Connecticut Wrestling Online

Coaches poll, week 4

Johnson & Wales keeps top spot in poll

New England Division III college wrestling poll for week 4, ending Dec. 8. First place votes in parentheses.

Week 4, Dec. 8, 2014

Rec. Pts LW

1. Johnson & Wales (9) 0-0 132 1

2. Roger Williams (4) 3-0 130 2

3. Coast Guard 2-1 95 6

3. Rhode Island Coll. (1) 3-1 95 5

5. Williams 1-0 93 3

6. Springfield 0-0 69 4

7. Wesleyan 0-0 64 nr

8. WPI 2-0 44 8

9. Southern Maine 6-2 29 9

10. Plymouth State 1-0 14

Others receiving votes: Norwich (4)

NEWA Wrestler of Week

Nate Giorgio (Leesport, PA), senior, 133 pounds, Coast Guard

Nate was named the NEWA Wrestler of the week for the second week in a row. He was named the Most Outstanding Wrestler at the York Invitational, winning the 133-pound championship by beating the No. 1 ranked wrestler in the nation, Alex Gomez from Ithaca, who was a national finalist last year and is a two-time All American. Giorgio was 5-0 during the week with three pins. He was 4-0 at York with pins in 48 seconds and 2:08, along with a 16-6 major decision, and an 11-5 win over Gomez in the finals. He also won by pin in a dual meet win over Roger Williams on Wednesday in just 1:03.

NEWA Rookie Wrestler of Week

Freshman Bobby Jordan (Woodbridge, NJ), Johnson & Wales, 125 pounds

In a stacked weight class that featured five of the top 10 wrestlers in the country, Bobby scored victories over Ithaca's No. 7 Jimmy Kaishan, 4-2, and Ferrum's No. 10 Rob Cunningham, 4-3, in route to a fourth place finish.

Key results

RIT Invitational

At Rochester, N.Y.

Team results – 1. John Carroll 138, 2. Oneonta State 130, 3. Wesleyan 122½, 4. Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) 120½, 5. Worcester Polytech Institute (WPI) 108, 6. SUNY-Oswego 95, 7. Thiel 70, 8. Case Western Reserve 57, 9. Scranton 22½, 10. Alfred State 21

Individual results

125: Brian Amato (WPI) tech fall Mike Buckiso (John Carroll), 16-0; 3. James Ronca (SUNY-Oswego) dec. Stephen Jendritz (WPI). 5-3; 5. Dominic DeGraba (Oneonta State) dec. Ryan Thierman (Alfred State College), 6-3

133: Frank Crippen (Wesleyan) dec. Sean Hanson (Oneonta State), 6-5, 2 OT; 3. Anthony Messina (Oneonta State) dec. Adam Erno (SUNY-Oswego), 5-2; 5. Travis Alexander (Case Western Reserve) won by medical forfeit over James Hamilton (Wesleyan)

141: Aaran Gessic (Case Western Reserve) dec. Jake Sepor (RIT), 16-2; 3. Jack Nigro (WPI) dec. Adam Greene (Oneonta State), 7-4; 5. Matt Pelton (Wesleyan) pin Quamaine Thomas (SUNY-Oswego), 3:56

149: Dan Mirman (John Carroll) dec. Brad Mayville (RIT), 5-3; 3. Nick Sutton (Thiel) dec. Mark Milisci (SUNY-Oswego), 7-1; 5. Ed Pierce (Wesleyan) pin Blake Dixon (John Carroll). 1:47

157: Ian Evans (Scranton) dec. Tom McNulty (John Carroll), 6-2; 3. Abubakarr Sow (SUNY-Oswego) pin Sean Byham (Thiel), 2:20; 5. Tanner Burke (WPI) dec. Joe Cutugno (Rochester Institute of Technology), 7-2

165: Terner Gott (John Carroll) dec. Brandan Collins (Thiel), 5-3; 3. Nick Greenquist (Rochester Institute of Technology) dec. Andrew Tanner (WPI), 6-1; 5. Taran Carr (Wesleyan) pin Mitchell Fisher (Oneonta State), 4:44

174: Tori Cain (Rochester Institute of Technology) dec. Shaun Gillen (Oneonta State), 3-1 OT; 3. Tyler Hardtke (John Carroll) dec. Ryan Sblendorio (Wesleyan), 10-6; 5. Justin Marsh (WPI) won by medical forfeit over Tyler Wilkes (Thiel)

