Xavier’s Braylon Gonzalez (top) battles New Fairfield’s Joe Mahoney in the State Open final at 126 pounds on Saturday. Gonzalez won, 10-8.
NEW HAVEN, Feb. 25, 2024 – As the final consolation matches of the CIAC State Open were wrapping up on Saturday, Simsbury coach T.J. Silva took a few minutes to discuss the state of his team in the tournament.
His team brought nine wrestlers to the tournament and eight would win at least one match. Only one – freshman Max Konopka – would bring home a medal. Simsbury would finish seventh, another top 10 finish.
“Obviously that’s not our goal,” said Silva, who has never been shy about his desire for Simsbury to be among the top teams in the state. “Our goal is to win this tournament, to be what Xavier is. That is what we aspire to be.”
For years, Danbury was the team to emulate and chase. Dating back to 2000, the Hatters won 16 State Open and 19 Class LL titles through 2020. The Hatters are still a good team. They were third last week in Class LL and finished fifth on Saturday here at the Open.
One cannot ignore the success of the Xavier program under Hall of Fame coach Mike Cunningham. With a tournament record 243½ points, the Falcons won the State Open for the third straight year on Saturday. Xavier put five wrestlers in the finals and had three individual champions – the most in one year for Xavier in team history.
The Falcons will bring nine wrestlers to next week’s New England championships in Providence. The top five wrestlers in each weight class earn bids to the New England tournament.
“We just set goals,” Cunningham said. “We scored 204 in 2022 so let’s go beat that, Let’s get 14 guys to the State Open. This is one of the more talented teams and they’re really nice kids. They’re good kids. The expectations are high but they never think about it. They just go to work.”
The Falcons aren’t afraid of travel either. They supplement their schedule in Connecticut with out-of-state tournaments in Delaware (Beast of the East), New York (Mid-Hudson Classic), Massachusetts (Methuen Invitational), Maryland (War on the Shore) and Wisconsin (National High School Duals) to challenge their wrestlers.
Senior Raekwon Shabazz (113) and Charles Weidman (215) each won their second consecutive State Open title with sophomore Braylon Gonzalez (126) beating two-time Open champion Joe Mahoney of New Fairfield in an entertaining match, 10-8.
Anthony Basile (138) and Max Morse (175) finished second for Xavier with Kevin Kasperowski (132) taking third. Kyle Levesque (144), John Lagana (150) and Vincent Rivera (157) were each fourth.
Newtown’s Fisher Stites gets a reversal against Old Lyme freshman Chase Catalano in the State Open final at 165 pounds.
Newtown, which had four finalists in four consecutive weight classes from 144 through 165 pounds, finished second with 147½ points. That was 96 points behind Xavier but it was the most points scored by a second place team in tournament history.
Senior Fisher Stites (165) won his second straight State Open title while freshman Jake Maddox (150) won his first title. Freshman Antonio Arguello (144) and junior Marc Maurath (157) each finished second.
“It’s nice to have that group. They can all challenge each other (in practice). Some of their best matches are in practice,” Newtown coach Chris Bray said.
With five medalists, East Hartford had their best-ever finish at the State Open by finishing third with 116 points. Junior Jaeckez Mendez (138) won his second straight State Open title while Sammy Montovani finished second. Isaac Quiles (126), Xavier Rivera (157) and Drayvn Roberts (175) each finished third for the Hornets.
Roberts won four straight consolation round bouts with three pins to finish third.
A few highlights from the State Open finals, which began at 126 pounds.
126: The final pitted New Fairfield’s Joe Mahoney (36-4) against Gonzalez. Mahoney, a junior, was looking to win a third State Open championship to go along with three Southwest Conference and three Class S titles.
But Gonzalez, who missed most of December with an illness, got the early 4-2 lead in the first period with a pair of takedowns. Gonzalez extended that lead to 7-2 thanks to an escape and a third takedown in the second period.
But Mahoney refused to yield. “He is the kind of person that if you say no, he will say, hmmm. Watch what I can do,” New Fairfield head coach Paul Musso said.
