Section 1 girls wrestling trio win 2024 Eastern States Classic titles; two others medal

LOCH SHELDRAKE − Girls wrestling is growing in the state of New York and beyond. The 2024 Eastern States Classic girls tournament saw its largest participant field yet.

Section 1 was well-represented, too, with three different grapplers winning Eastern States Classic titles: Harrison's Sienna Cozzali (100 pounds), Pleasantville's Adriana Palumbo (165 pounds) and Carmel's Alexia Mangual (185 pounds).

"Section 1 is a big community, and we're all very helpful when it comes to wrestling with each other," said Mangual of Section 1's girls success at Eastern States. "We support each other and we're there to help each other grow."

Arlington's Aislin Kellner (100) and White Plains' Lauren Garcia (145) also reached the podium and placed in the top four of their respective weight classes.

"It's great that more and more girls in Section 1 are getting involved in girls wrestling," said Palumbo of Section 1's solid representation at the Eastern States girls tournament. "I think it'll really start to pick up within the next couple years, and I'm glad to be a part of that movement."

Harrison's Cozzali wins thriller, stuns top seed in state finals rematch

The persistence paid off for the Harrison sophomore, who despite finishing as a runner-up in last year's NYSPHSAA Girls Wrestling Invitational, was seeded seventh in an eight-person bracket.

Despite that, she upended each of her opponents on her way to the finals, recording a pin and a major decision win to get to the title bout, where she would have a rematch with General Brown's Zoey Jewett, last season's state champion in the girls' 94-pound tournament and the No. 29 FloWrestling nationally-ranked wrestler at 95 pounds.

"I put in a lot of hard work in, so no matter what, I'm okay with what happens," Cozzali said of her approach entering the finals. "Of course, I want to win, and I was determined to get there.

"A big factor is probably the hard work I put in. Looking at it a year later, (Jewett) is one of the people that drove me to get better, so thank you to her."

Unlike last year's state final, where Jewett pinned Cozzali, it was a tightly-contested battle.

Both wrestlers denied takedowns and quickly closed any openings their foe tried to capitalize on. A stalling call on Cozzali would give Jewett a 1-0 lead midway through the second, and it remained a one-point margin.

With less than 20 seconds left in the match, Cozzali lunged for a takedown and while Jewett tried to fend her off, Cozzali was able to finish the title-sealing takedown with one second left before the final whistle.

"Those last 40 seconds, I thought I couldn't let her win by keeping on pushing me out, I had to at least go for a nice shot," Cozzali said. "She kept on circling and I just had to get behind her. Last 10 seconds, just drive."

Cozzali is Harrison's first Eastern States champ, and it a thrilling way to open the girls finals matches.

"I had to get her back, and it felt so good to score at the end," Cozzali said. "My determination helped me. It's great (being the school's first champ) but all my partners and coaches helped me, so a big thank you to them. I'm just going to keep on working hard and seeing where it takes me."

Pleasantville's Palumbo pins her way to the title

She was missed last season, as a hospital trip prevented her from competing at the 2023 Eastern States Classic.

This year, though, it didn't look like anything could stop the No. 4 FloWrestling nationally-ranked wrestler and Pleasantville standout at the Eastern States Classic.

The 165-pound Eastern States girls bracket was switched to round-robin format, due to some late scratches, but it didn't damper the experience and made for a more emphatic performance by Palumbo, who pinned all other competitors on her way to the Eastern States title.

She sealed the crown with a first-period pin over Homer's Lilly Sorenson in the decisive title match.

"(Sorenson's) a great wrestler, I respect her very much, and I saw an opening and I went for it," Palumbo said of her final win. "It just means all the hard work I've put in over the past couple of months is coming together, and just getting it done."

It's been a memorable last few months for Palumbo. In October, she won the prestigious Super 32, becoming the first female wrestler from New York to capture a title there. Last week, she won the girls Journeymen Winter Wrestling title, and now she has an Eastern States crown to add to her list of accomplishments and recent momentum.

She entered Saturday's tournament with a 14-2 record this season, an impressive mark that she obtained wrestling primarily against the boys.

"Just been able to keep it on a roll by being consistent with the work that I put in, and that's really it," Palumbo said. "Definitely some improvements that can be made, but overall, I'm happy with the way I wrestled this weekend."

Carmel's Mangual quickly climbs to the top

A longtime practitioner of jiu jitsu, Mangual has taken major strides throughout the three years she's competed in wrestling.

Saturday was another indicator of her growth on the mat and as a wrestler.

Mangual quickly dispatched returning PSAL champion Greisy Penalo from Bronx HS of Sciences, before following up with a title-winning pin over Chester's Faith Villanueva to capture the 185-pound crown.

None of her Eastern States opponents made it to the second period.

"Girls wrestling is a growing sport, and girls like me and Adriana, we try to push for it and we wanted to come out here and show people what girls wrestling is about," Mangual said. "Being able to get this plaque, there's not a lot of girls wrestlers, so it just means a lot being one of the first to get this in the section."

She credits her teammates at school and her club, GPS Wrestling, for her growth as a wrestler. Mangual has also embraced the challenges of the sport. While there are some similarities to jiu jitsu, wrestling is its own animal.

"Wrestling is a lot more of a different pace and it's very challenging, including mentally," she said. "There's also wrestling the boys in-season. Something that I constantly keep in mind is, 'keep going, don't stop and don't give up,' and that's drawn me into this sport."

Mangual didn't participate in last year's NYSPHSAA Girls Wrestling Invitational, but she hopes to build off this title win and parlay it into something greater at states. She's not missing the trip to Syracuse this time around.

"I'll be there this year, 100%, and I think I'm going to be a little more aggressive when I go out on the mat," Mangual said. "I think I was a little too easy today."

Arlington's Kellner, White Plains' Garcia return to podium

For Section 1's two other podium-finishers, Arlington's Kellner and White Plains' Garcia, it was their second straight time placing at Eastern States Classic.

Kellner rebounded after an opening-round loss to Cozzali, where she got pinned in the final moments of the match.

The Admirals' 100-pounder regrouped and bounced back with three consecutive first-period pins, eventually topping things off with a win over Brentwood's Jocelyn Rojas in the third-place match.

It is the second straight top three finish for Kellner, who previously finished as a runner-up in last year's Eastern States Classic.

As for Garcia, she advanced to the semifinals, where she fell to eventual runner-up Rebecca Brennen of New Paltz.

In her blood round match, she built a big 10-2 lead over Valley Central's Arica Pearson-Leary, before getting a third-period pin to advance to the third-place match. There, she lost to Connecticut wrestler Kelly Aspras in a 7-0 bout, but it was Garcia's second time medaling, after also taking fourth in last year's 145-pound bracket.

Follow Eugene Rapay on Twitter at @erapay5 and on Instagram at @byeugenerapay. 

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Wrestling: Section 1 girls trio win 2024 Eastern States Classic titles