& Albany County Post - The Altamont Enterprise

The Altamont Enterprise – Thursday, December 20, 2012 35
Dutch team wrestles on
despite vacancies in classes
By Jordan J. Michael
GUILDERLAND –– Despite
forfeiting points during Suburban
Council dual meets because
of five vacant weight classes, the
Guilderland wrestling team is
using its muscle to push through
the season. The Dutch have been
low on numbers over the past
few years.
Guilderland doesn’t have
wrestlers competing at the
195-pound, 220-pound, and
285-pound weight classes, as well
as “a few others,” said varsity
assistant John D’Ambrosio at
practice on Monday.
“The numbers could always
be better,” he said, “but the kids
we do have are all great kids.
They work hard and buy into
“We’re trying to reach the ultimate
goal.”
Guilderland Athletic Director,
Regan Johnson, who coached
the wrestling team from 1996 to
2007, said that, currently, no one
is actively recruiting wrestlers at
the middle school. Johnson said
that the varsity weight classes
were routinely filled when he
was coach.
“Wrestling is a unique sport,
and it’s not for everybody, but it
is for a lot of kids,” said Johnson,
who wrestled with Favro at the
State University of New York
College at Brockport. “We just
need to find the right kids.”
High schools field a lot of team
sports, but wrestling is one versus
one. The pressure falls on the
“I like to pound people down, not let them get up
off the mat. I don’t really have any mercy.”
what we’re coaching. That’s the
important part.”
Don Favro struggled to fill up
the team roster when he took
over the head coaching position
two years ago. This week, Favro
tried to wrap his head around
the concept. Wrestlers still aren’t
coming out.
“I wish I had the answer,” said
Favro of the low numbers. “It’s
a hard sport, so maybe guys are
finding easier things to do? You
go back two years, and it’s the
same problem. Sometimes, it’s
hard getting kids to commit to
wrestling.”
The Dutch also have a few injuries.
Seniors Jessie Futia and
Jeremy Lamb are waiting to get
cleared to return to action.
With an incomplete team,
Suburban Council dual meets
aren’t the focus. The focal point
for the Guilderland wrestlers
are tournaments and sectional
competition. The Dutch have a
wall full of names of sectional
champions in its practice room,
and most of the current wrestlers
aspire to be on it.
“It’s not that we don’t care
about the dual meets, but we
look to see how the kids do, not
the final score,” said D’Ambrosio,
who placed sixth in the state as
a senior at Guilderland in 2006.
individual. Plus, Favro trains his
wrestlers pretty hard.
“It’s me versus you, and that’s
it,” Johnson said. “A lot of kids
don’t like how individual wrestling
is, but a lot do like it.”
Johnson established a youth
wrestling program while he was
coaching at Guilderland. “If kids
are interested in wrestling, then
they should start getting excited
about it at an earlier age,” he
said. “Maybe they played football,
or maybe they didn’t play
any other sports at all,” he said of
those who are wrestling now.
Applying technique
D’Ambrosio told The Enterprise
that anyone could be a
successful wrestler. Guilderland
does not judge.
“It doesn’t matter what body
type, how strong you are, or how
fast you are,” said D’Ambrosio.
“It’s all about being able to apply
technique to your body type,
and anyone can be successful
that way.”
Guilderland coaches like to apply
wrestling moves to everyday
things, D’Ambrosio said. This
helps the wrestlers improve because
they can relate.
A “blast double” is a double-leg
take down, like a football tackle,
when the wrestler actually blasts
through the opponent. A “flare
The Enterprise –– Jordan J. Michael
Feeling fine? Guilderland wrestlers Cody Corradi, top, and Noah
Romand grapple during Monday’s practice at the high school. The
varsity team is short on numbers, forfeiting five weight classes
during every Suburban Council match-up. The Dutch hosted
Bethlehem on Wednesday.
The Enterprise –– Jordan J. Michael
Smush: Junior Josh LoGiudice locks fellow Guilderland wrestler, David Wolanski, under his arm during
practice on Monday. LoGiudice, who wrestles in the 99-pound weight class, placed third at State
Qualifiers last season, and is hoping to make States this year. He’s 13-0 so far this season.
double” is when a wrestler lifts
the opponent up and swings his
legs through the air like a flare. A
“cross wrist” is when the wrestler
takes his opponent’s wrist, moving
the wrist across the body.
