Newcomers Give Notice, Hackley Wrestling on the Rise
The Hackley Wrestling Team exceeded all expectation driven by experienced leadership and an influx of talented and hardworking newcomers. The team came together as a group and delivered exceptional results throughout the season.
At first glance the 2017-18 wrestling team was an inexperienced team filled with freshmen, and only a few upperclassmen including a single senior. Because of this, it was virtually impossible to truly know what to expect from this season.
However, as the season got going, and subsequently continued, it became abundantly clear that it was going to be so much more than that. Besides the relatively improbable success on the mat, the truly amazing part of this season was what developed - a special group of kids who gelled into not only a team, but a family.
The season officially got underway a few weeks before Thanksgiving when Coach Stanek made the decision to name all four upperclassmen as captains, a move that although unusual, completely represented the family like feel to the team.
The regular season began in earnest with the Lexington tournament at the beginning of December. Despite low expectation due to inexperience, the team crowned four champions. Robert Horan, the standout freshman, won the Pin award, on track to a dominant showing and a first place finish. Fellow freshman Ty Wyman also came out on top in the 113-pound weight class, bursting onto the scene for his first career wins. In addition to the young guys winning, both of the Captains who were at the tournament, Giovanni Crispi ‘18 and Jack Bosco ‘20, both came out with top finishes also.
The achievements didn’t stop there. Both Jake Abraham ’21 and Stefen Burns ’20 (in wrestling debut) finished in second place, while both Lara Schechter ’18 and Alex Crispi ’21 turned in solid debuts, taking third place with two wins apiece. Topping it off was a fourth place finish from the younger Kneisley brother, Will ‘21. Our showing was so great, in fact, that as a team we claimed the first place trophy, our first tournament win in a long time.
After a bit of a down week, the team fought a tough match and got a hard-earned win against our conference rival Horace Mann, followed by two strong performances against Stepinac and SAR, both resulting in wins. The week was capped off with a heartbreaking loss versus Irvington, where the team lost by a mere three points. Entering break, the team was 3-2 in dual meets, and overall, a very good start to the season.
The New Year started with something completely unique to this season, a brand new gym. The excitement surrounding the unbelievable new facility was slightly dimmed by the team losing two captains in one week. Rather than allow this to derail the promising season however, the team stuck together and continued to grind out hard earned wins and high finishes in tournaments.
The final two weeks of the year was also an enormous success. The Ivy League tournament, always hosted here at Hackley, was a highlight of the season. Not only was this day truly enjoyable, but it was also incredibly successful. Hackley crowned four Ivy League champions. Giovanni Crispi, who had stated that this was a goal of his since he was a freshman, won the 182 pound weight class, while sophomore Jack Bosco came out on top in the 120 pound weight class. In addition to this, freshman phenomes Robbie and Tyler both also took first. In third place, Lara Schechter had an unbelievable day, while Jimmy, Will, Stefen (despite a shoulder injury), Hadassah Henderson ‘21, and Jake Abraham ’21 all took fourth.
The majority of the team’s season ended with States the following weekend. On an overall great day, Gio finished his career with a second place finish, along with Tyler, while both Jack Bosco and Robbie were crowned NYSAIS champions, a truly unbelievable accomplishment. Advancing to the Public school states, Jack Bosco, Tyler Wyman, and Robbie Horan hope to continue their unbelievable seasons.
For their season-long performance the following wrestling earned First Team All-Conference honors: Robert Horan ’21, Tyler Wyman ’21, Jack Bosco ’20, Giovanni Crispi ’18.
The team has an incredibly bright future ahead of them, and that bond is only going to grow stronger.
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However, as the season got going, and subsequently continued, it became abundantly clear that it was going to be so much more than that. Besides the relatively improbable success on the mat, the truly amazing part of this season was what developed - a special group of kids who gelled into not only a team, but a family.
The season officially got underway a few weeks before Thanksgiving when Coach Stanek made the decision to name all four upperclassmen as captains, a move that although unusual, completely represented the family like feel to the team.
The regular season began in earnest with the Lexington tournament at the beginning of December. Despite low expectation due to inexperience, the team crowned four champions. Robert Horan, the standout freshman, won the Pin award, on track to a dominant showing and a first place finish. Fellow freshman Ty Wyman also came out on top in the 113-pound weight class, bursting onto the scene for his first career wins. In addition to the young guys winning, both of the Captains who were at the tournament, Giovanni Crispi ‘18 and Jack Bosco ‘20, both came out with top finishes also.
The achievements didn’t stop there. Both Jake Abraham ’21 and Stefen Burns ’20 (in wrestling debut) finished in second place, while both Lara Schechter ’18 and Alex Crispi ’21 turned in solid debuts, taking third place with two wins apiece. Topping it off was a fourth place finish from the younger Kneisley brother, Will ‘21. Our showing was so great, in fact, that as a team we claimed the first place trophy, our first tournament win in a long time.
After a bit of a down week, the team fought a tough match and got a hard-earned win against our conference rival Horace Mann, followed by two strong performances against Stepinac and SAR, both resulting in wins. The week was capped off with a heartbreaking loss versus Irvington, where the team lost by a mere three points. Entering break, the team was 3-2 in dual meets, and overall, a very good start to the season.
The New Year started with something completely unique to this season, a brand new gym. The excitement surrounding the unbelievable new facility was slightly dimmed by the team losing two captains in one week. Rather than allow this to derail the promising season however, the team stuck together and continued to grind out hard earned wins and high finishes in tournaments.
The final two weeks of the year was also an enormous success. The Ivy League tournament, always hosted here at Hackley, was a highlight of the season. Not only was this day truly enjoyable, but it was also incredibly successful. Hackley crowned four Ivy League champions. Giovanni Crispi, who had stated that this was a goal of his since he was a freshman, won the 182 pound weight class, while sophomore Jack Bosco came out on top in the 120 pound weight class. In addition to this, freshman phenomes Robbie and Tyler both also took first. In third place, Lara Schechter had an unbelievable day, while Jimmy, Will, Stefen (despite a shoulder injury), Hadassah Henderson ‘21, and Jake Abraham ’21 all took fourth.
The majority of the team’s season ended with States the following weekend. On an overall great day, Gio finished his career with a second place finish, along with Tyler, while both Jack Bosco and Robbie were crowned NYSAIS champions, a truly unbelievable accomplishment. Advancing to the Public school states, Jack Bosco, Tyler Wyman, and Robbie Horan hope to continue their unbelievable seasons.
For their season-long performance the following wrestling earned First Team All-Conference honors: Robert Horan ’21, Tyler Wyman ’21, Jack Bosco ’20, Giovanni Crispi ’18.
The team has an incredibly bright future ahead of them, and that bond is only going to grow stronger.
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