Monday 1/13
Wallkill 48 Cornwall 25
Wednesday 1/15
Minisink Valley 61 Middletown 10
NFA 39 New Paltz 38
Washingtonville 56 Pine Bush 24
Port Jervis 69 Saugerties 18
Wallkill 51 Valley Central 27
Warwick 45 Kingston 39
Monroe Woodbury 71 Cornwall 12
Chester 45 Highland 34
Burke 48 Tri-Valley/Fallsburg 11
Red Hook 48 E/L/SW 36
Goshen 82 FDR – Hyde Park 0
Onteora 45 Rondout Valley 27
Thursday 1/16
Saugerties 54 Chester 36
Port Jervis 72 Eldred/Liberty/Sullivan West 18
Now that the 2020 Eastern States Classic is in the books, let’s take a look at some of the highlights from this year’s incredible tournament!
Tommy Askey Wins Title @ 152
Pine Bush senior Tommy Askey finished 4th in the state last year at the NYSPHSAA Championships in Albany. That’s a pretty impressive accomplishment for a kid who finished 2nd in the Section the year before as a sophomore. This year it appears as though Askey has taken it to the next level. He is undefeated on the season, he has yet to be taken down this year, and Askey just won the 152 pound title at the Eastern States Classic making himself one of the favorites to be on top of the podium in Albany this year! This is the second year in a row that a Section 9 has been crowned champion at the ESC – Cornwall’s Will Leonard won at 220 last year. Prior to that, Section 9 had a six year championship drought as Chris Cuccolo from Pine Bush was the last local to win when he took the title at 99 pounds back in 2013.
Redding Tops Ryan Jack @ 132
Eastport South Manor senior Zach Redding pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the tournament when he knocked off Ryan Jack by a score of 8-6 in the finals at 132. Jack, a NC State bound senior from Danbury, CT, is the #2 ranked 132 pound wrestler in the nation according to InterMat. Redding, who is heading to Iowa State in the Fall, was in control of the match from whistle to whistle. The Section 11 stud has finished 3rd, 1st, and 3rd in NYS the last three seasons and is looking forward to ending his high school career on the top step of the podium in Albany!
7th Grader PJ Duke Takes 99lb Title
PJ Duke’s magical varsity wrestling debut continues as the Carmel 7th grader dominated the field and won the first of what will likely be several ESC crowns. The only other 7th grader to win an ESC title was Beau Bartlett back in 2015 when he took the top step on the podium at 99 lbs. Bartlett, now in his senior season at Wyoming Seminary, was back in SUNY Sullivan this season and won his 4th ESC title, this time at 138 pounds.
ESC Girls Division Is A First
Girls wrestling is one of the fastest growing high school sports in the nation. State after state is sanctioning girls wrestling as a varsity sport and we hope that New York will follow suit in the very near future. There are several major tournaments in the off season that have a girls division including the Super 32 and the Journeymen Classic, however there have been no premier in-season high school tournaments with a girls division – until now. The 2020 Eastern States Classic had a girls only division which included 49 female wrestlers from 42 different schools. Congratulations to our champions Zoe Griffith (Gouverneur, 99), Caitlyn Walker (Wyoming Seminary, 106), Ally Fitzgerald (Lynbrook, 113), Sofia Macaluso (Minisink Valley, 120), Mia Macaluso (Minisink Valley, 126), Schyler Caringi (Coxsackie, 132), Damiana Racciatti (Liverpool, 152), Kai Poux (Brooklyn Tech, 170), and Joanna Jones (Wingate, 195).
Top Ranked Sem Dominated the Field
Wyoming Seminary is the #1 ranked high school wrestling team in the nation by every major wrestling media outlet – and at this weekend’s Eastern States Classic they showed why! Although they technically only came with a handful of starters but they won the tournament by an impressive 145 points over second place Shenendehowa. Capturing titles for Sem were Brandon Cannon (106), Nic Bouzakis (126), Beau Bartlett (138) , Lachlan McNeil (145), Andrew Donahue (170), and Kolby Franklin (220). Bouzakis was voted as Champion of Champions by the finalists. He pinned his first 4 opponents in the first period then majored a state medalist in the semis before teching another state medalist in the finals. Bouzakis’ father Troy is a 1990 graduate of Pine Bush where he graduated as a 3X NYS champion.
Weight Classes At A Glance
99 Champion – PJ Duke (Carmel, 7th)
Duke looked awesome and he looks like he might be the best 99 pound wrestler in NYS. I know it’s a little premature to start talking about him being the first ever 6X NY state champ but wow did he look great!
106 Champion – Brandon Cannon (Wyoming Seminary, 9th)
Cannon has now won the Beast of the East and the Eastern States Classic – not too shabby for Sem’s backup 106 pounder! Their starter at 106 is Danny Sheen. Andy Lucinski from Section 6 Newfane looked extremely impressive and might be the best 106 pounder in NYS D1 or D2!
113 Champion – Stevo Poulin (Shenedehowa, 11th)
In a rematch of last year’s 106 pound final, Poulin topped D2 state champ Geislinger by a 7-3 margin. Poulin looked awesome and showed why he’s been ranked in the top few at his weight for the past two seasons!
120 Champion – Jordan Titus (Center Moriches, 11th)
Another classic battle between two of the best wrestlers in NYS did battle as Titus defated rival Anthony Noto by a score of 9-4. MA hammer Hunter Adrian from Melrose made this weight exceptionally deep- he finished 3rd and knocked off three NYS place winners along the way!
