Three-for-three? Norwich wrestling looks to make history with three state titles
Dante Geislinger, Mikey Squires and Tyler Rice will look to make Norwich school history this weekend at the New York State Championships. The Purple Tornado trio are all eyeing a state title and if all three are to win, it will be the first time Norwich has three champions at the same tournament. (Photo courtsey of Norwich City Schools)
Nine Chenango County wrestlers eye state championship bragging rights
ALBANY – Looking up to Frankie Garcia and Tristan Rifanburg as role models of the high school wrestling world, Norwich’s Dante Geislinger, Mikey Squires and Tyler Rice strived to be like their older idols.
“Having Frankie and Tristan as role models and both winning a state championship in one season has always been a driving force for us to try and come away with three,” said Squires.
Like Garcia and Rifanburg did several years ago, the three Purple Tornado Wrestlers are looking to make history this weekend at the New York State Championships – three state champions from the same school in the same season.
What many don’t know about the Norwich trio is that they have been wrestling together for 12 years and with Geislinger and Squires in their final season, this is the last try for all three to win a state title.
Since a young age, the three have traveled to many places together and created a bond like no other – a brotherhood that takes place on and off the mat.
“We came up through the Norwich wrestling program together, ever since we were five and six years old,” said Squires. “This weekend is not just a testament to this season but one of all the hard work we have put in throughout our careers.”
Rice, the younger of the three, will have one more season after this to attempt a state title run but he stated that this trip will be like no other.
“These guys [Dante and Mikey] are like brothers to me,” Rice said. “This is just one final moment for us to be together and share the mat. It would be the icing on the cake.
“We have dreamed about this since we were little kids, wrestling everywhere together. Now to be in the biggest spotlight of the season and to come away with three state champions in the same season would be something special and an unforgettable moment.”
Missing the state tournament a season ago, Rice suffered an semifinal loss at the Section IV Division II tournament. Hoping to receive a wild card berth for the championship weekend, Rice was disappointed when his name was not announced as one.
He has returned this season and will be taking his second trip to states as the third seed of the 285 pound bracket. The Norwich junior complied a season record of 31-5 so far and will be looking to keep the loss side at five.
“Last year was a heartbreaking season for me,” said Rice. “It has driven me to work harder than I ever have.”
Squires reached the finals of the New York State tournament in one of the toughest weight classes – the 152 pound bracket. Facing Duanesburg’s Zach Lawrence – the wrestler with the third most wins in New York State – in the championship bout, Squires nearly came away with the win at the last second but the official waved off the call, awarded a 3-2 decision win to the Section II champion.
Many in the sports world would see this loss as a driving force of an competitive athlete like the Princeton-bound senior. However, Squires has a different take on it.
“A lot of people would say that a loss like that would drive me even more but I was already driving 100 percent,” said Squires. “I have kept driving the same amount after that as well. To me, it wasn’t necessarily a sign I need to work harder. It was a sign of what’s to come. The kid I lost to last season is one of the best in the state and to have a 3-2 loss to him was a sign that I needed to keep doing what I was doing. I believe that will pay off this year.”
This season will be Squires’ fourth time at the state tournament and he will taking on the 170 pound bracket as the top-seed.
Rifanburg is the only wrestler in Norwich school history that has won three state championships. He could possible have the 113 pound senior match his record as Geislinger is seeking his third consecutive championship.
“Tristan [Rifanburg] motivated me throughout my young career,” said Geislinger. “I always wanted to be like him, and all my hard work has been to achieve what he did. Now I am going for the same accomplishment and it would be amazing to be mentioned in the same conversation as Tristan.”
Geislinger is also the top seed of his bracket and will look to claim the 113 pound title after winning the 99 and 106 pound championships in his sophomore and junior seasons.
“To have all three of us come out on top this season would be something special,” Geislinger said. “It would show all of the hard work we have put in over the years in the that wrestling room and on the mat.”
Six other wrestlers from Chenango County will be attempting to return home as a New York State champion at the conclusion of the two-days full of wrestling.
After winning the Section IV title at 145 pounds, Bainbridge-Guilford-Afton-Harpursville’s Brody Oleksak returns to the state tournament for the second year in a row and his third appearance at states overall.
Oleksak is the number one seed of the bracket after capturing a 35-1 record throughout the season. His only loss came in the Clyde Cole finals bout in the first weekend the season. Since that loss, the BGAH junior has won 33 straight matches.
He could potentially see Bobby Brotherton of Dryden – his opponent in the finals of the Section IV Division II championships where Oleksak came away with the 11-2 major decision win – in the quarterfinals on Friday.
As a late add to the 99 pound bracket, BGAH’s Darren Florance will make his New York State Championship debut. After one wrestler came down with an illness, Florance was the alternate with is 31-8 record as an eighth-grader.
