Believe it or not, the postseason is already here for high school boys wrestling. The IAC and STAC Championships took place on January 24, though there are still a few more meets in the regular season. For the largest school in the county, there have been plenty of performances to celebrate both from team and individual perspectives.
The Little Red’s biggest accomplishment took place in Schuyler County where they took home the Odessa-Montour Duals title. According to CNYWrestling.com, this is the first time that the Little Red have won a tournament since at least 2012. For second-year head coach Josh Antoine, it was the perfect showcase of how deep his team is regarding talent.
“We had a bunch of younger guys step up and win some close matches and some hard matches,” Antoine said. “Behind the scenes, finding the right matchups and bumping the right people up to wrestle certain people also helped play in our favor to be able to knock off some of those teams.”
“We had a bunch of younger guys step up and win some close matches and some hard matches.” Josh Antoine, Head Coach, Ithaca Boys Wrestling
In terms of participation, wrestling at IHS is as strong as ever. The Little Red had 27 wrestlers (both boys and girls) last year. This time around, they have the same number just on the boys team, not including the newly-formed girls wrestling team with 18 on their roster.
“It’s pretty exciting,” Antoine said. “It shows me that I’m doing something right. Keeping kids around can be difficult nowadays with just life challenges and stuff, but it’s pretty encouraging because then we still have a lot of numbers coming up through the modified team and the youth program as well, even if we do lose a couple due to different reasons, we still have a lot more talent coming through the ranks as well.”
The Little Red is only graduating six wrestlers, but one of them has been at the top of his game for many years. Quentin Getzin is having a stellar senior season, possessing a 26-4 record and repeating as STAC champion. Last year, he fell just short of winning sectionals and qualifying for states for a third consecutive year. Now moving up to the 175 weight class, the Hamilton lacrosse commit is doing all he can to close out his wrestling career with a bang.
“He’s been a solid wrestler for years, but there’s always room for improvement,” Antoine said. “We’ve been fine-tuning little things, and he’s been taking those things from practice that we’ve been working on and applying them in matches. I’m excited to see how he caps off his senior year.”
Fellow senior Tosh Burligame has had a solid season in the 157 weight class at 13-10.
“He’s very talented, very athletic,” Antoine said. “If he also learns how to turn that corner and start believing in himself a little bit more, I feel like we can start knocking off some better guys… I feel like he can definitely compete with the best of them. He showed us that in multiple tournaments. We just have to figure out how to start closing the distance on some of those better guys. But I think he should have a good end to the season.”
The junior class also features some standout wrestlers. Edward Peck has breezed through the 165 weight class at 23-6 and finished in third place at STACs. Caleb Bergman has a 17-10 mark in the 118 weight class. Christopher Jett is also enjoying a great campaign at 17-12 in the 132 weight class.
As for the up-and-coming wrestlers, freshman David Yonker has impressed in his debut varsity campaign with a 14-11 record in the 126 weight class. He’s currently ranked fourth in Section IV Division I and could spring a surprise once sectionals come around.
“David Yonker is one of those kids that caught my eye,” Antoine said. “Very hard worker. He puts in the extra work on his own. He wants to get better. He asks questions. I’m very excited for him.”
Sophomore Isaiah Scott is having a solid season in the 150 weight class at 14-11, while sophomore Cyrus Tarpley (5-5 in the 126 weight class) and freshman Max Hall (7-5 in the 190 weight class) have also shown promising signs early in their careers.
Ithaca has already improved upon their postseason performances, going from a 10th-place finish at STACs last year to sixth place this time around. If the Little Red wants to excel at sectionals and send more wrestlers to states, it all comes down to peaking at the right time.
“The goal is mainly to go out there and compete to the best of your ability and show growth throughout the season,” Antoine said. “We don’t want to see the same bad habits that we’ve been trying to work out. It’s just showing us that they can apply other moves or work through different situations differently.”