184: Scott Bova (SUNY-Oswego) dec. Steven Schmitz (John Carroll), 5-0; 3. Jerrold Roosa (Thiel) dec. Simon Levin (Wesleyan), 3-0; 5. Dominic Pirraglia (Wesleyan) pin Lucas Muntz (WPI). 4:15

197: Todd Gaydosh (John Carroll) won by injury default over Isaiah Bellamy (Wesleyan), 5:20; 3. Chad Obzud (Oneonta State) tech fall Jake Swearingen (Rochester Institute of Technology), 16-1; 5. Tim Flower (Oneonta State) pin Matthew Sowers (Alfred State College), 2:52

285: James Bethel (Oneonta State) dec. Sam Weinger (Rochester Institute of Technology), 11-1; 3. Nate Lewis (Case Western Reserve) won by medical forfeit over Wyatt Morris (Rochester Institute of Technology); 5. Logan Mendelson (WPI) won by medical forfeit over John San Filippo (Wesleyan)

FULL BRACKETS

New England Wrestling Association (NEWA)

Individual rankings

Nov. 25, 2014

125 Pounds

1. Brian Amato, WPI

2. Zach Bridson, Springfield

3. Mike Arangio, Southern Maine

4. Bobby Jordan, Johnson & Wales

5. Nick Barbaria, Roger Williams

6. Matt Morris, Williams

----

133 Pounds-

1. Nate Giorgio, Coast Guard

2. Paul Sughrue , Bridgewater State

3. Dan Evangelakos, Williams College

4. Carter Merecki , Roger Williams

5. DJ Tirelli, Johnson & Wales

6. James Hamilton, Wesleyan

----

141 Pounds

1. Mike Ferinde , Johnson & Wales

2. Greg McCrystal Western New England

3. Ricando Cole Rhode Island College

4. Justin Cochran , Roger Williams

5. Matt Pelton, Wesleyan

6. Matt McAllister, Coast Guard

----

149 Pounds

1. Joey Gaccione , Johnson & Wales

2. Shawn Giblin Rhode Island College

3. Dan Del Gallo, Southern Maine

4. Jake Savoca , Williams

5. Dan Downes , Roger Williams

6. Zach Joseph Springfield-

----

157 Pounds

1. Jorge Lopez , Williams

2. Ty Herzog , Roger Williams

3. Tanner Burke, WPI

4. CJ Luth, Southern Maine

5. Ray Welch, Plymouth State-

6. Andrew Stock , Johnson & Wales

165 Pounds

1. Eric Hamrick Springfield

2. Francisco Colom, Roger Williams

3. Tim Garripoli Williams College

4. Sean Prell , Johnson & Wales

5. Matthew Libby, Rhode Island College

6. Taran Carr, Wesleyan

174 Pounds

1. Will Burns, Norwich University

2. Danny Ressler, Roger Williams

3. Ryan Sblendorio, Wesleyan

4. Dan Fiorvanti, Coast Guard

5. Kenny Dougherty, Johnson & Wales

6. Justin Marsh WPI

184 Pounds

1. Chris Chorzepa Williams College

2. Jon Deupree, Southern Maine

3. Mike Labell, Johnson & Wales

4. Chris Perreault Plymouth State

5. Joe Albina, Roger Williams

6. Marc Wagner, Coast Guard

197 Pounds

1. David Welch, Roger Williams

2. Hunter Ayen, Springfield

3. Sean Fagan, Southern Maine

4. Isaiah Bellamy, Wesleyan

5. Anthony Brooks, Williams College

6. Andrew Cavanna, Johnson & Wales

285 Pounds

1. Terrance Jean-Jacques, Rhode Island College

2. Kyle Foster, Roger Williams

3. Kyle McGuire, Trinity

4. Marc Howard, Coast Guard

5. Steven Dwight, Daniel Webster

6. Irakli Kakauridze, Springfield

NCAA Division III roundup

Amato wins at RIT Invitational; Strong week for Coast Guard’s Giorgio

New England Wrestling Association

ROCHESTER, N.Y., Dec. 6 — WPI’s Brian Amato (Newington, CT) captured the title at 125 pounds and seven other WPI wrestlers earned spots on the podium as the Engineers finished fifth at the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) Invitational in Rochester, N.Y., on Saturday.

