East Islip wrestler Rocco DeStefano collects 150th career win at Gilmore Classic
Rocco DeStefano didn’t know a milestone win was in sight until coach Mike Longobardi walked onto mat with commemorative banner on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. Credit: Michael A. Rupolo Sr.
The tournament couldn’t have played out much better for Rocco DeStefano.
The East Islip senior faced one of the top wrestlers in Suffolk in the 132-pound final of the Rocky Gilmore Classic in his home gym. DeStefano didn’t know it, but the match just so happened to be for his 150th win.
DeStefano defeated Longwood’s Devin Connelly, 19-3, by technical fall in 5:54 for the 132-pound title on Saturday. As the Bloomsburg commit had his hand raised, coach Mike Longobardi gave him a banner to commemorate the milestone.
“I didn’t know I was getting it today,” DeStefano said. “It means a lot to get it here and to do it against a tough kid like Devin.”
Connelly is the top-ranked wrestler in Suffolk Division I at 132 pounds. DeStefano, ranked third in the county, entered the third period with a 13-3 lead. DeStefano shot in on Connelly’s left leg and hooked a cradle for a takedown and three more nearfall points in the final 15 seconds to secure the technical fall. DeStefano was named Most Outstanding Wrestler.
“We go to the same club, so we’re good friends,” DeStefano said of Connelly. “He’s tall, which makes him hard to wrestle. I just got to my attacks. When I get to my stuff, that’s how I win matches.”
DeStefano, who has been on varsity since he was a seventh-grader, placed third in Division I at 101 pounds as a sophomore and took sixth at 116 last year after forfeiting out of the tournament early with an injury.
His legacy at East Islip is already cemented, but a county title would take an already impressive resume to the next level.
“Rocco is not only an unbelievable wrestler, but he’s a hard worker and this year, he’s one of the greatest leaders that I’ve ever seen,” Longobardi said. “He’s making this team jump levels just from his presence in the room. He has something that you can’t teach.”
East Islip took second in the team competition with 315.5 points. Manhasset won the team title with 324 points and Commack took third with 244.5. East Islip had won the Rocky Gilmore team competition each of the last three years, with Manhasset placing second the last two years.
Commack’s Niko Marnika has asserted himself as a top contender in Suffolk at 150 pounds. Marnika defeated East Islip’s Noah Hodge, 15-0, by technical fall in 4:56 in the 150 final.
Marnika is the top-ranked wrestler in Division I at 150 and Hodge is ranked fourth. Marnika was the Suffolk runner-up at 138 pounds last year, losing to eventual state champion Camryn Howard of Bellport.
“I think I can win the state,” Marnika said. “I don’t like to put a ceiling on myself. If I pinpoint being a state champion, it adds pressure. If I just wrestle my hardest and have fun every match, I’ll just keep going up and up, hopefully toward a state championship.”
Reigning Suffolk D-I 116-pound champion and NC State commit Anthony Lagala-Ryan of Longwood picked up three technical falls, including a 17-2 win in 1:53 over Commack’s Elijah Francois in the 126-pound final.
Ryan’s teammate, Michael Grossman, entered the tournament as the No. 9 seed at 144 pounds and bulldozed his way through the bracket. Grossman pinned John Horvath (Mount Sinai) in 5:07 for the 144 title.
“He’s been pinning kids in dual meets nonstop for us,” Ryan said. “He’s going to have a good year if he just keeps doing what he’s doing right now.”
Matt Lindsay is a high school sports reporter who joined Newsday in 2022 after graduating from Stony Brook University.
