Wildcats prepare for league meet Saturday

By Jay Pinsonnault

jpinsonnault@seacoastonline.com

January 29, 2014 2:00 AM

The dual meet season is over and now the fun begins for the York High School wrestling team.

The Wildcats lost their final two matches of the regular season last Saturday, falling to Fryeburg Academy, 42-30, and Dirigo, 48-33, but the team and coach Wally Caldwell are now looking forward to the next three weekends, starting with this Saturday's league meet at Wells High School.

"It's going to be a fun time," Caldwell said. "We're excited."

The eight-team league meet, consisting of York, Madison, Mountain Valley, Lisbon, Dirigo, Wells, Fryeburg Academy and Monmouth Academy is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m.

"Madison has some holes and Monmouth has some holes but they also have a phenomenal kid at 145 who is the real deal," Caldwell said. "Wells has some potential first place kids, Mountain Valley has three of four and we have a couple."

Caldwell believes Cody Spicer (heavyweight), Connor Elsemore (152) and Zach Handley (220) can compete for first place, with Handley being the favorite in his class. Others such as Mark Slusher (182), Josh Smith (145) and John Mackaman (106) could surprise some people.

"Those are kids you want to go see and compete for one of the top three spots, this is what it's all about at the end of the season," Caldwell said. "Maybe you can go ahead and beat someone who beat you earlier in the season. The league tournament is great for these kids and it sets the pace for the weekend afterward."

After Saturday's league meet, next up is the regional meet on Saturday, Feb. 8 at Winslow, and then the state meet on Saturday, Feb. 15 at Morse and then for the first time, a New England qualifier on Thursday, Feb. 20.

The top four finishers from each weight class at the state meet, in all three Maine classes, will compete for one of Maine's three spots (in each weight division) to send to the New England championships.

Mackaman, Smith, Handley and Spicer won both of their matches at Saturday's final dual meet of the season. York finished its dual meet season with a record of 19-7.

"That is close to where I thought we would be," Caldwell said. "We didn't fill some weight classes, but the kids who were there did well."

Quad wrestling meet unfolds at Biddeford HS

By Adam Birt

The Biddeford Tigers, along with the Thornton Academy independents who wrestle alongside them, hosted their counterparts from Sanford, Deering/Cheverus and Windham last Saturday morning, and nearly every possible pairing of athletes played out.

Biddeford/TA beat Deering/Cheverus, 60-24; Sanford 50-26 and Windham 71-16. Sanford beat Windham 54-23. And Windham beat Deering/Cheverus 48-23.

Windham head coach Jason Dryburgh expressed satisfaction with his team’s performance.

“[It’s going] pretty good,” he said midway through the proceedings. “We’re a little undermanned; we lost our heavyweights, dealing with injuries and sickness. So we’re trying to get through that little bump, hopefully getting ready for regionals.”

Being undermanned means Windham forfeited quite a few matchups, putting them in a points-wise hole against the bigger, healthier squads. Nevertheless, Dryburgh thinks his winners looked “sharp.”

“You can’t ask for more than that. Even if they took a loss, everybody’s been aggressive and smart on the mat,” he said.

“Our veterans are doing fine,” Sanford head coach Nate Smith said, “and our rookies are struggling.”

Likewise, Smith said the Spartans’ Saturday performance was indicative of their season as a whole.

“We have a couple good freshmen at the lower weights,” Smith added optimistically, “Kyle Sanborn and Travis Dion, but other than that, our rookies are learning – they’re learning.”

Smith also mentioned being down a man, specifically his heavyweight wrestler.

Biddeford’s next competition is another multi-school meet, this one at Scarborough. Bonny Eagle will also be there; athletes hit the mats at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Feb. 1. Windham hosts Kennebunk and Westbrook, also on the 1st, but at 9 o’clock. Sanford hosts Noble and Portland, again on Feb. 1 at 10 a.m.

Match Results:

Biddeford/TA (60) vs. Deering/Cheverus (24):

120 lbs – Brian Livermore (Biddeford) decision over Aidan Whitis (Cheverus), 6-2.

