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Southampton Press
February 17, 2000
Seven Seniors Pace Westhampton Beach With League Place-Finishes
By Jody Shenn
Westhampton Beach wrestling coach Paul Bass, not one to normally show his soft side,
was feeling special on Saturday after his senior-laden Hurricane team had nine wrestlers place in the League IV
tournament in Huntington. “I couldn’t be more proud of them,” Bass said after senior Louis Vecchio finished the
Hurricanes’ day with an amazing 9-2 upset of hometown hero Steve Palacios in the 119-pound finals (see separate
story). “The things they’ve accomplished are because they love the sport and they work hard. ”
“I just don’t think I’ve been more proud of a team for its effort,” he added.
The nine place-finishes are the most the Hurricanes have had in a league tournament since moving up to League IV
four years ago. And, of the nine place-finishes the Hurricanes took home, seven were by seniors wrestling in their
final league tournament, a tournament that featured 22 wrestlers ranked in the top-six in the county for their
weight class.
Vecchio, however, was not joined in the finals by any seniors. Instead it was brothers Rob and Jay Fredette, the
core of the Hurricanes’ youth movement, who made the finals with outstanding wrestling before losing to top competition.
Eighth-grader Rob finished second in the 103-pound weight class after losing a 12-0 decision in the finals to Pat
Flynn of Huntington, the top-rated 103-pounder in the state.
Sophomore Jay Fredette returned to the finals again this year after winning a league title last year, but lost
a close 6-2 decision to Dan Song of Hauppauge, a country runner-up last season, to take home a second-place trophy.
The Hurricanes, however, got most of the 133 team points that earned them a more-than-respectable fourth-place
finish from seniors.
Besides Vecchio winning his second league title, Hurricane seniors Sean Kellenberger (152) and brothers Pat (189)
and Mike (215) Hadley all took third place in their weight classes despite losses to tough opponents in the semifinals.
Along with the finalists, the third-place finishers brought the total to six Hurricanes that will make it to the
Suffolk County tournament this Saturday, February 19 and Sunday, February 20 starting at the State University of
New York at Stony Brook at 10 a.m.
Seniors P.J. Loughlin (135), Tai Phung (171), and Luis Gonzalez (275) also had all-league days of wrestling but
finished fourth after losses in the consolation finals. All the Hurricanes, however, faced top wrestlers in their
quest for league place finishes.
Kellenberger was knocked to the consolation round when he lost to second-seed Paul Zis of Sayville, the third-ranked
wrestler at 152 pounds in Suffolk County, by a 13-5 decision in the semifinals. But Kellenberger overcame Craig
Moulton of Hauppauge with a takedown in overtime for a 7-5 decision in the consolation finals for a chance to wrestle
at the county tournament.
Pat Hadley, in his first year of wrestling, also bounced back from a semifinals loss to second-seed Vincent Ferrera
of Kings Park for an impressive consolation victory. Hadley stuck Alex Delgiorno of Sayville just 49 seconds into
the consolation finals at 189 pounds.
His brother, Mike Hadley, took home all-league honors for a second straight year, by beating David Angelastro of
Sayville by a 4-2 decision in the consolation round to earn a third-place finish. In the semifinals, Hadley lost
to second-seed Shaun Adams of Deer Park by a third period pin.
The team credits Bass and assistant coach Chris Heaney, who postponed serious surgery to continue to be in the
wrestling room for the Hurricanes, with the success at the league tournament.
“We owe the whole season to the coaching staff,” Kellenberger said after the wrestling was over on Saturday. “Heaney’s
there at 5 a.m. for us. He makes us work hard.”
“It was mostly due to coach Bass that I won,” Vecchio said. “A lot of times he’ll shout out what to do when I’m
wrestling. Even though I’ve gotten better at wrestling without his directions, he’s still letting me know what
he wants.”
The Hurricane coaches, however, give the credit back to a tough group of wrestlers.
“These guys work hard,” Heaney said. “The quality of wrestlers they’ve taken on throughout the year shows that
these kids are ready to wrestle a cut above the competition.”
In the county tournament, things may get easier for the Hurricanes. League IV has more wrestlers expected to place
in the counties than any other league in Suffolk County. So, the Hurricanes have already faced a lot of the top
competition.
Nevertheless, it will take the type of continued hard work that Bass said he saw the Friday before the league tournament
(when the Hurricanes drilled hard without instruction from the coaches) for Westhampton Beach to score any county-place
winners.
Issue Date: Southampton Press 02/17/2000
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