NEW YORK STATE WRESTLING: NEWARK VALLEY'S MIDDENDORF WINS FOUR IN A ROW TO FINISH THIRD AT DIVISION 2 CHAMPIONSHIPS (2205-03-01)
By TIM BIRNEYTioga County Sports ReportALBANY — After losing in the quarterfinals Friday, Newark Valley senior Trevor Middendorf was determined to make that his final high school defeat, and he stepped up Saturday with four straight wins to finish third here at the New York State Division 2 Wrestling Championships at the MVP Arena.
"Trevor showed a lot of guts in wrestling back to third place," said Newark Valley coach Eric D'Arcy.
"When he walked out of here Friday night, he was really disappointed, and felt like he got cheated on a couple of takedowns.
"He didn't let that affect his attitude today, though," noted D'Arcy. "He woke up this morning and said, 'I'm taking third in this tournament.'
"He came back and beat a lot of good kids on the way back through, and the shows a lot of intestinal fortitude, and a lot of toughness for a kid who is tiny — a small 124-pounder.
"He has a great motor, and never stops moving," added D'Arcy.
Middendorf built an 8-0 lead before pinning Tyson Gillard of Eagle Academy in the "blood round" first thing Saturday morning.
In the consolation quarterfinals, Middendorf scored a takedown with 13 seconds left in the first period against Southwestern's Carmine Calimeri, and added another midway through the second period to take a 6-0 lead into the final two minutes.
Calimeri escaped midway through the third period, and hit on a takedown with 30 seconds remaining to close the gap to 6-5.
After being cut to increase his lead to 7-5, Middendorf was warned for stalling, then was banged for a point with 3 seconds remaining to provide the final margin, 7-6.
In the consolation semifinals, Middendorf scored a pair of third-period takedowns to erase a 6-3 deficit on his way to a 9-7 win over Letchworth's Joe Scott.
In the third-place match, Middendorf took the momentum against John Glenn's Aidan Lee with a takedown with 1 second remaining in the first period.
He scored another takedown midway through the second period, and led 6-1 at the end of the second period.
After a Lee escape early in the third period, Middendorf scored another takedown and finished it off for a fall at 3:42.
Middendorf wraps up his senior season with a 36-6 record, and his career with a 119-40 mark.
"I love that kid," said D'Arcy. "I am really going to miss being with him.
"He couldn't come up and wrestle for us until ninth grade because he was too tiny," noted D'Arcy.
"His freshman year, he got beat by a lot of these guys — pinned by (Schuyler's Lucas) Hoffman and guys like him, who just took Trevor apart.
"Every year, he got a little better," continued D'Arcy. "Last year, he finished fourth at Section IV, and he wasn't happy. He said, 'I have to do more.'
"And, he put in a lot of time this offseason," said D'Arcy. "He was wrestling three or four days a week in Athens with Brian Courtney, who did a great job with him.
"He's a great kid, and a great leader in the room. He leads by example every day," added an emotional D'Arcy. "It will be a horrible time without him around."
————————
PHOTOS BY TIM BIRNEY and DWAYNE LOBDELL.
Print Friendly Version