The Bears’ youngster has Gianni Silvestri of Tioga as the top seed of the weight class, a familiar foe throughout the season. The two have met six times this year with Silvestri coming away as the winner each match.
Joining Oleksak and Florance will be Joey Florance, Darren’s older brother as the 14th seed in the 106 pound bracket. Joey earned a wild card bid with is season record of 28-8 to take his second trip to the state tournament in as many seasons.
Joey Florance will be immediately tested as he faces Caden Bellis of Tioga – the third seed of the bracket. Twice this season, the two have met on the mat and Bellis was the winner in both bouts by two points each time. Joey will look to avenge his sectional finals loss to the Tioga wrestler with hopes of earning the early tournament upset.
Sherburne-Earlville’s Ethen Eldred picked up one of the Section III wild cards after falling to Anthony Rasmussen of South Jefferson/Sandy Creek two weeks go in the finals. Rasmussen earned the number two seed of the 182 pound weight class and the two could meet in the finals.
If Eldred is to win his first match of the day, he would match up against the top-seeded Ethan Cooper of Cobleskill-Richmondville. Cooper and Eldred are no strangers this season as the met at the Ross Kordell Rotary Tournament. Cooper topped the S-E senior in the match by a final of 7-1.
Earning his second straight at-large big is Greene/Oxford’s Noah Kennedy at 195 pounds. Kennedy fell in the finals at the Section IV championships to Windsor’s Brandon Butler by a final of 1-0. The two met at the Windsor Christmas tournament and Butler also captured a 3-2 victory over Kennedy.
The Windsor wrestler has the five seed and is placed in the top half of the bracket while the Blackhawks senior is the 11-seed and will look to improve his 32-5 record with a win over sixth-seeded Brendan Covey in the first bout.
At 220 pounds, Alex Thompson of the Sherburne-Earlville Marauders is the six-seed. His record of 29-1 for the season gave him the spot on the bottom half of the bracket.
Thompson’s lone loss this season came at the Section III championships in the finals to Homer’s Sam Sorenson – the fourth seed of the weight class for states. Also in the bracket is Scott Barnhart of Walton/Delhi. The S-E wrestler and Barnhart have also matched up against each other this season twice and Thompson came out on top both times.
Action for all nine wrestlers begins at 10 a.m. on Friday with the wrestle-in rounds. Matches can be viewed on www.nfhsnetwork.com/associations/nysphsaa. Real-time results will also be provided by www.trackwrestling.com, listed under the 2020 NYSPHSAA State Championships.
ALBANY – Looking up to Frankie Garcia and Tristan Rifanburg as role models of the high school wrestling world, Norwich’s Dante Geislinger, Mikey Squires and Tyler Rice strived to be like their older idols.
“Having Frankie and Tristan as role models and both winning a state championship in one season has always been a driving force for us to try and come away with three,” said Squires.
Like Garcia and Rifanburg did several years ago, the three Purple Tornado Wrestlers are looking to make history this weekend at the New York State Championships – three state champions from the same school in the same season.
What many don’t know about the Norwich trio is that they have been wrestling together for 12 years and with Geislinger and Squires in their final season, this is the last try for all three to win a state title.
Since a young age, the three have traveled to many places together and created a bond like no other – a brotherhood that takes place on and off the mat.
“We came up through the Norwich wrestling program together, ever since we were five and six years old,” said Squires. “This weekend is not just a testament to this season but one of all the hard work we have put in throughout our careers.”
Rice, the younger of the three, will have one more season after this to attempt a state title run but he stated that this trip will be like no other.
“These guys [Dante and Mikey] are like brothers to me,” Rice said. “This is just one final moment for us to be together and share the mat. It would be the icing on the cake.
“We have dreamed about this since we were little kids, wrestling everywhere together. Now to be in the biggest spotlight of the season and to come away with three state champions in the same season would be something special and an unforgettable moment.”
Missing the state tournament a season ago, Rice suffered an semifinal loss at the Section IV Division II tournament. Hoping to receive a wild card berth for the championship weekend, Rice was disappointed when his name was not announced as one.
He has returned this season and will be taking his second trip to states as the third seed of the 285 pound bracket. The Norwich junior complied a season record of 31-5 so far and will be looking to keep the loss side at five.
“Last year was a heartbreaking season for me,” said Rice. “It has driven me to work harder than I ever have.”
Squires reached the finals of the New York State tournament in one of the toughest weight classes – the 152 pound bracket. Facing Duanesburg’s Zach Lawrence – the wrestler with the third most wins in New York State – in the championship bout, Squires nearly came away with the win at the last second but the official waved off the call, awarded a 3-2 decision win to the Section II champion.
