New Haven Register (Sunday) (New Haven, CT)
Danbury three-peats; Xavier second
NEW HAVEN — Danbury wrestling coach Ricky Shook didn’t know what to expect from his relatively inexperienced team at the start of the season, but the result was what’s been come to be expected from the best team in the state.
When all was said and done the Hatters were taking home all the hardware with an excellent performance to cap the state season.
Seven place-winners was the icing on the cake from another dominant tournament for Danbury, which won its third straight State Open championship Saturday at the Floyd Little Athletic Center. The Hatters won with 158 points while Xavier took second with 109. Warde took bronze with 103 while Bristol Eastern was fourth (89) and Trumbull was fifth (78.5).
“In December I thought we’d have at least 2-3 losses in our dual-meet season, maybe more,” said Shook. “We lucked out that we were healthy most of the year; this team came from four guys in the lineup who were under .500 Jan. 1, and two of those four made it here. They came a long away from where they were, that’s the fun thing about coaching sometimes.”
Ryan Jack (126) and Kyle Fields (132) won titles for the Hatters. It was the third straight Open crown for Jack and the third time Fields defeated Westhill’s Chase Parrot (FCIACs, Class LL) in a finals round.
“By the third time obviously we know each other’s stuff,” said Fields. “It’s really about who comes out on top. The last two matches I didn’t really shoot so I tried to switch it up and shoot a little bit more and confuse him.”
Jack — who was recently ranked sixth nationally by InterMat Wresling — pinned all four opponents for his crown.
The Falcons rebounded from a disappointing Class L meet that ended with a third-place finish by taking the runner-up spot. Michael Rapuano finished first at 106 while Dylan Sousa took second at 170.
“I was proud of them, they really rebounded,” said Xavier coach Mike Cunningham. “They worked really hard and I told them from the start I thought we had a really good chance to place here. We have a lot of tough kids and if they all win a couple matches we’d have a shot.”
Rapuano became the first Xavier sophomore to win a State Open title. Sousa was nine seconds from a title before being pinned by South Windsor’s Cooper Nodden.
“(Rapuano’s) worked hard all year,” Cunningham said. “Every tournament he’s been in he’s won except for one.”
After coming oh-so-close the past two years New Canaan junior Tyler Sung finally ended his wait for a State Open crown. He won a 5-0 decision over Berlin’s Dan Veleas after coming in second at the Open the past two years.
“For me this is something that is hard to describe,” Sung said. “It’s a great moment and it’s good knowing all the hard work paid off. … I didn’t get a pin but that’s all right, I was just racking up points. He was a tough, strong kid.”
Teammate Justin Mastroianni was also crowned champion at 138 by holding off Ellis Tech’s Sean Johnson 4-3. Johnson was close to claiming the decisive points several times in the final moments before Mastroianni claimed the win.
Barlow’s Carson LiCastri didn’t break a sweat in winning the 182-pound crown, earning a pin fall win in less than 40 seconds. LiCastri claimed a dominant season in winning the SWC and Class L championships.
“I did all the basics and what I’ve been doing all year,” LiCastri said. “It was very exciting, I still can’t believe that it happened, but it meant a lot after a long season.”
The Falcons were one match away from winning SWCs but rebounded to take fourth in Class M and ninth Saturday.
“That’s been on our minds for the past couple of weeks,” LiCastri said. “That really hurt; it was really exciting to redeem us like that.”
Warde’s Joe Gjinaj defended his 195-pound title in a battle against Foran’s Nolan Bannon. Gjinaj outlasted his opponent and was able to score a late pin with 16 seconds left.
“It feels great,” Gjinaj said. “It wasn’t as pretty as I thought it would be but … (Bannon) didn’t get tired as fast. I could tell he worked hard in the offseason. He was tired in the third period, I noticed he was breathing heavy in my ear, so I knew I had the upper hand at that point.”
New Haven co-op’s Jaylin Houston completed his stellar run through the tournament as the No. 14 seed at 285 pounds, outlasting Danbury’s Jordan Agosto in the finals. Houston scored a pin in the semifinals while trailing 3-1, and won two close decisions in the earlier rounds to complete the dream ride.
“Our coaches put a lot of time in us,” said Houston, who wrestles for a team that draws from several schools in the city including Hillhouse and Wilbur Cross. “We don’t get enough recognition like some of these other schools so I thought me winning a state championship is a step in the right direction.”
Houston — who attends Engineering and Science University Magnet School — has an older brother, Jaracie, who placed sixth in the event in 2017. The younger Houston was just the second New Haven Open champion in the history of the event.
“A lot of my matches were pretty close but that last match I thought I did a pretty good job,” Houston said. “I came here wanting to win, and I won.”
Middletown’s Elijah Cyr earned a 3-2 decision win over Trumbull’s Travis Longo at 113. Norwalk’s Sam White defeated James Rondini of Platt 7-1 in the 120 finals. Michael Angers (Tolland) won at 160 while Trinidad Gonzalez (220) claimed a title for Bristol Eastern. Hunter Adams won the 152 title for Suffield/Windsor Locks.
“I got two late in the second period which was big and exciting for me; that gave me a big confidence boost going into the third period,” Cyr said. “I had to stay in good position and don’t give up any two.”