There’s no such thing as a sibling rivalry between the Felakos brothers of the Mattituck/Greenport/Southold wrestling team.
Only respect.
James, a senior and team captain, has aspirations of winning all-state honors.
Alexander, a sophomore, wants to continue to improve and acquit himself well in the Suffolk County tournament.
On Tuesday night, they did their part for the Tuckers, who recorded a 47-24 home victory over Southampton in a League VIII encounter.
Head coach Ryan Grebe knows what he has in the brothers.
“James is an excellent wrestler,” he said. “He works super hard. He has great work and work ethic, and he does all the right things. It’s tough to have him leave us next year. He’s a great role model. He’s not only an unbelievable wrestler, but he’s great in the classroom as well. He’s everything that you want in a wrestler. As an older brother, as a role model to Alex. I hope he takes some of those traits and he becomes a leader and a captain just like James.”
Alexander appreciated the coaching and tips James had given him.
“Most of his mentorship has been fully mental,” Alex said. “He hasn’t physically coached me. It’s always just there in my head. It helps me out get through the tough ones.”
James has understood how precious it is to compete on two high school teams with his brother.
“It’s been probably one of, if not the biggest honor in my career, to wrestle two years and play another year of football with him,” he said. “People don’t get to play with their brothers in that way, especially ones that are two years younger. But he’s really stepped up to be good enough to get to that level and be able to compete a little. There’s a little bit of shadow he’s trying to chase. I think he really could do very well. You see those flashes in it. I’m not so concerned about the nominal this or that achievement, but I think he could definitely be a better wrestler than I am. I have no doubt about it.”
A pretty strong statement from someone who has competed at two state tournaments.
James wants to return to the MVP Arena in Albany for a third time, where the state championship will be held on Feb. 28-March 1.
“I was super close last year,” said James, who has a 19-1 record. “I lost the one round. If I’d won that match, I would have been all-state. I would have been at least seventh or eighth and that’s the goal. I’m confident I can get that.”
James entered his 215-pound match against Cruz Espinosa confidently, but it took him a while to record a pin. He enjoyed a 14-0 advantage before recording a fall with only eight seconds remaining in the final period.
“I thought I wrestled fairly well,” he said. “I got off the mat later than I would like to. It was kind of hard to chase down that pin.”
In contrast, Alexander pinned Fredy Chacon 42 seconds into the second period at 152 to raise his record to 3-8 after a slow start to the season.
“I think I’m wrestling a lot better,” he said. “I’ve dropped down to a lower weight class, and it’s a lot easier to work around the guys. I think it was a great match.”
Alexander’s goal might not be as lofty as his brother’s.
“At least make podium [at the counties], try to make a name for myself,” he said.
The Tuckers (2-1, 2-0) won nine of 13 matches against the Mariners (1-2, 1-2).
In the opener, Colin Hoeg set the tone by pinning Oliver Chacon in 39 seconds, the first of six pins by the Tuckers. Other pins included Kevin Collins over Sebastyan Lepiz at 101 pounds, Ryder Antonucci over Ernesto Morales at 131, and Braden Ibanez over Nava Rodriguez at 138.
Other Mattituck winners included Jack Buonaiauto over Oliver Edson, 13-1, at 124, Joey Zuhoski over Ernesto Morales, 9-2, at 190 and Elliott Sirico over Abraham Trinidad, 17-2, at 108.
“Things went good,” Grebe said. “It’s our second home match this year, and the first one against Sachem East [a 48-18 loss on Dec. 4]. They didn’t come out as tough as they did tonight. It was great to see a lot of improvement. They’ve been working really hard. Every time they come out to the mat, it’s better and better. I was really proud of them.”