A reversal from Mahoney cut the lead to 7-4 after two periods. In the third period, it took him 14 seconds to escape and Mahoney got a takedown with 1:27 remaining to tie the match at 7-7.
But Gonzalez got an escape and a takedown with 58 seconds remaining to take a 10-7 lead that held up.
132: Facing Danbury’s Deydon Soto for the third consecutive week, Norwalk’s Phoenix Gardella took a 4-1 lead after one period thanks to a pair of takedowns. But Soto (26-2) rallied in the second period with an escape and takedown to take a 5-4 lead.
A pair of takedowns and two near falls helped Soto secure a 13-6 victory.
“It’s tough to beat the same wrestler three times in a row,” Danbury head coach Mike Silvestri said. “Phoenix made adjustments and it was a tough match. But Deydon has an engine and he gets better as the match goes on.”
Soro beat Gardella at the FCIAC championship meet and at last week’s Class LL championships.
138: East Hartford’s Jaeckez Mendez remained undefeated at 39-0 with a pin of Xavier’s Anthony Basile in 1:28. It was the second straight Open title for Mendez, a junior.
“A lot of people ask me if I am nervous or feel pressure but honestly not any more,” Mendez said. “I get the feeling of butterflies but that is just natural. If you let that stop you, you’re not a wrestler. I’ve gotten to the point that I am a wrestler and I mentally (focus) and I don’t get nervous or feel pressure. I just want to win and I am Jaekez Mendez.”
Mendez finished with three pins in four matches.
144: Ridgefield’s Victor Petkov got a takedown in the second period and a third period escape to put himself in position to earn a 5-1 win over Newtown’s Antonio Arguello. Petkov (51-6) led 3-1 in the third period and was able to fend off Arguello’s attacks before getting a takedown in the waning seconds to secure the victory.
Arguello needed all of his semifinal match to earn a spot in the finals. He got a takedown with 13 seconds left in regulation to tie the match and got a three-point near fall with a cradle in the final seconds to beat Xavier’s Kyle Levesque, 9-6.
150: Newtown freshman Jake Maddox (49-5) didn’t give up a point in the tournament including his 6-0 win over Fairfield Prep’s William Smith in the final. Maddox got a pin in the first round, beat Waterford’s Lucas Gannotti, 7-0 in the quarterfinals and Xavier’s John Lagana in the semifinals, 3-0.
Smith had to go to double OT to beat Gilbert/Torrington sophomore Evan Schibi in the semifinals. Smith got an escape with 41 seconds left in the third period to force OT. Schibi got an escape in the first 30 seconds of the second OT but Smith got a reversal for a 3-2 victory.
157: Platt’s Caiden Talento (48-1) won his first State Open championship with a 5-1 victory over Newtown’s Marc Maurath in a rematch of last week’s Class L championship match. Talento had a 3-1 lead in the third period but secured the victory with a takedown with 26 seconds remaining.
Talento, who had two pins in the tournament, was named the tournament’s Outstanding Wrestler.
“I believed in myself and all of the hard work I have put in. I just knew I could get it done,” Talento said. “I just pushed the pace. I was nervous but nervous makes you wrestle better. Feel the moment. I was feeling the moment and the big stage.”
165: With four takedowns, Newtown’s Fisher Stites (46-4) had a dominating 9-1 win over Old Lyme’s Chase Catalano to win his second straight Open championship. Stites went 4-0 on the day with three pins.
175: East Lyme/Norwich Tech’s Lincoln Carlson (42-0) remained undefeated with an 8-2 win over Xavier’s Max Morse in the title match. Carlson, the Class L champion, had four takedowns in the match, only giving up two escapes. Carlson beat Morse a week ago in the Class L semifinals by the same 8-2 margin.
190: Simsbury freshman Max Konopka (38-1) won his first State Open championship with a 4-0 win over Brayden Soleau of East Lyme/Norwich Tech. It was a dominating tournament for Konopka, who had three pins and gave up just one point (an escape in the semifinal).
