Shoreham-Wading River's Gavin Mangano captures second straight Eastern States Classic crown
Gavin Mangano of Shoreham-Wading River wrestles in the Eastern States Classic wrestling tournament in Loch Sheldrake, N.Y., on Saturday. Credit: Jorge Marcano
LOCH SHELDRAKE — Last year, Gavin Mangano put himself on the map. Now, the Shoreham-Wading River freshman is looking to take over the map.
Mangano entered the 124-pound bracket of the Eastern States Classic as the top seed and he wrestled like one all weekend. He defeated Northport senior and second-seeded Matt Marlow via 7-3 decision to capture his second straight Eastern States title Saturday at Sullivan County Community College.
As the final buzzer sounded, Mangano let out an echoing roar.
“It was so important for me to win this tournament,” Mangano said. “There’s no other feeling like winning this tournament. Especially becoming a two-time Eastern States champion, and I’m only a freshman. It’s an unreal feeling.”
The two-day event is regarded as one of the most prestigious wrestling tournaments in the Northeast, as it includes wrestlers from seven states. Mangano was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Wrestler.
It was the second meeting between Mangano and Marlow this season. On Dec. 16, Mangano defeated Marlow, a two-time state champion and last year’s Eastern States champion at 118 pounds, via a 4-3 decision.
As an eighth-grader, Mangano took home the Eastern States title at 110 pounds and was a Division II state runner-up.
“I’ve got to turn it up this year. I have to win a state title soon,” said Mangano, who has a 33-1 record this season.
Meanwhile, Dunia Sibomana-Rodriguez is on a mission to avenge his loss in last year’s state semifinals. The Long Beach sophomore faced the reigning Division I 102-pound state champion in Newburgh’s Cooper Merli in the 108-pound final on Saturday.
In his first appearance at the tournament, Sibomana-Rodriguez (26-2 this season) took a 6-2 lead into the third period and earned a 9-2 decision to win the title.
“Beating the reigning state champ helps me see where I’m at right now and where I’m going to be at when we get to the state tournament,” said Sibomana-Rodriguez, who won the Division I state title at 102 pounds as an eighth-grader.
Herricks senior Joe Manfredi is looking to make up for lost time. Manfredi won the Division I state title at 110 pounds as a sophomore, but after taking second place at 126 pounds at last year’s Eastern States Classic, he missed the state tournament with mononucleosis.
“It was hard to accept at first,” Manfredi said. “I took a week off because I couldn’t really do anything, but then I realized that I have another year. It felt so good to win a state title and I want to do it again.”
Manfredi (21-0 this season) took a step towards that goal, defeating Billy Tyler (Brentsville) via an 8-1 decision in the 145-pound final.
Last year, Mount Sinai’s Brayden Fahrbach used this tournament as a springboard toward his first state title. The senior continued his dominance on Saturday and defeated Justin Shay (Iona Prep) via a 5-0 decision at 138 pounds for his seconds straight Eastern States title.
“I lost to [Shay] in the offseason at the Journeymen Tournament,” Fahrbach said. “I felt confident this time. I was wrestling really well the whole tournament, so I felt like I could continue that in the final.”
In the semifinals, Fahrbach defeated Newfane’s Aidan Gillings in a rematch of last year’s Division II state final at 132 pounds. Fahrbach (27-0 this season) won a 9-5 decision, marking the first time all season an opponent scored points on him.
Rocky Point’s Hernandez and Viera Pin Down Girls Titles
Julianna Hernandez and Alexandra Viera dominated the girls bracket, as they combined to wrestle five matches and earn five pins.
At 107 pounds, Hernandez (15-0 this season) pinned Minisink Valley’s Keira Filip in 3:13 in the semifinals and needed only 1:04 to pin Hannah Perro of Noble (Maine) to claim the title.
After placing second in last year’s tournament at 126 pounds, Viera (15-0 this season) took down two Long Island wrestlers on her way to the 120-pound title. The senior pinned Seaford’s Ashley Diaz in 2:54 in the semifinals before pinning Mepham’s Yianna Foufas in 1:35 in the final. She was named the Most Outstanding Wrestler of the girls’ competition.
“All the pain we went through this week to get down to our weights, for both of us to win is a great feeling,” said Hernandez, an eighth-grader in the Newfield School District.
“This tournament compared to last year, seeing it grow and other states coming is amazing,” Viera said. “It wasn’t like that last year. Today was like a ‘wow’ moment.”