Michael Ventricelli comes up big as Plainedge wins Division I state wrestling dual meet championship

SYRACUSE – One match-clinching win just wasn’t enough for Michael Ventricelli.

The Plainedge senior came up with big wins to clinch victories for his team in both the semifinals and the title match as the Red Devils won the Division I state dual meet championship in their first ever appearance in the tournament Saturday at SRC Arena at Onondaga Community College.

Sixth-seeded Plainedge defeated No. 4 Minisink Valley,, 40-26, in the championship match. Minisink Valley had won two of the previous three state titles.

It marks the first time a Long Island school has won a dual meet state title since 2019, when Massapequa won the Division I championship and Mount Sinai took home the Division II crown.

In the penultimate bout at 116 pounds, Ventricelli pinned Colin Matone in 2:44 to give Plainedge a 36-26 lead and clinch the title with just one match remaining.

“I really embrace those moments and I feel strong in those moments,” the senior said. “After the semifinals, it felt good and all, but I knew I still had one more match and I still had some business to handle.”

Plainedge trailed 21-12, but the heavyweights pushed their team back into the match. Jayden Camp pinned Timothy Duke in 1:37 at 215 pounds and Vincent Petzold pinned Kevin Crowe-Bailey in 3:48 at 285 pounds to give the Red Devils the lead. Joe Manfre picked up a third straight pin for Plainedge at 101 pounds, taking down Mason Murphy in 43 seconds to take a 30-21 lead.

“Everyone stepped up. We all worked so hard every day, even on Sundays we would be running,” Petzold said. “All the pieces of the puzzle finally came together.”

Plainedge met Minisink Valley on Dec. 16, with the Red Devils suffering a 39-25 loss.

“Minisink Valley is a great program. I’m just happy to see the improvement throughout the season,” Plainedge coach Rob Shaver said. “Guys who won by one point that time won by five this time. Devin Downes won by three last time and he won by 14 today. We really separated from where we were.”

In another rematch, Plainedge (24-2) captured a riveting 30-29 win over Wantagh in the semifinals.

With the Red Devils trailing by two points, Ventricelli defeated Darren Santucci via 6-0 decision in the final match at 116 pounds to give Plainedge the win.

Ventricelli was in control the entire match, scoring a takedown in the first period and a reversal in the second period.

Plainedge led 27-18, but Wantagh won the next two matches. Cole Blaney pinned Manfre in 5:45 at 101 pounds and Jonathan Cutrone won via 15-0 technical fall over Nicholas Gerbasi at 108 pounds.

“That technical fall was really important. If he got pinned, we would’ve been down three instead of two,” Shaver said. “We were comfortable having Michael in a situation where a decision gave us the win.”

It was the fourth meeting between the two Nassau powerhouses this year. Plainedge has won three of those matchups, but Wantagh (24-3) took a 31-28 win over the Red Devils a week ago for its third straight Nassau Division I championship.

“We usually wrestle them twice a year because they’re in our league and they’re usually in the Clarke tournament,” Wantagh coach Paul Gillespie said. “It goes back and forth, but their program has gotten a lot better. We have a ton of respect for them.”

This year marked Wantagh’s fourth appearance in the state tournament and its second straight trip to the semifinals. Wantagh was the Division I champion in 2018 and the runner-up in 2022.

Both Plainedge and Wantagh cruised through the qualifying rounds to advance to the semifinals.

In Division II, Clarke (11-6) won its first match against Sleepy Hollow, 43-30, but was eliminated with a 42-27 loss to Central Valley. Island Trees (17-8) was defeated by Cobleskill-Richmondville, 39-30 before being eliminated with a 78-0 loss to eventual champion Tioga.

Both teams were making their first appearance in the tournament.

“It’s always great seeing better competition,” Clarke junior Justin Gonzalez said. “At some point in your career, you get used to the people that are around you. But when you come here, everyone does something different. It’s like building your own style and that’s what I and the rest of my team enjoys.”

“To win, you have to learn to win. You have to see what it looks like,” Island Trees coach Damian Garcia added. “We have a lot of underclassmen on the team, so hopefully they’ll want to get back up here and they’ll be better prepared for a tournament like this.”