Thursday, October 1, 2026
MacArthur High School senior Jeremy Hughes made a longtime dream come true last Sunday night in front of thousands at Hofstra when he captured the 170-pound Nassau Division I wrestling title with a 7-4 victory over Long Beach’s Joe Giorlando.
Hughes, who lost in the 160-pound county final in overtime last winter to Hewlett’s Charles Tsakh after returning sooner than expected from a broken hand, improved to 41-4 this season and will represent the Generals in the state championships Feb. 26-27 at the Times Union Center in Albany.
“It feels awesome,” Hughes said. “I’ve been dreaming about this night for years. I’m stoked.
“Last year was tough,” he added. “I broke my hand and was supposed to be in a cast for two months. About a week before the county qualifier, I cut the cast off so I could wrestle. It was a month too soon but I had to get back on the mat.”
Hughes, who was a qualifying champion on Feb. 6, breezed through his first two opponents at the county tournament last Saturday with a tech fall and a pin. He then defeated Kennedy’s Jack Jones in Sunday afternoon’s semifinals by major decision, 13-2.
“Jeremy’s been wrestling competitively a long time and puts a lot of work in,” MacArthur coach Rob Paletta said. “He’s a pretty cool customer. Coming so close to winning a county title last year was extra motivation for him. He didn’t wrestle a lot last season because of the injury, but he was determined to finish the job this time.”
Hughes believes the sky’s the limit for him at the state meet. Louie Deprez of Hilton (Section V), the 160-pound state champ last season, is likely the biggest obstacle. “I’m looking to win a state championship,” Hughes said. “Deprez got me by five points, but I’ve beaten some of the other top contenders.”
Hughes’ classmate, Ryan O’Shea, worked his way into the county finals at 285 and finished a hard-fought runner-up to Hewlett’s Mike Curiel, who took a 3-2 overtime decision in the tournament’s last matchup. O’Shea won four bouts at Hofstra, including a 4-2 victory over Jericho’s Alex Guidice in the semis.
Senior Nick Goodelman finished third at 113, senior Travis Cooksey was fifth at 138, and senior Sal DeLuca placed fourth at 182, giving the Generals three additional All-County efforts.