126 Champion – Nic Bouzakis (Wyoming Seminary, 10th)
Bouzakis was on a different level than the rest of the field. He is the #1 ranked 126 pounder in the nation according to InterMat and he’s worth the price of admission. NYS had the next six place winners at 126 in Ivan Garcia (Port Chester), Anthony DiBartolo (Hauppauge), Rocco Camillaci (Hilton), Zack Ryder (Minisink Valley), Micah Roes (Lowville), and David Correa (Tottenville) finishing in places 2-7 respectively.
132 Champion – Zach Redding (Eastport South Manor, 12th)
Redding will definitely return to the national rankings after a very solid win over Ryan Jack from Danbury who is ranked as high as #2 in the nation by Intermat. One of the more anticipated matches in Albany could be a showdown between Redding and Section 5 Rush Henrietta stud Jayden Scott who placed 3rd and nearly knocked off Jack in the semis!
138 Champion – Beau Bartlett (Wyoming Seminary, 12th)
The Penn State bound Bartlett is now a 4X ESC champion. He is the top ranked 138 pounder in the nation by InterMat and he was awesome this weekend! His opponent in the finals was no slouch in NYS champ Ryan Burgos from Hilton who won a great semifinal match against last year’s ESC champ at 132 Justin McDougald from Niagara Wheatfield.
145 Champion – Lachlan McNeil (Wyoming Seminary, 12th)
McNeil won the Walsh Ironman and the Powerade and he’s the #1 145 pounder according to InterMat and FloWrestling! So he blew through this field, right….wrong! McNeil won a hard fought 5-4 decision against NYS finalist Willie McDougald from Section 6 Niagara Falls who is also ranked nationally at #18 by InterMat!
152 Champion – Tommy Askey (Pine Bush, 12th)
Askey is undefeated and has not been taken down this year. He was the top seed at this weight and he wrestled like a man on a mission! This is going to be a great weight to follow this February in Albany especially if defending state champ AJ Kovacs enters the fray here!
160 Champion – Jacob Null (Dolgeville, 11th)
Null is a great athlete! He defeated a very tough Brevin Cassella from Nashoba Regional, MA in the finals and topped Gavin Bell from Cold Spring Harbor in the semis in what could be a preview of the D2 state finals in NYS. Monroe Woodbury’s Joe McGinty was the highest finishing NYS D1 wrestler coming in 4th behind Bell.
170 Champion – Andrew Donahue (Wyoming Seminary, 10th)
Donahue was challenged by NYS D2 studs in the quarters and semis before teching Tyler Albis 15-0 in the finals. Donahue defeated Onteora’s Nate Ross 3-0 in the quarters and then topped Norwich’s Mikey Squires 6-3 in the semis. Donahue is only a sophomore!
182 Champion – Brock Delsignore (Shenendehowa, 11th)
The Section 2 hammer wrestled at 145 last year where he lost to Askey in the blood round in Albany. He is now a filled out 182 pounder and in going to be one of the favorites for a state title in February. Delsignore defeated fellow NYS D1 contender Ryan Stencel from Lancaster in the semis 10-3 before topping D2 stud and fellow Journeymen wrestler Ethan Cooper 3-1 in the finals.
195 Champion – Carson Licastri (Joel Barlow, CT, 12th)
Licastri was the #4 seed and knocked off the top seed Matt Kelly from Iona Prep in the semis 6-4 before majoring previously undefeated MA stud and #2 seed Darby McLaughlin 10-2 in the finals. Kelly was the top NYS finisher at #3 and followed by Nick Franco from Farmingdale and Joe Russell from NFA rounding out the top 5 in the weight.
220 Champion – Kolby Franklin (Wyoming Seminary, 10th)
That’s not a typo. The 220 pound ESC champion is only a sophomore. Franklin 2nd in PA last year before taking his talents to the national powerhouse prep school. He defeated Sebastian Garibaldi from White Plans by an 18-3 tech fall in the finals. McKee-Staten Island Tech’s Alex Semenenko was pinned in the opening round and then wrestled all the way back to 3rd place highlighted by a 1-0 decision in the medal match over the kid who pinned him in the opening round!
285 Champion – Sam Khodaparest (Massapequa, 12th)
Khodaparest recorded 3-2 wins over the #1 and #4 seeds in the quarters and semis – Myles Norris (Freeport) and Greg Harris (Springfield Central) respectively. He capped off his title run by beating Brentwood’s London Castillo 8-6 in the finals. Castillo defeated third seeded Adam Fenner from Minisink 7-6 in the semis. This will be a great weight to follow in Albany!
