Seven VSN wrestlers advance

Senior Shane Saltzman will lead a group of at least seven Valley Stream North wrestlers at this weekend’s Nassau County Division I championships after capturing last Saturday’s qualifying tournament 132-pound at Plainedge.

Saltzman, who competed at 138 pounds for most of the regular season and went up to 145 for the dual meet team playoffs, capped a three-win day at the qualifier with a 6-2 decision over Michael Lanasa of the host Red Devils in the finals. “Shane wrestled smart and sharp,” Spartans coach Tom Maddock said of Saltzman, who takes a 21-7 record to the county meet at Hofstra. “He went up against bigger kids all season and a bunch of his losses came in the final seconds,” he added. “He’s had a really nice year.”

Jumping from Division II to I, which North did this season, is never easy, Maddock said. “We wrestled well towards the end and made it to the semis of the dual meet playoffs,” he noted. “The qualifier went well, but it wasn’t without some disappointments.”

Two-time county champion Justin Uslaner, a junior, finished fifth last Saturday and has to hope for a wild-card berth to advance to Hofstra. “He has 15 wins and a shot at the wild card,” Maddock said.

Junior Nick Gonzalez (170 pounds), another defending county champ, had an impressive second-place finish at the qualifier after missing 10 days of action. Senior teammate Billy Patsos capped a solid season with a tough sixth-place finish at 170.

The Spartans had a pair of third-place finishers at the qualifier — junior James DiPaoli and senior John Rauert. DiPaoli was the biggest surprise, Maddock said, winning three 152-pound bouts on the day after going 8-13 during the regular season. “He can be dangerous and picked the best day to wrestle tough,” Maddock said. Rauert, who competes at 182, needs one win at Hofstra to reach 20.

Senior Jesse Oppenheimer, also a returning county champion, takes a 20-4 mark into the county tournament after placing fourth at the qualifier. Junior Kyle Miller negotiated a stacked 113-pound bracket to take fourth, while senior Jovanny Moscoso grabbed fourth at 182. 

VSS has five qualifiers