Ahmadi wins 13th world title at World Veterans tourney
COVENTRY, Oct. 8 -- Coventry’s Shirzad Ahmadi won his 13th career gold medal at the Veterans World Championships on Saturday in Poland with a victory in freestyle at 63 kilograms (138½ pounds) in the Division G age category (ages 66-70). Ahmadi had two wins to win the world title, beating silver medalist Viktor Chirkov of Russia by technical fall, 12-2. The win is the fourth straight freestyle crown for Ahmadi, who won freestyle titles at the Veterans World Championships in 2013, 2014 and 2015.
Ahmadi, 67, is currently an assistant coach at Trinity College. He will begin his third season with the Bantams this winter. Ahmadi was a long-time wrestling coach at Stafford High School and has also coached at the University of Hartford (NCAA Div. I), American International College (Div. II) and Western New England College (Div. III).
Falbo earns All-American honors for 2nd time in Fargo
FARGO, N.D., July 24 – Newtown’s Anthony Falbo earned his second career All-American medal at the USA Wrestling national championships with a fourth place finish in the Junior Freestyle division at 182 pounds.
Falbo, who will be a senior at Newtown this fall, went 8-2 in the tournament. He dropped a 15-13 decision to Indiana’s Jacob Gray in the third round but rebounded to win seven straight bouts in the consolation bracket to earn a spot in the consolation final. Falbo had a 17-second pin and four technical falls in his run.
Broadus earns All-American honors for fourth time in career
FARGO, North Dakota, July 19 – Plymouth’s Cara Broadus became the most decorated Connecticut female wrestler at the USA Wrestling Cadet and Junior national championship tournament on Wednesday.
Broadus earned her fourth career All-American medal by taking fifth in the women’s freestyle competition at 112 pounds. She ties the state record established by Simsbury’s Joey Martin, who earned four All-American medals from 2003-05. Trumbull's Matt Ryan (113) fell one win shy of earning All-American honors in the Cadet Greco-Roman competition.
Broadus went 4-2 on the day in the women’s freestyle, winning her first three matches before being defeated by Pennsylvania’s Amanda Walker in the semifinals by technical fall, 11-0. Click on the link for more CT results
Broadus wins
U.S. national title in cadet freestyle
FARGO, N.D., July 16 – Plymouth’s Cara Broadus was dominant at the USA Wrestling Cadet and Junior national championship tournament at the Fargodome on Saturday.
Broadus won all five of her matches by technical fall (10 points or more) to capture the Cadet freestyle (ages 15-16) national championship at 115 pounds with a 10-0 win over Cameron Guerin of Washington state in just 54 seconds.
Broadus didn’t give up a point in her five bouts. She won four matches by a 10-0 score and beat Viktoya Torres of Washington state in the semifinals, 11-0.
According to USA Wrestling, she is the first Connecticut woman to win a Cadet freestyle national championship. She is the first Connecticut wrestler to win a national championship in Fargo since East Lyme’s Ross Spencer in 2010 when he won a junior freestyle title at 105. More on her championship win here.
Perry finishes tied for fifth at Olympic Trials
IOWA CITY, Iowa, April 10 – Middletown High graduate Richard Perry won three matches at the U.S. Olympic Trials at 86 kilograms (189 pounds) Sunday at Carver Hawkeye Arena and finished tied for fifth place. He came into the tournament seeded seventh. Click on the following link for more details on Perry's Olympic Trials tournament.
Newtown's Falbo wins 2nd straight NHSCA national title
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va., April 4 – Newtown’s Anthony Falbo became the first Connecticut wrestler to win back-to-back National High School Coaches Association (NHSCA) national championships when he beat Nevada’s Andrew Berreyesa, 4-3 to win at 170 pounds in the NHSCA Junior National tournament on Sunday.
Falbo (56-0, 6-0 NHSCA) was one of eight Connecticut wrestlers to win All-American honors.
Jon Errico, a senior at Brunswick School in Greenwich, finished second in the Senior Nationals at 145. In the Junior Nationals, E.O. Smith’s Robert Hartling (106) was fourth while Newtown’s Joseph Accousti (160) was sixth. In the Sophomore Nationals, Danbury’s Jakob Camacho (113) finished fourth while at the Freshman Nationals, Xavier’s Jesse Polansky (285) was fifth while Danbury’s Kyle Fields (120) finished eighth.
Jack falls one win shy of All-American honors
NEW YORK, March 18 – Danbury native Kevin Jack of North Carolina State fell one victory shy of earning All-American honors after a 3-2 loss on riding time at the NCAA Division I national championships Friday at Madison Square Garden. Jack (141) lost to ACC rival Joey Ward of North Carolina but won two earlier bouts to get in position to earn All-American honors.
NCAA wrestling begins Thursday in New York
NEW YORK, March 15 – Wrestling begins Thursday in New York at Madison Square Garden for the NCAA Division I wrestling championships and four Connecticut natives are set to compete for their respective university squads.
