Prep Talk

Holland wrestling coach confident in helping her (yes, her) team succeed

Susan Grieser is in her second season taking over the struggling program at Holland. She is the first female head wrestling coach in Section VI history.

She has two male volunteer assistants, which she said make her job a lot easier.

"The other coaches have treated me as if I belonged, many have seen me in youth wrestling, or following my son over the years," she said.

"Holland is a small school so the boys already know me, and know of my passion for wrestling. Holland wrestled against Springville for the years my son was there so they saw me at those matches. The boys understand I will do everything I can to see them succeed on the mat, as well as succeed in school."

Last year's team won two dual meets, all but one wrestler won a match and two wrestlers qualified for sectionals. Those two wrestlers return as seniors, Axl Jakubowski at 152 and Richie Evans at 160, who have both moved up this year. The team's dual meet win over East Aurora was the program's first over EA in 18 years.

---Mary Jo Monnin

Section VI sending strong contingent to wrestling states

Here's a look at the sizable Section VI team headed to the state championships Friday and Saturday at the Times-Union Center in Albany.

The pictures were taken at Saturday's Section VI team practice, where coaches from throughout Western New York come together to prepare the wrestlers for the big meet.

Our thanks to Western New York Wrestling Coaches Association president and Williamsville North coach Brian Swatland for sending the pictures along (our apologies that we can't match up the names, those weren't sent along). The wrestlers are sporting sweatshirts provided by the WNYWCA.

Division I

96: x-Anthony Orefice (Lockport), Austin Acquard (Iroquois). 103: Rocco Russo (Frontier). 112: Steve Michel (Lancaster). 119: Eric Lewandowski (Lancaster). 125: x-Dylan Caruana (Kenmore West), Dylan Cohen (Wmsv. East). 130: x-Tim Schaefer (Lancaster), Dan Reagan (Lew-Port). 135: x-Patrick Mix (Lake Shore), Jason Kromer (Lew-Port). 140: x-Mike Feeney (Lockport), Luke Falzone (Wmsv. South). 145: x-James Kloc (Iroquois), Joe Difrancesco (Niagara Falls). 152: x-Irvin Buck (Niagara Falls), Jacob Gullo (Jamestown). 160: Tyler Bruce (North Tonawanda). 171: x-Joe Amoia (Kenmore West), Nicholas Bannister (Frontier). 189: x-Jake Kelly (Niagara-Wheatfield), Rodney Offhaus (Iroquois). 215: Adam Donner (Niagara-Wheatfield). 285: Max Antone (Niagara-Wheatfield).

Division II

96: x-Cody McGregor (Tonawanda), Ryan Kromer (Lew-Port). 103: x-Majed Mohamed (Lackawanna), Zach Bickle (Roy-Hart), Steve Seibert (Cassadaga Valley). 112: x-Abdulgawi Mohamed (Lackawanna), Eddie Hutschenreuter (Alden). 119: Tom Page (Eden). 125: x-Kevin Strong (Frewsburg), David Ciaramella (Newfane), Alex Smythe (Eden). 130: x-Matt McCauley (Roy-Hart), Jordan McGregor (Tonawanda). 135: x-Drew Hull (Roy-Hart), Justin Hunt (Ripley). 140: x-Dylan Duncanson (Medina), Jesse Anderson (Falconer), Brandon Hassenbohler (Alden). 145: x-Ben Haas (Salamanca), Phil Czapla (East Aurora), Azel Tapia (Albion). 152: x-Tristian Hammer (Medina), Frank Sterlace (Silver Creek), Ameen Harhara (Lackawanna). 160: x-Nick Mitchell (Frewsburg), Jerrold Roosa (Randolph), Ryan Baer (Depew). 171: x-Tony Lock (Pioneer), Marcus Dwaileebe (Olean), Kris Schimek (Pine Valley). 189: x-John Mistretta (Southwestern), Thomas Cornell (Randolph), Joe Hill (Lew-Port). 215: x-Greg Burroughs (Fredonia), Bashar Srouji (Lew-Port). 285: x-Pat Langworthy (Southwestern), Mike Kasprzak (Depew).

* * * 

For a look back at the Section VI championships, here's a link to my Division I championship story, which includes links to the championship results as well as Tyler Dunne's Division II story. There's also a my Division I blog post, which features video of several finals, as well as Dunne's post on Division II. 

