Tyler Conzo helps Smithtown West wrestling bounce Huntington
Tyler Conzo of Smithtown West reacts after his victory by pin at 101 pounds in a Suffolk League IV wrestling meet against host Huntington High School on Friday, Dec. 22, 2023. Credit: James Escher
While you might take note of Tyler Conzo’s size, what’s more notable is his competitive nature.
Before his turn to hit the mat, the Smithtown West eighth-grade wrestler, who stands 4-11 and competes at 101 pounds, can be found with his Beats headphones on, bouncing up and down behind the Bulls’ bench.
“Before the matches, before I even start wrestling, I just throw on my Beats,” Conzo said. “Start pacing back and forth, getting my mind ready, my mindset, and get ready to go on the mat.”
Logan Tynebor’s pin in the penultimate match gave Smithtown West a one-point lead over Huntington, setting up Conzo for closing time in the final match. Conzo pinned fellow eighth-grader Christopher Granito in 54 seconds to clinch a 38-31 road win for Smithtown West in Suffolk IV on Friday.
“I don’t think it’s pressure for [Conzo],” Smithtown West coach Ken Leverich said. “I think he thrives in it. I think he loves it. Tyler’s the type of kid that wrestles all over the country all year-round. So being in those types of moments, if you saw, he had an extra bounce in his step. He clearly demonstrated for me tonight that he’ll rise to those occasions, and he certainly did.”
Smithtown West (8-0, 4-0 League IV) led 23-9 after the first six matches. Colten Ford, Max DeSousa and Peter Graham pinned their opponents at 131, 138 and 145 pounds, respectively. Huntington’s Walter Kusterbeck picked up a pin at 116 pounds.
The Bulls led 23-19 heading into the most anticipated match of the meet at 170 pounds between Smithtown West’s Nick Zins and Huntington’s Christian St. John — two Newsday top 100 selections. In a back-and-forth match with roars coming from both sides of the gym, Zins won via an 8-5 decision after the score was tied at 5-5.
Tyler Conzo of Smithtown West, top, battles Christopher Granito of Huntington at 101 pounds during a Suffolk County League IV wrestling meet at Huntington High School on Friday, Dec. 22, 2023. Credit: James Escher
Huntington (5-2, 2-1) responded, though, recording consecutive pins by Thomas Smith at 190 pounds and Jason Mejia at 215 pounds.
With Smithtown West down 31-26, Tynebor’s pin of Jeffrey Quintanilla in 3:36 at 285 pounds set the stage for Conzo.
“Our heavyweight [Tynebor] doesn’t get a lot of exciting moments,” Leverich said. “ . . . So happy for Logan.”
Smithtown West’s effort came without its captain, Jack DiMaggio, one of its best wrestlers (out with a suspected case of flu).
Leverich likened the team stepping up in DiMaggio’s absence to Giants quarterback Tommy DeVito shining despite being an undrafted rookie third-stringer.
“It’s a great team,” Conzo said. “They’re super-supportive. In the gym we always work hard, keep working and working. Just keep going, grinding.”
Ben Dickson joined Newsday’s high school sports staff in 2023 after graduating from Maryland, where he covered several of the Terrapins' teams.