Finals
99: PJ Duke (Carmel) wbf 3:16 Vince Bouzakis (Sem)
106: Brandon Cannon (Sem) dec 5-0 Andy Lucinski (Newfane)
113: Stevo Poulin (Shen) dec 7-3 Dante Geislinger (Norwich)
120: Jordan Titus (C. Moriches) dec 9-4 Anthony Noto (HFL)
126: Nic Bouzakis (Sem) tf 18-3 Ivan Garcia (Port Chester)
132: Zack Redding (ESM) dec 8-6 Ryan Jack (Danbury)
138: Beau Bartlett (Sem) dec 10-4 Ryan Burgos (Hilton)
145: Lachlan McNeil (Sem) dec 5-4 Will McDougal (N. Falls)
152: Tommy Askey (Pine Bush) dec 5-3 Dennis Robin (Arl)
160: Jake Null (Dolge) dec 3-2 Brevin Cassella (Nashoba)
170: Andrew Donohue (Sem) tech 15-0 Tyler Albis (JJEF)
182: Brock Delsignore (Shen) dec 3-1 Ethan Cooper (Colb)
195: Carson Licastri (JB) maj 10-2 Darby McLaughlin (Spring)
220: Kolby Franklin (Sem) tf 18-3 Sebastian Garibaldi (WP)
285: Sam Kodaparest (Mass) dec 8-5 London Castillo (Brent)
MOW Lightweights: PJ Duke (Carmel)
MOW Middleweights: Zach Redding (Eastport South Manor)
MOW Heavyweights: Brock Delsignore (Shenendehowa)
Champion of Champions: Nic Bouzakis (Wyoming Seminary)
Aggregate Pin: Zack Ryder (MV) 5 pins in 8:13
Team Sportsmanship Award: Middletown
Top 5 Teams:
1. Wyoming Seminary – 233.5 points
2. Shenendehowa – 88.5 points
3. Danbury – 77 points
4. Minisink Valley – 74 points
5. Springfield Central – 64 points
Medal Matches
99 Pounds
3rd: Dailey (Sem) dec 6-0 Manfredi (Herricks)
5th: Leivano (Ward Mel) dec 4-2 Adams (Mon Far)
7th: Brown (MW) dec 6-2 Joyce (Pongenaset)
106 Pounds
3rd: Gallagher (Bay) dec 5-0 Cam Soda (Burl)
5th: Federici (Sem) dec 4-2 Rivera (Bayshore)
7th: Schafer (PalMac) dec 5-3 Brault (Joel Barlow)
113 Pounds
3rd: Rapuano (Xavier) dec 11-2 Echevarria (LB)
5th: Centrone (Mahopac) dec 3-2 Foy (MacArthur)
7th: ODell (Danbury) dec 1-0 Polo (Cold Spring)
120 Pounds
3rd: Adrian (Melrose) dec 7-3 Balducci (Pleasantville)
5th: Liardi (Mass) fft Constrastano (Wheatley)
7th: Eckerle (Commack) wbf 2:15 Joyce (Pongenanset)
126 Pounds
3rd: DiBartolo (Haup) dec 3-2 Camillaci (Hilton)
5th: Ryder (MV) wbf 3:59 Roes (Lowville)
7th: Correa (Tottenville) dec 5-3 Johnson (Danbury)
132 Pounds
3rd: Scott (Rush Hen) dec 5-3 Denatale (Locust Valley)
5th: Cardenas (Grand Street) fft Bush (CVA)
7th: Lemmons (Sem) fft Schneider (MacArthur)
138 Place
3rd: McDougald (N. Falls) dec 4-1 Sciotto (ESM)
5th: Burgess (PalMac) dec 4-0 Damasco (Commack)
7th: Baer (Gouv) dec 6-2 Price (Marcellus)
145 Pounds
3rd: Mulhauser (Central Square) dec 9-3 Sanko (Pittsford)
5th: Heck (Sem) fft Miller (Spring)
7th: Waxman (Commack) dec 3-2 Lobo (Cop)
152 Pounds
3rd: Hansen (Cold Spring) dec 7-0 Smith (Saranac)
5th: Smith (Marcus Whitman) dec 7-0 Case (CVA)
7th: Hothi (Rush Hen) fft Scutellaro (Mass)
160 Pounds
3rd: Bell (Cold Spring Harbor) wbf 2:12 McGinty (MW)
5th: Carano (Put Val) dec 5-2 P. Ross (Onteora)
7th: Galvin (Fulton) dec 3-0 Dorfman (Shen)
170 Pounds
3rd: Squires (Norwich) wbf 1:23 Moore (Lev. Div.)
5th: Araneo (Ward Mel) md 18-4 Velazquez (Middletown)
7th: Meshkov (Nisky) wbf 2:27 Rasmussen (Fairfield)
182 Pounds
3rd: Stencel (Lancaster) wbf 1:38 Behar (Byram Hills)
5th: Grechko (Brook. Tech) fft Tyrell (Haup)
7th: Shippee (Gouverneur) fft Gallo (MV)
195 Pounds
3rd: Kelly (Iona Prep) fft Franco (Farmingdale)
5th: Russell (NFA) dec 4-3 Cascen (Truman)
7th: Hegi (Mepham) dec 3-2 DeWolff (Warsaw)
220 Pounds
3rd: Semenenko (McKee) dec 1-0 Leftenant (Cop)
5th: Magliocco (Northpot) dec 9-5 Bielec (Grand Island)
7th: Stein (Shaker) wbf 4:40 Botello (Pongenaset)
285 Pounds
3rd: Fenner (MV) dec 5-1 Harris (Springfield)
5th: Null (Carthage) wbf 6:43 Lebberes (Ardsley)
7th: Lesswig (St. Joe’s) fft Prisco (Fox Lane)
Section 9 advanced 12 wrestlers into tomorrow’s quarterfinals at the 2020 Eastern States Classic. Eight other wrestlers are still alive in the consolation bracket. Wrestling will be at 9:15 – finals should start at approximately 4:00. Let’s take a look at all of the Section 9 wrestlers who are still alive for Day 2 of the ESC!
