By Cailin RileyThe end of Dan McClure’s high school wrestling career played out in bittersweet fashion at the New York State Division I Championships at the Times Union Center in Albany on Saturday.

The Westhampton Beach senior went into the tournament riding the high of winning his first Suffolk County championship, taking the title at 182 pounds in convincing fashion, and capping an incredible transformation for a wrestler who came into his junior year without any varsity dual meet wins. At states, there was one standout in the 182-pound bracket—top seed and defending champ Kevin Parker of Shenendehowa (Section II-Capital District)—but Westhampton Beach head coach Paul Bass believed that the rest of the field was evenly matched, and believed that McClure could go toe-to-toe with anyone. 

But an All-State finish was not in the cards for McClure, as he went 0-2. 

McClure, who was unseeded, got off to a shaky start in his first-round match with fourth-seeded senior Tommy Mackay of Elmira, (Section IV-Southern Tier), getting taken down and put to his back within the first 20 seconds to fall behind 5-0. McClure managed to close the gap to a 7-4 deficit later, but couldn’t get much closer, ultimately dropping a 9-5 decision. McClure finished the match with an impressive throw, putting Mackay on his back, but it came with just one second left, and so was essentially meaningless.

Unlike at counties, there are full wrestlebacks at states, so McClure wasn’t done yet. In the next match, McClure took on junior Simon Chee of Benjamin Cardozo (Private), and was in a much closer match. The score was knotted at 2-2, but Chee took a lead he would not give up with a minute left in the final period when McClure was given a caution for a third time, for starting before the whistle, resulting in a point for Chee. McClure elected to give Chee a free escape after that, putting Chee up 4-2, but putting both wrestlers back on their feet, a situation where McClure had a better chance to score points, hopefully a takedown that would have tied the match. But Chee remained elusive and scored points of his own, with the score ending at 6-3 in his favor.

“I feel like I went in a little timid and obviously it cost me,” McClure said. “I guess it was the nerves being there for the first time.”

McClure said he felt less nervous in the second match, but still struggled to pick up the intensity.

“I was just lethargic and unexplosive,” he said. “It was very disappointing to me, because I expected to have a better run. But that’s something this sport keeps teaching you over and over. You can do everything right, eat right, lift hard, practice hard, and sometimes things just don’t go your way. But the best part about it is that life goes on, and the best you can do is pick yourself up, dust yourself off and keep heading forward.”

Bass admitted that he too was disappointed that McClure did not earn All-State status or even pick up a victory at states. But he said that overall, what McClure accomplished in two years was impressive, considering he was not on anyone’s radar—even his own coach’s—as a sophomore.

“I think he made the most out of the last two years of his high school wrestling career,” Bass said. “Before that, he wasn’t really focused. But he bought in for two years, and to be a county champ is pretty neat. I still think he’s an All-State caliber kid, but he just didn’t have a good tournament. But if you look at what he accomplished in the last two years, it’s really not normal.”

McClure is hoping to continue his wrestling career at the next level, and has drawn interest from several colleges, although he says right now that Ithaca College is his top choice. 

“I would love to wrestle in college,” he said. “I just love the sport so much; I love the grind, I love practicing.”

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.