126 lbs – Will Livermore (Biddeford) pinned Mort Soule (Deering) in 4:50.

138 lbs – Dominick Day (Biddeford) pinned Mike Macaluso (Cheverus) in 3:11.

138 lbs – Sam Legere (Thornton) decision over Mike Macaluso (Cheverus), 10-6.

152 lbs – Myles Villarreal (Biddeford) pinned Ben Jones (Deering) in :26.

170 lbs – Nickolay Todorov (Deering) pinned Matt Gagne (Biddeford) in 5:18.

170 lbs – Cody Falton (Thornton) decision over Nickolay Todorov (Deering), 8-5.

182 lbs – Matt Krusiec (Deering) pinned Shane Welch (Biddeford) in 3:29.

182 lbs – Robert Runnells (Thornton) decision over Matt Krusiec (Deering), 11-3.

220 lbs – Shawn Darling (Deering) pinned Brian Daviage (Biddeford) in 3:04.

285 lbs – Mike Darling (Deering) pinned Austin Burnham (Biddeford) in 4:54.

Biddeford/TA (50) vs. Sanford (26):

113 lbs – Travis Dion (Sanford) pinned Brandon Avery (Biddeford) in 3:08.

120 lbs – Kyle Sanbord (Sanford) decision over Dwayne Dyer (Biddeford), 6-2.

126 lbs – Will Livermore (Biddeford) pinned Pedro Gil (Sanford) in 1:00.

132 lbs – Jake Gagne (Biddeford) decision over Milton McCabe (Sanford), 9-0.

138 lbs – Dominick Day (Biddeford) pinned Dennis King (Sanford) in 2:27.

138 lbs – Sam Legere (Thornton) pinned Colby McNutt (Sanford) in 1:44.

145 lbs – Myles Villarreal (Biddeford) pinned Ed Hall (Sanford) in :52.

145 lbs – Ed Hall (Sanford) pinned William Wilson (Thornton) in 5:42.

152 lbs – Chase Eldredge (Sanford) pinned Hunter Strom (Biddeford) in :20.

160 lbs – Trey Burnham (Biddeford) decision over Seth Sprague (Sanford), 13-4.

170 lbs – Chris Lantagne (Biddeford) pinned Harley Rich (Sanford) in 2:57.

170 lbs – Cody Falton (Thornton) pinned Monica Trausch (Sanford) in 2:42.

182 lbs – Justin Roberge (Sanford) pinned Shane Welch (Biddeford) in 1:01.

195 lbs – Nick Ackerman (Biddeford) pinned Mike Hurst (Sanford) in :48.

220 lbs – Andrew Moriarty (Sanaford) pinned Brian Daviage (Biddeford) in :44.

285 lbs – Austin Burnham (Biddeford) pinned Steve Genereux (Sanford) in 1:56.

Biddeford/TA (71) vs. Windham (12):

106 lbs – Samantha Frank (Windham) defeated Kasey Hall (Biddeford) due to injury.

120 lbs – Brian Livermore (Biddeford) decision over Sean Butterworth (Windham), 18-3.

126 lbs – Jesse Malier (Windham) pinned Will Livermore (Biddeford) in 3:39.

132 lbs – Jake Gagne (Biddeford) pinned Ethan Winde (Windham) in 1:48.

138 lbs – Dominick Day (Biddeford) pinned Dom Cancelarich (Windham) in 2:51.

145 lbs – Myles Villarreal (Biddeford) pinned Dalton McClure (Windham) in 1:37.

152 lbs – Hunter Strom (Biddeford) pinned Becky Cassidy (Windham) in 1:04.

170 lbs – Trey Burnham (Biddeford) pinned Colby Valliere (Windham) in 1:30

220 lbs – Nick Ackerman (Biddeford) pinned Pat Leavitt (Windham) in :49.

Sanford vs. Deering/Cheverus:

120 lbs – Aidan Whitis (Cheverus) technical fall over Travis Dion (Sanford), 17-2.

126 lbs – Mort Soule (Deering) pinned Pedro Gil (Sanford) in 3:23.

