By STEVE SINISKI
Tobia, a 220-pounder, was the only champion among the 30 area wrestlers who competed in the tournament, and he now advances to the state tournament March 8-9 in Rochester.
"He bumped up [for the final two meets] and then took the David and Goliath approach [in the championship]," Calhoun coach Gregg Muscarella said.
After racking up an impressive 31-1 mark at 215 pounds during the season, Tobia made the leap up to the 285-pound weight class for the county qualifier and championship meets, where he won all seven of his bouts. In the county finals against St. Simon, the second-seeded Tobia gave up nearly 60 pounds, and it showed in the first period. Just 30 seconds into the match, Tobia was driven out of the ring and appeared to be on his heels against the top-seeded and unbeaten St. Simon. But as the match wore on, Tobia made the most of his opportunities and slowly gained control.
"He out-conditioned the kid and showed true mental toughness later in the match," Muscarella said.
As a team, the Colts finished eighth on the strength of four All-County performances. Ryan Hickey took home second in the 189-pound class, losing 7-3 to MacArthur's Anthony Daly. "Hickey had the tournament of his life," Muscarella said. "Talk about absolutely peaking [at the right time]."
Sophomore Mac Malderelli (135 pounds) earned third place after knocking off MacArthur's Brian Herold, 3-0, and Mac's older brother, senior Brian Malderelli (125), finished fourth after dropping a 10-6 decision to Uniondale's Mike Walker.
Kennedy's Zach Cogen ended his senior season as a runner-up for the second consecutive year. He dropped a 7-0 decision to Wantagh's Steven Bonanno at 119 pounds, and his two championship-round opponents over the last two seasons have now won a combined five career titles. "He had a chance at the beginning but didn't score," Cougars coach Brian DeGaetano said of Cogen. "Bonanno had an opportunity to get in a groove and Zach couldn't stop him. Once he got that first takedown, Bonanno was tough to stop [when] he got going."
Cogen finished up the season with a 38-3 mark, and became just the eighth wrestler in Kennedy history to rack up more than 100 career victories (113). He is also a four-time All-County honoree. Cogen defeated his first two opponents last weekend by impressive margins of 6-0 and 18-0, then knocked off Syosset's Ryan Chimon, 2-1, in a defensive semifinal battle.
Kennedy's Chris Lombardi capped his senior season with 30 victories and All-County honors after defeating East Meadow's Robert Mancino, 3-1, for fifth place.
Joe Anderson was Mepham's top finisher, taking third at 171 pounds. The senior defeated MacArthur's Anthony Macaluso, 8-3, in the placing round.
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