Minutemen Youth Wrestling

I hope to change these pictures every other week. Watch for your smiling face right here.

February 23, 2003 By BOHDAN KOLINSKY, Courant Assistant Sports Editor BRISTOL -- Berlin wrestling coach Jim Day had a big smile on his face as he waited for the start of the CIAC Class L championship matches Saturday night. By the time the finals started at Bristol Eastern High School, Day's team had clinched another state title, the school's fourth in the last five years. The Northwest Conference champion Redcoats placed three wrestlers in the finals and won the title with 181 points, 26.5 more than 2002 Class L champion Fitch-Groton. Winning titles for Berlin were Eric McCurdy (160) and John Russo (275). C.J. McCormack lost to Chris Coppolo of Fitch in the 135 final. Berlin also had one third-place finisher (B.J. Madey, 130); two fourths (Dan Madey, 119, and Jim Solek, 145), one fifth (Nick Catalano (140), and two sixths (Mike Crowe, 112 and Matt Powell, 189). "From the day we lost to Fitch in last year's tournament, we were determined to work hard and get the title back," Russo said. "We overcame a lot of obstacles this year. Some decided not to come out for the teams, others left. This title is all about team unity, that's for sure." Russo improved to 42-0 with his 36th pin of the season. He and McCormack will attend Roger Williams College in Rhode Island next year. For Day, it was his ninth title in 21 seasons. "It was great for the kids to just go in and focus on the finals, and not have to worry about the team title," Day said. "It allowed them to wrestle more openly. We struggled opening night, but the kids came around and executed." He was especially happy for McCurdy. "Here's a kid who was seeded ninth and didn't even place in our conference tournament last week," Day said. "It's just a testament to Eric's hard work and the hard work of everyone on this team."

February 16, 2003 By KEN LIPSHEZ Staff Writer BERLIN -- Plainville was on the doorstep. Going into the championship round of the Northwest Conference wrestling tournament, the Blue Devils held a slim lead over favorite RHAM. Regular-season champion Berlin, which defeated the Devils handily in their dual meet last month, was 15 points back. While RHAM had eight wrestlers in the finals and Plainville six, a season-ending shocker was well within the Devils’ grasp. But the quality depth that vaulted the Sachems among the state’s elite teams for the last two years was too extensive. RHAM placed five wrestlers on the top rung Saturday to claim its first NWC title in its first year of conference competition. The Sachems, four points behind Plainville before the championship finals began, finished with 177 points. Plainville maintained a secure lock on the second spot with 167.5 while Berlin settled for third at 154. Farmington held off Rocky Hill, 129.5-126, in the battle for fourth. Middletown (89) finished sixth and East Catholic (52) brought up the rear. Plainville and Berlin claimed three champions apiece. The Devils were represented by senior Jesse Cavallaro at 112 pounds, 140-pounder Vito Barbagallo and junior Justin Fangiullo at 215. The Berlin champions were the senior trio of B.J. Madey (130), C.J. McCormack (135) and undefeated heavyweight John Russo. Barbagallo (32-3) was voted the tournament’s Most Outstanding Wrestler trophy by the league coaches. Russo (38-0) gained Fastest Fall recognition for recording three pins in 2 minutes, 3 seconds. Rocky Hill had two champions -- defending Class S titlist Tony Nguyen at 119 and Paul Buccheri at 171. Unbeaten 189-pounder Scott Kates was the lone champion for Farmington. The chance for a monumental Plainville upset slipped away as the final round unfolded, but coach Sean Kelly said that his team’s accomplishments bode well for next week’s Class M championships in the Blue Devils’ gym. "We looked at the seeds coming in and we felt it was going to be a tight three-way battle," Kelly said. "Berlin’s lost a couple of kids which hurt them. We felt we had our chances and needed to pick up a couple of key wins which we did. But in tournaments there are always surprises that go both ways and we had them go against us, too." Berlin, which shocked RHAM in a dual meet Feb. 6, expected to compete for the team title but placed only four wrestlers in the championship finals. Eight Redcoats lost in the semifinals, half of whom wrestled back into the consolation finals. Three Redcoats -- Mike Crowe (112), Chris Santerre (125) and Matt Powell (189) -- won third-place bouts. "Our semifinal round was probably the worst set of matches we wrestled all year," Berlin coach Jim Day said. "By the same token, I thought we wrestled pretty well in the consolation round and final round. But in order to do well in a tournament, you have to be pretty consistent through the rounds. That’s something we’ll have to work on in the next week." Farmington champion Kates (31-0) was supplemented by finalist Matt Hancock (125) and eight who qualified for the consolation finals. Hancock lost to undefeated Trevor Brown of RHAM in his final. Karl Dinkler (130), Chris Thomas (135), Marcus Brander (152) and Dean Kapura (171) claimed third-place laurels. "We took a lot of thirds. Hopefully we’ll step it up for the state tournament," Farmington coach Eric Misko said. Barbagallo’s 5-3 win over Rocky Hill’s Loxley Walters was among the best bouts of the day. Walters used his long arms and legs to stave off Barbagallo’s shots. Walters’ counter off a Barbagallo shot gave him a 2-0 lead in the first period. Barbagallo escaped, then engineered a reversal after beginning the second period in the down slot. Walters escaped to tie the match 3-3 early in the third but Barbagallo, 3-0 vs. Walters, executed the decisive takedown with 13 seconds remaining. "Loxley’s a tough kid to wrestle because he’s so long," Kelly said. "It’s so hard to get definitive control on him where the official can give him the (takedown). On top of that, it’s the third time he’s had to wrestle him and it’s tough to beat a kid three times." McCormack’s 6-4 win over RHAM’s Brock Littlefield in the final round was another hard-fought encounter. McCormack (35-3) had a 5-1 lead but Littlefield (34-4) worked a late takedown. Trailing 5-4, Littlefield cut him loose to fall behind by two, but couldn’t notch the equalizer in the 12 remaining seconds. Ken Lipshez can be reached at klipshez@newbritainherald.com or by calling (860) 225-4601 ext. 222.