138 lbs – Mike Macaluso (Cheverus) pinned Colby McNutt in :27.

152 lbs – Chase Eldredge (Sanford) pinned Ben Jones (Deering) in :11.

170 lbs – Nickolay Todorov (Deering) pinned Harley Rich (Sanford) in 3:28.

182 lbs – Justin Roberge (Sanford) decision over Matt Krusiec (Deering), 6-4.

220 lbs – Andrew Moriarty (Sanford) pinned Jesus Molina-Mendez (Deering) in 3:21.

285 lbs – Mike Darling (Deering) pinned Steve Genereux (Sanford) in 2:25.

Sanford (54) vs. Windham (23):

120 lbs – Kyle Sanborn (Sanford) pinned Sean Butterworth (Windham) in 1:48.

126 lbs – Jesse Malier (Windham) pinned Pedro Gil (Sanford) in :45.

152 lbs – Chase Eldredge (Sanford) pinned Becky Cassidy (Windham) in :58.

170 lbs – Harley Rich (Sanford) pinned Colby Valliere (Windham) in 4:59.

220 lbs – Andrew Moriarty (Sanford) pinned Patrick Leavitt (Windham) in 1:25.

Windham (48) vs. Deering/Cheverus (23):

120 lbs – Aidan Whitis (Cheverus) pinned Sean Butterworth (Windham) in 1:19.

126 lbs – Jesse Malier (Windham) pinned Mort Soule (Deering) in 2:20.

138 lbs – Mike Macaluso (Cheverus) pinned Brad Randall (Windham) in 3:38.

152 lbs – Ben Jones (Deering) pinned Becky Cassidy (Windham) in 2:25.

170 lbs – Nickolay Todorov (Deering) decision over Colby Valliere (Windham), 13-1.

220 lbs – Patrick Leavitt (Windham) pinned Jesus Molina-Mendez (Deering) in 1:59.

Medomak Wrestlers

By Paula Roberts Medomak Valley wrestlers hosted a six-team meet on Jan. 20. The Panthers lost three matches against Mt. Blue 45-36, Erskine 31-30 in a tie-breaker, and Skowhegan 69-6. Rayanne Leach won by forfeit, was pinned by Cameron Cross (EA) in 2:59, and lost by pin to Cody Craig (SK) in 50 seconds. 120 Cole Ashmore won by forfeit, pinned Isaac Taylor (EA) in 1:09, and lost by pin to Cooper Holland (S) in 44 seconds. 126 Deagan Poland won by forfeit, was pinned by Justin Studholme (EA) in 1:12, and lost by pin to Ty Craig (S) in 20 seconds. 132 Andrew Cronk won by forfeit, lost by pin to Jacob Church (EA) in 1:58, and was pinned Julian Sirois of (S) in 2:26. 138 Riley McCollett was pinned by Danny Reed (M) in 3:45 and by Luke Bolster (S). Tim Jerome was pinned by Joseph York (EA) in 1:02. 145 Riley McCollett pinned Tyler Wysocki (EA) in 36 seconds. Tim Jerome lost 6-7 to Terry Storer (EA), and was pinned by Kam Doucette (S) in 3:03. 152 Quinn Ashmore picked up two wins by forfeit and lost by pin to Kaleb Brown of (S) in 2:51. 160 Samantha Fowles was pinned by Nick Hickey (M) in 1:03, pinned by Zachary Isbell (EA) in 30 seconds, and was pinned by Logan Steves (S) in 20 seconds. 170 Cyril Miller pinned Tyler Azevedo (EA) in 2:50. 182 Cyril Miller pinned Adam Mealey (M) in 44 seconds to break Stephen Genthner's win record (118). Miller lost an 11-5 decision to Mikal Federici (S). 220 Owen Gilbert won two matches by forfeit and lost by injury default to Josh Winters (M).

Huskies Place Ninth at New England Wrestling Association Duals (NEWA)

Huskies' freshman Daniel Del Gallo posted a 3-0 record and earned All-Tourney Honors.