---Keith McShea

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Section VI wrestling championships: Division II notes

Poor weather pushed the Division II Wrestling Sectional Championships back considerably Saturday --- the finals started three hours late. But once the meets got rolling, in rapid-fire succession, the gym came alive. The meet didn't disappoint.

In addition to today's story, here are some leftover notes from an exciting day of wrestling at East Aurora High School.

--- In the heavyweight division, everything is unraveling just the way Pat Langworthy envisioned. If the Southwestern wrestler wanted to win a state championship this year, he needed to bump up a weight class. After falling short at states in the 215 class a year ago as a junior, he knew it'd be smart to move up to 285.

Last year’s 215 state champ is back — Nick Gwiazdowski of Duanesburg in Section II. So this year, his swan song at Southwestern, Langworthy opted to wrestle up. After all, Gwiazdowski is ranked in the top five nationally.

Saturday was a heck of a start for Langworthy, who won a convincing 5-3 decision over Depew’s Mike Kasprzak.

“Last year, I went to states and didn’t do as well as I wanted,” Langworthy said. “Fortunately, I had another year.”

--- Speaking of Gwiazdowski, the Section VI representative that will try to knock him off is Fredonia’s Greg Burroughs. In one of the day's best matches, Burroughs took down Fredonia’s Bashar Srouji, 5-4. After losing 3-1 in the sectional finals a year ago, winning Saturday meant a little something extra to Burroughs.

“I’m hoping to place (at states),” he said. “There will be a tough kid there.”

Fredonia finished second in the team scoring Saturday behind Lew-Port.

“He’s been the reason we have won as a team,” added Fredonia coach Alex Conti. “We were 13-0 last year and 24-0 this year. And it’s because he keeps everybody light and having fun. To see him win that was special.”

--- Without a doubt it was the right call to name Roy-Hart’s Matt McCauley the meet's Most Outstanding Wrestler. As a four seed, McCauley ran the table. As you'd expect, he was in shock after his win over Lew-Port's Dan Reagan. Not just for winning --- but how he won. All season, through meets and practices, the junior never tried a “mat mixer.”

Live from the Section VI Div. I wrestling championships (with video)

Hello from Lake Shore, site of the Section VI Division I wrestling championships.

Consolation bouts are winding down, after which the five-mat layout will be changed to one for the championships.

Below is the lineup of the finals, which I'll be updating as we go.

As you can see, all top seeds have reached the finals with only three upsets making it to the finals: two No. 3 seeds and one No. 7.

5:28 p.m. The gym has been cleared and reopened and fans are filing in while one green mat has been set up in the middle.

5:49 p.m. We're starting with the 96-pound final.

96: 1-Anthony Orefice (Lockport-8, 38-1) vs. 2-Austin Acquard (Iroquois-9, 48-3)

First period: Takedown and three back points for Orefice just over halfway through the period. Acquard tried to escape but no sale. Orefice, 5-0.

Second period: Orefice starts on top, remains in control through the first minute. Out of bounds with :37 left. Remains in control through end of period.

Third period: Orefice picks down. Quickly escapes for 6-0 lead. Takedown for 8-0 lead. Out of bounds with :33 left; Orefice warned for stalling. Acquard apparently has hurt his knee; :27 left. Acquard back up. Orefice wins by decision, 8-1.

103: 1-Rocco Russo (Frontier-9) vs. 2-Kellen Devlin (Amherst-7)

First period: Two-point takedown to Russo after some early scrambling. Devlin is undefeated on the year. Stalemate with :53 left. Escape by Devlin; 2-1 Russo. Russo takedown in final seconds of the period to go up, 4-1.

Second period: Russo starts on top; 1:35 restart. Stalemate with :54 left. Russo remains in control; Deviln tries to back out of the hold but he can't as time expires.

Third period: Russo, up, 4-1, starts on top. Devlin jumps early at the start, his third caution, which costs him a point. Russo, 5-1. Stalemate with Russo in control with 1:16 left. Devlin jumps out early again; Russo, 6-1. Russo wins by decision, 6-1.

112: 1-Steve Michel (Lancaster, 34-5, two-time Section VI champion) vs. 2-Jake Zaleski (Williamsville North-10, 29-8)

First period: Quick takedown less than 30 seconds in by Michel after grabbing a leg; 2-0 Michel. Michel starts on top on a restart with about 1:32 left. Michel lets Zaleski go for an escape and a 2-1 lead. Close to a takedown for Michel but he's out of bounds. Another takedown by Michel, now a 4-1 lead. Lets Zaleski escape again; 4-2 lead. Blood time for Zaleski with :33 left. Out of bounds with :18 left. Clinical takedown again by Michel with about 10 seconds left. Michel leads, 6-2.