A second period takedown and a reversal with 1:47 left in the third period was enough for Konopka, who won the Class L title a week ago with a 4-0 win over Soleau.
Konopka, the grandson of long-time East Hartford and Penney head coach Steve Konopka, is the first freshman at Simsbury to win an Open title since 2003.
215: Xavier’s Charles Weidman got two takedowns and a three-point near fall in the first period to grab a five-point lead and win his second State Open title with a 7-3 win over Class LL champion Sammy Montovani of East Hartford.
Weidman had two pins and a win by injury default in the semifinals to earn his spot in the final.
Enfield’s Keonta Crawford controls Anthony Shivas of the Derby co-op in Saturday’s State Open final at 285 pounds.
285: A reversal and takedown in the second period was enough for Enfield’s Keonota Crawford (39-2) to beat Anthony Shivas of the Derby/Oxford/Holy Cross co-op, 4-3 and win his first Open championship. Crawford, the Class LL champion, had two pins in the tournament while Shivas, the Class M champion, had two pins and a 2-1 win in double OT over Newtown’s Jon DaSilva in the semifinals.
106: In a battle of two talented freshmen, Middletown’s Isaiah McDaniel (44-1) got a takedown with 14 seconds remaining to beat Southington’s Chase Kastner, 4-2.
Thanks to a second period takedown, McDaniel led 2-1 after two periods. Kastner (43-2) escaped with 45 seconds left in the third period to tie the match at 2-2.
Kastner, the Class LL champion, had given up just one escape in his first three wins in the tournament. McDaniel, the Class L champion, got a takedown and near fall in overtime to beat Class M champion Ben Fournier of RHAM in the semifinals, 7-2.
113: Xavier’s Raekwon Shabazz won a second consecutive State Open title with a pin of Class LL champion Fairfield Warde’s Zach Brzoksa in 1:20. Shabazz had two pins and two wins by technical fall in the tournament.
Shabazz wasn’t looking for a quick pin in the final. “I just went out to wrestle. Whatever happens, happens,” he said. “I just felt that I was going to score and dominate. The outcome was the way it came out.”
120: In a rematch of the recent finals at the Class LL and FCIAC tournaments, Ridgefield’s Dominic Barrella beat Danbury’s Cristian Pote for the third consecutive week with an 11-3 decision. Barrella won 3-1 a week ago to take the Class LL title and won the FCIAC championship with a 6-4 decision.
Xavier won their third straight State Open championship Saturday and the fourth in team history.
2024 CIAC State Open
At New Haven
Team results – 1. Xavier 243½, 2. Newtown 147½, 3. East Hartford 116, 4. Ridgefield 111, 5. Danbury 90, 6. Fairfield Warde 80, 7. Simsbury 70½, 8. New Milford 65, 9. NFA 54½, 10. East Lyme/Norwich Tech 52½, 11. Berlin and Killingly 52, 13. Lyman Memorial/Windham Tech 49, 14. Southington 48, 15. Windham 45, 16. Platt 44½, 17. Enfield 40, 18. South Windsor 39½, 19. Bristol Central 39½, 20. Staples 36; 21. RHAM and Norwalk 35½, 23. Fairfield Prep 34, 24. Avon 33½, 25. New Fairfield and Trumbull 33, 27. Somers 32, 28. Branford 31, 29. Montville 30½, 30. Fairfield Ludlowe 29
