The Huntington High School wrestling team will vie in the Section XI League IV wrestling tournament on Saturday at Newfield. The Blue Devils tangled in their final tune-ups for the post-season over the past week.
The first whistle will sound on Saturday at 9:30 a.m. Preliminary matches will be followed by the quarterfinals. The semifinals are set for 2 p.m. Consolation round bouts will go off at 3:30 p.m. The finals are scheduled to begin at 4:30 p.m. The top four finishers in each of the 15 weight classes will advance to the Section XI tournament the following weekend.
Huntington captured first place in last weekend’s Martin Luther Invitational in Queens. Seven Blue Devils were crowned champions and several others won medals for placing among the best in their weight classes.
The Blue Devils wrapped up the regular season by hosting a triangular meet on Wednesday afternoon in Louis D. Giani Gymnasium against Westbury and Port Jefferson.
Joe Petrone, Aedan McDonald and Tazadon Smith will lead Huntington into action this weekend. Coaches Louis R. Giani, Kieran Mock, David Bergmann and Omar Santiago are hoping to qualify a sizeable contingent to advance to the Section XI tournament at Suffolk-West in Brentwood.
Martin Luther Invitational
Huntington compiled 251 points to run away from the 12 team field at the Martin Luther Invitational in Queens last Saturday. The Blue Devils easily distanced themselves from runner-up Westbury (153) and third place Hempstead (127) and the rest of the field, which included a mix of public and private schools.
Joe Petrone pinned three foes to capture first place at 99 lbs. Lucas Cirlincione finished third at the weight. Billy Burton pinned three opponents en route to the 106 lb. championship. Samir Rathore had two pins and 19-3 technical fall to grab first place at 120 lbs. Charlie O’Rourke pinned four wrestlers to take third place at 126 lbs.
Aedan McDonald (132 lbs.) and Ryan Baker (138 lbs.) both pinned four foes to win first place in their respective weight class. Baker topped eighth grade teammate Zach Zboray in the finals. Zboray advanced to the championship bout with a 15-0 technical fall and 13-2 major decision. Ethan Franciscovich pinned three opponents to take third place at 132 lbs.
Anthony Martin pinned three opponents to take third place at 152 lbs. Lucas Petrizzi also captured third place at 160 lbs. Robbie Smith had a pin and 15-0 technical fall on his way to the 170 lb. title.
Jonathan Koumas pinned two foes before dropping a close 5-2 decision in the finals at 182 lbs. Chas Forte wrestled well on his way to taking fourth place at 195 lbs.
Tazadon Smith had a great with three pins at 220 lbs. to capture first place. Aidan Mrotzek was impressive while taking second place at 285 lbs.
Triangular Meet with Westbury & Port Jefferson
A triangular meet with Port Jefferson and Westbury wrapped up Huntington’s regular season on Wednesday afternoon. Ryan Baker and Tazadon Smith both won three matches, all by pin. Joe Petrone, Billy Burton, Samir Rathore, Aedan McDonald, Lucas Petrizzi, Jon Koumas and Chas Forte all won two matches each. Several other Blue Devil wrestlers also won bouts during the competition.
