St. Anthony's tries to make Catholic league history
St. Anthony's Grant Greene concentrates during his 119 lb. match against Peter Detore of Westhampton Beach at the NYS Wrestling tournament in Albany, N.Y. (Feb. 26, 2010) Credit: Photo by Pat Orr Photography.com
Albany- There has never been a Catholic school with a strong chance of winning the Division I team title at the state public school wrestling championships. But after St. Anthony's crowned seven state champions at the Catholic High School championships earlier this month, the Friars feel as if they can make history at this weekend's state tournament at the Times Union Center.
"We have the capability of making it happen," said St. Anthony's Grant Greene. "We thought our guys could come through and score enough points to win a team title."
Greene became only the fourth Catholic wrestler in 28 years to win a public schools state title last year when he captured the 112-pound crown, and he certainly did his part for his team yesterday. He earned a technical fall win at 119 over Canton's Curtis Barney (Section X) and then battled for a hard-fought 12-9 decision over Westhampton's Peter DeTore.
Greene will meet Billy Watterson of John Jay Cross River (Section I) in Saturday morning's semifinal match.
"Our team goal at the start of our season was to be the first Catholic school to win the public schools team title," said St. Anthony's coach Tony Walters. "We believed we had enough qualifiers to make it possible. We were on a mission to win the whole thing."
St. Anthony's lost one of its qualifiers before the tournament started. The Friars caught a bad break when Jimmy Morris, the Catholic League's 112-pound champion, was disqualified from the state championships after he failed to make weight. Morris, who finished third in the state last year at 103 pounds, is only a junior.
"He failed to make weight by .4 pounds," Walters said. "He didn't have a problem all season with his weight. And I guess the week off in between our state tournament and this tournament made it difficult to hold his weight. All of our guys had a role in this tournament. And he really let us down and we're disappointed.
"He's a great kid," Walters continued. "I don't want to beat him up over this - but I want him to get the message and get it right next time."
Morris's absence put a damper on St. Anthony's quest for a title. But Chris Greene, Brienza (103) and Brandon Meisner (160) all reached the semifinals.
"This team has been through a lot and really sticks together," said Walters, who places a pair of wrestling shoes at the side of the mat before every individual bout. The shoes belong to Matt Gonzalez, who died suddenly last spring. Gonzalez, who wrestled at 152 pounds, was diagnosed with leukemia on March 22 and died May 21. His loss devastated his teammates. "We dedicated the season to him," Walters said. "He was a great kid, with all sorts of personality."
The Friars' coaching staff also lost loved ones. Walters' mother-in-law, Marjorie Gibbs, died after a long illness and his assistant coach, Frank Lombardo, lost his mother, Lucille Lombardo, to a blood disorder. Both deaths came last March. "It's been a tough year for us," Walters said. "We haven't had much to celebrate."