Amato posted a pair of technical falls as part of his three victories. Amato, a sophomore and the top-ranked wrestler at 125 pounds in New England, shutout his opponent from Thiel 15-0 in the quarterfinals and blanked his foe from John Carroll 16-0 in the final.

West Hartford’s Lucas Muntz (184) finished sixth. Muntz reached the semifinals after a first period fall against John Carroll. Teddy Kostopoulos (Jonathan Law) rounded out the Engineer scoring by notching a first period pin in the consolation bracket at 197.

Around the region

Trinity and Plymouth State competed at the Ted Reese Invitational hosted by the University of Southern Maine.

USM won the nine-team tournament with four individual champions -- Kevin Moore (2-0 at 141), Daniel Del Gallo (4-0 at 149), Jon Deupree (3-0 at 184), and Sean Fagan (3-0 at 197). Del Gallo was the tournament’s outstanding wrestler, recording two pins, a tech fall and a good 5-4 win over Abbas Tamaradze of Springfield Tech in the finals. Deupree beat familiar foe Chris Perreault in the finals, 6-1, in a match of two highly ranked wrestlers at 184.

Plymouth State had two champions in Ray Welch at 157 and Clay Callahan at 165. Welch went 4-0 with two pins and beat CJ Luth of USM, 6-3, in the finals. Callahan went 3-0 and had two pins as he cruised to the championship at 165. PSU also had second place finishes from Moises Diaz at 165, Taylor Lozier at 174, Perreault at 184, and Cody Carrillo at 197. The Panthers look to be forming a solid lineup from 157-to-197.

Trinity had two champions in Mac Hamilton (2-0) at 133 and Kyle McGuire (3-0) at 285. Hamilton and McGuire pinned all the opponents they wrestled on the day.

In dual meet action, Rhode Island College beat Western New England, 25-17. The dual started out with a great match at 141 between Ricondo Cole of RIC and Greg McCrystal of WNEU. McCrystal upset Cole at the Doug Parker and Cole was able to reverse the results the second time around. Both wrestlers scored offensively as the match went into OT tied at 6-6. In OT, Cole got the takedown and secured the 8-6 victory. RIC got big first period pins by Giblin at 157 and Jean-Jacques at 285 as the Anchormen won 6 of the 10 bouts. WNEU got three impressive wins by decision from Austin Sisco at 133, Bryan Burnette at 174, and Brian Donovan at 197.

Roger Williams went 2-0 in duals this past week. The Hawks beat Coast Guard on Wednesday, 23-18, winning 7 of the 10 bouts. Sophomores Alec Golner at 174, Joe Albina at 184, and Kyle Foster at 285 all won crucial decisions over tough wrestlers. Coast Guard competed hard and got three pins from Giorgio at 133, Freshman Chris Sullivan at 157 over one of the top wrestlers at 157 in Ty Herzog, and Mike Palomba at 165. RWU also beat Norwich University on Friday night, 38-7. The Hawks won 8 of the 10 bouts over the Cadets. Elias at 125, Herzog at 157, Ressler at 174, and Chris Cornwell at 184, all earned pins for the Hawks. Norwich won two decisions from Alex Stewart at 133 and Zach Gibson at 165.

WPI and Wesleyan competed in the RIT Tournament. Wesleyan finished 3rd with 122.5 points behind John Carroll and Oneonta. WPI was 5th with 108 points.

Wesleyan placed 10 wrestlers and was led by Frank Crippen at 133 and Isaiah Bellamy at 197. Crippen went 3-0 and won the 133 pound championship. He beat Sean Hanson of Oneonta in the finals 6-5 in double OT. Bellamy continues his impressive freshman season taking 2nd in all three tournaments he has wrestled in. Bellamy went 3-1 and had a pin over Chad Obzud of Oneonta a region place winner a year ago. In the finals he had to injury default in the second period to Gaydosh of John Carroll. Ryan Sblendorio at 174 and Simon Levin at 184 were both 4th, while Matt Pelton at 141, Ed Pierce at 149, Taran Carr at 165, and Dominic Pirraglia at 184 all took 5th place.

