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Wrestling News 2008-2009

CROMWELL HAS COME A LONG WAY IN A VERY SHORT TIME

July 30, 2009

Isaiah Cromwell started wrestling only three years ago when he enrolled at St. Benedict's as an eighth grader.

Now he's an All-American.

Cromwell obtained the unlikely accomplishment last week in the Cadet National Freestyle Championships at the FargoDome in North Dakota.

The 15-year-old Cromwell, who just began his junior year at St. Benedict's, placed eighth at 189 pounds to earn All-America status in the most prestigious event in the country.

"I think I surprised a lot of people, even myself," admitted Cromwell. "When I got to St. Benedict's, I had never seen a wrestling match and now this. It's pretty amazing."

Cromwell's meteoric rise in wrestling isn't quite as surprising considering all the time he spends on the mat, including in the off-season. He is a product of Newark's Central Ward and wrestling has been Cromwell's way of escaping some of the negative influences of the inner-city.

"Wrestling has allowed me to avoid the streets," he said. "I'm at school until 6:30 or 7:00 at night during the wrestling season and here almost all summer working in the practice room."

Cromwell is also very active in community service. In fact, he and his mother, Latrice Smith, have founded a non-profit organization entitled, "Embracing Arms." The program provides opportunities for kids in Newark and, he hopes, to bridge the gap between the elders and youth of the city.

"I keep busy," said Cromwell, also an honor student who sports a 3.5 GPA. "People try to pressure me in the streets once in awhile, but I don't let that get to me. I'll just keep doing what I'm doing and that will keep me out of trouble."

Cromwell's goal last week in the Cadet Nationals was to win just one match. But, after coming out on top in his first four bouts on the first day, he had to reestablish his thinking.

"I got a lot more confidence each time I won," said Cromwell, who failed to win a single bout in the tournament last year. "After winning all four matches the first day, I started thinking about placing and getting on the podium."

Cromwell extended his winning skein to five matches by winning his fifth round match on day 2 of the tournament. He then fell into the consolation bracket when he lost during the sixth round and eventually wound up reaching the podium in eighth place to earn his All-America honor. The top eight place-winners in each weight class earn All-America.

"Even though Isaiah only learned about the sport of wrestling three years ago, he has already made tremendous strides," said St. Benedict's coach Solomom Fleckman. "Through hard work and off-season training, Isaiah has gone from being a rather clumsy, awkward "scrapper" to a tactically savvy competitor."

Cromwell and Fleckman have spent numerous hours - sometimes just the two of them - in the wrestling room working on technique and sparring until the student understood each concept through mental understanding or physical training.

"Virtually no one who knew him thought he would be ready to garner any sort of honors or accolades for years to come," Fleckman said. "Still, Isaiah followed guidance, asked questions and nagged me to no end to work with him so that he could improve."

Improve is what Cromwell hopes to continue to do. He also knows he now has made a name for himself and will not be taken lightly in the future.

"I still have a long way to go before I get where I want to be," said Cromwell, who hopes someday to wrestle for an Ivy League school. "Being an All-American gives me a lot of confidence. But I came in 8th place - not 1st. My goal is to be champion."

Notes: St. Benedict's also had three other wrestlers participating in the Nationals. Turtgotkh Luvsandorj (3-2 at 160 pounds) and Matt Aaron (0-2 at 125 pounds) competed in the Junior Division, while Chris Dowdy (3-2 at 140 pounds) joined Cromwell in the Cadet Division. The Grey Bees wrestlers posted a very formidable combined record of 11-7.

--By Ron Jandoli

FLECKMAN THINKING NATIONALLY AS HE TAKES OVER THE REIGNS
Wrestling coach hopes to build on tradition of excellence at The Hive

July 2009

St. Benedict's has built teams in both soccer and basketball that contend nearly every year for a national championship.

That's the pinnacle Solomon Fleckman thinks the Gray Bees wrestling team can reach.

"Am I starting out the year looking to catch Blair? Not right now," said Fleckman, of obtaining the same national prominence for the Gray Bees program that has been a hallmark of Blair. "But would it be in the back of my mind to one day create the opportunity for the kids to compete at that level? Absolutely."