“A lot of the names correspond
to how the technique actually
works,” said D’Ambrosio. An “under
hook” means the wrestler has
a hook under his opponent’s arm.
“At this point, we’ve installed
the techniques,” he said. “We’re
closer to fine-tuning them right
now.”
Juniors Josh LoGiudice (99
pounds) and Mike Lainhart
(106 pounds) are both currently
undefeated for the Dutchmen.
LoGiudice placed third at State
Qualifiers last season and Lainhart
was fifth. Lainhart says he
uses whatever techniques are
available.
“I’m really aggressive,” Lainhart
said. “I like to pound people
down, not let them get up off
the mat. I don’t really have any
mercy.”
LoGiudice said that quickness
is his best aspect. “I’m more
quick than powerful,” he said.
“I’m smaller and more agile than
some of the other kids. I’m usually
just trying to reach out and
grab an arm or a leg.”
Even though Guilderland can’t
fill all its weight classes, it still
gets leadership from seniors
Ryan Harris, John Stuto, and
Futia. D’Ambrosio said it’s like
having a bunch of other coaches
in the room.
Favro would like to see more
wrestlers on the team, but he’s
trying to focus on the positives.
Some of the Suburban Council
scores will be tough to swallow.
The Dutch hosted Bethlehem on
Wednesday.
A big motto for Guilderland is
“control what you can control,”
D’Ambrosio said.
“Sometimes, you can’t control
a call in a match or the other
kid you’re wrestling, but you can
control how hard you work and
BEJEWELED
Across
1. Aromatic wood
6. Circulates
11. High degree
14. Entertain
15. Fill a flat again?
16. Always, in verse
17. 1967 Rolling Stones
hit
19. A long time
follower?
20. Dryer materials
21. Flat answers
23. Chest cavity
membrane
26. Goes over again
27. Pound
28. Sauerkraut
alternative
29. Attacked a sub?
30. Attack ad, maybe
32. Articles on a rack
35. A slave, not a wave
37. Came out of a
slump?
39. Icebreaker's ice
breaker?
40. Acclaim
42. Article of faith
44. Bleat
45. Storage spot
47. Large merchant ship
49. More like a bubble
bath
51. Bridge suit
52. Boat holder
53. Unit of the Green
Berets
55. Major east coast rte.
56. Large rattlesnake
61. " ___ it Be" (Beatles'
hit)
62. "Buzz" Aldrin,
really
Weekly Crossword
By Ed Canty (Ed@gfrpuzzles.com)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13
14 15 16
17 18 19
63. Band on the run?
64. "Don't give up!"
65. Flower children?
66. Filibuster
Down
1. Park Avenue, e.g.
2. Australian runner
3. Add a soundtrack
4. Place of refuge
5. Turns in
6. Guitarist's neckline?
7. A lower amount
8. Aged
9. Animal in a pop
song?
10. ___ pencil (bleeding
stopper)
11. 12/7/41 locale
12. "The Science of
Logic" author
20 21 22
23 24 25 26
27 28
29 30 31 32 33 34
35 36 37 38 39
40 41 42 43 44
45 46 47 48
49 50 51
52 53 54
how well you prepare,” concluded
D’Ambrosio. “It’s just like life.
You can’t control the assignment
the teacher assigns or who assigns
it, but you can control how
hard you try.”
55 56 57 58 59 60
61 62 63
64 65 66
13. Cast-off material
18. Makes gun-shy?
22. A fabled person
23. Moon unit?
24. Glove material
25. Oz locale
26. Any "Seinfeld," now
28. Critic, at times
31. Fast finisher?
33. Brown bread?
34. Influences
36. Jiffy
38. Female fowl
41. Certain electron
tubes
43. Like a new tire
46. Bust on
48. Speculate
49. ___ Ste. Marie
50. Family name at Indy
53. At the center
54. Fun units?
57. Total wonderment
58. E-mail letters?
59. CFO, perhaps
60. Ring thing