By Steve Siniski
The Generals host Baldwin this Friday at 5 p.m. in the first round of the win-and-advance tournament. The competition level shouldn't seem much different than what the Bruins are used to seeing in Conference I-A, as league opponents East Meadow, Massapequa and Long Beach all rank among Nassau County's Top 5, a list currently headed by MacArthur.
"As a young team I think we came together," Coach Mike Robinson said of the performance at Valley Stream Central. "We lost by one point to Lawrence after tying them earlier [in the season]."
Despite wrestling without two of their top individuals last Saturday, Keron Williams and Willie Quinn, because of illness, Baldwin knocked off the host Falcons 44-27 in their final battle of the day.
Nick Krokowski (103 pounds), Vinny Famularo (119), P.J. Breitwiser (125) and Kyle Cohen (140) all earned victories.
"I'm happy with what we did and glad to get another win," Robinson said.
Baldwin entered the tournament off a 37-23 defeat to Syosset on January 27. Cohen, just one in a strong crop of up-and-coming freshman, continues to string victories together. Krokowski meanwhile, has rebounded from an early season injury to make waves during the dual meet portion of the season. According to Robinson, the biggest key for Cohen has been an uncanny knack for developing his moves.
"He gets good position," Robinson said. "He's still developing strength and has good technique. In younger [wrestlers] you usually see good technique in the lighter weight classes. For him to have that good technique, you don't often see that with a ninth-grader."
Perhaps nothing is a better indicator of Baldwin's youth than the fact that its three most accomplished wrestlers are a junior, Famularo, and a pair of sophomores, Williams and Quinn.
With the up-coming Nassau County Qualifiers at East Meadow on Feb. 11, all eyes in the wrestling room will likely be on the accomplished trio and past experiences. Their accomplishments include an All-County showing from Famularo, who finished fourth in the County Tournament and All-Conference finishes by Quinn and Williams, who were second in their respective classes at the County Qualifiers. "The guys are young and can establish themselves as one of the top [wrestlers] in the County," Robinson said. "All of them understand that they are getting themselves the opportunity to wrestle and are young and hungry."
Among the underclassmen hoping to make a statement at East Meadow, one of six Qualifying sites, are Vinny Pecora (96), Tim White (112), Mike Dillon (112), Chris Goon (119), Billy Redmond (130) and Donald Clemens (145). In order to qualify for the Nassau County Tournament, held on February 17-18 at Nassau Community College, the wrestler must finish among the top four in their class.