Quarterfinalists
99: Jordan Brown (MW) vs Vince Bouzakis (Sem)
113: Andrew Marchese (Wash) vs Stevo Poulin (Shen)
152: Tommy Askey (PB) vs Jeremy Scutellaro (Massapequa)
152: Nick Ross (Ont) vs Bryce Smith (Saranac)
160: Joe McGinty (MW) vs Camrin Galvin (Fulton)
160: Pat Ross (Ont) vs Brevin Cassella (Nashoba)
170: Nate Ross (Ont) vs Andrew Donohue (Sem)
182: Ethan Gallo (MV) vs Ryan Stencel (Lancaster)
195 Joe Russell (NFA) vs Darby McLaughlin (Sprinfield)
220: Armel Duke (Midd) vs Kolby Franklin (Sem)
220 Maxx DeCapua (NFA) vs Blake Beilec (Grand Island)
285: Adam Fenner (MV) vs Collin Null (Carthage)
Wrestlebacks
99: Alex Greco vs Ryan Devins (Saranac)
99: Trevor Tufano (Port Jeris)
120: Nick Picariello (MV) vs Joe Sparacio (Bayport)
126: Zack Ryder (MV) vs Sean Garofal (North Rockland)
132: Jordan Suarez (MV) vs Drew Witham (Corning)
138: Eric Tigue (PJ) vs Zach Harrington (Sydney)
170: Joe Velazquez (Midd) vs Tyler Tupper (Gouverneur)
182: Jeremy Mazzella (Warwick) vs Kyle Serro (Lynbrook)
220: Jon Perez (Highland) vs Anthony Bottelo (Ponaganset)
The Most Anticipated Quarterfinals Are….
99: RI stud Jacob Joyce takes on Sem’s Jake Dailey
106: NYS Champ Jace Schafer takes on #26 seed Dom Federici
113: Mahopac’s Centrone versus state finalist Foy should be fun
120: D2 battle between S8 Constratano and S8 Leonard
126: Garcia vs Roes will be a D1 vs D2 battle
132: State finalist Scott vs Sem’s Lemmons is the match to watch
138: My favorite 1/4 of the tournament – Burgos vs Damasco
145: Sem’s Heck and MA stud Miller will provide fireworks
152: Can S8 stud Scutellaro push an extremely tough Askey
160: NYS 3rd Galvin takes on NYS 4th McGinty
170: D1 vs D2 showdown between Araneo and Squires
182: 2019 ESC finalist Azah takes on S2 hammer Delsignore
195: McLaughlin vs Russell in a battle of undefeated wrestlers
220: Funchess takes on Magliocci in a battle of Long Island studs
285: 3 seed Rice vs 6 seed Castillo has great potential
Girls Division Preview – by Matt Diano
The Eastern States Classic is the 1st premier in-season high school wrestling tournament to incorporate a girls division! Girls wrestling is one of the fastest growing sports in the United States. Please take a few minutes to read the incredible preview of this year’s girls tournament penned by our good friend from Long Island Matt Diano!
Everything You Need For The 2020 Eastern States Classic
Here we go…the much anticipated seeds for the 2020 Easter States Classic!!! Please keep in mind that these seeds are not etched in stone…changes can and will be made if seeded wrestlers scratch!
Congratulations to Minisink Valley and Port Jervis for winning the Section 9 Dual Meet Tournament last night at Minisink Valley High School. The Warriors are the Division 1 champions for the third consecutive year while Port has captured their second Division 2 title in three years.
Division 1 Finals: Minisink Valley 60 Middletown 15
Division 2 Finals: Port Jervis 56 Red Hook 12
Division 1 Semifinals: Minisink Valley 54 NFA 18
Division 1 Semifinals: Middletown 35 Monroe Woodbury 34
Division 1 Recap and Highlights
Minisink Valley is considered one of the top teams in NYS state so they came into the tournament as a heavy favorite … they did not disappoint! The most exciting dual of the evening, however, was the semifinal dual between Middletown and MW. The team score changed leads a few times and it all came down to the last match where Middletown’s Armel Duke needed a pin for the Middies to prevail and that’s exactly what he delivered. The other semi was far less dramatic however it did provide fans with a few noteworthy individual matches highlighted by a great match between NFA’s Maxx DeCapua and MV’s Carson Henry. DeCapua, a 2X NYS place winner, prevailed 6-3 but had his hands full with a greatly improved Henry who finished 5th in Section 9 last season. In the finals we also had some very exciting matches including a battle at 132 where Middletown’s Josh Sam wrestled very tough and hung with MV’s 8th grade phenom and state finalist Zack Ryder who was up at 132 for the dual. Ryder won the very physical match by a 6-3 margin. The last three bouts were also noteworthy. MV’s Geysen scored a wbf over Middletown’s Giacchi in a match between to of S9’s top 195 pounders. We also so MV’s Carson Henry pick off Middletown’s Armel Duke who was an ESC place winner last season and then there was MV’s Adam Fenner closing out the dual with a win by fall over Middletown 8th grader Stephan Monchery in a tilt between two of the best 285’s in Section 9.
Division 2 Recap and Highlights
coming soon…
The Road To Syracuse
The Section 9 Duals take place on Tuesday 1/7 and Wednesday 1/8. This tournament serves as the qualifier for the NYSPHSAA Dual Meet Championship which takes place on Saturday, February 1st in Syracuse. Let’s take a look at the schedule for Tuesday and Wednesday. Best of luck to all of the D1 and D2 teams who will be competing for Section 9 dual meet supremacy!
