Cold Spring Harbor's Jackson Polo wins his third Nassau wrestling crown
Cold Spring Harbor's Jackson Polo defeats Clarke's John Bower in the 145 weight class during the Nassau Div. II wrestling championships on Saturday Feb 12, 2022 at Cold Spring Harbor High School. Credit: Bob Sorensen
Jackson Polo already knew what it felt like to win a county title in his home gym and to get the chance to represent his school in the state tournament.
But the Nassau Division II wrestling championship Saturday night at Cold Spring Harbor was extra special for the CSH senior.
Polo pinned John Bower of Clarke in 1:22 in the 145-pound final to capture his third county title and secure a spot in the state tournament in Albany beginning February 25.
He was named the tournament’s most outstanding wrestler for his efforts.
"It was extra special, especially after last year to be back in front of all my family and friends," Polo said. "And competing with so many other great wrestlers it was an honor to be named MOW."
CSH was also locked in a tight race for the team title with Seaford.
"We had three guys left in the finals after my match and we knew we were underdogs in them but needed one to win," Polo said. "And Garrett Geraci came through with a huge win at 215. He’s been working so hard for the team so it was great to see."
Freshman Raymond McNulty picked up CSH’s third county title in the 110-pound division as CSH finished with 272 points and the team championship. Seaford was second with 268 and North Shore was third with 245.5.
"It was a total team effort," Polo said. "We needed everybody in the consolation brackets to get us points too. It was great to see them all get it done for the team."
For Island Trees Ryan Romano and Ryan Mastropaolo it was a long wait for redemption after both finished second in their weight classes at the 2020 county tournament.
"At the beginning of the season it was their mission to not just be able to go back upstate but to win a county title," Island Trees coach Ryan Vinberg said.
And they both left no doubt about who the best wrestler in Nassau D-II was at their respective weights.
Romano secured a technical fall in the second period over Clarke’s Justin Gonzalez at 152-pounds and Mastropaolo won an 8-1 decision over Keegan Gagnon of Cold Spring Harbor to win the title at 172-pounds.
It was Romano’s second county title after winning at 106-pounds as a freshman in 2019 and the first for Mastropaolo.
"These two guys have been wrestling since they were five years old and grew up in the Island Trees youth program," Vinberg said. "And even though they were the favorites to win they still did their homework and studied their opponents so they could get the job done."
Gene Morris joined Newsday's sports department in September 2012 and covers high school sports. He earned a journalism degree from Stony Brook University in 2010.