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. –  

Freshman Daniel Del Gallo (Gardiner, Maine) earned a spot on the New England Wrestling Association (NEWA) Duals All-Tournament team to highlight a strong performance by the University of Southern Maine Huskies at the 2014 NEWA Duals Sunday afternoon at the Adrian Tinsley Center.

            The Huskies finished ninth posting a 2-1 record with an opening loss to Wesleyan 33-18 followed by wins over Trinity 39-3 and nail-biting 22-21 victory over Norwich University to improve to 12-4 on the season in dual meets.

            Del Gallo finished the day with a 3-0 record posting two victories over regionally-ranked opponents to earn his spot on the all-tourney team. In the 33-18 loss to Wesleyan, Del Gallo scored the Huskies' first three points of the match earning a 5-1 decision over Chris Siracusa. In the Huskies' dominating win over Trinity, Del Gallo wrestled his way to an 8-0 decision over John Williams, before closing out the day with a 9-1 decision over Norwich's Evan Poole. With the three wins, Del Gallo improves to 12-5 overall. 

            Junior captain Sean Fagan (Arlington, Mass.) also posted a 3-0 day for the Huskies' earning a 4-2 decision over Wesleyan's Josh Roometua, a 5-3 decision over Trinity's Petros Hologitas and a powerful 20-4 technical fall (6:59) over Norwich's Jacob Towse to secure the Huskies' win over the Cadets.  With his three wins, Fagan crested the 20-win mark and is now 20-4 this season, including four wins by technical fall.

            Huskies senior captain Jonathan Deupree (Ozona, Fla./Countryside) also earned three victories.  After a win by forfeit in the Wesleyan match, Deupree downed Trinity's Kyle Lundberg by major decision 13-1 and then had a 13-3 major decision win over Norwich's Nicholas Smith.  Deupree also crested the 20-win plateau improving his overall record to 21-3.

            Southern Maine hosts Plymouth State and WPI on Saturday (11:30 a.m.) in its final home contests of the season.  

Results

Match One:  No. 7 Wesleyan 33, No. 10 Southern Maine 18

Match Two: No. 10 Southern Maine 39, No. 14 Trinity 3 

Match Three: No. 10 Southern Maine 22, No. 9 Norwich 21

Wesleyan 33, Southern Maine 18

Wt.	Result	Score/Time	Running Score
125	James Hamilton (Wes) dec. Khalil Newbill (USM)	8-7	3-0
133	Frank Crippen (Wes) pinned Vincent Bonina (USM)	6:37	9-0
141	Matthew Pelton (Wes) pinned Paul Rivard (USM)	2:01	15-0
149	Daniel Del Gallo (USM) dec, Chris Siracusa (Wes)	5-1	15-3
157	Edward Pierce (Wes) pinned Richard Chipman (USM)	1:24	21-3
165	Alex Cannon (Wes) pinned Robert Drover (USM)	5:30	27-3
174	Ryan Sblendorio (Wes) pinned Jack Hauprich (USM)	1:45	33-3
184	Jonathan Deupree (USM) won by forfeit	----	33-9
197	Sean Fagan (USM) dec. Josh Roometua (Wes)	4-2	33-12
285	Dan Suarez (USM) won by forfeit	----	33-18

Southern Maine 39, Trinity 3

Wt.	Result	Score/Time	Running Score
125	Khalil Newbill (USM) won by forfeit	-----	6-0
133	Vincent Bonina (USM) won by forfeit	----	12-0
141	Scott Gonzalez (TRI) dec. Kevin Moore (USM)	9-5	12-3
149	Carl Luth (USM) dec. Jeremy Rees (TRI)	9-2	15-3
157	Daniel Del Gallo (USM) dec. John Williams (TRI)	8-0	18-3
165	Caleb Hall (USM) major dec. Andrew McCahill (TRI)	13-4	22-3
174	Jack Hauprich (USM) pinned Michael Ragazzi  (TRI)	1:30	28-3
184	Jonathan Deupree (USM) major dec. Kyle Lundberg (TRI)	13-1	32-3
197	Sean Fagan (USM) dec. Petros Hologitas (TRI)	5-3	36-3
285	Dan Suarez (USM) dec. Kyle McGuire (TRI)	4-2	39-3