Wednesday January 8 – Minisink Valley location
Division 1 Semifinals – 5:00
Minisink Valley 54 NFA 18
Middletown 35 Monroe Woodbury 34
D1 and D2 Finals – 6:30
D1: Minisink Valley 60 Middletown 15
D2: Port Jervis 56 Red Hook 12
Tuesday January 7 – Newburgh Free Academy location
Division 1
Round 16
#1 Minisink Valley – bye
Washingtonville 51 Pine Bush 32
Goshen 43 Kingston 32
#4 Newburgh Free Academy 60 Cornwall 16
Quarterfinals – 7:30
#1 Minisink Valley 64 Washingtonville 15
#4 NFA 57 Goshen 24
Tuesday January 7 – Middletown location
Division 1
Round 16
#3 Monroe Woodbury 87 Monticello 0
Wallkill 50 New Paltz 32
Warwick 63 Valley Central 21
#2 Middletown – bye
Quarterfinals – 7:30
#3 Monroe Woodbury 57 Wallkill 27
#2 Middletown 47 Warwick 32
Tuesday January 7 – Port Jervis location
Division 2
Quarterfinals
#1 Port Jervis 66 Saugerties 21
#2 Red Hook 66 Eldred/Liberty/Sullivan West 18
#3 Highland fft over Rondout Valley
#4 Onteora 57 Chester 30
Semifinals – 7:30
Port Jervis 56 Onteora 17
Red Hook 78 Highland 11
Friday 1/3 and Saturday 1/4
The Clash – Rochester, MN
Minisink Valley 54 Apple Valley, MN 18
Minisink Valley 36 Huntley, IL 25
Minisink Valley 53 North Scott, IA 17
*The Warriors win their Day 1 bracket and advance to the the Day 2 championship pool! They can finish no lower than 4th place out of 32 teams!!!*
Championship Pool Teams
MV, Waverly Shell Rock, IA, Shakopee, MN, St. Michael-Albertville, MN
Round 1
St. Michael-Albertville, MN 40 Minisink Valley 24
Shakopee, MN 41 Waverly Shell Rock, IA 21
Round 2
Shakopee, MN 41 Minisink Valley 21
St. Michael-Albertville, MN 31 Waverly Shell Rock, IA 25
Round 3
Waverly Shell Rock, IA 38 Minisink Valley 36
Shakopee, MN 30 St. Michael-Albertville, MN 25 O
Saturday 1/4
Shoreline Classic – MW & Pine Bush
Pine Bush Results: Pine Bush crowned two champions at the Shoreline Classic as Gabe Galarza took the tile at 138 and Tommy Askey won the crown at 152. Dylan Burgos took 5th at 145 with his only loss coming to the eventual champion.
Monroe Woodbury Results: Monroe Woodbury had one champion and placed 9 in the top 6 at the Shoreline. Jordan Brown pinned or teched every opponent and won the crown at 99. He was selected as one of the MOWs for the tournament. Also placing for MW were Santos Ocasio (2nd at 120), Grant Barczak (6th @ 120), Dan Downs (5th @ 138), Mike Zrelak (5th @ 152), Marcus Brown (5th @ 170), Mike Paravati (6th @ 182), Steve Felice (3rd @ 195), and Frankie Hernandez (3rd @ 285).
Somers Tournament – Middletown, Goshen, and Burke
Middletown Results: Middletown finished 2nd behind Mahopac.
Champions
99 – Manny Saenz
106 – Jacob Roger
126 – Moises Diaz
2nd Place
113 – Kenny Santiago
3rd Place
99 – Jeff Anicet
120 – Jayden Norris
160 – Pablo Garcia
285 – Luis Lowery
Goshen Results – Goshen came in 3rd as a team
Champions
160 – Elijah Price
170 – Max Winkler
2nd Place
106 – Jacob Perales
132 – Eli Weinstein
152 – Chris Fini
3rd Place
170 – Ioannis Karystinakis
4th Place
195 – Dom Siracusa
285 – Aidan DeEntremont
Burke Results
2nd Place
170 – Brendan Douthit
Jamie Mormile Invitational – Chester & Onteora
Chester Results
132 – Mark Bruckenstein – 5th place
160 – Nick Randazzo – 5th place
195 – Teddy Szymanski – 5th
285 – Devin McGovern – 1st
Onteora Results
99 – Tommy Sheilds – 4th
138 – Sam Buono – 5th
145 – Owen Allison – 4th
145 – Avery Burns – 6th
152 – Nick Ross – 1st place – win over state placer Dennis Robin
160 – Pat Ross – 1st place
170 – Nate Ross – 1st place
RCK Mat Wars – Washingtonville, Highland, and Kingston
Kingston Results: Kingston High took second place at the Ketcham Mat Wars today. Taking titles for the Tigers were Gavin Richter 145, Nick York 182, Zavier Bennet 195 and Stephon Holmes 220. Placing third for the Tigers were Joey Ferro 126, Christian Francisco 138, Ken Straker 152, Elijah Timbrouck 160, and Tanner Mejias 170. Rounding out the field was Makeil Scott 138 in 4th place
Washingtonville Results: Washingtonville finished in 3rd place(167.5) behind 2nd place Kingston (197) and 1st place RCK (198.5)
1st Place: Mason Ketcham 99
2nd Place: Austin Maddox 120, Jacob Poppe 126, John Roosa 182
Jake McVey 220
3rd Place: Dominic Gennaro 132, Jack Baumkirschner 145
Fredy Garcia 285
4th Place: Vincent Gennaro 170
5th Place: Logan Serafin 126, Caden DeMarco 152, Justin Callahan 195
It’s that time of the year again! On Friday January 10th and Saturday January 11th, 570 wrestlers from 175 schools spanning 6 states will battle it out at the 18th Annual Eastern States Classic. Once again the tournament will take place in the Paul Gerry Fieldhouse on the campus of SUNY Sullivan in Loch Scheldrake, NY. Wrestling will begin at 10:40 on Friday. You can purchase tickets in advance here.
