Publication: The East Hampton Press & The Southampton Press Feb 22, 2016 1:24 PM
By Cailin RileyThree East End wrestlers will battle for New York State Division I championships this weekend at the Times Union Center in Albany. Here’s a look at who they’ll be facing and how they are expected to fare.
Dan McClure-Westhampton Beach
McClure, a senior, won the Suffolk County Championship at 182 pounds—his first county title—after beating Sam Schuyler of Kings Park in a 12-5 decision on February 14. He’ll be gunning for his first state title in what is his first trip to states, starting off in the first round against fourth-seed Alexander Melikian, a senior, of Lakeland Panas High School (Section I-Dutchess, Putnam, Rockland, Westchester). If McClure wins, he will face the winner of fifth-seed Tyreek Bromley of Long Beach (Section VIII-Nassau) vs. Simon Chee of Benjamin Cardozo (private school) in the quarterfinals. If McClure can get to the semis, he will likely face top seed Kevin Parker of Shenendehowa (Section II-Capital District), who won the state title last year at 170 pounds.
Suffolk County will be well represented in the bracket, with Schuyler and county runner-up Jeffrey Brown of Connetquot also earning at-large bids. Suffolk County typically receives the most at-large bids of any section in the state because it consistently wins the state tournament every year and is widely recognized as being the most competitive section in the state with the best wrestlers.
Westhampton Beach head coach Paul Bass said McClure has been working hard and is ready to go. He acknowledged that all the wrestlers in the bracket are strong, but said he believes McClure can hang with the best of them. McClure has been working for the past week with some of the best wrestlers in the state as part of the Suffolk County practices, grappling with Edwin Rubio (285) of John Glenn, Terron Robinson (220) of Walt Whitman, Christian Araneo (195) of Ward Melville, Marcus Bisono (170) of Hauppague, and Chris Mauriello (152) of Hauppauge. Those wrestlers all won county titles this year, and Rubo, Robinson and Araneo are all the top seeds in their brackets for states.
Adam Busiello-ESM
Freshman 106-pounder Adam Busiello is the favorite to win the state title, earning the top seed after cruising his way to the county title for the second straight year. Busiello won his first state championship last season at 99 pounds, and was a runner-up at states as a seventh-grader. He will start the tournament against David Traub of Tottenville (private) before taking on the winner of Zayne Benedict of Vestal (Section IV-Southern Tier) vs. Alex Samson of Victor (Section V-Genessee Valley).
Busiello became the third state champion in ESM history last season, following in the footsteps of Maverick Passaro (2012) and Travis Passaro (2014). He has a chance to become the first two-time state champ for the Sharks if he wins this year.
John Busiello-ESM
The state tournament will be a family affair for the Busiellos, as Adam’s older brother, John, a senior, will compete in the 145-pound bracket. Busiello beat Shoreham’s Jack Taddeo, 3-0, to win the county title on February 14. This year has been a homecoming for Busiello—after a successful freshman year at ESM, where he finished second in the county tournament and took third in the state tournament, Busiello decided to enroll at Wyoming Seminary, a prep school in Northeastern Pennsylvania with a reputation for wrestling excellence. He spent his sophomore and junior seasons there, finishing fifth in the prep nationals, before deciding to come back to ESM for his senior year. Busiello is seeded sixth at states this year, and will open up against Tyler Brazinski, seeded sixth, of Johnson City (Section IV-Southern Tier). If Busiello wins, it could set up a rematch of the county final, as Taddeo—who received an at-large bid—would be the next opponent, should Taddeo win. Taddeo will open against Angus Johnson of Canton (Section X-St. Lawrence Area).
The tournament is set to begin on Friday, February 26, with the Parade of Champions at 9:30 a.m. Prelims will run from 10 a.m. to roughly 2 p.m., with quarterfinals running from 2 to 4 p.m. and wrestlebacks running from 4 to 8 p.m. On Saturday, semifinals and wrestlebacks will run from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., with wrestlebacks and the consolation semifinals from 12:30 to 2 p.m. Consolation finals will run from 2 to 3:30 p.m. After those are over, the gates will close and then fans can return at 5 p.m., with ceremonies set to begin at 5:50 p.m. and the finals set to start at 6:30 p.m.
