McNeil and Puca Win League Crowns
Nigel McNeil and Louis Puca were crowned League V champions and six other Blue Devil wrestlers finished in the top three to give the Huntington wrestling team eight qualifiers in the Section XI tournament this coming Sunday and Monday.
McNeil, a defending county and state champion, improved to 32-0 with a string of decisive victories en route to the 119 lbs. league title, including a 13-3 major decision in the finals. The senior hasn't lost since he was a tenth grader, a streak that has now reached 71 consecutive matches.
Puca, who was second in the Suffolk and state tournaments last winter, had a more difficult road to the 171 lb. league crown. The senior has his hands full in the finals against Chanse Menendez of Hauppauge, who came into the bout ranked No. 2 in the county.
Puca used several explosive moves to build a 9-4 league before surrendering a late takedown to make the final score, 9-6. "Louis wrestled a good match against a tough kid," said Kieran Mock, Huntington's head coach. "He got pushed in this tournament, which is a good thing."
Huntington's Ken Stropoli (145 lbs.), T.J. Wilson (152 lbs.), Nick Lupi (215 lbs.) and Anthony Puca (285 lbs.) all turned in strong tournaments, advancing to the finals before each of them dropped a decision. Lupi's loss came by a maddeningly close 3-2 score against Kings Park's Warren Bosch, who came into the match ranked No. 2 in Suffolk.
Wilson lost to 11-3 to Islip's Kyle Wade, who is ranked first in the county. Anthony Puca, a talented freshman, lost a 5-1 decision to Kings Park senior Greg Martin, who is ranked second in Suffolk. Stropoli, who earlier won a series of exciting bouts, dropped a 5-0 verdict to Islip's Jacob Freudenberg.
Corey Jamison (112 lbs.) and Duncan Murchison (189 lbs.) won consolation round matches to place third place in their respective weight classes. They join Huntington's six finalists in earning berths to the Section XI tournament this coming Sunday and Monday, February 13-14 at Stony Brook University's Indoor Sports Complex.
Wrestling starts at 10 a.m. on Sunday and continues throughout the day. The semi-finals are slated for Monday at 9:30 a.m. The finals are scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Tickets will be on sale at the gate for $6.
"We're looking forward to the county tournament and we expect to see very good performances by our wrestlers," Mock said. "We'll be ready."
Final League V Team Scores: 1. Kings Park 210.5; 2. Hauppauge 197; 3. Islip 182; 4. Huntington 180; 5. Sayville 150; 6. Eastport-South Manor 149.5; 7. Deer Park 86.5; 8. Harborfields 55.5.