By STEVE SINISKI
Though the Jets failed to earn an individual title, they did push seven wrestlers into placing rounds, including junior Rocco Caldarero, who dropped a 7-6 decision to Springfield Gardens' Derrick Ageday in the championships at 160 pounds.
"He's a little unorthodox but has great hips," East Meadow coach Chris Critchley said. "He knows what to do with his hips and you can't teach that. He has good instincts."
Taken down by Ageday with 30 seconds remaining in the match, Calderero went on the offensive but had trouble getting Ageday to engage. After trying to chase down his passive opponent, Calderero benefited from a stalling call that forced a reset. He managed an escape just five seconds later but was unable to close the gap any further. "[Ageday] avoided him the rest of the way," Critchley said. "He was unable to take him down."
Calderero was one of seven Jets to finish sixth or better, and the bulk of his point-scoring teammates-five in all-took home third-place honors. As a team, East Meadow finished an impressive fifth out of 15 teams.
Junior Nick Falco (119 pounds) avenged a loss to Farmingdale's Luke Alber in last year's Nassau County qualifying tournament semifinals, then went on to defeat teammate Marco Basile in the consolation round. Senior Rob Mancino, an All-County returnee, defeated Hauppauge's Gennero Bonaventera for third place at 145 pounds. "We were pleased with the [team] performance and are trying to hold our own in the upper echelon," Critchley said.
Seeded fourth in Conference I-A, East Meadow did lose one of its top wrestlers, 125-pound sophomore Steve Rispoli for the season to a shoulder injury suffered during the Jets second-place finish at the Long Beach Tournament on Dec. 6. While Rispoli's out for the balance of the season, several of his teammates, including junior Michael Cohen (130) are on their way back to full strength. Cohen, back from a knee injury, is joined by Andrew Danziger, who hopes to have an impact at 215 pounds after a finger injury cut short his freshman campaign. Jav Hayder, a 140-pound junior, returned from a shoulder problem to take sixth at Long Beach.
Junior Steven Cara (125), a fifth-place finisher at Baldwin, could contribute in Rispoli's absence, and freshman Chris Whitenack (130) is another in a line of solid middleweight wrestlers. Seniors Michael Buttafuoco, a 171-pounder, and Vito Basso (189) each took third at Long Beach, and 160-pound senior Max Jeshiva took second.
Freshman Andrew Lynch, perhaps the Jets best athlete, hits the mats at 145 pounds, while Nick Marinello is eyeing action at 112 pounds. They are two of a number of talented underclassmen, a group that also includes freshman Vinny Pannullo (96), who was a finalist in the JV tournament.
"We're off to a good step forward, knowing it's a long season," Critchley said.
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