Section V Wrestling sectional champions crowned Saturday, SuperSectionals next
Pittsford and Spencerport missed out on winning the Section V Division I Dual Meet Championship two weeks ago.
Both teams made sure there would be a different ending Saturday at the Section V class championships.
Pittsford, Spencerport, Honeoye Falls-Lima, Canisteo-Greenwood and Bolivar-Richburg won sectional titles, celebrating at one of the five sites where team members scored points as they advanced through weight class tournaments.
The wrestlers were also working to earn spots in SuperSectionals, Section V's qualifier for the individual state championships, during the season's last true team event.
Full results: Section V wrestling sectionals
A top-six finish advanced the wrestlers to the stepping-stone events to states, Feb. 12 at SUNY Brockport.
Class A1
Pittsford won the sectional championship in the classification for the largest schools at Webster Thomas.
This is the first time the Panthers have won a sectional team title. Early this season, Pittsford also won the Monroe County league championship for the first time in team history, according to coach Keith Pittinaro.
"A good year," Pittinaro said.
Zach Gerby at 110 pounds, 160-pounder Nick Sanko, the 2021 Democrat and Chronicle All-Greater Rochester Division I Wrestler of the Year and a senior, Nick Smith at 189 and 215-pounder John Santowski won their weight class tournaments, as the Pittsford Panthers scored 222 points.
Fairport, which went on to the Division I or large schools state dual meet tournament after defeating Pittsford on criteria in the sectional final, was second with 188 points.
The Panthers also went to the state dual meet tournament, when they were later awarded a wild card-berth.
"My athletic career, this is probably the biggest year," Sanko said. "When I got to the program in seventh grade, we were the worst team in Section V Class A1 and Class A2.
"It was just a slow progression.”
Class A2
The Spencerport Rangers, with six sectional class champions leading the way at Attica, outscored Churchville-Chili 249.5 to 208.5 to win this team championship.
Cal Russo won at 126 and Dominic Vinci at 145. The Rangers dominated the upper weights from 172 and up, as Jake Scherbyn, Joe Marcello, Jackson Burns and Taylor Sloley also won sectional class titles.
"This felt really good because it was tough at the beginning of the season," Marcello said. "Some of our guys were starting kind of slower than others because of the COVID year.
"At this point of the season, we were able to get everyone caught up. It was great to win with the whole team one last time."
Class B1
@SecVWrestling champions !!!! The first in school history. Congrats @HFLwrestling !! @RocDevo @jjDandC @PrimetimeBall_ pic.twitter.com/gcucT1nXqk
— HF-L CSD Athletics (@HFLCSDAthletics) February 5, 2022
The Honeoye Falls-Lima Cougars were in position to win the Section V Division II Dual Meet Championship last month, but lost in the final to Canisteo-Greenwood.
The first sectional class title in HF-L team history was not getting away however, after five wrestlers won championships at Wayne.
HF-L's lightweights and 189-pounder Alex Zuber led the way for the Cougars. Christopher Noto at 102, Andrew Spaulding (110), Jazz Spaulding (118) and Nicholas Noto (132) took four of the five lightest weight classes.
Hornell 126-pounder Mason Drew broke the string of champions from HF-L.
Class B2
Canisteo-Greenwood wrestlers and coaches have posed for victory tournaments on a few occasions this season.
The Section V Division II Dual Meet champions probably struck a pose again, this time at East Rochester, after running away to win another title.
A total of six champions, including 118-pounder Xavier deJesus-Remchuk, helped puff Canisteo-Greenwood's point total to 316.5. Three team members placed second.
Alexander, the runner-up scored 161 points.
Canisteo-Greenwood won the Section V Division II Dual Meet Championship, then advanced to the state final Jan. 29 at Onondaga Community College, before losing to Tioga of Section IV or Binghamton region.
Class B3
No fewer than five Bolivar-Richburg wrestlers won weight classes, leading the Wolverines to the championship at Lyndonville.
Like HF-L in Class B1, Bolivar-Richburg's lightweights were in the championship action.
Gary McDowell (102), Teegan Sibble (110) and Trey Buchholz (126) became sectional class champions. So did 152-pound teammate Tavyn MacDonell and Trent Sibble at 215.
JAMESJ@Gannett.com
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Section V Wrestling tournaments: Pittsford, Spencerport among winners
