Oceanside delivers in qualifier

Oceanside first-year wrestling coach Julio Flores knew he had two strong 106-pound entries in last Saturday’s Nassau County Qualifying Tournament hosted by Garden City, where the best-case scenario played out for the Sailors when sophomores Mike Fishman and Vinny Candela maneuvered their way into the finals.

“It’s something I thought and hoped could happen,” Flores said. “At that point, as a coach and as their teammates, you just sit back and watch. No matter what situation they’re in, we don’t coach them when it’s head-to-head. They make all their own decisions.

“Mike and Vinny are workout partners and know each other well, so I figured it would be close,” Flores added.

The match came down to the waning moments of the third period and Fishman held on for an exciting 5-3 victory. Candela, who recorded two pins and a 14-4 decision on the way to the finals, couldn’t force overtime. “They ran into each other earlier in the season in a tournament, and Fishman won in overtime,” Flores said. “I think they both can make All-County.”

Fishman, Candela, and four other Sailors advanced to the Division I county championships at Hofstra beginning this Saturday at 9 a.m. Oceanside, which went 6-9-1 in dual meets, amassed 169 points in the qualifier. Farmingdale finished atop the seven-team field with 375. “I’m really happy,” Flores said. “I couldn’t have asked for much more.”

“All of our guys kept getting tougher as the season went on,” he added. “They stepped it up. They were very aggressive and left everything on the mat.”

Oceanside’s biggest surprise, Flores said, was junior JT D’Angelo’s performance in the 160-pound weight class. After winning just one of six matches during the regular season following recovery from a broken wrist suffered during the football campaign, he won four matches last Saturday including a wild comeback to beat Farmingdale’s Taj Penn in overtime, 13-11, to punch his ticket to Hofstra. 

“It was incredible,” Flores said of D’Angelo’s run. “He was down 8-3 to Penn, but he never gave up. We call him the Hulk for a reason. He had a bunch of takedowns and the gym was rocking.”

Senior captain Dan Grossman (138 pounds) also overcame an injury to reach the county tournament with a third-place finish. A concussion had him on the shelf early in the season, Flores said. “Dan came back on a mission,” he explained. “He’s enjoying himself immensely and has a mentality like nobody can beat him.” Grossman went 4-1 in the qualifier. 

Junior captain Kash Calderon, a qualifying champ last winter, took fourth place at 126 pounds to get back to the county tournament. “His weight class was really stacked,” Flores said. “Being in the top four is the main goal. Once you get to counties, it’s a fresh start.”

Sophomore Quinn O’Rourke finished third at 99 pounds, winning four matches, including two by pin, and losing only to Farmingdale’s Tyler Sullivan in the semis, 5-3. “Quinn had a phenomenal day,” Flores said.