By TONY BELLISSIMO
Having won more matches than any other wrestler in Nassau County history, Long Beach senior P.J. Gillespie went to last weekend's New York state championships in Albany with one thing on his mind - winning the 145-pound title.
After three straight third-place finishes in the state tournament, Gillespie finally reached the mountaintop. His 6-2 decision over Ron Majerus of Mexico, N.Y., in the championship bout last Saturday night at Times Union Center capped a perfect season, and goes down as career victory No. 214 for the Hofstra-bound star.
"When last season ended, P.J. made it known that he wasn't going to settle for anything less than a state title as a senior," Marines Coach Ray Adams said. "That was his goal for the last 12 months and he worked extremely hard to make it happen. His last two matches were the toughest, and that's the way it should be. He's got more wins than anyone else in Nassau history, and he won county championships at four different weight classes."
Gillespie finished 41-0 this season, and that included many bouts in the 152- and 160-pound classes. He is Long Beach's second state champ in as many years. Last winter, Eduardo Delgado took the 140-pound crown as a junior. Delgado was runner-up at 152 pounds this time, and with 190 career victories, ranks second on the county's all-time list.
"It feels great to get the monkey off my back," said Gillespie, whose father, Paul, coached wrestling at Long Beach for almost 20 years before Adams took over the program. "I was determined to win."
Gillespie rolled to the state semifinals with two dominant performances on Friday. He beat Ian Desol of Guilderland 15-0 in the first round and Jesse Villella of Chenango Forks 9-1 in the quarterfinals. In the semis on Saturday, Matt Kaylor of Burnt Hills proved a tough competitor, but he eventually wore down in a 5-2 decision.
"I didn't want to be in the wrestlebacks and have to watch the finals again," Gillespie said. "I wanted to be in it."
Gillespie, who earned Most Outstanding Wrestler honors at the county meet on Feb. 18 after pinning Evan O'Brien of Plainedge in the final, helped the Marines finish a remarkable fifth in the state with 48.5 team points. "He's a great kid, and I'm looking forward to watching him wrestle at the next level," Adams said.
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