bob Dierna of Wayne 8-6 in overtime in the semifinals. Laraia’s only loss prior to the state final was to Dierna.

Happy for Kingston senior Mike McGrath (52-4), who took fourth at 189 pounds in his first state tournament. If only McGrath could have solved Penfield’s Brandon Contreras, who knows, he could have been in the state final. Contreras defeated McGrath 5-1 in the quarterfinals and 5-4 for third place. McGrath looked like a state veteran winning three one-point match including a 6-5 win over Long Island champion Chris DiIorio of Sachem East in the consolation semifinals.

Valley Central senior Nic Smith was another state rookie who represented. Smith made a run in the wrestlebacks, winning three straight matches before placing sixth at 125 pounds, one of the tougher weights in the tournament. Smith wasn’t going to wrestle in college. But he might be changing his mind. He took a visit to Division III Johnson & Wales in Providence, R.I. last week and might visit Division II American International in Springfield, Mass.

Section 9 Division II wrestlers had another rough tournament. They won just seven of their 35 matches. But have to give some props to Highland’s Vinny Barber. Both of Barber’s defeats came by a point and he nearly knocked off second-seeded Marty Cole of Delhi in the quarterfinals.

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State finals

By Sal Interdonato | Published: February 27, 2010 | 0 Comments

Division I
96 pounds: Mark West (Hauppauge-11) d. Eric Lewandowski(Lancaster-6) 2-1
103: Al Dierna (Wayne-5) d. Joe Barbato (Wantagh-8) 9-2
112: Nigel McNeil (Huntington-11) d. Malik Rasheed (Longwood-11) 11-2
119: Damon McQueen (Huntington-11) d. Grant Greene (St. Anthony’s-CHSAA) 9-7
125: Nick Arujau (Syosset-8) d. Justis Flamio (Mahopac-1) 7-5
130: Nick Meinsen (John Glenn-11) d. Taylor Laraia (Newburgh Free Academy) 6-0
Meinsen takedown 35 seconds in. Out of bounds called as Meinsen was ready to bar Laraia with 43 seconds left in the first period. Meinsen leads 2-0 after first period. Laraia top position to start second period. Meinsen reverses Laraia eight seconds in. Meinsen just too tough riding. Laraia can’t escape. Neutral to start third period. Meinsen takes down Laraia with one minute left and leads 6-0.
135: Andrew Lenzi (Fordham Prep-CHSAA) d. Cody Ruggirello (Valley Central) 2-0
Ruggirello fighting off a takedown for the first minute. Stalemate with 46 seconds left in the first period. Lenzi is forcing the action. Scoreless first period. Ruggirello down for second period. Lenzi didn’t do anything on top in the second period and is finally warned for stalling at the end of the second period. Stalemate with 1:22 left as Ruggirello had the legs in deep. Injury time for Lenzi. Scrambling predictament Ruggirello loses leg hook and Lenzi takes Ruggirello down with 11 seconds left.
140: Steve Dutton(Rocky Point-11) tech. fall Jim Kloc (Iroquois-6) 16-1, 5:59
145: Andy Rodriguez (Central Islip-11) d. Tony Carlo (Monsignor Farrell-CHSAA) 2-2, ultimate tiebreaker
152: Giuseppi Lanzi (Amsterdam-2) d. Kyle Wade (Islip-11) 13-6
160: Anthony Volpe (Rocky Point-11) d. Louis Puca (Huntington-11) 11-4
171: Billy Coggins (Rocky Point-11) d. Joe Kavanagh (Wantagh-8) 3-2
189: Angelo Malvestuto (Niagara Wheatfield-6) d. Matt Loew (Wantagh-8) 9-3
215: Kyle Colling (Pioneer-6) d. Connor Horl (Garden City-8) 1-0
285: Lance Moore (Johnson City-4) d.  Zeal Mcgrew (Burnt Hills-2) 7-1
Division II
96 pounds: Tristan Rifanburg (Norwich-4) d. Drew Longo (Ardsley-1) 10-6
103: Abdulgawi Mohamed (Lackawanna-6) d. Austin Keough (Warsaw-5) 4-1
112: Arik Robinson (Peru-7) d. Colton Dalberth (Marion-5) 9-2
119: Penn Gottfried (Ardsley-1) d. Kyle Crisafulli (Phoenix-3) 2-1
125: Quinton Murphy (Holley-5) d. Sean Hanson (South Jefferson-3) 14-2
130: Nick Wilcox (Greene-4) d. Lance Compton (Attica-5) 6-2
135: Derek Pfluger (Sandy Creek-3) d. Devin Soper (Waverly-4) 9-0
140: Tyler Peet (Unadilla Valley-4) d. Derak Heyman (Tioga-4) 6-5
145: Chris Nevinger (Letchworth-5) d. Josh Manuel (Tioga-4) 9-3
152: Owen Scott (Palmyra-Macedon-5) d. Darin Wignall (Deposit/Hancock-4) 11-2
160: Craig Scott (Palmyra-Macedon-5) d. Nick Lalone (Cato Meridian-3) 5-1
171: Tyler Beckwith (Greene-4) pin Ryan Darch (Batavia-5) :36
189: Colin Palmer (East Aurora-6) d. Ryan Todd (Lansing-4) 10-8
215: Nick Gwiazdowski (Duanesburg-2) d. Jon Casper (Leroy-5) 7-2
285: Aaron Kroll (Gowanda-6) d. Kacee Sauer (Holley-5) 3-2

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Wrestleback results: McGrath takes fourth

By Sal Interdonato | Published: February 27, 2010 | 0 Comments

Kingston’s Mike McGrath placed fourth at 189 pounds.

Both of McGrath’s losses here were to Penfield’s Brandon Contreras. Contreras defeated McGrath 5-4 in the third-place match.

McGrath scored a takedown with two seconds left to defeat Chris DiIorio of Sachem East 6-5 in the consolation semifinals.

Monroe-Woodbury’s Mike Vespa finally earned a medal in his fourth trip to the state tournament. Vespa pinned Jacob Burke of Mexico in 2:53 for fifth place.

Third-fourth place consolations
189: Brandon Contreras (Penfield-5) d. Mike McGrath (Kingston) 5-4

Fifth-sixth place consolations
125: Vin Fischetti (Monsignor Farrell-CHSAA) d. Nic Smith (Valley Central) 7-3
145: Mitch Wightman (Warwick) won by forfeit over Paul Morabito (Spencerport-5)
152: Mike Vespa (Monroe-Woodbury) pin Jacob Burke (Mexico-3) 2:53
171: Francisco DeCristo (Springfield Gardens-PSAL) d. Ryan Nicholas (Minisink Valley) 3-1

Consolation semifinals
125: Steven Rodriques (Fox Lane) d. Nic Smith (Valley Central) 10-2
145: Vinnie DiGravio (Wayne-5) d. Mitch Wightman (Warwick) 6-4
152: Nick Terdick (John Glenn-11) pin Mike Vespa (Monroe-Woodbury) 4:33
171: Dustin Moss (East Syracuse Minoa-3) d. Ryan Nicholas (Minisink Valley) 2:53
189: Mike McGrath (Kingston) d. Chris DiIorio (Sachem East-11) 6-5

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