Fleckman, the Dean of Faculty at St. Benedict's, who has spent the previous three years as an assistant coach to Mike DiPiano Jr., has taken over the head coaching responsibilities. He knows what it takes to reach the level of a team like Blair - he spent 10 years as an assistant coach at the school in Warren County, when it began its rise as a national power in the 90s.

"I come from a high-profile program and I think at that level," said Fleckman. "That is my lens on the sport in terms of what's possible."

Fleckman knows he can't turn the Gray Bees into a national contender overnight. But he does feel the ground work has been laid by the likes of Johnny Allen beginning in the 50s all the way up to the most recent predecessors, the DiPianos (Mike Sr. & Jr.) and Mark Gerbino. They have paved the way and given the wrestling program at The Hive a superb base.

"A lot of people have built this foundation, laid the ground work and given a lot of nurturing and care to this program," Fleckman said. "It's rare in this sport across the country to have this much tradition and I'm here to build upon it. It's an exciting time for the program."

Fleckman can't do it alone. He will call upon assistant Dave Carlo and a number of outside individuals for help - from the administration and beyond while upholding and, hopefully, eclipsing the traditions as we head into the second decade of the millennium.

"I'm totally excited and supportive of Solomon," said Mike Caruso '63, the most decorated wrestler in Gray Bees history, who went 81-0 in his scholastic career before going on to become Lehigh's only three-time NCAA champion. "He's a person of high integrity, well respected in the wrestling community and someone who will continue a long and great tradition that we've built here at St. Benedict's."

"I want to do whatever I can to support Solomon in his vision for the team," said Headmaster Fr. Edwin Leahy. "We've been blessed with people who can get kids to compete on the highest possible level. If we have kids who are capable of competing on the national level, then we better make sure we're doing the kinds of things that allow that to happen."

Fleckman may just have all the tools to help the Gray Bees establish a national reputation. He was a three-time Florida state high school champion and winner of four junior titles for USA Wrestling before the age of 20. He went on to become an NCAA All-American at Lehigh in 1992 before landing at Blair a year later.

"Our vision is to create opportunities for the kids to be on par with any wrestling program in the country," said Fleckman. "I come from a background where you're around opportunities. I want the kids to have the opportunities - that's the first step."

Fleckman is already making inroads. A steady, off-season workout regime saw eight St. Benedict's wrestlers compete in the "Cadet" state championships - Blair didn't have that many. Four of those wrestlers: Turtgotkh Luvsandorj (160 pounds), Isaiah Cromwell (171 or 189), Chris Dowdy (130 or 135) and Matt Aaron (125), qualified for the Nationals - the largest wrestling tournament in the world - July 20-25 in Fargo, N.D.

The real test, however, will come when the winter season gets underway and 2009 gives way to 2010. Fleckman feels him and, more importantly, his team will be ready.

"It's an exciting time for the program. There's a lot of interest from the student body," said Fleckman. "We want to get the most out of the program and do what's best for the kids. That's my main objective.

"Everything we do from here on out is going to get scrutinized in comparison to the people who did an outstanding job before. If I don't screw things up, I think we can fly even higher."

BATSUKH AND HUNTER EARN NATIONAL COLLEGIATE WRESTLING TITLES
Tovuujav competing in NCAA Division 1 Championships

March 18, 2009

Minga Batsukh '06 and Patrick Hunter '08 each fell one-bout short of claiming a national title while wrestling for St. Benedict's Prep.

The duo, however, finally laid claim to their elusive national crown - Batsukh for St. John's University in Minnesota and Hunter for Iowa Central - on the collegiate level.

Batsukh, who was a National Prep runner-up in 2006 after placing fourth a year earlier for St. Benedict's, won the NCAA Division 3 title on March 7 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Hunter, who placed second in the prep nationals last year in a Gray Bees singlet, won the National Junior College championship in Rochester, Minn. a week earlier.

