Panthers Takes First in Wrestling Tourney at Edgemont

Both local teams fared well at the 31st annual Edgemont Wrestling Tournament on Saturday January 19, with Edgemont taking first and Scarsdale fifth out of the 19 teams competing that day. The day featured 250 wrestlers from 19 teams and provided competitive and exciting matches leading up to the sectional tournaments in two weeks.

Each individual wrestler on the Edgemont Panthers displayed competitiveness and determination resulting in a first place victory. This is exactly the kind of wrestling that will put the Panther's on the list of top teams in the section

To prepare for sectionals, Panther's coach Manny Alayon stated, "We're doing a lot more drilling and more individual coaching which will give each wrestler the attention while fine tuning their skills so they can get a good taste of sectionals." Among the standouts for the day for the Edgemont Panthers were the Aslanian brothers who both easily made their way into the final round. A top section competitor from Pearl River decisioned younger brother Kyle Aslanian, while Trey Aslanian edged his opponent from New Fairfield. Now a senior, Trey has finished at the top in the New York State tournament in the past couple of years and aspires to cap off his high school career with another state title. Another one of Edgemont's standouts was junior Will Graybeal who pinned his opponent from Yonkers and came away with a bronze medal for the day.

Scarsdale Raider's Head Coach Barney Foltman focused on correcting the mistakes of the more -experienced wrestlers while providing support their younger teammates. Foltman reports that, "We have a very well rounded team, and the more competitive matches we face, the more we'll grow as a team." Among the team standouts was Sophomore Robbie Keltz. After failing to place in the last tournament, Keltz was determined to step up his game and this Saturday went 3-1 for the day, finishing in third place. In his final match he put on a stellar performance and triumphed over his opponent from Dobbs Ferry. Another star was Scarsdale's Daniel Baruch who fought his way into the finals of the last tournament but fell short of first place. Correcting his mistakes and improving his mindset, he made it into the finals yet again, this time taking the gold. In perhaps his best match to date, he came away with a close 9-7 victory over his opponent from Pearl River.

Senior captain Michael Hodges has been wrestling at the state-level all season, easily capturing the gold at the Scarsdale tournament and coasting his way to the finals in Edgemont by pinning his opponent from Salesian in his final match. This marks two gold medals in a row for Hodges and expectations remain high for the senior in the upcoming sectional tournaments.

Senior captain Joe Kashakow displayed a high level of technical and composed wrestling this weekend when he faced some challenges. In the semifinal, Kashakow was matched against Oliver Oks of Edgemont. Up until the final periods, Oks had almost full control until Koshakow caught Oks off guard to secure a 4:31 pin. Koshakow then faced his most evenly matched opponent, Ben Miller of Mamaroneck, for his final match. Kashakow had edged a victory over Miller earlier in the season but knew that this match could go either way. With an even score throughout the entire six minutes, the two battled for the gold medal in a thrilling overtime match won by Miller in a 4-3 victory. With both Miller and Kashakow ranked among the top three in the section, the two are likely to meet again this season.

The Raiders and Edgemont Panthers will compete again on Saturday January 25 when they will battle for the Bronx River Cup at Scarsdale High School. The cup has gone back and forth between the two rivals for the past five years, with Scarsdale taking it in 2012. Edgemont hopes to reclaim it this year and will certainly put up a tough fight.