Second period: Michel selects down. Uses some great leg strength to stand up and nearly escape. Out of bounds with 1:44 left. Michel quickly up again. Potentially dangerous position with :57 left. Michael spins around and completes a reversal for an 8-2 lead; allows another escape for 8-3; another takedown followed by an escape, 10-4. Out of bounds with :19 to go. Another takedown Michel and he leads, 12-4, in final seconds.

Third period. Michel promptly is after Zaleski to start the third and he pins him with 1:37 left. Michel wins by fall, 4:23.

119: 1-Eric Lewandowski (Lancaster-10) vs. 2-Ron Duguay (Kenmore West, 42-5)

First period: Lewandowski beat Duguay in last week's Class AAAA championships. Lewandowski takedown with about :45 to go.

Second period: Lewandowski on bottom. With both standing, Lewandowski escapes for a 3-0 lead. Takedown by Lewandkowski; followed by a two-point reversal for Duguay, 5-2. Reversal came with about 40 seconds left. End second period with Duguay bleeding from the nose.

Third period: Lewandowski on top and with a 5-2 lead. Blood time Duguay with 1:16 left. Lewandowski two back points for a 7-2 lead and remains in control the rest of the way. Lewandowski wins by decision, 7-2.

125: 1-Dylan Caruana (Kenmore West, 44-0) vs. 2-Dylan Cohen (Williamsville East, 39-2)

First period: Out of bounds, 1:39 to go. Caruana looking to go low but they continue to feel each other out it seems. :30 left. Nearly a takedown for Caruana but Cohen spun to avoid it as the period ends.

Second period: Cohen on top. Caruana escapes for a 1-0 lead less than 10 seconds in. Blood time Cohen with 1:25 left in second. Caruana drives Cohen forward and gets a takedown just inside the out-of-bounds; 3-0 Caruana. Caruana maintains a hold of Cohen's leg. Cohen with a very nice reversal to make it 3-2; out of bounds with :15 left. Cohen holds on to end the period. Caruana leads, 3-2.

Third period: Caruana starts on top, drives Cohen to mat. Stalemate with 1:16 left. Caruana on top. Caruana wins by fall with :40 left. Great scene as crowd got louder and then roared with the pin. Caruana wins by fall, 5:20.

Here's the big finish:

130: 1-Timothy Schafer (Lancaster-10, 35-3) vs. 7-Terrance Acker (Grand Island-10)

DiPaolo family dishes out a night to remember

The Western New York high school wrestling family got together for their annual reunion.

Ilio DiPaolo's Restaurant in Blasdell served as the site of this gathering also known as the Ilio DiPaolo Scholarship Award dinner. The 15th annual event, which brought together 200, honored the best from the 2009-2010 wrestling season in the form of six awards and five college scholarships totaling $9,000.

Bob Koshinski of the Executive Committee made the case for the Class of 2010 being the most elite group in the award's history. The competition was so tough, two New York State Champions did not make the final list.

The winners combined for 836 career wins, 12 Section VI individual championships, nine place finishes at states and three state championships.

The distinguished group included:
Ilio DiPaolo award: Dominic Montesanti, Medina
Gary Castanza award: Kyle Colling, Pioneer
Destroyer award: Angelo Malvestuto, Niagara-Wheatfield
Bill Hein award: Joe Kalinka, Iroquois
Cauiflower Alley Club: James Donner, Niagara-Wheatfield
St. Francis football captain's award: Adam Pasnik

• Past winner of the Ilio DiPaolo scholarship, Kane Smith, was the guest speaker. The 2005 Salamanca graduate gave a polished delivery in which he talked about how revealing 6 minutes on a wrestling mat can be, and how the sacrifice, sweat and pain it takes to be a wrestler prepares you for everyday life.

• A DVD presentation prepared by the committee gave a look into the life of man who brought everyone together. The 1950s black and white footage showed DiPaolo in the ring displaying amazing athleticism for a man his size and he disposed of each opponent.

• Dennis DiPaolo, always a gracious host, did his best to recognize some of his guests: former Buffalo Bills quarterback Jim Kelly, former Buffalo Bills trainer Eddie Abramoski, retired Niagara-Wheatfield wrestling coach Ace Cacciatore, retired Roy-Hart/Newfane coach Dick Lange, Empire State Games local chairman Ralph Galanti, Preston Teague of the Buffalo Bills Community Relations department, Linda Knuutila of WNY Wrestling Review and his charming mother.

