Brandon Pastula scored a 4-1 OT decision over New Britain’s Tyler Ortiz at 145. Photo: Dave Burnham, www.esnapsport.wordpress.com.
Terriers Wrestling Building for the Future
ROCKY HILL - Rocky Hill High School wrestling head coach Charles Surney has his sights set on a prime piece of real estate on the wall of McCabe Court, as he pointed to the space next to a baseball banner.

       â€"I’ve seen the history and the championship banners in this gymnasium. I’ve stopped looking at that wrestling banner because I have a spot picked out for a new one,” stated the Mississippi native, who has been the architect, motivator and educator of the wrestling programs he built in Massachusetts and Connecticut.

       â€"Wrestling is a job in itself at the high school level. I’m very proud of my boys--freshmen Joe Catania [injured], Kevin Montroy, Joseph Ferreira, Matt Lanciotto [injured]; sophomores Michael Frizzell, Jusuf Nukic and Brandon Pastula; juniors Jordon Hopkins and Santiago Santana; and seniors Zac Aglieco and James Pergolizzi. They juggle school, work, family and friends. They give up their vacations for practices, which are Mondays through Saturdays, and tournaments,” said Surney, who works security at RHHS.

       Construction has limited the Terriers to just one home date this season, with the Jan. 14 match against a tough New Britain team designated as Senior Night.

       Aglieco, in his second year of wrestling, dropped a tough 10-7 decision at 132, while Pergolizzi, a rookie, lost at 170. The pair was introduced and honored before the match. Sophomore Brandon Pastula scored the team’s first win of the night--4-1 OT--at 145, while Santana recorded a second-period pin at 195.

       â€"I don’t care if our wrestlers lose. I care about how they improve. That’s what’s important,” Surney said after the 63-9 loss to the Hurricanes. â€"I tell them they have to work constantly and have passion to achieve something on the mat and in life.

       â€"I tell the team I can’t be the one to want them or to will them to do something. It has to come from them. If they feel it, if they dream it, if they believe in themselves and if they do it, the sky’s the limit.”

       Surney took on the daunting task of rebuilding the RHHS wrestling program in 2011. A lot of work was needed to get the program on the right track and to help youngsters learn the life lessons of wrestling, learn proper techniques, recognize their potential and maximize it on the mat as well as in life. His task was all the more daunting with a roster of just four names and no feeder system to help youngsters with skill and technique development.

       â€"Our high school wrestling program began in 1983, when a group of eager young men approached George Kisluk, who was a new teacher and a former RHHS student-athlete,” said Richard Seidman, the director of athletics and student activities at Rocky Hill High School. â€"Under his direction, the boys on the first few teams became ‘salesmen’ for wrestling. They believed in it, worked hard, got other boys to join the team, and it began from there.

       â€"Coach Kisluk ran a few wrestling clinics with Parks & Rec., but other than that, we didn’t have a feeder program. With the support of our Board of Education, we were able to start one at Griswold Middle School three years ago. The program is under the direction of Coach Kisluk, a physical education teacher and coach at GMS,” Seidman added.

       â€"Before Coach Surney, we had multiple coaches but limited results and declining numbers for nearly 10 years. He combines wrestling expertise and knowledge of coaching philosophies with an understanding of how to educate and serve the best interests of our student athletes,” continued Seidman. â€"He’s able to make personal connections with our students, beyond the classroom or wrestling mat.”

       After a knee injury curtailed his collegiate career at Endicott, Surney remained in Massachusetts and began coaching. He started with just four wrestlers--all of whom went on to become state champions--and quickly grew the team to almost 40 members.

       Surney’s next challenge brought him to Connecticut to pursue a degree in business and serve as assistant wrestling coach at New London High School, where he was instrumental in increasing enthusiasm for the sport and growing the roster.

       â€"Wrestling was big when I was here. We had full JV and varsity teams,” noted second-year assistant coach Bryan Wziontko, a former Terrier wrestler and 2004 grad.

       â€"The kids that stay with the program have heart and dedication. It takes a special person to wrestle. They also have to have smarts not only on the mat but in class as well. Though we don’t have a lot of wins, coach and I have full confidence that in a couple of years, we’ll have a full squad and be a lot better,” said Wziontko, who teaches ceramics at RHHS.

       â€"I never wrestled before I joined the team,” stated Santana, who captains the Terriers. â€"My brothers Josh and Javier played football and wrestled here. They had successful high school careers and I wanted to follow in their footsteps.

       â€"Wrestling is a passion. That’s why I stick with it. It’s taught me lessons about life, like never giving up. It’s a hard but rewarding sport.

       â€"Wrestling’s not about winning or losing--as long as you give it your all, that’s what’s important. We may lose 63-9, like tonight, but it doesn’t matter. We all stick with it and work even harder,” continued Santana. â€"We motivate each other and keep each other going. A lot of kids quit before this season began because wrestling is a tough sport. They couldn’t stick with it.”

       â€"I wrestle Michael Frizzell in practice. He’s a lot heavier than me but it’s okay. My first year I had to wrestle against guys heavier than me in exhibition matches. I’m used to it. I love wrestling guys heavier than me--it makes me want to push myself even harder,” said Santana, a defensive tackle and fullback on the Terriers’ football team and a shot putter on the track team.

       â€"You can say ‘I play football’ or ‘I play soccer,’ but you can’t say that about wrestling. You say ‘I am a wrestler.’”

       â€"I love my teammates and coaches. We have fun, but when we get on the mat, we’re all business. I’m so glad coach Surney came to Rocky Hill High School because if he didn’t, I don’t think we’d have as many kids on the wrestling team as we do. We’ve definitely made progress. We’re heading in the right direction. We have a great future,” Santana said emphatically.
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