By:By STEVE SINISKI
"We thought we'd get about a dozen in [to the County Tournament], but a couple of our younger guys came through," Mepham Coach John Hamilton said. "The biggest thing is for the younger [wrestlers] to [qualify]. As ninth- and 10th-graders, you want them to get the experience and get back there" in the future.
As a team, Mepham took first overall with 380 points, besting Calhoun (293) and Garden City (261.5) at the top of the standings. The headlock on first place was owing to 10 Pirate wrestlers advancing to the final round, including championship victories by Steve Gurien (119 pounds) and Santo Getz (152). Ironically, Gurien and Getz squared off with teammates in the final round, giving Mepham the top two finishers in each class. Eric Hochhauser (152) nearly upset his workout partner, Getz, who was a runner-up in last year's County Tournament. The two battled into overtime, and Getz came out on top in a 2-1 defensive struggle.
"It's always tough for the guys [to wrestle teammates], but we drum it into them that it's a sign of a good team," Hamilton said. "We tell the guys that friendship is friendship, but business is business, and I think the guys handled it well."
The Pirates had wrestlers in 10 of the 15 weight classes qualify for the championship tournament, including two at 103 pounds (Tom Vultaggio finished second, Adeel Ashard took third), a pair at 112 (Steve Gunther finished second, Frank Vuttaggio took third) and three at 119 pounds (Nick Gugliemo took fourth behind Gurien and Genn).
Tom Byrne (96 pounds), Kevin Pettenon (140) and Dan Leff (145) all finished second in their weight classes, while John Papillo (140), Dave Geller (215) and Jon Gallogly (275) rounded out Mepham's third-place finishers. Matt Papillo earned a fourth-place finish at 145 pounds.
Upset in the first round of the qualifying tournament by Calhoun's Matt Amon, Geller bounced back to win his next three matches, proving why he's one of the team's on-mat leaders. "He battled back for third and is one of the souls of the team," Hamilton said. "It's nice to see him bounce back after getting knocked off. We tell the guys that they have to flush a loss out of their system."