Southern Maine 22, Norwich 21

Wt.	Result	Score/Time	Running Score
125	Khalil Newbill (USM) won by forfeit	-----	6-0
133	Alexander Steward (Nor) major dec. Vincent Bonina (USM)	18-4	6-4
141	James Duncan (Nor) dec. Paul Rivard (USM)	7-1	6-7
149	Carl Luth (USM) dec. Kyle Brouillette (Nor)	9-3	9-7
157	Daniel DelGallo (USM) dec. Evan Poole (Nor)	9-1	13-7
165	David Pinto (Nor) pinned Caleb Hall (USM)	1:57	13-13
174	William Burns (Nor) technical fall Robert Drover (USM)	19-4 (4:51)	13-18
184	Jonathan Deupree (USM) major dec. Nicholas Smith (Nor)	13-3	17-18
197	Sean Fagan (USM) technical fall Jacob Towse (Nor)	20-4 (6:59)	22-18
285	Anthony Joyce (Nor) dec. Dan Suarez (USM)	5-2	22-21

Local wrestlers shine at Southern Maine Classic

By Adam Birt

The Southern Maine Classic wrestling tournament unfolded at Westbrook High School Saturday. The earliest matches kicked off around 9 a.m., and with approximately a dozen schools represented (some schools without wrestling teams of their own send athletes to train and compete alongside those of welcoming neighbor schools), the finals didn’t take place until late in the day.

Bonny Eagle head coach Greg Gonyea reported, midway through the tournament, that his squad was doing well. “We have a young team,” he said, “but we’re doing good.”

For the various teams, the SMC gives them a chance to measure their 2013-2014 progress against the collected talent of many of their rivals. “We look at it as an about-halfway-through-the-season tournament,” Gonyea said. “See how we improve from the beginning to this part, see what we have to do to finish the season.”

But, as Steve Vermette, Biddeford head coach, pointed out, a number of the schools’ “A” teams were competing elsewhere, meaning it was difficult for those in attendance to know exactly where they stood. Furthermore, team sizes are a bit lower this year than in the past.

“This will be competition,” Vermette said, “but teams are down this year, numbers-wise, filling the weight classes. But the lighter weights are tough here today.”

In the 106-pound weight bracket: Kidayer Aljubyly of Portland took first, Matt Caverly of Marshwood second, Samantha Frank of Windham third and Justin Goodwin (Massabesic) fourth.

At 113 pounds, Austin Shorey (Noble) took first, Jake Martel (Noble) second, Jaime Lones-Martinez (Portland) third and Jason Gill (Sanford) fourth.

At 120, William Gagner and Joe Langley (both Noble) placed first and second, respectively; Travis Dion (Sanford) third, and Jake Turner (Bonny Eagle) fourth.

At 126, Josh Grenier (Noble) was first, Max Storm (Westbrook) second, Jesse Malier (Windham) third, and Will Livermore (Biddeford) fourth.

At 132, Jake Gagne (Biddeford) first, Jonathan Stacy (Marshwood) second, Brandon Huntington (Windham) third, Zane Townsend fourth.

At 138, Dominick Day (Biddeford) first, Dominic Cancelarich (Windham) second, Cole Hallee (Kennebunk) third, Devin Bourque (Noble) fourth.

At 145, Otto Keisker (Noble) first, Owen Foye (Marshwood) second, Brandon Conley (Westbrook) third, Zach Kellett (Kennebunk) fourth.

At 152, Isaac Smith (Marshwood) first, Clautel Buba (Portland) second, Chris Ziadeh (Noble) third, Kyle Hanson (Westbrook) fourth.

At 160, Joseph Grenier (Noble) first, Greg Casella (Portland) second, Chase Eldredge (Sanford) third, Zach McGrath (Massabesic) fourth.

At 170, Robbie Martin (Bonny Eagle) first, Trevor Walton (Massabesic) second, Abraham Eaton (Gorham) third, Hunter Smith (Noble) fourth.

At 182: Justin Roberge (Sanford) first, Zac Schluntz (Noble) second, Robert Runnells (Thornton) third, Hunter Broadway (Bonny Eagle) fourth.

