WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES FEBRUARY 15, 2018 25
BUZZ
Maspeth wrestler heading to state championship
BY RYAN KELLEY
RKELLEY@RIDGEWOODTIMES.COM
TWITTER @R_KELLEY6
High school athletes oft en hear
about the legends who came
before them and defi ned the
school’s greatness in a given sport, but
at Maspeth High School that legend is
playing out in real time for the wrestling
team.
Gevorg Arakelov, a senior and fouryear
member of the Argonauts wrestling
team, became the team’s fi rst-ever
winner of the City Championship on
Feb. 11 and will represent his school at
the State Championship tournament
in Albany, New York on Feb. 22 and
23. Even though wrestlers take to the
mat alone against their opponents, Arakelov
said that he has always wanted
to be a role model for his teammates.
“You always want to leave your footsteps
so someone else can follow them,”
Arakelov said. “I always try to lead by
example and try helping the team, and
my coach is always there for me, so
anything I do he always supports me.”
Arakelov was crowned city champion
for the 170 pound division aft er
winning a close match against the
second-ranked wrestler in the tournament.
Early in the match, Arakelov
said he was being too defensive and
surrendered a point to his opponent
aft er being penalized for stalling. He
described his opponent as “slick” and
a good off ensive wrestler, but as time
was running out Arakelov knew he
didn’t want the match to go into overtime,
he said.
His coach, Daniel Sepulveda, told
him to get lower and attack his opponent’s
legs, and that strategy got
Arakelov four quick points. With a 5-1
lead, Arakelov was able to hold that
same score until the end. When it was
all over, the emotions of the moment
hit them.
“We got teary eyed and we shared
a moment just because it means so
much,” said Sepulveda, who began
coaching the wrestling team when
Arakelov was a freshman. “For a coach,
their relationship with their star player
is something special that you can’t
really compare to.”
It capped off a spectacular season
for Arakelov, who compiled a 35-4 record
and also became the fi rst Maspeth
High School wrestler to win the Mayor’s
Cup title in January. Throughout
his four-year career, Arakelov didn’t
lose a single match by getting pinned,
Sepulveda said.
Although he was fi rst exposed to
wrestling at school, Arakelov attributes
much of his success to what he
learned from other coaches and trainers
in the off season. Shortly aft er he
Photo by Ryan Kelley
Gevorg Arakelov stands in his
coach's offi ce in front of the wrestling
team medals, many of which
he won himself.
fi rst picked up the sport, Arakelov got
involved with a non-profi t organization
called Beat the Streets, which uses
wrestling to teach teenagers the values
of personal responsibility, physical
fitness, education, and teamwork.
His coaches there, Penn Gottfried
and Mark Anthony, were crucial to
his development on and off the mat,
Arakelov said.
Over the next few years, the lessons
Arakelov brought back to the school
would rub off on his coach and his
teammates. Sepulveda said the bond
he was able to form with Arakelov and
a few of his senior teammates over the
course of their careers has become
the foundation for the Maspeth High
wrestling program. Fellow senior and
training partner Michael Elmoznino
said there will be nothing better than
seeing his best friend compete for a
state title.
“We have been through every little
thing together,” Elmoznino said.
“With this sport you kind of learn
the true meaning of the actual word
‘brotherhood.'”
As he prepares for the state championship
tournament, Arakelov said he
is mostly focused on his conditioning
and going to the gym to get as strong
as he can. The wrestlers from upstate
New York are much more physical
because many of them started training
long before high school, Arakelov said.
The city champion just sees that as the
next challenge.
“It’s going to be an honor to represent
Maspeth,” Arakelov said. “People
work to get it for like eight years, and
the fact that I’m going to start since
freshman year in high school and I’m
going to get it now, it’s going to be a big
accomplishment.”
Grover Cleveland High claims fi ve medals at Science Olympiad
BY RYAN KELLEY
RKELLEY@RIDGEWOODTIMES.COM
TWITTER @R_KELLEY6
The Grover Cleveland Tigers
took home fi ve medals in the
2018 Science Olympiad regional
tournament held at Grover Cleveland
High School in Ridgewood for
the 15th consecutive year on Feb. 3.
The Tigers received medals for
their eff orts in the hovercraft , helicopters
and tower building events,
fi nishing as high as fourth place in
helicopters and tower building. The
top 10 fi nishers in each event win
medals, and the top competitors for
Grover Cleveland included Jeevan
Bastola, Abrar Hussain, Shafikur
Khan, Dawa Sherpa, Adelisa Hot, Aldijana
Hot, Bishan Rayamaji, Ayushma
Panthi, Ankit Bhandari and Anith
Devkota.
Mark Kestner, Mingmar Tamang,
and Nicole Gerlak also came in the
top third in New York City in fermi
questions, herpetology and microbe
mission.
“These are difficult events that
require time, patience, and students
must also study for a written exam in
these topics,” said Lloyd Kiefer, one of
the coaches for the Tigers.
Grover Cleveland was one of the only
schools at the event to have three teams
competing, and also one of the only public
schools. Most of the 62 teams from 38
schools across the fi ve boroughs were
from private or specialized schools.
The Tigers added to their already
impressive reputation for Science,
Technology, Engineering and Math
achievements. In 2017, Shafi kur Khan
won fourth place at the International
Bridge Building Contest in Dallas, and
in 2016, Abrar Hussain won fi rst place
at the Chicago Internationals. Grover
Cleveland’s Envirothon team has
oft en fi nished in fi rst place in Queens
and advances regularly to the state
Envirothon in Geneva, New York.
Principal Denise Vittor and Coach
Krishna Mahabir extended their
gratitude to the entire Grover Cleveland
community for putting in many
hours to make this event a success.
Photo courtesy of Lloyd Kiefer
Students from Grover Cleveland High School prepare for one of the
Science Olympiad events, the mousetrap vehicle.
