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Ingrao, Page, Colom Keep Title Hopes Alive

Lakewood’s Hoose Still Alive For Canisius In Division I

Falconer’s Cameron Page holds onto Peru’s Nick Bushey during 160-pound quarterfinal action at the New York State Public High School Athletic Association Division II Wrestling Championships at the Times Union Center in Albany on Friday. Photo by Joe Conti

ALBANY — Falconer’s Dylan Ingrao (145 pounds) and Cameron Page (160 pounds) both turned in exceptional performances Friday during the first day of the New York State Public High School Division II Wrestling Championships at the Times Union Center.

Their reward? A spot in today’s semifinals.

Hector Colom (132 pounds) of Fredonia will also join Ingrao and Page after he recorded victories in his first two matches as well.

Ingrao, who placed sixth at states last year as a sophomore, continued his recent hot streak, as he moved on in his weight class.

First, he took down John Devins of Saranac with a hard-fought 3-1 decision.

Falconer’s Dylan Ingrao is grabbed from behind by Pearl River’s Jack Chesman during 145-pound quarterfinal action. Photo by Joe Conti

“I thought his first match the kid wrestled very defensive,” Falconer coach Drew Wilcox said, “and Dylan’s been beaten a few times this year by defensive guys. It was nice to see him stay calm and find a way to win the match.”

In the quarterfinals, Ingrao, who entered the tournament as the No. 3 seed, took down Jack Chesman of Pearl River, 8-2.

“His second match he wrestled outstanding,” Wilcox continued. “Hopefully he can bring that (into the semis). He’s been on a roll for about a month now, so he’s got to roll his way into the semifinals.”

Awaiting Ingrao in the semis today will be Adam Wagner, the No. 2 seed from South Seneca.

Just like Ingrao, Page looked to be on top of his game, as he opened up his tournament with a 19-4 technical fall over Putnam Valley-Haldane’s Robbie Velichko.

Fredonia’s Hector Colom takes control of Letchworth’s Chase Runfola during Friday’s quarterfinals at the Times Union Center in Albany. Photo by Joe Conti

The senior, who is the No. 2 seed, then followed that up with a 6-3 victory over Nick Bushey of Peru.

Page will battle No. 3 seed Noah Curreri from Eldred for the right to compete in the finals.

“Cam just gets after it, he really does,” Wilcox stressed. “He’s been overshadowed over the years, he’s finally coming into his own and he’s as good as anybody in the state and I think he knows it. I’m hoping (today) goes his way.”

No stranger to the big stage and bright lights of the state tournament, Colom also worked his way through the first two rounds.

In his preliminary match, Colom — the No. 3 seed — was aggressive and set the tone right from the jump, which resulted in an eventual 19-3 technical fall over Gideon Jardine of Hadley Luzerne-St. George.

“That’s what we expected from Hector,” Fredonia coach Joe Santilli explained. “When he’s being active, that’s when he’s going to score points and that’s when he’s dangerous.”

Colom then advanced into today’s semifinals via injury default after Letchworth’s Chase Runfola could no longer continue.

Hunter Dusold, the No. 2 seed from Locust Valley, will be Colom’s opponent this morning.

“(We’re) looking forward to it,” Santilli said. “We don’t look too far ahead in any of the matches, we take the one that’s in front of us. But we’ve also been preparing for the semifinal match. We knew a couple weeks out just how things were going to wash out with the seeding. We knew the Locust Valley wrestler, that we might be seeing him so we’ve been preparing. Hopefully it pays off.”

In addition to the stellar wrestling of Ingrao and Page, Falconer’s Dan Torres (152 pounds) and Corey Keefe (182 pounds) enjoyed a great deal of success Friday.

Torres fell in his first match to top-seeded Hunter Richard of Holland Patent. However he rebounded nicely, winning his next two contests.

In the first round of wrestlebacks, the junior took down Austin Carmen of Clarke via a 5-3 decision. He then followed that up with an impressive 7-1 decision over Watervliet-Heatly’s Collin O’Brien.

“He wrestled outstanding,” Wilcox said of Torres. “He gave (the top seed) everything he could handle and I think he used that as confidence and he’s wrestling great right now. He’s one win away from a medal.”

In his preliminary match, Keefe was able to come away with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over No. 7 seed Dillon Warner of Schoharie.

Doug Simmons of Canastota got the best of Keefe in the quarterfinals, 7-0, but Keefe bounced back in the second round of wrestlebacks, as he took down Mike Sabella of Mount Sinai, 5-4.

“He’s another one who’s wrestling really well this weekend,” Wilcox emphasized. “As a whole to put two in the semifinals and have our other guys (each win) two, that says a lot about our program.”

Maple Grove’s Shane Hetrick (113 pounds), who has prior experience at the state tourney, got his weekend off to a tremendous start, when he beat Kevin Velez of Petrides, 6-2, in preliminary action.

