With quick and decisive action, Cicero-North Syracuse wrestler Tom Peterson delivered a bit of sweet payback.
Peterson’s closing-bout pin helped the Northstars beat archrival Liverpool 42-39 and, with that, the top spot during Saturday’s Akley Memorial Duals at Oswego High School.
These same two teams had met exactly one month earlier, on Dec. 4. There, Liverpool, on its home mat, prevailed 46-33, and many of the same wrestlers would be on hand for the rematch.
In all, six teams were present at the Akley meet – C-NS and Liverpool, along with host Oswego, Homer, Syracuse’s Institute of Technology Central and Oneida.
Through the first four rounds, both the Northstars and Warriors stayed unblemished. C-NS got a bit of a push from Homer, but still prevailed 48-35 as it got seven pins – from Peterson, Jerrett Norton (160 pounds), Sam Ruiz (170 pounds), Andres Anoceto (220 pounds), Jared West (285 pounds), Ray Sorenson (99 pounds) and Joe Copani (138 pounds).
From there, the matches were more lopsided, as the Northstars turned back ITC 56-21, doubled up Oneida 60-30 and toppled Oswego 60-21, consistently putting up the points as, on a parallel track, Liverpool was doing the same.
The Warriors opened by smashing ITC 69-15 and Oswego 57-18. Again, Homer provided a challenge, but Liverpool toppled the Trojans 46-29, and after a 66-19 conquest of Oneida, all was in place for the clash with C-NS.
They opened at 195 pounds, with Mark Williamson earning a forfeit, one or four that Liverpool would take on this day, meaning that C-NS had to make up for those lost points on the mat.
Big moments came at 220 and 285. Both matches went to overtime, and both times C-NS prevailed, Anoceto outlasting Ron Wilson 2-1 in double OT and West using a takedown in the first extra period to stop David Carnie 5-3.
Liverpool rebounded with Sean Nadeau, at 99, pinning Sorenson with seven seconds left, but Jerry Nash (106 pounds) was injured in the waning seconds of his match, giving Joe Barber a default.
In between forfeits to Audey Ashkar (113 pounds) and Anthony Ianno (126 pounds), the Warriors’ Peter Nash blanked 120-pound opponent Joe Mayers 6-0, and Mike Mills (132 pounds) would make it four Liverpool wins in a row when he pinned Brandon Burnham in 3:51.
Down 33-9, C-NS had to get a victory from Copani – and got it when he pinned Zach Curcie in just 59 seconds. But the forfeit to Will Ronan (145 pounds) left the Northstars in a position where it had to sweep the remaining four bouts.
Anthony Carella, at 152 pounds, started the C-NS comeback, pinning Anthony Richardson in 1:05, and it got a further boost when Darren Breen, in his match against Norton at 160, got disqualified, and Ruiz kept the Northstars hot with a 35-second pin over Jalen Barron.
So it all came down to Peterson against Liverpool’s Louis Ragonese. Wasting little time, Peterson put Ragonese’s shoulders on the mat, and in just 40 seconds, the fall was recorded, giving C-NS the winning points.
C-NS would take the momentum from this win into Wednesday’s meet at Central Square before a Saturday appearance in the Cazenovia Invitational. Meanwhile, Liverpool is off until Jan. 15, when it goes to West Genesee, and it will appear in Baldwinsville’s dual meet three days later.