Batsukh, a native of Mongolia, who was an assistant coach at St. Benedict's last year before heading to St. John's, became the fourth national champion for his college with a 5-2 verdict over Zach McKray of Iowa's Wartburg College at 141 pounds. The fourth-seeded Batsukh, a sophomore, knocked off top-seeded Austin Batista of Wisconsin-Whitewater, 4-3, in the semifinals before taking out the No. 2 seed, McKray, in the final.

Hunter, who came to St. Benedict's last year by way of South Plainfield, helped lead Iowa Central to the NJCAA team title for the fourth straight year with 161 1/2 points - the most ever by a team in the national tournament.

Hunter, the No. 4 seed at 125 pounds, beat the No. 1 seed, Jared Lemke of New York's Niagara College, 13-3, in the semifinals, before upending another New York wrestler, Ricardo Gomez of Nassau, 7-4, in the championship bout.

Bagna Tovuujav, a freshman at George Mason University, who was a National Prep champion for St. Benedict's last winter, will begin action in the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships tomorrow (Thursday, March 19) at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis.

Tovuujav stamped his ticket to the Division 1 tournament by earning the Most Outstanding Wrestler honors at the Colonial Athletic Association Championships earlier this month. He upset top-seeded Alton Lucas of Hofstra in overtime for the 174-pound championship.

Tovuujav, who came into the CAA's ranked 22nd in the final coaches poll of the season, scored the upset with a takedown in the first overtime period for a 3-1 victory. Lucas, an NCAA All-American and CAA Champion last season, was the top seed in the weight class and entered the match ranked ninth.

The unseeded Tovuujav (24-7), who finished his career at St. Benedict's with a 137-22 record, will take on seventh-seeded Mike Miller of Central Michigan in Thursday morning's opening round.

WRESTLERS PLACE SECOND IN STATE PREP CHAMPIONSHIPS
National Championships up next

Feb. 14, 2009

St. Benedict's wrestled with a vengeance in Saturday's New Jersey Prep Championships.

And, although Turtgotkh Luvsandorj was the lone champion, a number of his Gray Bees teammates came out with a determined moxie that could possibly lead them to All-America status when the National Prep tournament begins this upcoming weekend.

The Gray Bees, aside from Luvsandorj's title, had six runner-up finishes chiefly because of the performance of Blair Academy. The No. 1 ranked school in the nation won all but one weight class and claimed the team title with a resounding 255 1/2 points. St. Benedict's placed second with 147 1/2 points.

Luvsandorj used revenge as the ultimate motivator for the second time this season and kept Blair from sweeping all 14 weight classes. He used a deadly accurate and swift ankle pick to take down Blair's top-seeded Jesse Shanaman, 5-2, for the 160-pound championship to reverse an overtime setback in last year's National Prep Championships. He also avenged another loss from a year ago when he beat Brian Broderick of Southern Regional in last month's New Jersey Coaches All-Star Invitational.

"I was upset about what happened in National's," said Luvsandorj, who placed seventh in the country last year to earn All-America status. "I trained hard since last summer knowing I'd have another chance against him."

Shanaman, who finished fifth in National's last year, had no answer for Luvsandorj's ankle pick. The St. Benedict's senior used it twice in the opening period, scoring the first takedown and nearly converting another that was ruled out of bounds.

He used the patented move twice more in the second period. The first one took both wrestlers out of bounds again before the second led to the points that all but sealed the outcome. Luvsandorj went for the ankle and then spun around Shanaman to score another takedown as the buzzer sounded to end the period and give the Gray Bees wrestler a 4-2 cushion. An escape by Luvsandorj completed the scoring in the third.

"Luvsandorj is on a mission right now," said St. Benedict's coach Mike DiPiano Jr. of his 45-1 wrestler. "He is working hard, has his weight under control and is calm in all aspects of his wrestling. He wants to win it all and he is working hard to achieve that goal."

Luvsandorj will be in the running for the top-seed for the National Prep Championships, which will be staged this Friday and Saturday at Lehigh University.

