Yorktown captured its first wrestling sectional championship, scoring 218 points to outdistance second-place Tappan Zee (189) and third-place Mahopac (179) at the Section 1 Division 1 tournament Feb. 7-8 at the Westchester County Center.
“To win the first team sectional title in school history was great and a really awesome feeling,” said Yorktown senior captain Rocco Lore. “I know coach [Jimmy] Kaishian has been dying to go and grab a team title, so he was really excited about it and I am too.
“This team was really something special and talented all around which was why we were able to do so. Everyone on this team dedicated so much time to wrestling this offseason and now we’re just claiming the benefits of it. I’m happy the first team title we got was my senior year and hopefully it’ll be remembered as my legacy.”
Individually, Lore won a sectional title for the second straight year, this time at 215 pounds after winning it at 285 pounds a season ago.
“To win back-to-back section titles was pretty extraordinary and something barely anybody gets to do so I’m pretty amped about it,” Lore said. “I was able to do it due to the amount of time I spent in the wrestling room this offseason season and the amount of hard work and dedication I’ve been in over the course of this season.
“Day in and day out I come ready to work and get better and I couldn’t have done it without my coaches Dr. Jimmy Kaishian, Ben Haas and Connor Thomas that work with me on the daily. Also my wrestling partner Nick Duran helped me a ton as we push each other to better ourselves every day.”
Two other Huskers, Rowan Larsen (144, second place) and Tyler Caricati (175, second) both earned wild cards to join Lore at the New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) Tournament.
The tournament, for both boys and girls, will be held Feb. 26-28 at MVP Arena in Albany.
“Placing second and earning a trip to states feels great,” Larsen said. “I am looking forward to seeing the competition there and I’ve worked hard to earn my spot on the team. The round of eight and semis were tough matches and I had dig deep and put it all out there. It’s an honor and a goal I’ve been working towards for years.”
Team-wise, Larsen said that winning the sectional title on top the dual team title back in December was an incredible accomplishment.
“All of our guys worked hard not only throughout the season, but also in the off-season,” Larsen said. “We had a bunch of solid wrestlers this year, and those who fought back in the consolation rounds earned the team a lot of points. Gio (Tornambe) and Giancarlo (Gentile) in particular racked up a lot of points for us by digging deep and wrestling back.”
Caricati said that it is an honor to be a part of this Yorktown squad.
“Every wrestler works hard but also cares about their teammates,” Caricati said. “In the beginning of the season, our starting lineup had the flu. Every one of us wrestled through it, even though we didn’t feel our best because we didn’t want to let the team down. That is the mentality of this crew. Although wrestling is an individual sport at times we all support each other and do what we have to do to succeed.”
Caricati knew his finals match would be tough.
“I gave it my best but fell short when I sustained a shoulder injury during the match early on,” Caricati said. “I kept the score tight and got through it best I could. The true second match is always challenging. It takes place after the podium and the pictures and you have to really focus and regroup. I lost my true second match last year and I was not going to let that happen again.
“I couldn’t be happier to get the opportunity to wrestle at states. I know what an honor and experience it is. My coaches never gave up on me and I plan to make them proud.”
Sixteen Huskers in total participated in the sectional tournament. Luca Lore (110, third), Tornambe (126, third), Nick Duran (190), and Gentile (144) were the Huskers other place-finishers.
Jace McCormack (103), Nick Hobson (103), Lorik Vucetaj (126),
Frank Scalera II (132), Max Ofner (132), Julian Cuenca (138), Cooper Constantine (138), Pavel Lopez (157), and Adam Yakout (165) also competed for the Huskers at the County Center.
Lakeland/Panas sophomore Lei Guarin made history when she won the 107-pound weight class in the girls division. She is the first Lakeland/Panas girl to enter the sectional tournament and Rebels’ first female wrestling sectional champion.
“For me, it [placing first] means being able to represent my school doing something that I love,” Guarin said. “And winning sectionals just shows me how much work I’ve put in this season, and what I can improve on, come states.”
Guarin, who by winning earned a berth to the state tournament, said that the reason why she won is because she worked hard and showed up, both mentally and physically.
“I visualized myself winning, I believed in my wrestling and my coaches and knew I would wrestle my best,” Guarin said. “And some of my team being there watching was great, I’m very thankful for all of them.”
Lakeland/Panas coach Dave Bergen said that it’s great that Guarin won the sectional title.
“Girls wrestling is really growing in Section 1 and having Lei compete in the tournament was fantastic,” Bergen said. “Having a section champion is huge for our program. She is the first girl for Lakeland/Panas to do it but I do not think she will be the last.”
Bergen thought there were several reasons why Guarin took home the sectional crown.
“Her hard work and great attitude allowed her to win today,” Bergen said. “Lei never misses practice, she is always pushing herself and her teammates and continually challenges herself to do better. She is always learning and applying what she learns in matches.”
The Rebels also qualified 14 wrestlers for the boys tournament, which it tallied 62.5 points in for a 21st-place finish.
Standing out was senior Matt Clyman taking fifth place in the 157-pound bracket, to earn All-Section honors for the second year in a row.
“Team-wise I think we could have done a little better,” Bergen said. “On the positive side, we do return a lot of guys that wrestled this weekend and they gained some great experience that will help next year. We fought hard and had some tough matches that just did not go our way. Matt did a great job and few other guys really battled tough but came up a little short. This is a tough tournament.”
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