For those who cannot attend the entire tournament can be viewed live on FloWrestling
Let’s take a weight class-by-weight class look at the 2020 Eastern States Classic! This preview will be edited when and if there are changes to the field.
99 Pounds
This is always a great weight class to watch because it is often the first time many of the young stud 99 pounders will be challenged! That is not the case, however, for one of the favorites here – PJ Duke from Carmel. The 7th grade phenom has followed-up on an incredible youth career with a stellar beginning to his varsity career. Duke is undefeated so far this season and has notched a big win earlier this season over Wyoming Seminary’s Brandon Cannon who recently won the Beast of the East at 106! One of Duke’s biggest challenges could come from another 7th grader – Vince Bouzakis from Wyoming Seminary. Sem has a second entry here in Jake Dailey who is also a hammer. Joseph Manfredi from Section 8 Herricks will definitely challenge here as will Jacob Joyce from Ponaganset, RI and Michael Adams from Monsignor Farrell. Section 11 has a few contenders here in Mickey Manta from Hauppauge, Christian Lievano from Ward Melville, and Brayden Farbach from Mt. Sinai. Section 9 has a few kids that will be vying for a medal here in Jordan Brown from Monroe Woodbury and Alex Greco from Warwick. A few others to watch at 99 are Thomas Wagner from South East Cyclones, Carlos Arango from Massapequa, and Clayton O’Connor from Mohonasen.
106 Pounds
Beast of the East champion Brandon Cannon from Wyoming Seminary is definitely one of the favorites at 106. Cannon lost to PJ Duke in sudden victory at Wrangle on the Plains but bounced back with an incredible showing at the Beast where he picked of nationally ranked Tyler Vasquez of Delbarton in the finals. Also challenging for a title here will be Jace Schafer from Section 5 Pal-Mac. Schafer was a D2 NYS champ last year and he also placed 4th at last year’s ESC. Andrew Lucinski from Section 6 Newfane will contend here as will Middletown’s Justin Morales who is a 2X state qualifier, Josh Brault from Joel Barlow, CT, and Dan McLaughlin from Springfield Central. Sem’s other entry here, 8th grader Dom Federici is also super tough! Max Gallagher from Bayport-Bluepoint, Elijah Rivera from Bay Shore, Vincent Ziccardo from King’s Park, Isaiah Jackson from Glen Cove, John Fortugno from Byram Hills, and Cam and Zack Soda from Burlingham, MA are all wrestlers to watch here!
113 Pounds
Stevo Poulin from Section 2 is ranked #2 in the nation by InterMat and #3 in the nation by Flo. The Shenendehowa junior is a 2X NYS champ, a 2X Eastern States Classic champ and he just won the prestigious Beast of the East. Yes, he’s the clear favorite at 113! One of the wrestlers who could push Stevo is his opponent from last year’s ESC final Dante Geislinger from Norwich who was also a state champ in D2 last year. Angelo Centrone from Mahopac is having a great year as is Daniel Adams from Monsignor Farrell. Nassau County will be well represented at 113 with Jackson Polo from Cold Spring Harbor, Killian Foy from MacArthur, Kevin Lopez from Long Beach and his teammate Jeremiah Echevarria. A few others to keep an eye on here are Alex Constantis from Miller Place, Michael Rapuano from Xavier, CT, Andrew Marchese from Washingtonville, Nick LaMorte from Rocky Point, and Frankie Volpe from Hauppauge.
120 Pounds
This weight class is absolutely loaded with talent. Do not be surprised if you see former state placers not even make it to Day 2! Based on his performance thus far this season, Center Moriches’ Jordan Titus is probably the pre-tournament favorite. Titus, who is ranked 3rd in the nation by Flo, made history in December when he became the first NY wrestler to win the Walsh Ironman which is generally considered the toughest in-season high school tournament in the country. Titus was a NYS D2 champ last season and is undefeated thus far this year. One of the wrestlers who will definitely test Titus is Anthony Noto from Honeoye Falls-Lima in Section 5. Noto and Titus are no strangers to each other! Noto has defeated Titus twice in state finals and once at the Eastern States. Titus has defeated Noto once at the Eastern States and once at the Journeymen Classic. A match between these two will NEVER be boring!Mark Botello from Wyoming Seminary is also very solid and he is also entered here at 120! As I said, this weight is loaded with hammers. The following wrestlers are former ESC place winners: Mason Bush from Central Valley Academy, Chase Liardi from Massapequa, Avery Leonard from Cooperstown, Jared Weinhaus from Sachem East, and Joe Contrastano from Wheatley. There are more – others to keep an eye on at 120 are Len Balducci from Pleasantville, Nick Picariello from Minisink Valley, Alex Booth from Indian River, Darren Ketcham from Rocky Point, Dante Rigal from Johnson City, Joe Sparacio from Bayport, Jake Eckerle from Commack, Jake Hoffman from Fox Lane, Jacob Chenier from Kingston, and Collin Coughenour from Niagara Wheatfield. This weight is deep – several more could have easily been mentioned!
