Feb. 13, 2012
BKW Wrestlers compete in Sectionals and the State Qualifier
Over
two years ago, BKW was selected to host the Section 2, Division 2, Class
3 Wrestling Championship in anticipation of a new gym being added. With
BKW’s new gym complete in Dec. 2011, the long awaited day arrived and
the event was hosted on Feb. 4.
The wrestling competition included 14 wrestling teams in 15 weight classes, and was set up by BKW's own varsity wrestling coach, Jeff Vogel with the help of Josh Baker and Rich Holoday. All three wrestling coaches dedicated over 200 hours to the planning and execution of the event.
"Planning for the actual event started back in May," said Coach Vogel, "there were several meetings with the Section 2 Wrestling Executive Board to make sure the event was run as required."
Parents of the BKW wrestlers had to start
planning back in May
as well, and their participation was integral to
the success of the event.
"With almost 150 athletes and 400 spectators at the event, there were 550 people to feed during the fifteen hour-long championship." Coach Vogel continued."I'd like to thank Marcia Casullo, Sharon Pasquini, Sue Sprung and Shanna Becker who put this huge undertaking into motion. This group collected donations, ensured we had enough parents to cover all the food stations, in addition to designing and ordering t-shirts. This was one of the best programs ever seen at this event."
There were many more in the BKW community that took an active role on the day of the championship. Other BKW parents and graduates came out to run tables, act as scorekeepers, manage scheduling and run clocks.
A Year of Firsts
BKW knocked out a few firsts for the district tackling their first Section 2 Championship and the first time to have four Section 2 Champions within the district in the same year. The BKW team was also the first in their section out of all twelve programs established after 1990 to win a championship.
This year alone eight BKW wrestlers were eligible for the New York Finals Qualifier – a stepping stone to the New York State Championship. Only the top 4 wrestlers in each weight class qualify for this next step in the competition.
Section 2, Division 2, Class 3 Wrestling Championship Results
The 14 schools who participated in the championship and their scores are as follows:
| Berne-Knox-Westerlo: 199 | Schoharie: 164 | Albany Academy: 91 | Cambridge: 61 | Fort Ann: 29.5 |
| Salem: 182 | Whitehall: 132 | Rensslaer: 81 | Green Tech: 59 | Waterford-Halfmoon: 11 |
| Duanesburg: 176 | Warrensburg: 113 | Mechanicville: 75 | Voorheesville: 57 |
BKW Records
• First Section 2 Championship
• First time to have four Section 2 Champions in the same year
• BKW now has a total of eight Section Champions in 6 years
• First team in Section 2 out of the 12 programs that were established
after 1990 to win a Section 2 Championship
• Tied a school record by qualifying eight wrestlers for the New York
State Finals Qualifier in Glens Falls
First Place Finishes
| Josh Richards (Senior) – the pin in his final match secured the victory for BKW | Matt Casullo (Senior) – his victory gave him a school record of 105 wins and is the only BKW wrestler to make a fourth straight trip to the New York State Qualifier | Joe Sprung (Junior) – ran is season record up to 31-1 with 30 straight wins | Jesse Montasano (Senior) – made his second appearance in the section finals and achieved his first win |
Third Place Finishes
| Derek Struck – this year marks his third trip to the state qualifiers and joins a group of only three others who have done that | Ben Becker – he was 4-1 on the day of the championship and this was his second consecutive third place finish in sectionals |
Fourth Place Finishes
| Anthony Pasquini – eligible for his first trip to the state qualifier | Christian Peters – scored a big upset win and will travel to the state qualifier |
Sixth Place Finishes
• Cody Fisher
• Harry Albright
• Jon Crammond
All 11 BKW wrestlers who entered scored points and placed at the tournament – congratulations to you all!
Heading to State
The Section 2 State Qualifier Competition was held this past weekend at the Glens Falls Civic Center. Preliminary match-ups took place on Friday and three consolation rounds followed on Saturday. The competition was tough, but two BKW wrestlers, Matt Casullo and Joe Sprung made it into the semifinals on Saturday. Both boys qualified for the New York State tournament with Matt receiving a wild card selection and Joe Sprung winning his section's state qualifier in his weight class. The state tournament will be held on Feb. 24-25 in Albany.
Congratulations to all of the wrestlers on their numerous victories this year!
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