Grappling Notebook
Brewster’s Cuomo is 1st Bear in History to Win State Title
Put Valley’s Sams Places 4th in NYS; IP’s Realbuto 3rd in NYS Tourney
By Tony Pinciaro
With time winding down in the New York State Division I 170-pound championship match and the score tied, Brewster’s Grant Cuomo became the aggressor.
Cuomo went after 2017 170-pound state champion Tyler Barnes of Ballston Spa, with 20 second remaining, and the result was the decisive move – a takedown and two back points — in a 13-9 victory at the Times-Union Center in Albany last Saturday.
Cuomo, who missed a month of the season with an elbow injury, became Brewster’s first state wrestling champion, Cuomo also is the Bears’ first three-time state placefinisher as well as three-time sectional champ. Cuomo, who returned to action at divisionals, concluded with a 27-3 record and he will attend Princeton University in the fall and continue wrestling.
“I knew I had him broken,” said Cuomo, who handed Barnes his second loss of the season. “He was gassed and I wasn’t. He took injury time so that he could use his inhaler. When he did that, I knew I was going to get the takedown and the win. All I had to do was wrestle and hand-fight smart until the opportunity came. I was able to get in deep on a high crotch and he turned it into a bit of a scramble, but I am comfortable in all kinds of positions, so I knew I could come out on top.”
Cuomo advanced to the final with a pair of major decisions – 12-2 and 9-0 – in his first two matches. Cuomo gutted out a 3-2 semi-final victory over David Miele-Estre of North Babylon (Section 11). Following his semi-final win, Cuomo knew he had to make some adjustments.
“I didn’t wrestle very good in my semifinal,” Cuomo said. “I was stiff and not getting my shots, so I needed to make some changes between the semifinals and the finals.”
It’s been a rollercoaster season of emotions for Cuomo. He came into the season as a prime-time contender for the 170-pound state title, following a 2017 state runner-up finish. The elbow injury injury sidelined Cuomo and had him wondering if he would be back for sectionals and states. Cuomo was determined not to let the injury sabotage his goal of a state championship.
“Winning a state title is as meaningful to me as it is to Brewster,” Cuomo said. “I am just so happy I can achieve my goals and put my hometown on the map while doing it.”
PUTNAM VALLEY senior Kyle Sams became the program’s first two-time state placefinisher. After placing sixth last year, an unseeded Sams advanced to the Division II 132-pound championship semifinals and finished fourth. Sams defeated the sixth and third seeds to reach the semis.
Sams was joined in Albany by teammates Mikey Bruno and Hunter Lundberg, who received wild cards.
Sams and Bruno graduate from the program as the two most successful Tigers. Bruno amassed more than 155 wins and Sams registered 140 wins. They combined for six sectional titles and nine trips to the state wrestling championships; the most dynamic duo in school history
“Kyle has always been a class act and great kid, but this year he was like a grown man in the room,” Putnam Valley coach Will Carano said. “He opened up and his leadership as a captain was outstanding. There’s not a selfish, self-centered tone or manner in Kyle. We’ve had great captains, but Kyle brought something a little extra and that was concern, compassion and leadership for every kid, every day at every meet and tournament. His career numbers and accomplishments are incredible, and now, pretty much put him as an all-time great.”
Sams leaves the program with three sectional titles and a wild card berth. Bruno also moves on as a three-time sectional champion and five-time state qualifier, who placed fourth in 2016.
“My last request to Mikey as his coach at Putnam Valley was to forget losing in Albany and be grateful and appreciative of the amazing life he has, right now, the amazing family and friends and most of all, the great things he can take with him from here as an incredible wrestler all these years,” Carano said. “Very few will be able to say they accomplished what he did as a wrestler over an incredible six-year career.”
Lundberg received late word that he would be going to Albany as a wild card. The sophomore was the Section 1 Division II 113-pound runner-up.
“The wild card is a gift for a wrestler, and if Hunter is the developing competitor I think he is, his motivation to train more will be bigger than ever,” Carano said.
Colin Realbuto capped his Iona Prep wrestling career with a third-place finish in the 138-pound weight class in the New York State Division I Championships.
Realbuto, a Somers’ resident, was seeded sixth and reached the semifinals with a victory over the third seed.
Realbuto, who will attend Brown University in the fall and continue wrestling, joins older brothers, Brian and Dylan, as state placefinishers.
“Winning a Catholic state title and placing third at states was like having half a feast after starving for a year,” Realbuto said. “I worked so hard this past year and the payout was supposed to be great, and what I did was pretty great, but I didn’t quite get all of it.”
Realbuto reached the championship semifinals with a victory over the third seed. Following a tough 3-2 semi-final loss, Realbuto faced a crossroads. The result was a pair of wins, including a 9-4 triumph in the third-place match.
“When I lost in the semis I was in a storm of emotions of anger, frustration and sadness, a state that’s the exact opposite of the focus I needed to win a match,” Realbuto said. “So I just shut it out. I ignored it like it never happened and moved on to the next match, going through my routine as if I had won and I had another match to go win.”
Realbuto is looking forward to college and helping Brown re-establish itself on the mat.
“I honestly can’t wait to get into the room,” said Realbuto, who chose Brown even though Brian and Dylan attended Cornell. “From my experiences with the coaching staff, they’re amazing and they want improvement in the program, just as badly as I want to improve, if not more.”
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