Wrestling Review: Hen Hud and Lakeland/Panas

Hen Hud wrestling

Hendrick Hudson’s overall record may have been just 4-14 but it did have plenty of individuals who shined this past winter.

“We had a young team this year and we are looking forward to good things in the future,” Hendrick Hudson eighth-year coach Dennis Wolownik said.

One reason why Wolownik is so confident about the future is junior 152-pounder Phil Siegel. He earned all-section honors with a second-place finish in the Section 1 Division 1 tournament and was named all-league.

“Phil made some big strides this year,” Wolownik said. “If he stays motivated and continues to work hard, he could be my first sectional champion next year.”

Also earning all-league honors were 96-pound freshman Jack Wagner, 103-pound freshman Joe Koch, 125-pound junior Kevin McDermott and 285-pound junior Sean Barry.

“Sean always had a smile on his face, was a hard worker and one of the most improved kids on the team,” Wolownik said.

Wagner helped himself by learning how to be more aggressive and not think as much on the mat. Koch always wanted to wrestle anyone around him, whether they were 10 or 50 pounds above his weight.

McDermott was someone that was a workhorse who was the first one to practice and the last one to leave. He has won 68 matches and Wolownik said that his goal is to get to 100 wins before he graduates.

Also qualifying for the Section 1 Division 1 tournament along with Siegel were Barry, who made the quarterfinals, 119-pound junior Stephen Richardson and 103-pound sophomore Mark Grant.

Richardson got to the sectionals by overcoming an early season injury. The athletic Grant was able to earn a sectional berth by showing a great commitment to the sport of wrestling.

Lakeland/Panas wrestling

After going winless, Lakeland/Panas rebounded this winter, winning five matches to go 5-9 overall and 2-2 in its league.

“Overall, it was a successful season," Lakeland/Panas coach Dan Belfi said. "We hadn’t won a match in a couple of years, two or three years. We showed improvement."

An example of this is when the Rebels wrestled Putnam Valley the second time. Lakeland/Panas lost 50-12 in its season opener, then wrestled the Tigers again the second time and lost by just three, 36-33.

Helping the Rebels to their dramatic improvement were three sectional qualifiers in 103-pound John DiDomenico (freshman), 171-pound Tino DiPaterio (junior) and 215-pound Khajuan Mattocks (senior).

“Khajuan set a good example for the kids who came on board, he worked hard all year," Belfi said. "He was a great guy to have around. Tino had an up and down year. He turned it on late. He had a ton of ability. He came up big at the end of the season with a good divisional tournament and sectionals. John is just a phenomenal freshman. He’s an all-around wrestler. He loves the sport, he works hard every day.”

DiDomenico and 130-pound junior Chris Vazquez were named all-league.

"Chris took a leadership role even though he wasn’t a captain this year," Belfi said. "Kids on the team looked up to him. Overall, he had a very good year and he’ll be even better next year.”

Belfi said that there is still a lot of work for the team to do but is confident that it can build on the improvement that was made this season.

Belfi said that he talked to the team and stressed to it how important it is to make wrestling a 12-month sport. He said that just to show up every November and leave in March isn’t enough to be successful.

"We are not going to get where we want to be unless we put in the time in the offseason also," Belfi said. "I told the guys to sign up for clubs so they can get more experience. Hopefully, they will get that experience and have even a better year next year.”