Wrestling Review: Rebels Go From Zero to Five Wins

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.

DiPateriohad an up and down year, but came up big at the end of the season with a good divisional tournament and sectionals, his coach said. DiDomenico is a "phenomenal" freshman who is an all-around wrestler, loves the sport and works hard every day, Belfi said. 

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 he is confident his athletes can build on the improvement that was made this season.

The coach said he has talked to the team and stressed to the boys how important it is to make wrestling a 12-month sport. He said showing up every November and leaving in March isn’t enough to be successful in the sport.

"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.”