CLARENCE — Muntathar Abbas couldn’t stop grinning. After a season full of big-time moments, one of the goals that weighed on his mind finally came true.
In January, he provided the first of four consecutive pins to lead Niagara Wheatfield to a blow-out win against Williamsville North/East in the Section VI duals. He also helped the Falcons win a second consecutive Niagara Frontier League dual championship, this time with a 7-0 record.
But winning a postseason championship outright was still on his mind, as, even though he’s a junior, he knows it’s not guaranteed he’ll get another shot in the future. But all the stars aligned for Abbas.
After placing fourth last year at 118 pounds, Abbas pinned Hamburg’s top-seeded Sam Berti, in only 32 seconds at 124 as part of the sectional Class A championships Saturday at Clarence High School. The victory against Berti came after Abbas defeated Grand Island’s Xander Heckman (7-0 decision) and Dylan Castiglia (pin) in the first two rounds.
“Other matches I’ve wrestled, I was mentally broken,” said Abbas, who now has a 30-10 record. “I was mentally broken whenever I wrestled and I was down. But with this one, I (was) mentally prepared where I didn’t give up at all. I’ve kept fighting and I want it.”
Up next for Abbas is the Division I state qualifier, where he won the consolation final at 118 in a 5-4 decision over Clarence’s Trevor Mueller. Abbas will now enter the bracket that includes Castiglia and the Class AA champion, Ricky Andres of Lancaster.
Grand Island’s Daghestani follows family tradition
Deni Daghestani didn’t really get into wrestling until the start of this season. But he knows what the sport means to his family.
His older brother, Adam, was a three-time champion in Class A and placed fourth at states at 160 as a junior in 2019. But now young Deni got a chance to reach the podium. After entering as the No. 2 seed, the Vikings freshman defeated Clarence’s Zach Didas in a 7-6 decision to clinch the title at 101.
In a field that also included Niagara Wheatfield’s Gabriella Barone and his Vikings teammate Cole Randle also advancing to the state qualifier, Daghestani had a specific approach going through each round.
“The best thing to do is just rest while you’re in your stance, not really while you’re down,” said Daghestani, who improved to 29-6 on the season. “You want to move as much as possible when you’re down. Try to score the points and then you can rest.”
McDonald lifts Spartans back to podium
After walking away with five winners last year, Starpoint entered this year’s class A going under the radar. A youthful roster combined with first year coach Dan Tavernier led the Spartans looking to build a strong foundation.
While three Spartans in total are advancing to the state qualifier next weekend, Sean McDonald was the lone champion at 108. Entering as the No. 2 seed, the Spartans sophomore defeated the No. 1 seed, Grand Island’s Zak Massaro, in a 10-4 decision.
After dealing with a sprained meniscus and MCL injuries, McDonald had to change his approach going into Class A, with an all defense approach. The reigning ECIC champion’s plan was a success as he defeated Grand Island’s Caine Rumsey with a pin in 53 seconds and then won over Amherst’s Mustafa Natiq in a 17-2 technical fall.
“(Winning at ECICs) gave me a confidence boost saying, ‘I need to do better basically and I need to get out of overtime and get my conditioning up and that’s exactly what I did,” said McDonald, who improved to 26-5 on the season. “And I could notice a difference in my matches like I was doing better this weekend.”
The Section VI wrestling championships first began on March 15-16, 1951 at Orchard Park High School. The tournament was later divided into different classifications in 1958.
The greater Niagara region’s first class champion was Medina’s Tom Dantly, who pinned Hamburg’s John Novick in the Class AAA-AA 105-pound championship held March 6-7, 1959 at Orchard Park.
Dantly then became the region’s first repeat sectional class winner as he won the AA crown at 112 in 1960 and 1961.
The Division I state qualifier will start at 9:30 a.m. Feb. 10 at Williamsville North High School.