Huntington Wrestling Tournament Set for this Saturday
The 40th annual Huntington Holiday Wrestling Tournament is slated for this Saturday (Dec. 12) at Louis D. Giani Gymnasium. The competition will include many of the top teams and wrestlers from around the metropolitan area.
Last year Nigel McNeil pinned all four of his opponents in the 112 lb. weight class to help the Blue Devil’s finish third in a field of nine teams. McNeil decked his foes in 0:46, 0:20, 1:26 and 0:58 to earn the Jerry Grenier Award for having the most pins in the least amount of time. He was joined in the winner’s circle by teammates Damon McQueen (103 lbs.) and Louis Puca (160 lbs.)
In addition to McNeil, McQueen and Puca, four other Huntington wrestlers advanced to last year’s finals, including Omar Santiago (130 lbs.), Maurice Loadholt (135 lbs.), Anthony Lupi (171 lbs.) and Ryan Fox (189 lbs.). T.J. Wilson (3rd, 140 lbs.) and Luis Mendez (6th, 145 lbs.) also placed for the Blue Devils.
Huntington will be joined by teams from Massapequa, East Islip, Kings Park, Port Jervis, Central Islip, Northport, Center Moriches and Grand Street Campus (NYC).
The top six place finishers in each of fifteen weigh classes will be given awards. The first and second place teams will receive trophies. Awards will also be presented to the most outstanding wrestler (Ray Ferrari Award) and the wrestler with the most pins in the least amount of time (Jerry Grenier Award).
Coaches from the participating schools will meet in private for a seeding meeting on Thursday (Dec. 10) at Huntington High School at 7 p.m. to separate the top wrestlers and set-up brackets for each weight class. Schools are permitted to enter two wrestlers in each of the 15 weight classes, but only one wrestler will score toward the team standings.
The semi-finals are tentatively slated for noon and the finals are expected to start at about 5:30 p.m. An all day admission pass is $5 for adults and $1 for students.
All rounds will be wrestled on four mats except the finals, which will be held on two mats. Mock hopes the format will provide fans with a more exciting experience. There will be no breaks between rounds.
“We’re looking for a good effort from all of our wrestlers,” assistant coach Travis T. Smith said. “We’re working hard and expect everyone to be in good shape. It’s always a tough early season tournament and this year should be no different.”
Food and refreshments will be on sale throughout the day.
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