189 Semifinal: Buonaiuto pinned

You don't see this very often. In fact, only once before. But Zach Buonaiuto was pinned in the 189 semifinals by Matt Loew of Wantagh. Buonaiuto settled for fifth place for the second straight year.

VIDEO: Day 1 in Albany

Here are a few video highlights of Day 1 of the state wrestling championship:

Be sure to pick up Friday's paper

Friday's edition of the North Shore Sun will have extended coverage of this weekend's wrestling tournament, with stories on all the county champs from our coverage area. Also, a video package will be up on this site, as well as the Sun's homepage by Monday night or Tuesday. I still have to edit the video. So check back for that as well.

A few quick thoughts on the tournament:

• There really weren't many surprises. Going back to early December, of the 15 wrestlers ranked No. 1 in the county, 10 of them went on to win the county title Saturday. The only winners who weren't ranked No. 1 two months ago were Mike Soria (96), Nick Meinsen (125), Dan O'Malley (130), Ryan Rheaume (152) and Billy Coggins (160). Meinsen and Coggins were ranked second.
  

• Everyone seemed to enjoy Hofstra in terms of the actual facility. Space was very good (better than Stony Brook) and the seating brought fans right on top of the action. The seats looked pretty comfortable as well. It was interesting to watch the Hofstra staff transform the arena from its original six-mat format to a two-mat format for the finals. The staff worked very diligently to get everything in order, which included dissembling the stage for the main table, opening up all the closed seats, rearranging the mats and setting up the tables for press row. At that time the TV crew came in and starting running wires everywhere to get their setup in order. I sat back, watched and ate some pizza. 
  

• Next year could be problematic for a sight to host the tournament. Stony Brook won't be available yet next year as the construction remains on hold due to a lack of financing. But I've heard next year all the county tournament's are supposed to be the same weekend. And Nassau wants to use Hofstra. If that's so, where does that leave Suffolk?
  

• From what I could tell nearly all the wrestlers and coaches stayed in hotels nearby the arena rather than driving all the way home. Seemed to make sense, especially for schools like Mattituck, where it's more than a 2-hour drive to Hofstra. 
  

• I was a little disappointed with the attendance for the finals. It was a good crowd, but by no means close to a sellout in the 5,000-seat arena. As Hofstra staff was setting up the arena, I heard a man whom I presume to be the guy in charge of the operation, say a sellout was expected. I didn't think that was going to happen, especially considering the farther drive. But still, I thought the top sections of the arena would fill out a little more.
  

• I don't know if I agree with Ken Collado as the MOW. I know he's the only returning state champ, so that gives him a little extra cred, but I don't think he had the most dominant run through the tournament. The 112 class is a very tough weight, no doubt, but Collado didn't even record a pin or tech fall in the tourney. In the quarterfinals he won 2-0 against Longwood's Nicky Hall, who is just an eighth-grader. When you look at a guy like Dutton from Rocky Point, he barely broke a sweat in his four wins. Is that because his weight class is that much inferior or is he just that much more talented? I would argue the latter. Even guys like Buonaiuto and James were utterly dominant with four pins each. James pinned a guy in the finals who was undefeated. And even Keith, who won the award last year, could have been considered. He gave up one give-away point the entire tournament. But, I don't get to vote for the award, so my opinion doesn't matter....
  

• It was nice to see Longwood, one of the predominant wrestling programs in the history of the tournament, crown a county champ again. James was the school's first champ since Mike Tricarico at 189 in 2006. It was also the school's best team finish since 2002 when the Lions finished second to William Floyd. Now there's a school you don't expect to win a county title these days...
  

• Rocky Point's three county champs was also a first in school history. The Eagles had crowned two in a tournament before.
  

Buonaiuto reaches milestone

Miller Place coach Domenic LoRe never likes to talk about his wrestler's milestones as they approach. Chalk it up to superstition. There's no need to worry after Thursday, though, as 189-pounder Zach Buonaiuto notched career victory No. 100 in a win against Westhampton. 

Buonaiuto had been sitting on 99 for quite some time. After a dual meet win against Mount Sinai Jan. 16 he needed four more wins. At the Sachem North tournament the next day he won his weight class, but only had three matches, leaving him at 99. The Panthers did wrestle a week later at the North Fork Invitational, but Buonaiuto apparently didn't wrestle. Any Panther fans out there wishing to add some insight, feel free to post and share. After that their next dual meet didn't come until tonight.

The Panthers host SWR Friday in what should be a very close meet. Historically the Wildcats have owned this rivalry, but the Panthers have won the last two years.

Keith earns some redemption

Shoreham-Wading River senior Steven Keith defeated Justis Flamio of Mahopac in the 119-pound finals of the Eastern States Classic Saturday. Keith lost to Flamio in the semifinals of the state tournament a year ago, ending his bid for a second straight state title. Keith won a 10-2 major decision. Last year Flamio won 8-3 in the state semifinals before losing to Syosset's Nick Arujau.

Keith, however, did beat Flamio at the Eastern States last year as well, 10-0, so it's no guarantee come state tournament time.

Also at the Eastern States, Rocky Point junior Stephen Dutton won the 135-pound title. He beat Andrew Lenzi of Fordham Prep in the finals, 9-1.

Dutton's teammate, Billy Coggins, won the 160-pound title over local rival T.J. Neidhart of Shoreham-Wading River, 3-2.

Miller Place senior Zach Buonaiuto lost to Shenendehowa's Austin Meys in the 189 finals. Meys, the defending state champion, is one of the top overall wrestlers in the country and the road to a state title goes directly through him. Meys pinned Buonaiuto in 1:11, handing him his first loss of the season. Still a good tournament for Buonaiuto, who has rarely been tested thus far in Suffolk County.