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02/22/2020 11:00 PMFresh off a second-place finish at the Southern Connecticut Conference Championship, the East Haven wrestling team stepped into the arena at the Class M State Championship last weekend. The Yellowjackets turned in another stellar showing by taking fifth place at states, led by first-place finishes from seniors Alec DiVito and Tanner DiVito, along with five other top-six performances.
The Easties scored 145 points in the Class M meet and were one of just three teams to have multiple first-place champions among the 25 schools that competed. The fifth-place finish was the best in program history.
“It was a record season for us,” Head Coach Mark Tolla said. “Our goal is to always win. We didn’t reach that, but we’re very happy with where we ended up.”
After coming in second at the SCC meet, senior Alec DiVito took first place in the 132-pound division at the Class M State Championship, which was held at Guilford High School on Feb. 21 and 22. DiVito defeated Platt’s James Rondini via a 3-2 decision in the final to claim the state crown.
DiVito’s run to the title started with a 16-7 major decision victory against Notre-Dame West Haven’s Kevin Sevigny in a round-of-16 matchup. In the quarterfinals, he beat Brookfield’s Richard Stabile on an 11-5 decision.
Heading into the semifinals, DiVito was set to take on Foran’s Kyle Pokornowski, who had defeated him twice earlier in the season. This time around, DiVito won a 7-3 decision against Pokornowski to advance to his championship showdown with Rondini, who he edged out by a point to take the Class M title at 132 pounds.
“Alec had a great tournament. He had a tough road to climb,” said Coach Tolla. “Alec was an underdog and wrestled his heart out. Luckily for us, he was able to escape with a championship. I’m so proud of him and so happy for him. Everything he has done so far prepared him for that moment.”
East Haven’s other championship came from senior Tanner DiVito, who, like Alec, had taken second place at SCCs. At the Class M meet, DiVito grabbed the gold in the 138-pound division by winning an 8-4 decision against Devin Anderson of New Fairfield in the title bout.
DiVito took on Michael MacCracken of Ellis Tech in the round-of-16, pinning him in 2:32. Then in the quarterfinal round, he defeated Cody Malin from Law by a 13-5 decision.
DiVito advanced to the semifinals, where he took down Tristyn-Myles D’Aniello of Platt on a pinfall at the 1:49 mark. DiVito then won the title by defeating Anderson via decision, while also securing the 100th victory of his high school career.
“Tanner built a plan to make this a great season for himself. Everything he did from October to now put him in a position to win the state championship,” Tolla said. “I’m so proud of him. He woke up every morning and worked out. He turned into a great wrestler. He put a chip on his shoulder and won the state championship.”
Junior Matt DiVito took home second place in the 126-pound division at the Class M meet. He had previously finished in second at the SCC Championship.
DiVito won his first matchup by pinning his opponent in 3:08. In the quarterfinals, he notched a pinfall victory at the 2:31 juncture. Taking on Tanish Joshi of Foran in the semifinals, DiVito racked up his third victory via pin, earning the win in 2:32. In the final, DiVito lost a 9-0 major decision against Zachary Johns of Suffield-Windsor Locks.
Junior Dominic Milano, who took first in the 106-pound weight class at SCCs, came away with another medal by placing third in Class M. Milano won his first match by pin in 42 seconds and then pinned his quarterfinal foe at the 1:00 mark. In the semifinals, Milano lost to Daniel Taggart from Suffield-Windsor Locks by a 3-1 decision in overtime. He came back to get a pinfall win in just 14 seconds in the consolation semis and then defeated Aidan Baghdassarian of Avon by 12-2 major decision in the final to take third place.
Junior Tyler Kruse finished fifth in the 285-pound weight class for East Haven. After pinning his first two opponents in 52 seconds and 3:02, respectively, Kruse lost to Luke Fuertsenberg of Platt on a pin at the 5:12 mark in the semifinal round. Kruse lost a 6-3 decision in the consolation semis and then collected his medal with a forfeit victory over Zachary Ralsky of Barlow in the fifth-place bout.
Alec DiVito, Tanner DiVito, Matt DiVito, Milano, and Kruse have advanced to compete at the State Open Championship this weekend. The Open takes place at Floyd Little Athletic Center on Friday, Feb. 28 and Saturday, Feb. 29.
Senior Hugo Ortiz finished sixth in the 145-pound division, while fellow senior Fabricio Bugatti took sixth place at 160 pounds for the Yellowjackets at the Class M State Championship.
Bugatti won an 8-3 decision in his first bout and then lost a 5-0 decision in the quarters. Bugatti started off the consolation bracket by taking a 7-1 decision, then won a 4-2 overtime decision in his next contest. Bugatti lost by pinfall in the consolation semis and then lost a 10-0 majority decision in the fifth-place match to finish in sixth.
Ortiz lost on a pin in his opening contest, but bounced back to win three matches in the consolation bracket. Ortiz won by pin at 2:38, earned an 8-5 decision, and then won an 13-11 decision to reach the consolation semis. Ortiz lost by pin at the 1:51 mark to go to the fifth-place bout, where he took a pinfall defeat in 4:24 to take sixth place.
East Haven saw seven other members of its wrestling team compete at the Class M State Championship. Freshman Christopher Doheny lost via technical fall at the 4:40 mark in the round-of-32 for the 120-pound weight class. Junior Danny Clough took an 8-3 defeat in his 170-pound opener, then lost a 3-1 decision in the consolation rounds.
Sophomore Frank Papa lost a 12-2 majority decision in the 113-pound division and was then edged out by a 5-4 score in the consolation bracket. In the 220-pound weight class, junior Gunner Horton lost his opening match by pin in 59 seconds, then won his first two consolation matches with a pin at 1:28 and a 3-0 decision. Horton lost by pinfall at the 2:03 mark of his next contest.
Senior Jesse Borchert lost his first match of the 182-pound bracket by default at the 2:51 mark. In the consolation rounds, he took a 5-2 defeat in his first contest.
Freshman Noah Franchi lost an 11-9 decision in the round-of-32 for the 152-pound division. In the 195-pound weight class, senior Vincenzo Bunce pinned his first opponent in 55 seconds and then lost a 7-1 decision in the quarterfinal round. Bunce then lost a 17-7 majority decision in the consolation bracket.
Coach Tolla feels proud of the Easties for what they’ve accomplished this season. When the campaign is finished, Tolla knows that his athletes are going to get right back to work to make next year even more special.
“Every year, we have improved. Incrementally, we are getting better,” said Tolla. “To get to the next level, it’s a matter of instilling those values into our players and coaches. My expectation is from now we’ll continue to get better. We have the right staff and the right kids. It just takes time.”