---Mary Jo Monnin

Wrapping up the Section VI wrestling championships

Here are the Division I and Division II stories from the Section VI wrestling championship. And here are plenty of extras from the Division II meet Saturday night at Niagara County Community College. But first, a couple observations.

1. This was the second straight year NCCC served as host for the event, and it's a great venue. There's plenty of parking, and NCCC coach Eric Knuutilla (one of the nicest men you could ever meet) does a great job having the gym ready. The support staff, including announcers and officials, also do a good job of keeping everything moving as close to on time as possible.

2. Another thank you to Ross Conti, an assistant coach at Fredonia and committee member of the Wrestling Review of Western New York, the group that does such a great job seeding and ranking area wrestlers. Conti is a walking encyclopedia of wrestling knowledge.

112-pound champion Tom Page, Eden: Page moved ahead with a takedown in the second period to defeat teammate eighth-grade teammate Alex Smythe. Here's Page's father, also Tom Page, on what it's like for two teammates to wrestle each other: "It's extremely difficult because they're so familiar with each other's style. It's unfair to both, but some coaches say it's a privilege. I'm proud of both of the athletes, because they've done a fantastic job."

The elder Page said he wrestled both at 112 because they were the best at that weight class and deserved a chance to showcase what they could do at the sectional level. Nothing wrong with that logic.

119-pound champion Kevin Strong, Frewsburg: It's the second trip to states for Strong, who improved to 43-2 on the season. Here he is on his game plan from Saturday: "I was working on holding him down and taking it slow. Once I got my points I was very careful." Strong beat Newfane's David Ciaramella, 9-0.

125-pound champion Emory Rowe, Ripley: The smallest wrestling school in Western New York had two finalists, including one champion in Rowe. He scored a late takedown to earn a 5-3 decision over Jake Baer of Olean, a raw talent in just his third year of wrestling. Here's Rowe on the end of the match: "I was just looking for an opening and I saw him loosen up, so I dove for it and got it."

140-pound champion Devin Kramer, Depew: The Most Outstanding Wrestler of the meet scored three late points to break a 2-2 tie with Ben Haas of Salamanca and win his second sectional title (he won at 130 last year). The 130- and 140-pound divisions are packed with talented wrestlers. Kramer, a senior who is a member of the Cobra Wrestling Academy, is 36-4 on the season.

145-pound champion: Dominic Montesanti, Medina: Montesanti put forth a dominant performance despite being hampered by a knee injury. He's wrestling on a torn meniscus in his right knee. Here he is on competing hurt: "It's been a real bother, but it's my senior so I couldn't get surgery. It would put me out for the rest of the year. I have one last chance to be a state champion, so I have to tough it out."

Montesanti took sixth at the state tournament last year after dislocating his elbow and having to injury forfeit two matches at 140.

171-pound champion John Mistretta, Southwestern: Mistretta beat Greg Burroughs of Fredonia for the third time this season, never the easiest thing to do. Mistretta has a unique style that could make him a tough out at the state tournament.

189-pound champion Colin Palmer, East Aurora: Palmer is unbeaten on the season (24-0) after missing time early due to injury.

215-pound champion Pat Langworthy, Southwestern: Langworthy (33-6), a junior, won a wild weight class. Consider: the seventh seed, Panama's Cody DiDomenico, beat No. 2 Bashar Srouji of Lew-Port in the quarterfinals. Langworthy, the third seed, then beat DiDomenico. On the other side of the bracket, top seed Justin Taylor of Portville was upset by fourth seed Jake Eddington of Gowanda in the semifinals.

285-pound champion Theo King, Roy-Hart: King and 96-pounder Zach Bickle won titles for the Rams. Here's King on what he hopes it means for the Niagara-Orleans League school: "I hope it can inspire more people to come out for the team next year and continue to build the tradition of the program."

That's it for now, although we may have some video later of a few matches (if I can figure out the technology).

---Jay Skurski

More from the Section VI Division I wrestling championships

SANBORN -- Greetings from Niagara County Community College, site of the Section VI wrestling championships this weekend. Division I (large schools), finished a couple hours ago, while Division II (small schools will wrestle all day Saturday, with finals set to start at 4:30 p.m.