For the latest updates, follow sports editor Cailin Riley on Twitter @sportsgal27east.
Dan McClure-Westhampton Beach
McClure, a senior, won the Suffolk County Championship at 182 pounds—his first county title—after beating Sam Schuyler of Kings Park in a 12-5 decision on February 14. He’ll be gunning for his first state title in what is his first trip to states, starting off in the first round against fourth-seed Alexander Melikian, a senior, of Lakeland Panas High School (Section I-Dutchess, Putnam, Rockland, Westchester). If McClure wins, he will face the winner of fifth-seed Tyreek Bromley of Long Beach (Section VIII-Nassau) vs. Simon Chee of Benjamin Cardozo (private school) in the quarterfinals. If McClure can get to the semis, he will likely face top seed Kevin Parker of Shenendehowa (Section II-Capital District), who won the state title last year at 170 pounds.
Suffolk County will be well represented in the bracket, with Schuyler and county runner-up Jeffrey Brown of Connetquot also earning at-large bids. Suffolk County typically receives the most at-large bids of any section in the state because it consistently wins the state tournament every year and is widely recognized as being the most competitive section in the state with the best wrestlers.
Westhampton Beach head coach Paul Bass said McClure has been working hard and is ready to go. He acknowledged that all the wrestlers in the bracket are strong, but said he believes McClure can hang with the best of them. McClure has been working for the past week with some of the best wrestlers in the state as part of the Suffolk County practices, grappling with Edwin Rubio (285) of John Glenn, Terron Robinson (220) of Walt Whitman, Christian Araneo (195) of Ward Melville, Marcus Bisono (170) of Hauppague, and Chris Mauriello (152) of Hauppauge. Those wrestlers all won county titles this year, and Rubo, Robinson and Araneo are all the top seeds in their brackets for states.
Adam Busiello-ESM
Freshman 106-pounder Adam Busiello is the favorite to win the state title, earning the top seed after cruising his way to the county title for the second straight year. Busiello won his first state championship last season at 99 pounds, and was a runner-up at states as a seventh-grader. He will start the tournament against David Traub of Tottenville (private) before taking on the winner of Zayne Benedict of Vestal (Section IV-Southern Tier) vs. Alex Samson of Victor (Section V-Genessee Valley).
Busiello became the third state champion in ESM history last season, following in the footsteps of Maverick Passaro (2012) and Travis Passaro (2014). He has a chance to become the first two-time state champ for the Sharks if he wins this year.
John Busiello-ESM
The state tournament will be a family affair for the Busiellos, as Adam’s older brother, John, a senior, will compete in the 145-pound bracket. Busiello beat Shoreham’s Jack Taddeo, 3-0, to win the county title on February 14. This year has been a homecoming for Busiello—after a successful freshman year at ESM, where he finished second in the county tournament and took third in the state tournament, Busiello decided to enroll at Wyoming Seminary, a prep school in Northeastern Pennsylvania with a reputation for wrestling excellence. He spent his sophomore and junior seasons there, finishing fifth in the prep nationals, before deciding to come back to ESM for his senior year. Busiello is seeded sixth at states this year, and will open up against Tyler Brazinski, seeded sixth, of Johnson City (Section IV-Southern Tier). If Busiello wins, it could set up a rematch of the county final, as Taddeo—who received an at-large bid—would be the next opponent, should Taddeo win. Taddeo will open against Angus Johnson of Canton (Section X-St. Lawrence Area).
The tournament is set to begin on Friday, February 26, with the Parade of Champions at 9:30 a.m. Prelims will run from 10 a.m. to roughly 2 p.m., with quarterfinals running from 2 to 4 p.m. and wrestlebacks running from 4 to 8 p.m. On Saturday, semifinals and wrestlebacks will run from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., with wrestlebacks and the consolation semifinals from 12:30 to 2 p.m. Consolation finals will run from 2 to 3:30 p.m. After those are over, the gates will close and then fans can return at 5 p.m., with ceremonies set to begin at 5:50 p.m. and the finals set to start at 6:30 p.m.
For the latest updates, follow sports editor Cailin Riley on Twitter @sportsgal27east.
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