South Side's Mosher wins county title

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Undergoing labrum surgery last March after a third straight All-State wrestling campaign put Kyle Mosher’s offseason regiment on hold for five months, but the South Side junior came back stronger than ever.

No longer limited by the injury, Mosher expanded his offensive game plan this season and had his talents on full display at Hofstra’s Mack Sports Complex last weekend when he breezed through the Nassau Division I 145-pound bracket for his second county championship in four seasons.

Mosher pinned both opponents last Saturday and enjoyed technical fall victories in Sunday’s semifinals and finals to return to the top of the podium. He won the Nassau 99-pound crown as an eighth-grader and finished runner-up the past two seasons at 120 and 138, respectively. Each time, he finished in the top six at the state tournament.

“It feels great, honestly,” said Mosher, who needed 4:08 to defeat Uniondale senior Wyllanfield St. Louis in the title match, 15-0. “I ran into some real tough opponents in the finals the past two years, so I really wanted to be a county champ again.”

Mosher and St. Louis met a week earlier in the county qualifying tournament at Uniondale when Mosher prevailed, 13-1. “What stands out about him is he’s a strong kid,” Mosher said.

After pinning his way to the semis with wins over Dan Kasin of Massapequa (1:33) and MacArthur’s Christian Dougherty (6:00), Mosher needed 3:09 to tech fall Long Beach’s Alex Michaelman on Sunday morning to advance to his fourth consecutive county final.

“Kyle’s a cut above,” South Side coach Mike Robinson said. “He had a bit of downtime with the injury but he’s come back stronger and with no restrictions. He’s taken his offense to another level.

“He’s having a great season and hopefully he’ll finish out with four more victories,” he added.

Mosher is no stranger to success on the big stage at Albany’s Times Union Center, where he’ll look to make the finals on Feb. 24 after reaching the semis three times. Last winter, he placed fourth at 138. As a freshman, he finished fourth at 120. Three years ago, he was sixth at 99.  

“When you’ve been to the semifinals numerous times, it’s natural to want to take the next step,” Robinson said. “Kyle’s been close in the semis, too. He’s got all the experience and talent it takes to go far.”

Mosher, who has a record of 37-2, said he’d like to advance to the state final and see what happens. “I’m ranked second in the state and winning it is a big goal of mine,” he said. “I want to get past the semis and see what I can do in the finals.”

Mosher reached the finals of the prestigious Eastern States Tournament in January, solidifying his No. 1 ranking in Nassau.

“Before the surgery, I was reliant on just one or two moves,” added Mosher, who has verbally committed to Columbia University. “This season I’ve been able to do a lot more offensively.”