Zach Jacobs, who was wrestling with a protective mask to shield the 12 stitches he received over his left eye during practice two days before, also had revenge on his mind when he stepped on the mat to face Scott Stevens of Peddie in the semifinals, the same wrestler he lost to by a major decision earlier this year. But Jacobs, who felt disrespected by his opponent before the match, proved he is not the same wrestler by throwing Stevens to his back for a fall in 1:59 at 119 pounds.

"He was sitting around laughing and talking and just didn't look prepared for the match," admitted Jacobs (31-16), who lost in the finals, but is still gunning to place in the top eight of his weight class next weekend to earn All-America status. "I beat the kid who I needed to and now I'm focused as ever in trying to become an All-American."

Xavier Vassell (37-12) and Naeem Boucher (39-9) have joined Jacobs as wrestlers who have made tremendous strides this year and throughout their careers in a Gray Bees singlet.

Vassell gave Blair's Ben Krakower all he could handle before dropping a 4-2 decision in the final at 215 pounds. Krakower placed second in the nationally-renowned Ironman and Beast of East tournaments. Said DiPiano, "His goal is to be an All-American and I think that is attainable if he wrestles the way he did today."

Boucher, despite losing, 13-3, to Blair's Austin Ormsbee in the championship at 135 pounds, nearly pulled off a huge upset. Boucher, who picked up his 100th career victory in the semifinals, nearly caught Ormsbee in a headlock off one of their many scrambles during the match.

"I felt like I had him but I was just a little late and didn't reach back far enough," said Boucher of his attempted headlock. "Ever since I was a freshman, I wanted to wrestle a Blair wrestler. I finally got my chance and nearly got it done. I'll just have to make it happen next time."

Notes: Also placing second for the Gray Bees were Rob Ranalli (125 pounds), Isaiah Cromwell (189) and Riad Abu-Amail (Hwt.). Picking up third-place medals were Matt Aaron (112), Chris Dowdy (130), Ochibat Bayanjargal (140) and Bobby Bah (152).

"I am very proud of this team and what they have done so far," said DiPiano, "but (this) is the start of a new season and we are going to work extra hard this week in preparation for Nationals."

--By Ron Jandoli
--Photos by Mike Scanlan

WRESTLING ONLY PART OF THE JOURNEY IN WASHINGTON, D.C.

February 8, 2009

The wrestling team competed in the St. Alban's Invitational and took in the sites in Washington, D.C. over the weekend.

On the mat, Coach Mike DiPiano wasn't sure how his team would respond after limping into the tournament with four straight dual meet losses. But the Gray Bees responded with a third-place showing in the team standings.

Turtgotkh Luvsandorj won the championship at 160 pounds, while Naeem Boucher (135) and Jeff Johnson (171) each had runner-up finishes. Boucher pinned second-seeded Jonathan Carpenter of Bishop O Connell in semifinals, the same wrestler he was pinned by in last year's National Prep Tournament.

Zach Jacobs (119), Xavier Vassell (215) and Riad Abu-Smial (Hwt.) each placed fourth, while Matt Aaron (112), Rob Ranalli (125) and Chris Dowdy (130) all came away with fifth-place finishes.

"Coming off four straight dual losses, I was not sure what to expect," admitted DiPiano, "but these guys really stepped up and we put forth a lot of great performances this weekend. This team has come very far since the beginning of the season."

DiPiano's club, in between grueling rounds of wrestling, managed to visit numerous historical sites in the nation's Capitol, including visits to the Lincoln, Vietnam, Korean, Jefferson, Iwo Jima, and Einstein Memorials.

They also stopped at the National Cathedral, saw the tomb of Woodrow Wilson and spent part of the trip at the Arlington Cemetery where they saw the Changing of the Guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. The wrestlers also visited John F. Kennedy's grave site and stood in the same exact spot where Martin Luther King Jr. gave his famous "I Have a Dream" speech.

"We wrestled well, but more importantly the kids got to learn about some of our Nation's history," said DiPiano. "I really look forward to this weekend every season. It gives us a good idea of how ready we are for the stretch run and it brings the team closer being able to experience so many things together."

--Photos by Michelle DiPiano

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