Thursday, October 1, 2026
The fourth time was the charm for Plainedge senior wrestler Luke Nieto, who finally won a state individual championship last Saturday night at Albany’s MVP Arena.
Nieto’s Division II state title in the 152-pound category was culmination of a distinguished career for the North Massapequa wrestling power. Nieto qualified for the state tournament all four years.
Freshman year, Nieto didn’t place at states. As a sophomore, Nieto finished fifth and as a junior last season he was runner-up, losing in the finals to a grappler he had beaten previously.
Now Nieto has seized the biggest prize and became part of Plainedge history. With Devin Downes also winning a state championship at 190 pounds, Plainedge boasted two state individual champions for the first time in its history.
“It’s huge to have two guys in one year,’’ Plainedge coach Rob Shaver said. “It’s tough to have one. To have two is pretty amazing.’’
Nieto was ecstatic, admitting his disappointment in not winning it all his first three tries.
“When I first won it, it didn’t feel real,’’ Nieto said. “I know all the hard work and the things that happened where I almost wanted to quit and give up on the sport. All those hard times, but I kept going through it. The reason I kept going was something good was going to happen. I knew my time was going to come. ‘’
In The Finals, Nieto outscored Liam English of Berne Knox Westerlo (Albany County), 4-2. Nieto bolted to a 4-0 lead and then fought off a late rally. Nieto had cruised in his first three state matches by technical fall (when a match is stopped after 15-point lead).
For his senior year, Nieto, who has a wrestling scholarship to LIU, went up two weight classes - from 138 to 152. He ate a healthier diet of rice and ground beef.
“This year, I decided not to cut weight,’’ Nieto said. “I worked out a lot more, lifting at least four times a week and eating healthier and more clean.’’
As for Downes, he won his second straight state title as a junior, meaning a three-peat in 2026 is possible. Downes also moved up in weight class to 190. He won states at 170 in 2024.
In the finals, before 3,000 fans at the downtown Albany arena, Downes won 10-1 over Trent True of Holland Patten (Oneida County). Downes had beaten True earlier this season at the prestigious Eastern States Classic.
“Devin did a great job taking him down quickly,’’ Shaver said. “He did a really good job of jumping all over him. He had beaten him before and didn’t give him any hope. That was the key to the match.’’
In the earlier rounds, Downes posted two pins and a technical fall. Coming off its second straight Nassau County title, Plainedge qualified six wrestlers to states with only Kyle Carter being the other one to place - sixth at 145.
It was a banner year for Shaver, who led the football team to the Nassau Conference IV championship game at Hofstra.