WPI placed 8 wrestlers on the way to taking 5th place. The Engineers were led by Brian Amato at 125 who won the championship. Amato went 3-0 with two tech falls. He beat James Ronca of Oswego 16-0 in the finals. Jack Nigro was 3rd at 141. He lost his first match and then won four in a row to take 3rd. He avenged his opening loss to Thomas of Oswego with a 9-2 win and beat Adam Green of Oneonta who split with Pelton of Wesleyan. WPI also had Steve Jendritz at 125 and Andrew Tanner at 165 take 4th, while Tanner Burke at 157, Justin Marsh at 174, and Logan Mendelson at 285 all took 5th. Jendritz had two pins to take 4th. Andrew Tanner got pinned by Taran Carr of Wesleyan in the Quarters but came back and beat Carr 2-1 in the consi-semi’s later in the day. Marsh went 4-2 on the day but lost 17-2 to Sblendorio of Wesleyan in the consolation semifinals.

Springfield and Bridgewater State both competed at the Messiah Petrofes Tournament down in Pennsylvania over the weekend. Both teams had numerous starters out of the lineup. Bridgewater State was led by Adam Manzoni who took 8th place at 197 going 2-2 and Springfield had three place winners in Jacob Strohman who was 3rd at 141, David Colvin who was 8th at 141, and Irakli Kakauridze who was 2nd at 285. Strohman went 5-1 to take 3rd and Kakauridze went 4-1 with three pins to make the finals. In the semifinals, Kakauridze beat returning All American and currently No. 7 ranked nationally Anthony Edgren of Wisconsin Whitewater 6-2 before dropping a tight 3-2 match in the finals.

Three NEWA teams competed at the York tournament down in Pennsylvania. Coast Guard was fifth with 100.5 points, Johnson and Wales University was sixth with 97.5, and Williams was seventh with 57.5 points.

Coast Guard placed five wrestlers in the top 6 including this week’s wrestler of the week Nate Giorgio, who won the tournament at 133. The Bears had two other finalists in Mike Palomba (3-1) at 165 and Mark Howard (3-1) at 285. Howard won all three matches by pin including a pin in 6:49 of Lance Moore from Cortland, a former national qualifier and currently ranked No. 9 nationally. Palomba beat Mitch Ramsey of York in the semifinals, 9-6. Ramsey had beaten No. 10 ranked wrestler in the country earlier in the tournament. Freshman Chris Sullivan had two pins to make the semifinals before finishing No. 6 and also had a big pin earlier in the week over Ty Herzog, who was ranked No. 2 in New England. Phil Azzari went 4-1 and took 3rd place. Azzari looks much improved from last year and wrestled extremely tough at York. In the semifinals, he lost to the No. 2 ranked wrestler in the country Aaron Karns 4-0 in Karns toughest match of the day.

Johnson & Wales placed eight wrestlers in the tournament. They had two finalists in Mike Ferinde (4-1) at 141 and Michael LaBell (3-1) at 174. LaBell lost in the finals to national finalist Zach Zotollo of TCNJ. In the semifinals, he beat a very good Tyler Rhoads of York, 9-6. Ferinde had two pins on the day, but dropped a 2-1 decision to Nick Wahba of Ithaca in the finals. Ferinde won the Ithaca tournament earlier in the season and beat Wahba. Michael Stewart (5-1) at 141 and Joao Vicente (5-1) at 133 both took 3rd. Stewart had two pins and a tech fall win in the 3rd place match over O’Hagan of Brockport. Vicente lost his second match to No. 1 ranked Alex Gomez of Ithaca, 10-9, then came back and won 4 matches in a row to take 3rd. He beat Mike Mui, No. 5 at 125 nationally, 5-3 along the way. JWU had three guys take 5th place, DJ Tirelli at 133, Justin Colon at 141, and Joey Gaccione at 149.

Williams took seventh as a team and were missing their top wrestler Jorge Lopez. They had two place winners and both won their weight classes. Tim Garripoli won at 165 and Chris Chorzepa won at 184. Garripoli went 4-0 with a pin and a TF win in the finals over Palomba of Coast Guard 15-0. Chorzepa was just as dominate going 4-0 and winning in the finals 8-0 over Jeff Palmeri of Brockport. Chorzepa has won his first two tournaments and has not been challenged yet in any of his matches.