It was a great year for the Ithaca College wrestling team — with top-20 rankings all season and a number of outstanding individual accomplishments — despite injuries. The team posted six top-10 finishes, and three wrestlers advanced to nationals.

Juniors Ryan Ciotoli (left), Tom Hall (above), and Felix Martinez (below) traveled to Ohio Northern University March 3–4 for the NCAA championships. Ciotoli, who went into the meet ranked number one at 157 pounds, received all-American honors with a second-place finish. He won 6-0 and 4-1 in the first two rounds, and a 1-0 victory in the semifinals put him into the finals for the first time. There he faced Mike Helm from Messiah College, whom he had defeated 2-1 earlier in the season. In the championship, trailing 2-0 late in the third period, Ciotoli tried a desperation shot that gave up a two-point take-down and contributed to his 5-1 loss. Ciotoli ended the season with a 26-4 record and now has a 43-20 career record.

Martinez started the championships in sixth place at 125 pounds. In his final match of the day, Martinez went into overtime with Springfield University’s Kelvin Johnson, an opponent he had lost to earlier in the season. With time running out, Martinez escaped Johnson’s hold to secure all-American honors (which go to the top eight finishers). He has compiled a 60-27 career record, with a 27-7 showing this season.

Hall competed with an injury that left him less competitive than usual. In his first match he fell 14-8 to eventual champion Jesus Wilson of Upper Iowa University. Hall scored more points on Wilson — who had taken fourth at the recent World Cup championships and National competitors Ryan Ciotoli (far left), Tom Hall (above), and Felix Martinez (left)

first at the Pan American games wrestling for Cuba — than the rest of the field combined. Hall, who aims to return at full strength next season, compiled a 20-8 record this season and has a 56-25 career record.

Third-year head coach Marty Nichols was pleased with the performance at nationals. "The three guys we brought to the national tournament this season did a terrific job. They were ready to perform when we got out there," he says.

Other wrestlers who had successful seasons were freshmen Kory Holland and Dave Leonardo, who posted 11-7 and 14-9 records, respectively. "We had high expectations this season," says Nichols, "but we had several uncontrollable injuries that kept us from fielding our best team all season. However, a lot of younger guys got a chance to gain experience, and we expect to improve next season."  

Photos by Tim McKinney