We're finished with our print responsibilities for the night and have plenty of notes left over to share. First, an observation: The simple finalist information sheet each coach fills out for his wrestlers is a valuable tool for the announcer and media in attendance. One of the toughest aspects of covering high schools sports is the availability of (reliable) statistical information, so when coaches have stuff like that prepared, it helps journalists write a better, more complete story on their student-athletes.

On to the winners and some information about them, as well as additional quotes that didn't make the paper.

96-pound champion: Steve Michel, Lancaster: Michel beat teammate Eric Lewandowski, 4-3, in a match I'm not sure either wanted to wrestle. Lewandowski was emotional after the loss, while Michel didn't seem to take much happiness out of his second straight 96-pound title. Here he is on the move that gave him the deciding points: "I shot a sweep single, then I hooked his leg and I stepped over."

103: Ronald Rodriguez-Spencer, Cheektowaga: The Class AAA winner improved his record to 32-5 and was the youngest competitor (eighth grade) to win a sectional title.

112: Tim Schaefer, Lancaster: Schaefer is 3-for-3 in sectional tournaments. He won at 96 in seventh grade, 103 last year and now 112 as a freshman.

119: Dylan Caruana, Kenmore West: One of the best matches of the night, Caruana held off Daiquann Burney of Sweet Home with a late reversal for a 6-3 decision. Here's Caruana on the fantastic finish: "The end was really exciting. I just didn’t want to give up that take down. He was about to get behind me and I couldn’t let him do it. I was only up by a point, so it was real close." Caruana has won two most outstanding wrestler awards this season, at the Orchard Park Tournament and last week at the AAAA tourney.

125: Joey Malvestuto, Niagara-Wheatfield: Plenty on this match in the print product, but a quick note: Malvestuto has overcome a broken hand and knee injury this season. He's rounding into form and improved to 31-3. Opponent Ben Mikac lost his first match of the season, falling to 34-1.

130: Joe Kalinka, Iroquois: The first of three Iroquois champions on the night, Kalinka (46-2) will make his second straight tip to states. He won the AAA tourney last week, while his opponent, Mike Feeney of Lockport, won the AAAA tourney.

135: Pat Mix, Lake Shore: Both Mix and opponent Zack Fummerelle had just one loss entering the mach. Mix took control with an early takedown, then held on for the win. Nice celebration by the Lake Shore coaches and Mix after the match, too. A school not known for its wrestling program made nice strides this season.

140: Jimmy Kloc, Iroquois: Kloc, who is a pitbull on the mat, looked like he was going to cruise, but Gage Bateman of Sweet Home gave him all he could handle. A fitting final for a weight class my wrestling go-to guy, Fredonia assistant coach Ross Conti, called the deepest of the tournament.

145: Jacob Beichner, Williamsville East: Beichner was the only wrestler not seeded first or second (he was third) to win. His reaction after winning showed all that's right with high school sports: a tearful hug with his parents. Here's Beichner on what the win meant to him: "He was beating me up pretty good in the beginning, but I’ve been training my whole life for this moment. I just wasn’t going to let that stop me. I knew he was getting tired and he was breaking. It’s my senior year, I just went full force." The loss was the first of the season for Irvin Buck of Niagara Falls.

152: Kris Duge, Clarence: It was the 38th win of the season for Duge, a senior.

160: Raleigh Defields, Iroquois: Defields was struck with pneuomia during the season and didn't start to get healthy until the end of January. He had dropped an earlier decision by one point to his opponent Friday, Lancaster's Sean Woods. Defields was a fun interview after his match. Here's some of what he had to say: "I set a goal as a freshman that I always wanted to at least win [a] class [tournament] and going to states is just an awesome bonus." On his recovery: "I've been busting my hump in practice getting my conditioning levels back and it paid off because I could have gone another minute if need be." On the end of the match, which went to overtime: "I looked up at the clock with five seconds left, held on for dear life and smiled."

171: Tony Lock, Pioneer: A sophomore who has progressively improved this season, Lock picked up his 40th win.

189: Angelo Malvestuto, Niagara-Wheatfield: Falcons coach Rick Sweney called him the best wrestler ever to come through Niagara-Wheatfield, which sums up Malvestuto's career well. He was the only one to record a pin Friday night.

215: Kyle Colling, Pioneer: A 2009 national champion, the only surprise in Colling's title is that it didn't come by pinfall. According to Conti, it's believed Colling could become the first wrestler in state history to win class titles in Division I and II, due to Pioneer moving up to Division I this season (he won Division II last year).

285: Jim Donner, Niagara-Wheatfield: Donner gets a chance to build on his fifth-place finish at last year's state tournament.