North Carolina State’s Kevin Jack, a sophomore from Danbury, is ranked No. 3 in the country at 141 pounds and is a contender to win a national championship. Northwestern’s Dominick Malone (133), a senior who grew up in Granby, is making his third NCAA Tournament appearance while Binghamton’s Jack McKeever (174), a senior from Brookfield, is wrestling in the tournament for the second consecutive year. Virginia’s Patrick Gillen (285), a senior from Shelton, will be wrestling at the nationals for the first time.
Four wrestlers compete at NCAA Div. 3 nationals
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa, March 5 – Four Connecticut wrestlers competed at the NCAA Division III national championships in Cedar Rapids. Williams’ Chris Chorzepa (Newington, 184), Wesleyan’s Devon Carrillo (Middletown, 197), Springfield’s Tyler Keane (Glastonbury, 133) and Roger Williams’ Kyle Foster (Somers, 285) all competed. Chorzepa, Keane and Foster each went 1-2 in the tournament while Carrillo was 0-2.
New England championships
Record 9 state wrestlers capture N. England titles
PROVIDENCE, March 5 – In a dominating performance Saturday, Connecticut had a record nine wrestlers win New England titles and five of the top six teams were from Connecticut. There were 14 CT finalists in 10 of 14 weight classes. Four championship finals consisted of two Connecticut wrestlers. Fairfield Warde’s Charles Kane (145) won his second New England title and he was joined on the victory podium by his younger brother, Tim (132). It’s the first time that two CT brothers have won a New England championship on the same day.
State coaches poll
Danbury is voted top team in final poll
DANBURY, Feb. 29 -- For the third time in four years, the Danbury High wrestling team has been voted the No. 1 team in the state in the final Norwich Bulletin state coaches poll. Danbury (18-0), which won the Class LL title and was three points shy of winning the State Open championship, received 13 first place votes. New Milford (19-1), the Class L champion who was third at the State Open, finished second for the third time since 2011.
New Fairfield (10-2), which won its first State Open championship Saturday night, was third in the poll and received three first place votes. It was the best finish for the Rebels since finishing second in 1998. Class S champion Windham High (20-0), who has won 56 straight dual meets back to the 2014 season, was ranked fourth and Fairfield Warde was fifth. Foran-Milford, with its state record 35 dual meet victories and a Class M championship, is ranked No. 6 and is the final top 10 poll for the first time in school history. Trumbull, Newtown, Bristol Eastern and Ledyard rounded out the top 10.
New Fairfield wins first State Open title
NEW HAVEN, Feb. 27 – Every match and every point mattered Saturday at the State Open championships for Danbury, New Milford and New Fairfield. The three teams were locked in a battle for the tournament championship. In the end, it was New Fairfield with two individual champions and four medalists that edged Danbury by three points for its first-ever State Open title, 115½ to 112½. New Milford, which led going into the finals, was right there with 111 points. Newtown was fourth with 104½ points while Windham was fifth with 102 points.
Newtown’s Anthony Falbo (182) won a third State Open title while New Fairfield’s Alec Opsal (120), Warde’s Tim Kane (132), Charles Kane (145) and South Windsor’s Max Odell (182) won for a second time. The top four finishers in each weight class qualified for the upcoming New England championships in Providence.
Saturday, February 20
Danbury dominates in Class LL; Foran wins in dramatic fashion
Top-ranked Danbury returned to the top of the podium with a dominating victory at the CIAC Class LL championship meet. The Hatters put 10 wrestlers in the finals and won the title with a comfortable lead over second place Fairfield Warde, 268 ½ to 202. For the second time, two brothers won state titles for the second straight year. Warde’s Charlie and Tim Kane each won. A year ago, they both won Class L titles. Newtown was led by junior Anthony Falbo, who won his third straight Class LL title. … With three individual champions, New Milford won its fourth straight Class L championship with a 219-188 win over Bristol Eastern. Fairfield Ludlowe finished third. … In Class M, Foran-Milford got a pin from Luke Edmondson in the final match of the tournament to slip past Ledyard and win its first-ever state championship. Foran won by 2½ points over Ledyard, 209½ to 206 with New Fairfield third with 198½. …Windham had five individual champions and 13 wrestlers finish in the top six of their respective weight classes as the Whippets easily won the Class S title for the fourth straight year. The Whippets set a new Class S tournament record. … The top six finishes in each weight class qualify for the State Open in New Haven which begins Friday and concludes on Saturday. … Brunswick School of Greenwich was the top Connecticut school at the New England Independent School Wrestling Association (NEISWA) championships at Avon Old Farms, finishing third behind Belmont Hill (NY) and Philips Exeter Academy from New Hampshire. Senior captains Jon Errico (145) and Joe Fervil (285) both finished second. Hotchkiss was the next Connecticut school at No. 8. Former NFA wrestler Khaled Exum-Strong won a New England title at 220 for Trinity-Pawling.
