Sachem North senior and Suffolk County champion Matt Stallone has committed to wrestle at SUNY Oswego.
Stallone, who captured a county title at 106 pounds and placed fifth in New York State this season, will grapple at 125 pounds in college.
“It’s a big leap, but I know I’m going to work at my highest potential and just keep doing what I’m doing,” he said.
Set to study business at Oswego, Stallone was propelled to commit there because of the campus, good things he heard from fellow Sachem alums who attend the university and the comfort he felt being around longtime Lakers head coach Mike Howard.
He has his vision set on being an All-American at the collegiate level, and made it clear he will never forget his roots in black and gold.
“I’m going to miss wearing a Sachem singlet every year,” he said. “There was no better feeling then going out on that matt representing Sachem North, my family, friends, teammates and coaches. It was an honor to wrestle in a Sachem singlet. Sachem is one of those schools that everyone knows. We have a history in so many sports, academics and other things, and the fact that I made a legacy for myself at this school is a huge accomplishment.”
The memories are too many to count, he said. Beating Longwood after a 72-match win streak, or beating Connetquot for a league dual meet championship, not to mention his own personal county title, he’s experienced a lot.
Perhaps what’s more gratifying is the adversity he overcame at multiple stages of his high school wrestling career. He injured his knee as a sophomore and didn’t wrestle at the league finals. He didn’t make weight for the county tournament as a junior and then had knee surgery the summer before his senior campaign.
“I really wasn’t sure how my season was going to turn out during my senior year,” he said. “[The surgery] took my entire off-season away, but it didn’t stop me. With the help of my team and coaches, I fought through it with their support like any family would, worked my butt off every day in that wrestling room, and I never gave up. That’s why I was so successful my senior year.”
Stallone recalls his freshman season when he looked around and realized the true impact of the history of Sachem wrestling. He looked up to previous county champions like Ryan Gerondel, or specifically his past-champion coaches like John Aebly, Mike Falcon and Lance Banfi, and he imagined how it would feel to be a county champion.
“Now I’m in the same category as them,” he said, “it’s really a dream come true. This was the best experience of my life. I couldn’t have done it without the support of everyone.”
-Words by Chris R. Vaccaro