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04/19/2020 12:00 AMWhen the final horn sounded on the East Haven wrestling team’s 2019-’20 season, the Yellowjackets had put together one of their best campaigns in recent memory. Featuring a mix of talented veterans and burgeoning underclassmen, the Easties saw success in seemingly every weight class on their way to recording several notable victories and some strong performances in their postseason meets. East Haven finished the regular season with a mark of 18-6, followed by a second-place finish at the SCC Championship and a fifth-place finish at the Class M State Championship.
“On sheer numbers, it was the best season East Haven has ever had. We had a lot of solid team wins against quality programs,” Head Coach Mark Tolla said. “Our goal was to win the SCC Tournament, and we came in second. We were happy with that finish, but you always try and get to the top. As far as states, that was the best tournament we have ever had, and we scored 20 more points than we ever had, program wise. At some point, we aspire to win those tournaments, but we continue to grow. The arrow is still pointing up, and we continue to improve, so we are happy about that.”
East Haven scored 146.5 points on its way to placing second at the SCC Championship. The Yellowjackets saw six wrestlers finish in the top three of their respective weight classes, including junior Dominic Milano, who came in first place for the 106-pound division.
“The SCC Tournament was probably the best we have wrestled all year from top to bottom. Even though we had just 11 kids, it was a really satisfying day for us,” said Tolla. “Our whole team brought their A effort, and they wrestled so well. We were ecstatic, and for us to beat Foran and Branford in that tournament was quite an accomplishment for us. It was a special day.”
After SCCs, East Haven moved on to the Class M State Championship, where senior Alec DiVito and Tanner DiVito took first place in the 132- and 138-pound weight classes, respectively. Junior Mat DiVito claimed second place in the 126-pound division, while Milano finished third at 106 pounds.
Junior Tyler Kruse earned fifth place in the 285-pound weight class for the Yellowjackets at states. Seniors Fabricio Bugatti and Hugo Ortiz finished sixth in the 145- and 160-pound divisions respectively, to help East Haven score 145 points and post the program’s all-time best showing with its fifth-place performance.
“The result was fantastic, but going into it, the coaches felt like if we wrestled our best, we would have a chance to finish higher or maybe even win it,” Coach Tolla said. “There was a bit of a disappointment we didn’t wrestle well on Friday night, but on Saturday, in the middle of the day, we wrestled fantastically. At one point, we were in second place right behind Suffield. We wrestled great on Saturday and qualified seven for the State Open. We qualified half of our roster for the Open. I don’t think that has ever been done at East Haven.”
Each of the three DiVito brothers won at least one match at the State Open. Those three, along with Bugatti, served as the Yellowjackets’ captains this season.
“By the end of the year, Fabricio just preserved and worked hard. Every day, if he wasn’t the hardest worker in the room, he was one of the top two or three kids,” Coach Tolla said. “Alec went into the season with a little bit of an X on his back. Going into the year, he had some bumps. Once he turned that corner, he just hit cruise control and became a dominant wrestler.”
“Tanner truly earned his state championship. He’s somebody who was doing workouts before school every day and was physically superior to 99 percent of the guys he wrestled,” Tolla continued. “Mat gave up other sports to dedicate himself to wrestling. From his freshman year, he has grown tremendously.”
Jesse Borchert, Enzo Bunce, and Ortiz were the three other seniors on East Haven’s roster. Borchert finished the year with 20 victories to his name. Coach Tolla praised Bunce for his hard work and perseverance, saying that he can “beat any wrestler on any given day.” Although Ortiz only wrestled for two years, Tolla said that he picked up the sport quickly and became a key contributor for the Easties.
East Haven is slated to return six seniors for next season. Along with Mat DiVito and Milano, the Yellowjackets’ senior class will feature Danny Clough, Tyler Kruse, Gunner Horton, and Richard Pethick.
Coach Tolla credited Clough for coming back from an injury to earn 20 wins and a fourth-place finish in the 170-pound division at SCCs. Kruse held his own in the 285-pound division, and Tolla is expecting him to fare even better next year. Horton, who Tolla calls an excellent technical wrestler, claimed second place in the 220-pound weight class at the SCC Championship this season. Pethick was unable to compete due to injury this year, but Tolla was pleased to see him remain a part of the squad as a strong teammate.
In terms of Milano, Tolla is looking for him to take a big leap as a senior after winning an SCC title during his junior campaign.
“Dom flew a little bit under the radar this season due to the accomplishments of our seniors, but I think he had a phenomenal year. [He was] close to 40 wins and was extremely dominant,” said Tolla. “Dom is one of our two of three most passionate wrestlers. He lives it. This past year, he committed, and his technique became much better. He’s a tough kid, and he likes to be aggressive.”
Tolla is expecting Frank Papa and Dylan Tavarez to step up as juniors next season. Papa recorded 15 wins while competing in the 113-pound weight class this year.
One of the Yellowjackets’ most interesting success stories of the season was sophomore Zayuri Castaneda, who took first place in the 235-pound division at the inaugural Girls’ Wrestling Invitational. Castaneda, who primarily wrestled against boys in JV bouts during the regular season, pinned both of her opponents in order to capture the title at the invitational.
This year marked Tolla’s sixth season as East Haven’s head coach, and he will always remember this particular team for breaking down barriers to reach new heights. Going forward, Tolla wants his wrestlers to follow up this year’s success by pushing even harder in the Yellowjackets’ quest to solidify themselves as one of the most formidable programs in state.
“When people wrestle East Haven, we want them to know that we’re going to give you everything we have for all six minutes,” Tolla said. “We may not always win, but when you walk off the mat, you’re going to know you had to compete to beat us. We want people to respect us. We want people to know that when they compete against us, they better bring their A-game.”