Hardest working men in Garden City. Last Saturday, Garden City hosted the Nassau County Qualifying Tournament. This tournament is always a tough one. Every young man is grappling his hardest in hopes of making the Nassau County Championships. Head Coach Reid Sclafani and assistants Bury and Czachor have been working the boys hard all year.

Garden City was led by their senior standout chris Reilly, Chris not only took first place but earned the Most Outstanding Wrestler honors for the tournament. Garden City’s Foxen captured first place in the 103 pound division. Bachowski, Garden City’s 215 pounder, also took home the gold.

The woman who make wrestling happen: Kathy Lofrese and Nancy Kalafus. Sean Locurto, Garden City 189 pounder, came in second place. He finished in second place in the county championships last season and has his sights set on the top spot next week. Garden City’s 135 pounder, Sebring, wrestled terrifically all day and earned a second place finish.

Danny Lofrese wrestled well enough to move on to next weeks County Championships. Despite being younger and lighter than his competition, he continually impressed everyone. Nugent an Hosford the 125 lb. and 130 lb. wrestlers respectively, wrestled awesomely. Both boys simply looked great. Both are moving on to the county championships. Garden City had 2 boys at 160 pounds who are both moving on. White and DeSena came in third and forth places respectively. White was an inch from wrestling for the championship as his one loss was controversial. He dominated all day. At 171, Stewart grabbed 3rd place, and will be wrestling this weekend at the county championships. Garden City’s 275 pounder, Mahramas, is a fan favorite. He earned 4th place and will be wrestling again this weekend.

Coach Bury and Dan White Last but not least, Anthony Pastore, mauled everyone that came his way. This 189 pounder proved once again why he is a multi sport standout by being the ultimate teammate. Anthony will be wrestling at the Nassau County Championships also.

Senior Standout Thomas Hosford. Many of the boys who did not move on, wrestled real well and make their coaches proud. The margin for error is so slim that you can have wrestled great, but because of certain matchups, referee calls and time limits, things might not have gone your way. I am sure that these boys will continue to work hard because the team is coached well and Garden City is now a force to be reckoned with.

Good Luck this weekend!

Pinewood Derby A Success

Junior standout Sean LoCurto and coach Czachor. January 22nd was race day for the members of Cub Scout pack 55. As is a tradition in scouting, the annual Pinewood Derby was held at the Cathedral of the Incarnation’s Square Hall. Many hours were invested to make this day a memorable one for all participants. More than 60 scouts and their siblings participated in this event.

In December participants were given a car kit that consisted of a block of wood and some wheels. Within a month, these wood blocks were transformed into race cars. Sophistication was the order of the day with electronic starting gates and finish lines. The Pinewood Café served a variety of food and drinks. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. The atmosphere inside was dramatically warmer than the blizzard that was occurring outside. This event embodied the ideals affiliated with the Cub Scouting movement. This year is the 75th anniversary of Cub Scouting in America.

Head Coach Reid Sclafani.

Freshman Dan Fedele. Defending Nassau County Champion Chris Reilly. 8th Grade Varsity Sensation Danny Lofrese. Sophomore Chris Zingalli. Superstar Athlete Anthony Pastore. Square hall was transformed into Race Central as spectators awaited the start of the next race. Back Row, L-R: Webelos Patrols, Scott LaRose, Greg Kinn, Bob Adams, Frank Sikorski, Alex Halka, Greg Giordano, Chris DeSimone, Tom Edert, Matt Abruzzo, Alex Kinn and Dan Muscatiello. Front Row, L-R: Andrew Quigley, Brendan Fitzsimmons, Mike Padala and Pat Murphy. Trophies awaited these with the fastest times. Pack 55 Wolves enjoyed the day of racing.