Talk to you tomorrow from the Division II tournament.

---Jay Skurski

 

 

Niagara-Wheatfield, Fredonia are decade's best wrestling programs

   Niagara Wheatfield High School and Fredonia High School have been selected as the varsity wrestling "Teams of the Decade" in their respective divisions by a committee formed by long-time wrestling Coach Dick Lange and Niagara County Community College Coach Eric Knuutila.

   Using a wrestling tournament style scoring system, in which points are awarded for finishing in first place, second, third, etc, the committee reviewed the final top 10 ranking from the 2000-2001 season to the current 2009-2010 season. Finishing with the top point total over the past 10 years in Division I was Niagara-Wheatfield with five consecutive first place finishes, two seconds, two fourths and a tenth place finish.

   Niagara-Wheatfield, currently coached by Rick Sweney and Vince Schiffert, has also had coaches Tim Lukasik, Bill Dixon and Bill Dixon Jr. contribute to their success over the past decade. Some of Niagara-Wheatfield's outstanding wrestlers over that time were Eric Wiseman, Bill Hetherington, Kyle Schmelzle, Josh and Zech Lange, Matt Daniels, Rob and Jake Koshinski, Jeff Mitchell, Malvestuto brothers Joe, Bob and Angelo, Jehad Ali, Antonio Ventry and Jim Donner.

   The top five Division I teams in order are Niagara-Wheatfield, Lancaster, Iroquois, Niagara Falls and Cheektowaga.

   In Division II the top team over the past 10 seasons was Fredonia coached by Alex Conti.  The Hillbillies have been ranked number one in Division II six times since 2000 with one second place finish and three thirds. Conti has been assisted by Greg Betts, Ross Conti, Dan Morales and Wayne Vollentine over the past decade.

   Some of the outstanding wrestlers who contributed to Fredonia's success over that time were the late William Sidey, Frank Zielinski, Rob Dahn, Brandon Strandburg, Brad Bichelberger, Flolite Padua, Ryan Yerico, Justin Perry, Chris Conti, Carlene Sluberski and Kenny Betts.

   The top five Division II teams in order are Fredonia, Falconer, Southwestern, Newfane and East Aurora.

   Niagara-Wheatfield and Fredonia will be honored on Friday and Saturday at the Section VI hampionships at 4 p.m. at Niagara County Community College and again at the Section VI Coaches Banquet in March.

   The committee will announce the teams of the 90's just prior to the start of the 2010-2011 season.

   The selection committee included former coaches Dick Lange (Roy-Hart & Newfane) and Walt Thurnau (Southwestern), both of whom are being inducted in March into the Section VI WNY wrestling Hall of Fame. It also included Bob Koshinski, associated with amateur wrestling for the past 30 years as both a member of the media and DiPaolo Wrestling Scholarship Committee Chairman. Knuutila is a member of several wrestling Halls of Fame on the local, state and national level.

   The committee's ongoing task will be to designate the top teams of the past six decades, starting with the 2000's. "Every other sport has a Team of the Decade so it is time for us to be part of it," said Knuutila. "It was time for wrestling to honor the great teams of the past 60 years."

Vote for the four Section VI wrestling class tournament champions

poll by twiigs.com

More wrestling notes and quotes

Some additional notes collected while researching our wrestling story in today's Scholastic Spotlight.

Be sure to check out our highlights of the 2010 schedule as well as the season's first wrestling rankings.

* * *

Four-time defending large school poll champion Niagara-Wheatfield is not surprisingly at the top of the first large school poll.

Rick Sweney's team has won five straight Niagara Frontier League championships. Sweney has been at the helm for three years following five years as an assistant; he was at Niagara Falls for 20 years prior to that.

The Falcons' top wrestlers are two-time sectional champ and junior Joey Malvestuto (125) and his brother, 189-pound senior Angelo Malvestuto, a three-time sectional champ who has signed with Virginia Tech. Angelo, a three-time high school All-American, placed fourth in the state twice at 160 and 171 pounds and last year was third at 171.

That's not all: Senior Jim Donner placed fifth in the state at 285 last year. Freshman Marcus Popp, who is now 15-2 and just took fourth at the Jamestown Tournament. Senior Antonio Ventry (152) has over a 125 career wins. Sophomore Jake Kelly (171) is one to look out for.

* * *

Williamsville North is off to a nice 4-0 start in ECIC I with matches looming against the big three: Lancaster, Clarence and Jamestown.