Ricky Shook to be inducted in CHSCA Hall of Fame
DANBURY, Sept. 7 -- Danbury High wrestling coach Ricky Shook will be among 10 men and women inducted into the Connecticut High School Coaches Association (CHSCA) Hall of Fame at their 40th annual ceremony on November 17 at the Aqua Turf in Southington.
Shook will be among seven coaches, one athletic director, a legendary military member and a media member who will be honored.
Shook has been the head coach at Danbury High since 2000 and the Hatters are 324-19 in the last 17 seasons.
Camacho takes fourth at Super 32
GREENSBORO, N.C., Oct. 16 – Danbury’s Jakob Camacho finished fourth at 120 pounds at the Super 32 preseason tournament in Greensboro on Sunday, losing with four seconds left in overtime.
After four straight wins on Saturday, Camacho lost in Sunday’s quarterfinals, 8-2 to Missouri’s Joshua Saunders.
But Camacho won two straight to earn a spot in the consolation final. Camacho got a takedown and near fall with 21 seconds left in the third period to beat Zurich Storm of Pennsylvania, 5-3. After advancing with a forfeit, Camacho beat Virginia’s Killian Cardinale, 3-1 in overtime. A takedown with 35 seconds left in OT lifted Camacho to the win.
In the consolation final, Camacho lost in overtime, 4-2 to Julian Chlebore of Northampton, Pennsylvania. Camacho used escapes with 49 seconds left in the second period and 1:45 remaining in the third period to battle to a 2-2 tie after regulation. Chlebore got a takedown with four seconds left in OT to win.
Newtown’s Joseph Accousti (170) lost on Sunday and went 5-2 in the tournament. Somers’ Jackson Rheault (195) also lost Sunday in the consolation round. Rheault went 4-2 in the tournament.
Several Connecticut wrestlers participated in the tournament, considered to be one of the toughest tournaments in the country for high school wrestlers. New Milford’s Mel Ortiz (126) went 5-2 in the tournament with five straight wins in the consolation round. Newtown’s Ed Lovely (145) also went 5-2 with five consecutive wins in the consolation round.
Foran’s Michael Ross (152), Fairfield Warde’s Tim Kane (138), Foran’s Gino Esposito (132) and Haddam-Killingworth’s Grayson Adler (160) each went 3-2 in the tournament.
In the middle school division, New Canaan’s Justin Mastrioanni (100) went 4-2 and finished fourth. He advanced to the semifinals before falling to Issac Sales of California, 4-2.
Wrestlers have to finish among the top four in their state championship tournament, be an All-American from a USA Wrestling national tournament in Fargo or qualify through an early entry tournament.
Campaign seeks to save Harding wrestling program
BRIDGEPORT, Aug. 18 -- A Go Fund Me campaign has been established to help raise money to save the wrestling program at Bridgeport’s Warren Harding High School. Organizers are trying to raise $18,000 in the next eight weeks. The Bridgeport Board of Education recently eliminated funding for wrestling at Harding, according to a recent story in the Connecticut Post. To help raise awareness of the sport and the fundraising effort, a free, three-day clinic was held at the Harding gym earlier this week with the help of the Bridgeport Police Department.
Charles Kane wins Dave Schultz Excellence Award
SOUTHINGTON, May 22 – Fairfield Warde senior Charles Kane, who won New England and State Open championships earlier this spring, has been selected as the Dave Schultz Excellence Award winner from Connecticut, the National Wrestling Hall of Fame has announced. The award recognizes excellence in wrestling, scholarship achievement, citizenship and community service.
Kane went 34-0 this season – his second consecutive undefeated season. He also was undefeated as a junior, going 48-0. He went 120-2 in his career, missing his entire sophomore year with a back injury.
He also won a 2015 USA Wrestling Northeast Regional Junior Division championship in freestyle at 145 pounds, earning Outstanding Wrestler honors. In 2015, he was named state wrestler of the year by the Connecticut High School Coaches Association and MSG Varsity.
In OK, Siegmann is volunteer of the year
MIAMI, Okla., May 22 -- Dennis Siegmann, the former wrestling head coach and principal at Bristol Central, will be honored as the College/University volunteer of the year by the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame on June 16, in Oklahoma City.
Siegmann is an assistant coach with the Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College in Miami, Oklahoma. In March, Northeastern Oklahoma (NEO) won their second NJCAA national championship in three years with three individual champions and nine All-Americans. NEO also won a NJCAA national title in 2014.
Siegmann coached at Bristol Central for 23 years before retiring in 1999. He led the Rams to 11 league championships and two Class L titles. Under his tenure, the Rams went 348-109-12 with three All-Americans, 11 State Open champions and 31 Class L champions.
Siegmann has been an assistant under head coach Joe Renfro. The two men led Labette Community College in Kansas to back-to-back NJCAA national titles in 2012 and 2013. The two men came to Northeastern Oklahoma in 2014 and have won another two national championships.
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