126 Pounds
This will be the weight class that draws the most attention – and for good reason! The top seed and favorite is definitely Nic Bouzakis from Wyoming Seminary. Nic, the son of 1990 Pine Bush grad and 3X NYS champ Troy, is ranked #1 in the nation by InterMat and #3 by Flo! Can anyone challenge him??? Well there are a lot of people in the Hudson Valley who are anxious to see if one of our own can get it done – Minisink Valley 8th grader Zack Ryder! The young Warrior finished 2nd in NYS last year losing a barn-burner to Stevo Poulin at 106. Although it’s a big jump in weight, Ryder has looked awesome this year and is showing no signs of needing an “adjustment period” to the new weight. This weight has quite a few hammers so we can not assume that Bouzakis vs. Ryder will even happen! Syosset’s George Oroudjov is looking to join brother Nick and Vito Arujau as ESC champs and I am sure that state placer Ivan Garcia from Section 1 Port Chester would love bust up the bracket! Hilton’s Rocco Camillaci is definitely going to make some noise hear and Logan Patterson from Indian River cannot be taken lightly by anyone! Micah Roes from Lowville was a state finalist last year and had a great off season as did Evan Matias from Rocky Point. Plenty of others to keep an eye on here including Kai Yudelson from Brooklyn Tech, Luke Smith from Hauppauge, Davis Correa from Tottenville, and Michael Catanzaro from Williamsville North.
132 Pounds
Always a tough weight class at ESC – this year will be no different! The two huge names are Ryan Jack and Zach Redding! Jack is a NC State bound senior from Danbury and he is ranked #2 in the nation by InterMat while Redding, an Iowa State bound senior from Eastport South Manor, is a former state champion and ESC placer who currently ranked #20 in the country! Marek Bush from Central Valley Academy is a former NYS champion and will be in the mix as will NYS finalist Jayden Scott from Section 5 Rush Henrietta who was a state finalist. Wyoming Seminary’s Nic Botello is a former ESC placer and will make some noise here and we definitely can’t look past Luke Riley from Elmira who has a win over Marek Bush this season! This weight has a lot of depth too with wrestlers such as Gage DeNatale from Locust Valley, Jayden Cardenas from Grand Street Campus, Aiden Cullen from Greenville, Jordan Suarez from Minisink Valley, Sean Peterson from Islip, Andrew Maiorini from Hauppauge, Stephen Lukas from Eastport South Manor and last but not least Jake Schneider who has wins over DeNatale and Lukas this season!
138 Pounds
Beau Bartlett from Wyoming Seminary is ranked #1 in the nation by both InterMat and FloWrestling and he’s a 3X ESC Champion – yeah he’s the favorite at 138. Bartlett wrestles in the toughest tournaments in the nation all year long. He is battle tested and incredibly athletic – but he will not walk through this field! One of the wrestlers on the short list who could push Bartlett is Ryan Burgos from Hilton. Burgos was the 126 NYS champion last season and will definitely contend here as will Niagara Wheatfield’s Justin McDougald who is a 2X state placer. Gavin Damasco may not be a household name – but he should be based on the incredible off season he had which included a win over nationally ranked Anthony Clark from NJ at the JMen Classic! Carter Baer from Gouverneur and Caleb Burgess from Pal-Mac are two NYS studs who have a ton of game as do Dan Gibson from Port Washington, Drew Witham from Corning, Logan Sciotto from Rocky Point, Aiden Rabideau from Clarence, and Brendan Carroll from Roy C. Ketcham. Section 9 has four excellent entries here in Sean Savacool from Minisink Valley, Eric Tigue from Port Jervis, Matt Romano from Valley Central, and Gabe Galarza from Pine Bush.
145 Pounds
This will be another weight were a Wyoming Seminary wrestler will be the prohibitive favorite – and for good reason! Lachlan McNeil is the #1 ranked 145 pound wrestler in the nation according to both Flo and InterMat. Lachlan has won both the Ironman and the Powerade this year and is definitely favored here. That said, Willie McDougald from Niagara Falls was seconds away from upsetting Adam Busiello at last year’s ESC and had a great off season. He knows how to keep matches close and may be the guy to test McNeil. Mahari Miller from Spingfield Central placed 4th at last year’s ESC and will be in the hunt again this year as will Dennis Robin from Arlington, Marvin Lobo from Copiague, and Nick Sanko from Pittsford. Others to watch here are Kole Mulhauser from Central Square, Lincoln Heck from Sem, Alijah Seymour from Peru, Ethan Ferro from Pal-Mac, Chris Boudreau from Hauppauge, and Francis Whitehouse from Islip. Section 9’s best chances at a medal here are probably Ethan Palanca from New Paltz and Jaccob Gonzalez from Minisink Valley.
