Vasilios Dimou sparks East Islip wrestling to win over Comsewogue
East Islip's Vasilios Dimou defeats Comsewogue's Jace Mas in the 160-pound weight class during a Suffolk wrestling match on Friday at East Islip. Credit: Bob Sorensen
As quickly as East Islip’s wrestling team felt the momentum slip away, Vasilios Dimou got it back.
East Islip opened an early lead in its Suffolk League V dual meet against Comsewogue, but when Logan Alfalla had to forfeit his match due to a shoulder injury, it took the air out of East Islip’s gymnasium and opened the door for Comsewogue to come back.
Dimou shut it in a hurry.
The junior pinned Jace Mas in 4:22 at 160 pounds and put East Islip on a roll to a 51-10 win, which clinched East Islip’s second straight Suffolk V dual meet title on Friday.
Dimou picked up a takedown and three nearfall points early in the first period to get the energy back on his bench. He took a 9-0 lead into the third period before securing the pin.
“When I saw Vasilios’ face when he went to go out there I had to stop him because he was a little shook,” East Islip coach Mike Longobardi said. “He sort of flipped a switch and he has been getting better every match. For him to step in there proved a lot.”
Alfalla is Dimou’s partner in practice and the two grew up doing jiu-jitsu together.
“Seeing my best friend get hurt, it wasn’t pretty,” Dimou said. “I knew I had to step up and get six points for us. It was obviously a sad moment, but I wrestled with the same feeling we had in the room before the injury.”
His pin gave East Islip a 21-10 lead. Comsewogue (2-2, 7-7) didn’t win a match the rest of the meet.
Christopher Coleman followed with a pin of Irving Cruz in 30 seconds at 170 pounds and Christian Horeis pinned Berkay Ciftcikal in 1:39 at 190 pounds.
Nick Groneman, who typically wrestles at 190 pounds, faced one of the strongest Suffolk wrestlers at 215 pounds in Brandon Bermingham. The weight difference didn't faze Groneman one bit.
“It’s all about mentality. If you think you’re going to lose, then you already lost the match,” Groneman said. “I went out there and battled hard. That’s what we’re all built to do.”
He took a 2-1 lead into the third period and earned a reversal and a takedown to seal a 6-3 decision, giving East Islip a 36-10 lead and clinching the victory.
It’s East Islip’s third league title in the last four years and 13th overall. East Islip (4-0, 9-4) won its first county title last season and reached the state semifinals.
“We have a solid wrestler at every weight class,” Longobardi said. “I don’t think we have the depth that we did last year, which was a special year for us. But everyone knows what they’re doing and once we get our lineup together, we’ll be tough to beat.”
