The RED and BLACK Wrestling: A Look Back at CHSAA History

Total number of CHSAA State Champs by school from 1980-2020:

1. St. Anthony’s-158

2. Chaminade-107

3. Monsignor Farrell-69

4. Kellenberg Memorial-38

5. St. Francis-35

6. Fordham Prep-26

7. Holy Trinity-21

8. St. John the Baptist-20

9. St. Joseph’s Collegiate-19

10. Mount St. Michael-18

11. Xaverian-14

12. Canisius-13

13. Holy Family-11

14. Xavier-09

15. St. Peter’s Boys-08

16. Cardinal O’Hara-07

17. Iona Prep-05

17. Nazareth-05

19. St. Mary’s-03

20. Archbishop Stepinac-02

20. Nicholas-02

20. St. Joseph’s by the Sea-02

23. Archbishop Walsh-01

23. DeSales-01

23. Kennedy Catholic-01

23. Maria Regina-01

23. Salesian-01

23. Turner-Carroll-01

2020 CHSAA State Champ vs Champ Dual Meet

2020 was quite a year for CHSAA Finals matches. All matches were great matches and had the fans out of their seats. Out of our 15 CHSAA State Champs, 7 of them went on to be State Medalists and we even had a runner up and New York State Champ. But what would happen if these guys wrestled each other? I created a series of matches which sees our 2020 Champs collide in a dual meet setting. It features 7 matches that I think would be very entertaining. DISCLAIMER!: I will not be providing scores for each match. I also decided to prevent creating a teammate vs teammate match for 126 and 132 so I combined both wrestlers into the same team. And remember, these matches are Fantasy matches and were created as a "What if" scenario. So please enjoy and remember this is just for fun and not to be taken seriously.

Team Red: Team Black:

Mike Adams vs Shane Meenaghan

Daniel Adams vs Sean Flick

Mike Sanfilippo/Rocco Demartino vs Stephen Crisci

AJ Kovacs vs Ramon Perez

Ryan Siller vs Elias Emery

Matt Kelly vs James Watterson

Brian Holder vs Caleb Lesswing

Match #1: Mike Adams (Monsignor Farrell) vs Shane Meenaghan (Chaminade)

This match I can realistically see happen in an upcoming season. But if these two wrestlers see it each other, it will be one hell of a match. Both wrestlers took home their first Catholic State Title but both managed to end their season with impressive finishes. Mike Adams has a list of accomplishments under his belt as he placed 6th at the Prestigious Eastern States Classic and 5th at the State Tournament. Shane Meenaghan went on to place 7th at the State Tournament avenging some losses from the Eastern States Tournament. As both of these studs are State placers it would be interesting to see these two hammers go to war and it will be very entertaining to see it go the distance as both of these guys are pinning machines, both having won their CHSAA State Titles via pin (Adams 1st Period) and (Meenaghan 1:00 into the 2nd Period).

Match #2: Daniel Adams (Monsignor Farrell) vs Sean Flick (St. Anthony's)

What isn't there to say about these two guys? Both wrestlers had incredible careers and had multiple CHSAA State Titles repeating as Champs as this year Adams a 2x and Flick a 3x. Adams was a finalist in 2018 but fell short of the Gold as Flick took home his first that year. Flick Went on to be a 3x CHSAA State Champ as Adams went on win 2 CHSAA State Titles with an insane finals match with Rocco Demartino (132lb Champ in 2020). Daniel, like Mike ended his season as an All State Medalist. But if these two guys ever met it would be an absolute barn burner. Flick's technique and speed vs Adams flexibility and scrambling would make for a crazy and entertaining match like they continue to put on as we have seen from their 2020 CHSAA State Finals performances.

Match #3: Mike Sanfilippo/Rocco Demartino (Chaminade) vs Stephen Crisci (St. John's the Baptist)

Mike Sanfilippo and Rocco Demartino had quite the year. After both wrestlers fell short of titles last year they rallied back this year to take home the Gold. Both wrestlers were returning finalists and had entertaining finals matches. Speaking of entertaining finals matches 138lbs Champ Stephen Crisci had a crazy finals math with Christian Schifano. But if either of these guys met we would be looking at another amazing match. All 3 of these wrestlers have impressive technique as well as Sanfilippo's strength and Demartino's explosiveness vs Crisci's size and length would make for an interesting match. I can see this match going the distance as all wrestlers have good gas tanks and don't let up.

Match #4: AJ Kovas (Iona Prep) vs Ramon Perez (Monsignor Farrell)

AJ Kovacs was a state champ in 2019 and runner up in 2020. AJ has a lot of accomplishments and continues to add to them. AJ's relentless chain of attacks makes him a hard wrestler to counter against. But don't overlook Ramon Perez. Perez the 2020 CHSAA State Champ at 145 this year has gave some of the best and toughest wrestlers in the state a hard time with his unorthodox style of wrestling. Even 2020 NYS Champ Willie McDougald had a tough time putting Perez away at the Eastern States Classic. If these 2 wrestlers met each other you can expect to see some funky and unorthodox wrestling.

