Returning to nationals spurs Pride's Bonanno

Hofstra wrestler Steve Bonanno made the nationals as a freshman, but the 125-pounder became a medical redshirt last season.

"To watch guys place that he had beaten in the past really motivated him,'' coach Tom Shifflet said.

Two injuries and a long period of rehabilitation later, Bonanno is trying to regain his form and return to the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championship, which will be held March 17-19 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia.

"The biggest thing about that freshman year was that I was never at the national tournament before, even to watch it,'' Bonanno said of the championship venue in St. Louis. "When I got there, I was kind of in awe, 17,000 people or so to watch wrestling. It is unreal. It really made a huge impact on me.

"When things got tough last year, that was the thing I had in the back of my mind: 'You've got to push through this. I've got to get back to that tournament.' There is no better feeling than wrestling in front of all those people.''

Bonanno went 1-2 at the nationals in 2009 - not bad for a freshman - but felt a pop in his left knee at the event. "I didn't think anything about it at the time,'' he said.

It later was diagnosed as a torn meniscus and surgery was required. He was sidelined until December 2009.

Then, in his first match back, he suffered a season-ending injury when he dislocated his right elbow. It happened 30 seconds into the first period.

"I kept thinking, 'Pop it back in and tape it up,' '' he said. "I caught reality later when they told me it would be about four months for recovery, which would put me past nationals.

"A redshirt was the obvious choice. If I played baseball or football where I'd have to throw the ball, I would have needed Tommy John surgery. The doctor said it would grow strong enough for what I needed it for. I rehabbed five or six days a week. Even on days when I wasn't going to rehab, I was doing rehab on my own.''

Bonanno has a 14-9 record. "He's had some tough losses,'' Shifflet said. "Along with those, he's had some nice wins. There are still quite a few matches in the regular season for him to pick up more victories. He's a kid that wants to win; he works on things that he needs to work on. He does all the right things.'''

It is all about making the nationals, and Bonanno has his sights set on returning. The sure path is the automatic berth by becoming the CAA champion, but Old Dominion's James Nicholson could be an obstacle. Bonanno lost an 8-3 decision to him last week.

"To be that [CAA] champion, that could give me a better seed at nationals,'' Bonanno said. "Just the confidence boost would be huge and it would help our team out a lot in our rivalry with Old Dominion.''

Shifflet added, "I think Steve deserves to be at the national tournament. He's beaten guys who were in contention to be All-American. Steve is not far off from there. I'm not going to say Steve can't be a top eight wrestler. He certainly can wrestle with any of those guys. He's always been one of the harder workers in this program. I think he could put together a weekend where he could be an All-American . . . If he wrestles a complete match, he could beat anybody.''

Hofstra has several other wrestlers hoping to make the nationals:

Lou Ruggirello (133 pounds): Ranked sixth nationally with a 19-3 record. "Being ranked in the top five [nationally], obviously he is a contender,'' Shifflet said. "He's been there in the past - we haven't gotten him on the podium yet. He's improved his wrestling, improved his strategy. I think he showed more consistency in his wrestling in all areas. I think he's got a better shot this year than he's ever had.''

P.J. Gillispie (165): Ranked 12th at 18-4. "When it comes to mat awareness, when it comes to strategy, P.J. is the best guy on our team,'' Shifflet said. "He lost [last month] to the returning national champ , 2-0. He gave up a point on riding time and gave up one on an escape. That was the match. I think P.J. can put a nice tournament together.''

Ryan Patrovich (174): Ranked 16th at 9-4. "He's beaten some top 10 guys but has been hindered by injuries during his career,'' Shifflet said. "But he's tough, wants to win and will go out there with one leg if he has to.''

Hofstra has not had a national champion since Nick Gallo in 1977. "If we can crown a national champion in Philadelphia, it puts a stamp and shows people that we really have a strong tradition in wrestling,'' Shifflet said. "It would show that we produce All-Americans constantly, which we've done . . . We get guys in the semifinals; we just can't come up with that win - that one win that propels us to the finals and being live on ESPN. It takes you to a new level.''