At 195: Robert Worell (Noble) first, Brandon Lajoie (Westbrook) second, Connor Donaher (Kennebunk) third, Russ Barlow (Bonny Eagle) fourth.

At 220: Andrew Moriarty (Sanford) first, Cory Walker (Westbrook) second, Jacob Zenga (Noble) third, Pat Leavitt (Windham) fourth.

At 285: Jed Scott (Sanford) first, Austin Burnham (Biddeford) second, Jordan Drain (Massabesic) third, Kenney Davis (Kennebunk) fourth.

Those individual results add up to put Noble A in first as a team (with 204 points), followed by Sanford A (107) in second, Westbrook (91) in third, Marshwood A (83) in fourth, Biddeford A (74.5) in fifth, Portland (74) in sixth, Windham A (67) in seventh, Bonny Eagle (63) in eighth, Massabesic (53) in ninth, Kennebunk A (45) in 10th, Noble B (34) in 11th, Thornton (16) in 12th, Gorham (13) in 13th, Windham B (11) in 14th, Sanford B in 15th, and Scarborough B in 16th.

Newbill adjust to college wrestling at USM

Mt. Blue graduate enjoys success as a freshman.

By Travis Lazarczyk tlazarczyk@centralmaine.com
Staff Writer

Khalil Newbill doesn’t get nervous before a wrestling match anymore. In high school, Newbill would get stomach knots before every match. Even at the beginning of this season, Newbill’s first at the University of Southern Maine, he’d get butterflies.

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Contributed photo QUICK ADJUSTMENT: Mt. Blue High School graduate Khalil Newbill is of to a fast start for the University of Southern Maine wrestling team. Newbill is 19-4 as a freshman.

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TEST - NO TITLE

• School: University of Southern Maine

• Sport: Wrestling

• Record: 19-4

• High School: Mt. Blue

• Hometown: Wilton

Now, before he takes the mat, Newbill is calm. Every match is a chance to improve.

“There’s no pressure. I’m a freshman. I can go out and wrestle and learn. I can make mistakes,” Newbill said.

A four-time regional champion while wrestling at Mt. Blue High School, Newbill is enjoying a strong debut season with the Huskies. Wrestling at 125 pounds, Newbill is 19-4, and will compete with USM at Bridgewater State in Massachusetts on Sunday.

USM wrestling coach Joe Pistone met Newbill when the wrestler was in eighth grade, and has worked with him at summer camps and clinics since.

“(Newbill) has an outstanding collegiate style,” Pistone said. “He had a demanding and dominant high school style. We knew we could teach him the game of college wrestling.”

Many talented high school wrestlers can win by simply overpowering their opponents. This season, Newbill is learning technique is just as important as strength.

“A lot of it was just being in better position, being able to wrestle in any position, and being receptive to coaching,” Pistone said.

Newbill won his first collegiate match with a pin of West Virginia Tech’s Devon Steele at 1:47. It was earlier this month, at the Williams College Invitational, where he placed third against strong competition, when Newbill felt like he was getting the hang of college wrestling.

“I was really nervous at first. I didn’t know how competing in Maine would be versus the rest of the country,” Newbill said. “It takes a lot of dedication, that’s for sure.”

Pistone sees Newbill’s strong start as a sign of good things to come.

“We see him in his career becoming an All-American and possible a national champion, and I don’t say that lightly,” Pistone said.

Newbill is just as focused on his academics, and was disappointed to just miss all-academic status last semester. An athlete needs a 3.2 grade point average to qualify. Newbill earned a 3.197.

“I’m here for academics,” Newbill said. “Wrestling is nice, but it’s academics first.”

The Huskies have five regular season meets left. The North Atlantic wrestling championships will be at the University of New Hampshire on Feb. 15, with the NCAA regional championships set for March 1-2.

“I want to do as good as I can, go to regionals, and hopefully there I can place in the top five,” Newbill said.

Travis Lazarczyk — 861-9242tlazarczyk@centralmaine.comTwitter: @TLazarczykMTM