Griskowitz, Palso earn at-large wrestling bids
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Twenty-three Section 2 wrestlers saw their hard work pay off on the mat throughout the season and had it extended despite a loss during last Saturday’s sectional championships at the Cool Insuring Arena.
The New York State Public High School Athletic Association utilizes a cumulative point system for wrestlers throughout the season(s) and award atlarge bids to round out each Division 1 (large school) and Division 2 (small school) 16-man bracket for the state event next weekend at the Times Union Center.
Ballston Spa sophomore Nick Palso, Saratoga Springs junior Eric Griskowitz, Columbia junior Jakob Edwards and Albany Academy senior Drew Bogdan were joined by Queensbury junior Ryan Sleezer in seeing their seasons extended as announced late Wednesday.
The bulk of the Section 2 atlarge bids came from the small school division where 18 grapplers were added to their respective brackets.
Watervliet junior Peyton White, senior Sterling Spoon and Watervliet-Heatly senior Owen Lyons received at-large entries. They were joined by Hoosick Falls senior Gabe Fisher and Matt LaPorte along with Tamarac senior Riley Retell in the at-large category.
Palso fell to Section 2 champion Jason Holmes of Shaker by a majority decision in the 99-pound division 1 final. Griskowitz, the No. 1 seed at 138-pounds in the Section 2 tournament suffered a tough loss to Niskayuna’s Willie Thacker, 5-1 in the semifinal. He would rally back and finish third overall with a pin of Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake’s Johnny Matrazzo in the third-place finale.
Edwards lost in dramatic fashion to Averill Park’s Sean Malenfant, 5-4, in the 152-pound championship final, a takedown in the closing seconds, but had enough points to continue through to the state meet.
Bogdan fell to eventual Section 2 champ Peter Meshkov (Niskayuna) in the semifinals, but wrestled back for two straight wins and a third-place victory.
The storyline was similar for the Section 2 Division 2 at-large entries.
White lost to another atlarge entry, Chris Petteys in the 106-semifinal, but battled back to win back-toback major decisions for the third-place title and continue to gain points for his selection. Lyons also lost to a sectional champ, Charlie Grygas (Duanesburg) while Spoon battled his way back from a 3-2 decision to another at-large entry, Warrensburg-Bolton’s Chris Wilson. Spoon lost in the semifinal, but won two straight, including a pin in the consolation final.
Hoosick Falls senior Gabe Fisher lost to 113-pound champ Joey Schreeren in a memorable contest that came down to the bitter end, an ultimate tie-breaker with Galway’s Joey Schreeren earning the ride out for the title, but Fisher earned the right to advance to the state meet. LaPorte fell to the other Maple Hill star, Trent Svingala, in the 132-pound final, but also advanced.
Tamarac’s Retell fell to the 120-pound champion, Kaden Gransbury from Ravena, 5-4, in the championship final, losing out on a local title, but advancing to the bigger stage as a senior.
Wrestling begins at 9:30 a.m. on Friday, Feb. 22, resuming on Saturday at 9:30 a.m. and the finals set for 6:30 p.m. There will be three admissions for the weekend.
Section 2 at-large qualifiers Division 1 99: Nick Palso (31-11) Ballston Spa; 113: Ryan Sleezer (36-6) Queensbury; 138: Eric Griskowitz (38-5) Saratoga; 152: Jakob Edwards (43-6) Columbia; 160: Drew Bogdan (36-5) Albany Academy Division 2 106: Chris Petteys (28-8) Hudson Falls; 106: Peyton White (26-5) Watervliet junior; 113: Gabe Fisher (284) Hoosick Falls; 113: Dylan Winchell (43-3) Warrensburg; 120: Riley Retell (39-4) Tamarac; 120: Tyler McKenna (41-5) Warrensburg; 126: Austin Lints (373) Schoharie; 132: Matt LaPorte (32-9) Hoosick Falls; 138: Greg Hotaling (36-5) Cobleskill-Richmondville; 145: Hunter McKenna (31-2) Warrensburg/Bolton; 152: Logan Duers (35-6) Hadley Luzerne-Lake George; 160: Owen Lyons (39-3) Watervliet-Heatly; 170: Rich Forbes (38-1) Catskill; 195: Nolan McNeill (23-2) Warrensburg-Bolton; 195: Brendan Covey (40-8) Whitehall; 220: Chris Wilson (40-5) Warrensburg-Bolton; 220: Sterling Spoon (35-5) Watervliet; 285: Christian Salvio (31-3) Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk @StanHudy on Twitter