Match #5: Ryan Siller (Monsignor Farrell) vs Elias Emery (Xavier)

These 2 hammers earned their first CHSAA State Crowns this year. Siller has showed he can compete with the best of them ending his career as a State Medalist. Emery the CHSAA State Champ at 170 shows he's not just strength, showcasing his speed and agility. Siller's technique and aggression makes him a tough opponent, and he never shies away from tough competition usually chasing the tougher matches. So if these 2 studs met each other expect some tough hand fighting and a lot of scoring as both of them are constantly looking to score points in their matches.

Match #6: Matt Kelly (Iona Prep) vs James Watterson (Kellenberg)

This would be a highly entertaining match! Matt Kelly was your NYS Champ in 2020 at 195lbs and pretty much dominated his way throughout the whole tournament. With his tough leg riding Kelly is one wrestler who will make it impossible for you to get out of bottom. Now let's talk about James Watterson. Watterson showed up and showed out at this year's CHSAA State Tournament when he surprisingly dominated returning CHSAA State Finalist Ronnie Jones (St. Joe's Collegiate). Watterson's explosiveness makes him a dangerous neutral wrestler. Watterson only continued to add on to his resume as he ended his career as an All State Medalist. If these 2 stepped on the mat against each other expect to see some fireworks as these 2 guys just do not let up. Whether it's constantly looking to score or finding creative offense, these 2 hammers will go toe to toe until the final whistle and it will be awesome!

Match #7: Brian Holder (Holy Trinity) vs Caleb Lesswing (St. Joe's Collegiate)

Brian Holder had an impressive run at the 2020 CHSAA State Tournament. What was even more impressive was his overtime win over Branden Cohen of Xavier. Although Holder was giving up some weight he showed that weight made no difference as he showed off his speed and strength with consecutive mat returns and explosive shots. Caleb Lesswing showed how dominate he is when he pinned his finals opponent in the first period. Lesswing's athleticism makes him a hard opponent to score on and with his heavy hands his hand fighting will open up most wrestlers he faces. Lesswing also never lets up on his attacks and if he gets on your legs, you can expect to see him score or even lock up some back points. So, if these 2 guys ever faced each other expect to see another thrilling match!

RED And BLACK Spotlight: Ryan Siller

Ryan Siller wrestled for Monsignor Farrell at the 160lb weight class and won the CHSAA State Championships at his respective weight. Let's take a look at his run in the CHSAA State Championships and Ryan's Senior Campaign.

Starting off Ryan had an incredible run in the NYC Mayor's Cup Tournament. Ryan was a returning finalist from the year before having close quarters and semifinal matches which literally came down to the closing seconds of the match. In the finals Siller had lost to Brooklyn Tech's Jack Reusing. Fast Forward a year later and Siller get's his chance at revenge with a fall over St. Joseph's By The Sea's James Murphy in the opening round. Siller's dominance didn't end as he won his quarterfinals with a 10-0 major decision win over RKA's Carlos Guzman and an 8-5 decision over Dmitri Gamkiliedze in the semifinals punching his ticket to the finals and a shot at revenge. The bout was close with a tied 2-2 score heading into the 3rd period. With his opponent up by 1 with an escape Siller was able to capitalize off a scrambling position to lock in a cradle. It looked like Reusing was going to put Siller to his own back but Siller managed to roll through and collect back points putting him up 7-3. Siller manages to close out the match with a 7-4 score.

Siller was the #1 Seed at his weight heading into the CHSAA State Tournament. After a bye in the first round Siller's opening bout came in the quarterfinals against St. Anthony's Timothy Longo where Siller won via 10-0 major decision. In the semifinals won by pin in 3:07 against Holy Trinity's Kenneth Kroez punching his ticket to the finals. In the finals Siller wrestled a familiar opponent in St. Joe's Collegiate's Ben Parish. Both wrestlers met in the CHSAA Dual Tournament a few weeks prior to CHSAA State Tournament where Siller won via pin in 5:54. This bout however was closer in score. A couple of seconds into the match Siller secured a takedown off a snap and spin behind. With Parish scoring a reversal halfway through the second period. After a stalemate call they reset in the middle and Siller scores a reversal of his own to end the period on top. Siller started the third and final period on bottom where he manages to not get turned for the final two minutes of the match. Siller wins by a 4-2 decision. Siller went on to compete in the New York State Tournament where he went on finish 8th in the state at 160lbs. Siller now attends the Division 1 University of Iowa.

Link to Siller's Mayor's Cup Finals:

https://fb.watch/1p-p9pXhuU/

Link to Siller's CHSAA State Finals:

https://youtu.be/W4Yy-j1icds?list=WL&t=27285

Want to see the interview? Click on this link to see Siller talk about the impact of his coach Ray Brinzer and how he was the talk of Iowa Wrestling Room:

https://youtu.be/sE8SbNnyaFo