Many in the sports world would see this loss as a driving force of an competitive athlete like the Princeton-bound senior. However, Squires has a different take on it.
“A lot of people would say that a loss like that would drive me even more but I was already driving 100 percent,” said Squires. “I have kept driving the same amount after that as well. To me, it wasn’t necessarily a sign I need to work harder. It was a sign of what’s to come. The kid I lost to last season is one of the best in the state and to have a 3-2 loss to him was a sign that I needed to keep doing what I was doing. I believe that will pay off this year.”
This season will be Squires’ fourth time at the state tournament and he will taking on the 170 pound bracket as the top-seed.
Rifanburg is the only wrestler in Norwich school history that has won three state championships. He could possible have the 113 pound senior match his record as Geislinger is seeking his third consecutive championship.
“Tristan [Rifanburg] motivated me throughout my young career,” said Geislinger. “I always wanted to be like him, and all my hard work has been to achieve what he did. Now I am going for the same accomplishment and it would be amazing to be mentioned in the same conversation as Tristan.”
Geislinger is also the top seed of his bracket and will look to claim the 113 pound title after winning the 99 and 106 pound championships in his sophomore and junior seasons.
“To have all three of us come out on top this season would be something special,” Geislinger said. “It would show all of the hard work we have put in over the years in the that wrestling room and on the mat.”
Six other wrestlers from Chenango County will be attempting to return home as a New York State champion at the conclusion of the two-days full of wrestling.
After winning the Section IV title at 145 pounds, Bainbridge-Guilford-Afton-Harpursville’s Brody Oleksak returns to the state tournament for the second year in a row and his third appearance at states overall.
Oleksak is the number one seed of the bracket after capturing a 35-1 record throughout the season. His only loss came in the Clyde Cole finals bout in the first weekend the season. Since that loss, the BGAH junior has won 33 straight matches.
He could potentially see Bobby Brotherton of Dryden – his opponent in the finals of the Section IV Division II championships where Oleksak came away with the 11-2 major decision win – in the quarterfinals on Friday.
As a late add to the 99 pound bracket, BGAH’s Darren Florance will make his New York State Championship debut. After one wrestler came down with an illness, Florance was the alternate with is 31-8 record as an eighth-grader.
The Bears’ youngster has Gianni Silvestri of Tioga as the top seed of the weight class, a familiar foe throughout the season. The two have met six times this year with Silvestri coming away as the winner each match.
Joining Oleksak and Florance will be Joey Florance, Darren’s older brother as the 14th seed in the 106 pound bracket. Joey earned a wild card bid with is season record of 28-8 to take his second trip to the state tournament in as many seasons.
Joey Florance will be immediately tested as he faces Caden Bellis of Tioga – the third seed of the bracket. Twice this season, the two have met on the mat and Bellis was the winner in both bouts by two points each time. Joey will look to avenge his sectional finals loss to the Tioga wrestler with hopes of earning the early tournament upset.
Sherburne-Earlville’s Ethen Eldred picked up one of the Section III wild cards after falling to Anthony Rasmussen of South Jefferson/Sandy Creek two weeks go in the finals. Rasmussen earned the number two seed of the 182 pound weight class and the two could meet in the finals.
If Eldred is to win his first match of the day, he would match up against the top-seeded Ethan Cooper of Cobleskill-Richmondville. Cooper and Eldred are no strangers this season as the met at the Ross Kordell Rotary Tournament. Cooper topped the S-E senior in the match by a final of 7-1.
Earning his second straight at-large big is Greene/Oxford’s Noah Kennedy at 195 pounds. Kennedy fell in the finals at the Section IV championships to Windsor’s Brandon Butler by a final of 1-0. The two met at the Windsor Christmas tournament and Butler also captured a 3-2 victory over Kennedy.
The Windsor wrestler has the five seed and is placed in the top half of the bracket while the Blackhawks senior is the 11-seed and will look to improve his 32-5 record with a win over sixth-seeded Brendan Covey in the first bout.
At 220 pounds, Alex Thompson of the Sherburne-Earlville Marauders is the six-seed. His record of 29-1 for the season gave him the spot on the bottom half of the bracket.
Thompson’s lone loss this season came at the Section III championships in the finals to Homer’s Sam Sorenson – the fourth seed of the weight class for states. Also in the bracket is Scott Barnhart of Walton/Delhi. The S-E wrestler and Barnhart have also matched up against each other this season twice and Thompson came out on top both times.
Action for all nine wrestlers begins at 10 a.m. on Friday with the wrestle-in rounds. Matches can be viewed on www.nfhsnetwork.com/associations/nysphsaa. Real-time results will also be provided by www.trackwrestling.com, listed under the 2020 NYSPHSAA State Championships.
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