152 Pounds
This is going to be a great weight class to follow because it is wide open and because Section 9 has two legitimate contenders! Connor Kievman from Wyoming Seminary is ranked #18 in the nation by FloWrestling and may be the favorite but Pine Bush senior Tommy Askey has looked incredible this year and may be the wrestler to come out on top on Saturday! Askey finished 4th in NYS last year and is undefeated this year including a win over another contender here, Nick Ross from Onteora. Ross finished 3rd in NYS D2 last year as a sophomore and would love another chance at Askey. Others that will be in contention for a medal at 152 include Karamvir Hothi from Rush Henrietta, Jeremy Scutellaro from Massapequa, Christian Hansen from Cold Spring Harbor, Max Maquet from Long Beach, and Keagan Case from Central Valley Academy.
160 Pounds
This is another wide open weight where Section 9 has a serious contender! The favorite on paper is Jacob Null from Dolgeville. Null was a D2 state finalist last season and is undefeated this season and has wins over two other contenders here – Joe McGinty and Will Carano. McGinty is a Hofstra bound senior from Monroe Woodbury who finished 4th in NYS last year at 152. Carano is a senior from Section 1 Putnam Valley and had a great off season which included a win over nationally ranked Cooper Kropman from Penfield. Nashoba Regional’s Brevin Cassella’s 5-0 win over McGinty at the Massapequa Tournament certainly makes hima contender here! Camrin Galvin from Fulton has rolled through the competition this year and we should also keep an eye on Jack Spahn from Islip, Darrien Stewart from Springfield Central, MA, Patrick Ross from Onteora, Colden Dorfman from Shenendehowa, and Aiden Poe from Indian River.
170 Pounds
This is another great weight to watch unfold! No nationally ranked heavy favorites – just a bunch of hammers! Let’s Start with Mikey Squires from Norwich. Squires is a multiple time state place winner and he finished 4th at ESC last year. He is having a great season this year and only has one loss…and that loss is to another wrestler in the field, Tyler Albis from John Jay East Fishkill. Albis placed 5th at ESC last year and has been ripping through the competition this year. He has one loss and yes you guessed it, it’s to another wrestler in this bracket, James Araneo from Ward Melville. Araneo is undefeated and has a win by fall over state placer Nate Ross from Onteora who will definitely contend here. Adam Daghestani from Grand Island is undefeated this season and will be in the medal hunt as will JD Moore who placed 7th at last year’s ESC. Peter Meshkov from Ballston Spa, Andrew Donahue from Wyoming Seminary, Desmond McLaughlin from Springfield Central, and Joe Velazquez from Middletown are all ones to watch here!
182 Pounds
This is perhaps the most wide open weight at this year’s Eastern States Classic. A solid argument can be made for at least a half of a dozen wrestlers to take home the title. One of those in the conversation is definitely Shenendehowa’s Brock Delsignore. Brock put in a huge off season and his hard work is paying dividends. He placed 8th at the Beast of the East and 3rd at the Bethlehem Holiday Classic – all 4 of his losses were to out of state hammers! Another contender here is Fombo Azah from Carthage. Azah placed 2nd here last year and his only loss this year is to a 2X PA place winner. Matt Rogers from Wantagh and Ryan Stencel from Lancaster both placed at last year’s ESC and will be in the medal hunt again this year. Others to watch here include Michael Tyrell from Hauppauge, Ethan Cooper from Colbeskill, Tyler Pelech from Longwood and Ethan Gallo from Minisink Valley. This is a great weight class!
195 Pounds
This will be a very solid weight where once again there are several potential wrestlers who have legitimate shots at the title. Matt Kelly from Iona Prep is a returning ESC place winner and is definitely one of the favorites. Cameron Durant from Guilderland is also a returning ESC place winner and he will contend again, however he was recently beaten in the finals of the Mid-Hudson by NFA junior Joe Russell who is also in this bracket! Nate DeGroff from Warsaw has pinned or teched every opponent he’s faced this year and will definitely be in the hunt for the title here as will Matt Hegi from Section 8 Mepham. A few others to watch here include Codie Scotland from Lancaster, Nick Franco from Farmingdale, and Michael Altomer from Columbia.
220 Pounds
A solid weight with several very talented wrestlers however the clear favorite at 220 is Kolby Franklin from Wyoming Seminary. Still only a sophomore, Franklin is currently ranked #10 in the nation by InterMat and #11 by FloWrestling. Section 9 has two returning ESC place winners at this weight in Maxx DeCapua from NFA and Armel Duke from Middletown. DeCapua is also a 2X NYS place winner however he lost in the finals of the Mid-Hudson recently to Mattituck’s Colby Suglia. Ryan Stein from Shaker will be in the mix as will Ryan Hegi from Mepham, Jeremiah Funchess from Westbury, Peter Magliocci from Northport, and Louis Rocca from Pittsford.
285 Pounds
Year after year the 285 pound weight class at the ESC provides fans with some of the most exciting matches – this year should be no different! Tyler Rice from Norwich has been nationally ranked at times during the year and he is definitely one of the favorites here. Rice finished 3rd at 285 at last year’s ESC. and he is one of four returning place winners at this weight! Also in the bracket are Collin Null from Carthage who finished 5th, Greg Harris from Springfield Central, MA who finished 7th, and Sam Khodaparest from Massapequa who took 8th. This bracket also has 3 NYS D1 place winners in Myles Norris from Freeport who took 2nd, Adam Fenner from Minisink Valley who placed 5th, and London Castillo from Brentwood who placed 6th. A few other guys to keep an eye on here are George Lebberes from Ardsley, Jeremiah Cheatham from Elmira, Ryan Bitka from Amherst, and Sebastian Underwood from Shenendehowa.