By KEN LIPSHEZ, Staff Writer February 13, 2003 BERLIN -- Northwest Conference championships have come almost as regularly as Christmas for the Berlin High wrestling team. The Redcoats have celebrated league titles in 17 of the last 19 campaigns, but the one they put the wraps on Wednesday had special meaning. State power RHAM entered the loop this year and immediately was dubbed the favorite. When the Redcoats upset the Sachems in an emotionally charged clash last week, they clinched a tie for the title. On Wednesday, Berlin put it away. The Redcoats won nine of the 14 bouts to ease past outmanned Rocky Hill, 48-19, on Senior Night at Berlin High. Berlin coach Jim Day, who has savored each of the 17 NWC triumphs, was particularly excited about this one. "It’s been a long time since we’ve been considered the underdog," he said. "This group has been hall-marked by their overall growth and their ability to overcome some obstacles that were presented during the year. They kept a positive attitude and continued to work hard." Wrestlers relegated to junior varsity duty were asked to step in due to injury and defection. Justin Giarnella, the Redcoats’ 152-pounder, was sporting a 26-2 record when an injured left shoulder ended his season. Two other contributors chose to leave the program but the replacements have responded and are ready for the postseason, which begins Saturday with the NWC Championships at Berlin. "We’re doing it with smoke and mirrors but it still feels great," said Day, whose team finished the regular season at 23-6, 6-0 in the league. Heavyweight John Russo and lightweights T.J. Farr (103), Mike Crowe (112) and Chris Santerre (125) provided some smoke with pins. Russo, who caught Hill’s sculpted heavyweight Chaz Rhinehart with a nifty ankle pick, stuck him at 1:31. Russo is now 35-0 on the year, 29 wins coming by fall. Farr, in control from the start, pinned Roop Singh in 1:33. Crowe, the hero of the RHAM victory when he fought off an eight-point deficit to pin Scott Warren, overhelmed Derek Maloney in 33 seconds. Crowe heads into the conference meet with a 23-13 season mark. Santerre raised his record to 19-12 and his fall total to 14. Berlin 152-pounder Jim Solek’s stock continued to rise with a 12-7 overtime win over Mo Osman. Solek, a sophomore, began the season splitting his first 10 bouts but is now 22-10. "Even the more experienced kids have grown," Day said. "They’ve continued to experiment and expand their techniques. It’s been a lot of fun and I know we’ll do our best (in the postseason)." While the Terriers (13-12, 2-4) would have loved to ruin the Redcoats’ party, forfeits at the 130- , 135- and 140-pound divisions reduced that opportunity drastically. First-year coach Marco Tirillo wasn’t pleased with the overall effort but praised the work of Paul Buccheri (171), Mike Sanders (189) and Ryan Gasuk (215). Buccheri scored a major decision over Nick DiSalvo and Gasuk registered Hill’s lone pin against Dave Sataline in 2:51. Sanders eked out a 3-1 overtime decision over Matt Powell. "We have to pick up the pieces and go on," said Tirillo, who feels Hill has a chance to win the Class S tournament that begins a week from Friday. "If we don’t start picking it up we’re not going to be a team that can win the state this year." Terriers 119-pounder Tony Nguyen, defending Class S champion at that weight, recorded an 8-5 decision over Dan Madey. Nguyen is rounding into shape after an uneven campaign. "He didn’t have a very good beginning. He really wasn’t into it," Tirillo said. "He sat out due to injury and it sparked him. Watching everyone wrestle made him want to wrestle and he’s been unstoppable ever since." Loxley Walters, a placewinner for Hill last year, settled for a 13-7 win over Bryan Hackett, who earned Day’s praise for his effort. B.J. Madey, C.J. McCormack (32-3) and Nick Catalano won by forfeit. Ken Lipshez can be reached at Klipshez@newbritainherald.com or by calling (860) 225-4601, ext. 222.

Click on the title to go to the stats page for this match. It was a closer match this time but the Minutemen improved their record to 8-1 on the season with a 67-35 win over South Windsor at home. Winning for Berlin by pin were: Anthony Zovich, Colin Cunningham, Sean Pentalow, Jaco Eliades, and Ryan Butler with 3 pins. Also winning a match were: Jack Banks, John Swantek, Tyler Cunningham, Jack Russo and Brendan Butler. Inter-squad matches were held and the results were as follows: Jonathan Fort defeated Tim Norton 13-2, Ricky Mullins d Colin Cunningham 9-1, Erik Labieniec d Zach Varley 13-0, Kyle Zuk d Matt Bogden 6-2, Andrew Alessi pinned Ethan Renner, Zovich d Matt Cote 8-3, Logan Taracani d Labieniec 10-5, Bogden d Ben Tomascak 7-2 Renner d Fort 13-1, and Jeremy Eliades pinned C. Cunningham.