Individual results
Championship finals
106 Isaiah McDaniel (Middletown) dec. Chase Kastner (Southington), 4-2
113 Raekwon Shabazz (Xavier) pin Zach Brzoska (Fairfield Warde), 1:20
120 Dominic Barrella (Ridgefield) dec. Cristian Pote (Danbury), 11-3
126 Braylon Gonzalez (Xavier) dec. Joe Mahoney (New Fairfield), 10-8
132 Deydon Soto (Danbury) dec. Phoenix Gardella (Norwalk), 13-6
138 Jaeckez Mendez (East Hartford) pin Anthony Basile (Xavier), 1:28
144 Victor Petkov (Ridgefield) dec. Antonio Arguello (Newtown), 5-1
150 Jake Maddox (Newtown) dec. William Smith (Fairfield Prep), 6-0
157 Caiden Talento (Platt) dec. Marc Maurath (Newtown), 5-1
165 Fisher Stites (Newtown) dec. Chase Catalano (Old Lyme), 9-1
175 Lincoln Carlson (East Lyme/Norwich Tech) dec. Maximus Morse (Xavier), 8-2
190 Maximus Konopka (Simsbury) dec. Brayden Soleau (East Lyme/Norwich Tech), 4-0
215 Charles Weidman (Xavier) dec. Sammy Montovani (East Hartford), 7-3
285 Keonta Crawford (Enfield) dec. Anthony Shivas (Derby/Oxford/Holy Cross), 4-3
Third place (consolation final)
106 Ben Fournier (RHAM) dec. Landon Herdic (Norwich Free Academy), 8-0
113 Dylan Meyers (Ridgefield) dec. William Accorsi (Somers), 8-3
120 Mason Arborio (Berlin) tech fall Nathaniel Smith (Darien), 15-0 2:26
126 Isaac Quiles (East Hartford) dec. Alex Lamarre (Bristol Central), 10-6
132 Kevin Kasperowski (Xavier) dec. Brady Zadora (Killingly), 7-5 OT
138 Dominick Spadaro (Fairfield Warde) dec. Jay Chase (Sheehan*), 6-3
144 James Linder jr (Montville) dec. Kyle Levesque (Xavier), 5-1
150 Evan Schibi (Gilbert/Torr) dec. John Lagana (Xavier), 7-1
157 Yaxier Rivera (East Hartford) dec. Vincent Rivera (Xavier), 6-3
165 Jesse Defonce (Danbury) dec. Matthew Gish (Portland/Cromwell), 3-2
175 Drayvn Roberts (East Hartford) dec. Dante Colella (Bacon Academy), 2-1
190 Cole Snider (Branford) dec. Gavin Fallon (Avon), 4-2
215 Malachi Fowler (Windham) pin Patrick Dabrowski (Shelton), 3:43
285 Jon Dasilva (Newtown) dec. Riccardi Fernandez (New Milford), 3-1
Fifth place
106 Jude Grammatico (Fairfield Warde) forfeit over Bradey Jonasch (Killingly)
113 Jack Fletcher (East Haven) forfeit over Cesar Rodriguez (Platt)
120 Kyden Merlin (South Windsor) dec. Hunter Sanchez (Lyman Mem/Windham Tech), 11-4
126 John Carrozza (Ridgefield) dec. Harrison Accorsi (Somers), 11-5
132 Lucas Judd (Lyman Mem/Windham Tech) dec. Elijah Fagin (Avon), 5-0
138 Danny Carrozza (Brookfield/Shepaug) dec. Jacob Gordon (South Windsor), 6-2
144 Dylan Sherman (Fairfield Ludlowe) DEF Dylan Vanegas (Norwich Free Academy), 9-2 4:45
150 Josh Howard (Southington) dec. Damian Rousseau (Staples), 8-1
157 Tyler Neiva (Trumbull) dec. Donell Young (Fairfield Ludlowe), 2-1 TB2
165 Devon Powers (Waterford) dec. Zachary Fong (Xavier), 6-2
175 Justin Duhancik (Stratford) pin Cameron Sammarco (Lyman Mem/Windham Tech), 1:57
190 Jaycee Diaz (Windham) forfeit over Christian Sewell (Windsor)
215 Soren Rief (Killingly) forfeit over Aethan Munden (Trumbull)
285 Nicholas Ebrahimi (Berlin) pin Aidan Schlimgen (Ledyard), 0:45
Outstanding wrestler: Caiden Talento (157), Platt
2024 State Open brackets and results (FloArena)
Printable brackets
