Three champs for Long Beach

On a night where a bunch of results didn’t go Long Beach’s way, junior 195-pounder Elijah Rodriguez didn’t disappoint as the undefeated No. 1 seed in the Nassau Division I wrestling championships.

Rodriguez won his 36th consecutive match and first county title with a convincing 7-0 victory over Farmingdale’s Jack Rosen in the finals at Hofstra last Sunday evening. He joined teammates Jacori Teemer (132 pounds), who captured a fourth straight crown, and Joe Giorlando (170) at the top of the podium as the Marines (328 points) finished runners-up to Wantagh (343.5) in the team standings.

“All the years of hard work paid off,” Rodriguez said. “I knew if I wrestled smart and kept the pressure on, I could do it.”

Long Beach could have as many as seven representatives at the state championships Feb. 24-25 at Albany’s Times Union Center, with Nassau runners-up Tyrese Byron and Tyreek Bromley, county champions last winter as juniors, prime candidates to receive wild-card invites.

“Last season we broke the county record for points scored and we topped that number tonight,” Marines head coach Ray Adams said. “Wantagh just had an incredible tournament. We had 13 All-County kids, so it was an exciting weekend.” 

Rodriguez, who earned a first-round bye, cruised into the finals by pinning each of his first three opponents. He beat Sewanhaka West’s Anthony Palagonia in 3:19, made quick work of MacArthur’s Jake Hunter in 51 seconds, and then Valley Stream North’s Ahkil Champagne in the semifinals in 3:38.

While Rodriguez got his first taste of a county championship, Teemer, a junior, joined some elite company with his fourth title in as many years. Teemer’s 12-4 win over Lynbrook’s Matt Swanson in the finals — it was 7-4 until the final 30 seconds — was the 174th of his career. Now he’s aiming for a fourth state championship.

“It feels as good as the others,” Teemer said. “It was the third time I wrestled Swanson this season and each time it got harder. He’s a great opponent. He’s funky and knows how to defend shots well. I just had to stay aggressive.”

Like Rodriguez, Teemer rolled to the finals with pins of Kennedy’s Lev Bergfeld, North Shore’s Joe Barcellos, and Uniondale’s Alex Kemp. If Teemer can get the job done in Albany, he’ll become the first Long Beach wrestler to win four state champs.

Giorlando, a senior, had mixed emotions after his 5-2 victory in the finals against longtime classmate and close friend Brandon DeVivio. Giorlando was the county runner-up last season in the same weight class. “We both grew up in Island Park and have been going to school together since kindergarten,” Giorlando said. “For those six minutes on the mat, you can’t think about friendship, you have to think about trying to beat a tough opponent who wants the same thing you do.

“It’s great to be a county champion,” he added. “After the match, we hugged and that’s what it’s all about.”

DeVivio was one of five Long Beach runners-up. Byron (152 pounds) was denied by Plainview’s Peter Pappas, Bromley (182) was upset by Sewanhaka West’s Brandon VanCooten, senior Charlie Spada (160) was stopped by Wantagh’s Jonathan Loew, and senior Mark Rivera (220) lost to Uniondale’s Zach Knighton-Ward.