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Sports

East Wrestling Trounces Ward Melville, Mark Florian Makes Return to Mat

Arrows win fourth straight in decisive fashion.

Notwithstanding a few minor bumps in the road, Sachem East took command of the mats Tuesday night breezing to a substantial 53-15 conquest at Ward Melville.

East fell into a 12-0 hole after two straight pins to Pierce Curran and Nick Picchinnini, who is ranked No. 1 in the 96-pound weight class. However, overcoming adversity has been the Arrows moniker all season long as they went on to win all but one of the remaining 13 matches.

Mark Florian made a prosperous return in his first match since breaking his leg in November in East’s second practice of the season. The resilient senior won a closely-contested 4-2 match against Doug Donnelly, providing his team their first win of the night.

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“He really provided a great lift for us,” said Arrows head coach Sean O'Hara. “That’s always a tough hump to get over. He’d been working so hard during his recovery. He’s a very talented wrestler and we’re really happy to get him back.”

The win got the ball rolling for East as they proceeded to earn the next three decisions, including an emphatic victory for Conor O’Hara. Tyler Monsees’ 5-2 decision over Rob Krauss gave East a 14-12 overall lead.

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The Patriots (2-3, 8-3) briefly regained a one-point lead after Taesung Kim’s 7-3 defeat of Jackson Mordente. The lead however was short-lived as Billy Merone’s one-sided 17-4 win over John Greco would prove to be symbolic of the remainder of the meet. The Arrows (4-1, 9-4) won the final eight contests to extend their winning streak to four.

“Going in we felt like we had a pretty good lineup put together,” said O’Hara. “To beat a very good team by that kind of score really means that we performed and executed very well, so I’m pretty pleased up and down the line. Key matchups for us were 119 and 125. We beat two of their better guys.”

East had recently bumped up Anthony Messina to the 125-pound weight class. The move proved to be beneficial as he earned a major decision against Anthony Picchinnini, who began the season with a 7-1 record. East remains in second place in League I, trailing only undefeated Longwood. East meets Longwood on Friday as Ward Meville (2-3, 8-3) will host William Floyd.

Weight
Winner by Loser Score Team Score 285
Pierce Curran (WM) pinned Josia Rosa 3:33 WM, 6-0 96 Nick Picchinnini (WM) pinned Doug Iadanza 1:12 WM, 12-0 103 Mark Florian (SE) dec.
Doug Donnelly 4-2 WM, 12-3 112 Conor O' Hara (SE) maj. dec. Jackson Hoppey 9-1 WM, 12-7 119 Tyler Monsees (SE) dec.
Rob Krauss 5-2 WM, 12-10 125 Anthony Messina (SE) maj. dec. Anthony Picchinnini 13-5 SE, 14-12 130 Taesung Kim (WM) dec. Jackson Mordente 7-3 WM, 15-14 135 Billy Merone (SE) maj. dec. John Greco 17-4 SE, 18-15
140 Anthony Pistone (SE) pinned
Sam Lefkowitz 1:40 SE, 24-15 145 Sean O'Malley (SE) pinned Anthony Russillilo 2:24 SE, 30-15 152 Mike Rothbaum (SE) maj. dec. Mike Battey 18-6 SE, 34-15 160 Zac Nobre (SE) dec. Brian McKenna 2-1 SE, 37-15 171 Frank Mercante (SE) pinned Chris Bursztyn 1:25 SE, 43-15 189 Steve Casali (SE) maj. dec. Eric Tangen
15-4 SE, 47-15 215 Mike Marchello (SE) won by
forfeit SE, 53-15
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