GARDEN CITY, N.Y. – The Hunter College wrestling team turned in a strong showing at the Nassau Open, racking up a program-record 25 wins in an open tournament that featured more than 230 wrestlers from over 20 teams spanning NCAA Division I, II, III and junior college programs.
Alimkhan Guseinov continued his impressive start to the season at 197lbs., reaching the championship finals for the second consecutive tournament. Guseinov went 2-1 on the day, earning a 20-4 technical fall over RPI's Tom Ryan and a 14-2 major decision against Nassau's Noah Foster before falling in the finals to Division I Long Island University's Kaleb Wright.
Junior Botensky Bauzile placed fourth at 141 lbs. while wrestling up a weight from his usual 133lb. class. Bauzile opened the tournament with a 19-4 technical fall over Nassau County Community College's Zachary Tinyes and followed with a 10-2 decision against Sussex County's Michael Vander Meulen. After a semifinal loss to SUNY Niagara's Trevor Copes, he responded with another technical fall in the wrestlebacks before dropping the third-place bout to Hofstra's Joe Sparacio.
Sophomore Jayden Medina put together one of the day's most productive runs, collecting five wins to finish fifth in a crowded 149lb. bracket. Medina avenged an earlier-season loss to Stevens Tech's Logan Levine with a decisive 16-0 technical fall and added 15-0 technical falls over Justin Dvorak of Stony Brook and Daniel Downs (unattached). He also earned victories over Division I LIU's Jackson Herman and Division II Felician's Giovanni Scafdi, with his only losses coming against Hofstra wrestlers.
At 165 lbs., freshman Jordan Fisher reached the podium for the first time as a Hawk, finishing sixth. Fisher opened the day with wins over Amari Libertone-Robinson of Niagara University, a 2:13 fall against Rochester Polytechnic Instittue's Xavier Paul-Smith, and a 12-4 major decision over Camden County Community College's Elijah Trader. He was forced to injury default a tightly contested semifinal headed to overtime and medically forfeited his remaining bouts.
Several Hawks secured two wins apiece in the tournament. Freshman Muhamadu Konteh went 2-0 at 125 lbs. with a 17-1 technical fall over Northampton Communtiy College's Joel Guerrero and a 14-10 decision against Union County Community College's Noah Reyes. Sophomore Komiljon Ismoilov earned a 22-10 major decision over Springfield Tech's Joseph Breault and a 1:13 fall against Antonio Estrada (unattached) at 149 lbs. Marc Kleyman collected two victories in the tournament's largest bracket at 157 lbs., defeating Nassau County Community College's Marcos Alvarenga, 6-0, and Northampton Community College's Shane Stankina, 12-8. Sophomore Jack Kent added a 4-2 decision over Springfield Tech's Sean McCall and a 2:37 fall against Stony Brook's Ansh Maniani at 165 lbs.
Also recording wins for Hunter were freshmen Christopher Gliaos (149 lbs.), Anthony Coccarelli (157 lbs.), Naseer Johnson (184 lbs.) and Hayden Roy (285 lbs.), as the Hawks capped the day with their highest win total in an open tournament to date.
