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Politics & Government

Village Honors Lynbrook Titans Wrestlers

Student athletes receive proclamations at village hall on Monday.

In recognition of their recent successes this year, members of the Lynbrook Titans wrestling team were honored with proclamations from the Lynbrook Board of Trustees on Monday night at village hall.

In total, 30 student athletes from the Titans — a youth program of the Lynbrook Youth Athletic Association — were honored by village officials.

Mayor William Hendrick presented athletes with proclamations for their dedication and commitment to the sport of wrestling and for competing in tournaments.

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"These young men here tonight, they've competed at very high levels," said Trustee Hilary Becker, who is also president of the Lynbrook Youth Athletic Association and a coach of the youth wrestling program. "They did a great job."

A total of 21 athletes from the Lynbrook Titans' Tournament Wrestling Team were honored at the event, including: Hugh Bittenbender, Jaylin Walker, Liam Fitzgerald, Ally Fitzgerald, Andrew Cancel, Douglas Stern, Daniel Delvalle, James Luongo, Nathan Stewart, John Dibenedetto, James Gillespie, John Bertolini, Justin Baeyens, Michael Covo and Vincent McGuire. Students Christian Meszaros, Alex Cooper, Lucas Pecora, Liam O'Neil, Jake D'Agostino and Caleb Alvarez were not in attendance.

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Three Lynbrook Junior High School wrestlers — Zachary Kornberg, Matt Renz and Joe Becker — were also honored by village officials. Kornberg placed second at the New York State Junior High School Wrestling Tournament, Renz placed third at the same tournament, and Becker won a gold medal in a recent Huntington wrestling tournament.

Two coaches, Fred Shwom and Kevin Murphy, were recognized for their dedication to the association and working as mentors with students to help them progress as athletes.

"They resemble what it is to be a volunteer, they give so much to the community," said Becker, who described Shwom as a "great asset" and Murphy as an "outstanding coach, wrestler and person."

Rich Renz, a coach for Lynbrook Titans Wrestling, presented award certificates to six Lynbrook varsity wrestling seniors, including Matt Mott, Charlie Curcio, Jason Espinosa, Nick Mascia and Jon Lollar. Mathew Swanson was not at the event. Renz described all of the men as hard-working, determined athletes who possess strong work ethics, and always work to do their best.

Of the group, Mott not only placed second at all-county, but also qualified to compete at the New York State Tournament.

"Wrestling is a tough sport, the toughest in the world," he said. "You have to put the time in. People would ask how we were doing. It was real good for the program and for the community. This has been a real good year for us."

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