Wrestling

Eastern States Classic

Norwich sophomore Tristan Rifanburg earned the biggest tournament victory of his career since capturing a state championship as a seventh-grader

Rifanburg became the first Section IV wrestler to win an individual title at the prestigious Eastern States Classic in 12 years winning the 132-pound championship Saturday evening at Sullivan Community College. Later on in the evening, Johnson City’s Reggie Williams would match Rifanburg’s title.

“This tournament is the toughest regular season tournament in New York State, and it’s rated as the third toughest in the nation,” said Norwich coach Joe Downey. “Every weight class is loaded, and you were seeing a lot of state champions losing.”

The number two seed in the tournament, Rifanburg advanced to the finals beating Brendan Lapi of Amsterdam, 2-0. Rifanburg worked a reversal in the third period, and rode Lapi out.

In the finals, Rifanburg dominated through the first two periods against Fordham Prep’s Sam Melikian. Rifanburg nearly pinned Melikian in the first period, and built a sizable advantage with more back points in the second period en route to an 8-5 victory.

“He was extremely technical and was flawless throughout the tournament,” Downey said of Rifanburg. “In a tournament like this, you can’t make one mistake, and he didn’t.”