Sachem Alum O'Malley Places Second at FILA Junior National Championships

Sachem East alum Dan O’Malley, who wrestles at the University of Maryland, placed second at the FILA Junior National Championships last weekend.

O'Malley, a native of Holbrook, strung together three consecutive victories in the 66 kg pound Greco Roman bracket before falling (1-0, 0-2, 3-0) to champion Joseph Locksmith. Picking up national runner-up honors, O'Malley now qualifies for the FILA World Team Trials in May in Franklin, Ind., according to the University of Maryland.

"This weekend was a good event that gave our younger guys a chance to compete at a high level," said Maryland head coach Kerry McCoy, who hails from Long Island and was an outstanding wrestler at Longwood in the 1990s. "I am proud of our guys, especially Danny..."

McCoy, who won a Suffolk County and New York State title at 177 pounds in 1992, and Sachem East coach Sean O'Hara both wrestled in high school at the same time. O'Hara, who wrestled at Sachem, won a county title and finished third in the state at 126 pounds.

The champion in each Olympic weight class in May's team trials will represent the United States at the FILA Junior World Championships in Plaven, Germany in August.

O’Malley graduated from Sachem East in 2009 as the all-time winningest wrestler in program history with 121 career wins, a record his brother Sean broke during the 2010-11 season.

He lettered four times and was a four-time all-league and two-time all-county selection. He was a two-time state champion and three-time all-state selection in Greco Roman.