“I just liked his aggressiveness,” Maple Grove coach Tim Shrout stated. “He put up some points and it’s a good start. The first match for any kid is always the hardest to get going. It’s been two weeks since they wrestled an officiated match, so seeing that outcome is good.

Hetrick, a junior, then came up just short in a tightly contested quarterfinal match against Neiko Scarano of Little Falls, 5-4.

However, in the second consolation round, Hetrick kept his tournament going when he dethroned Mikey Bruno of Putnam Valley-Haldane, 4-3.

“He really rose to the occasion,” Shrout said. “And came out on top there … really happy with the way that worked. Hopefully we can continue that (today).”

Hetrick’s teammate, Trevor Micek (170 pounds), fell in his preliminary match to Sean Mosca of Wheatley in a 10-0 major decision.

Despite the early loss, Micek worked his way back, picking up two victories in the first two wrestleback rounds. He beat Salem-Cambridge’s Ryan Slater (3-1 decision) and Northern Adirondack’s Austin Trombley (5-2 decision).

“I don’t think the seeding was maybe what it could’ve been,” Shrout explained. “He’s started the long road back to a medal spot and he’s off to a good start. … When he gets in on those shots, it’s just great to see. He’s got one of the best finishes.”

Maple Grove’s Zak Trim (182 pounds) was defeated by Norwich’s Brennan Slater in a 5-1 decision in the preliminary round, but he was then able to pin Robert F. Kennedy’s Brian Frias in 2:15 in the first consolation round.

However, Trim’s season came to an end in the second consolation round, when Whitney Point’s Dylan Dunham recorded a 7-0 decision.

“The first trip (for a kid to states) is always the one where you don’t really know what to expect,” Shrout said, “and it’s also maybe the most important because it really lets the kids know that they can be there and that they have that to look forward to. He’s a junior, so he’s got another opportunity to get here and show what he can do.”

Fredonia freshman Dalton Gardner (113 pounds), the No. 7 seed, started his tourney off on a high note, when he decisioned Dylan Price of Onondaga-Tully, 4-3, in preliminary action.

But he then fell against second-seeded Trey Laflamme of South Jefferson/Sandy in the quarterfinals and came up just short against top-seeded Eli Rodriguez of Norwich, 6-4, in the second round of wrestlebacks.

“It was a deep weight,” Santilli emphasized. “All the seeds pretty much got blown up. … (Dalton) ended up wrestling the No. 2 and the No. 1 seed and that doesn’t happen very often. … Dalton’s a fantastic young man. I thoroughly enjoy him. He’s my go-to guy. He’s a captain as a freshman, he’s a voice of reason and he’s a quiet leader. He does everything right and he’s an absolute joy.”

Gowanda’s David Poff (120 pounds) came through win an impressive victory in his preliminary match, pinning Hector Rodriguez of the Eagle Academy (Bronx) in 3:32.

Phoenix’s Cahal Donovan got the best of Poff in the quarterfinals, but Poff picked up a 5-1 decision over Chester’s Nick Conetta in the second consolation round.

“He’s steady,” Gowanda coach Mark Leous stressed, “and, you know, we’ve wrestled back before. … We’re hoping that if we win the next match, then we place. … We want to finish third in the state.”

Fellow Panther Charlie Valone (220 pounds) was defeated in his preliminary match before recording an 11-7 decision over Clarke’s Tareq Ibrahim in the first round of wrestlebacks.

Valone’s successful campaign came to an end, however, in the next round of wrestlebacks, when Depew/Cleveland Hill’s Matt Eldridge came away with a pinfall win.

“There’s nobody with more heart than Charlie,” Leous said. “Really, You’ve got to give it to him. He gives it all he’s got, 100 percent. I’m real proud of him, real proud of his career. He’s really come a long way.”

The Dunkirk/Silver Creek senior duo of Billy Seiders (138 pounds) and Nick Jones (285 pounds) didn’t manage to win a match, but have still left a lasting impact on the Dunkirk/Silver Creek program thanks to their prosperous careers.

“Both of them are over 170 wins,” Dunkirk/Silver Creek coach Joe McMurdy emphasized. “I thought Billy wrestled really well. He had the one seed (in his first match) and loses 1-0. I thought he battled him. … Nick just got caught in his first match. And it’s funny because hasn’t gotten caught all year. But more importantly, they helped our program so much. That’s where they will be missed. Their leadership. They’re great kids.”

In Division I action, Lakewood resident Mason Hoose, who wrestles at Canisius, upset Ryan Ellefson from Goshen, the top seed at 220 pounds, via a 7-5 decision.

Hoose then punched his ticket to the semifinals after a convincing 12-3 major decision over Brighton’s Jason Cunningham.

Semifinals and wrestlebacks are slated to begin at approximately 10 a.m. Finals are scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. at the Times Union Center.

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