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He put the Redcoats' program on the map, virtually owned the Northwest Conference for 22 years and added nine state championship trophies to Berlin's dazzling showcase. He stirred the passion that produced scores of state placewinners and dozens of coaches.
The one glory that eluded him was watching his son Shane climb to the top of the podium to receive the rewards of a state championship. The elder Day can now ride into the sunset with a smile as top-seeded Shane left the competition at 135 pounds in the dust Saturday at the Class L championships at Bristol Central.
"It was a big relief because he's had a great career but this is one thing he hadn't been able to attain," Coach Day said. "Although it wouldn't define him it's nice that we got it."
What would more accurately define Shane is that he has achieved more takedowns than any wrestler in state history, a number that his father says is over 600.
"I'm not sure it's really sunk in," Coach Day said. "As a coach you stay focused on the team but tonight when I get home and relax a little bit, it will sink in big-time. He's worked so hard. It hasn't come easy."
Junior Jon Fiorillo (160) joined Shane in the winners' circle to lead the Redcoats to a fifth-place finish among 29 schools.
Middletown bore the pride of the Northwest Conference by taking the tournament with 178.5 points. Bristol Central finished second at 159.5 and Farmington recorded its highest finish in school history, taking third with 145.5.
Wethersfield, led by 103-pound champion Ken Velez, finished 11th with 84 points. Mike Brignano won the title at 125 for Farmington, which had a school-record eight placewinners in the 14 weight classes.
Shane Day, the ultimate technician, scored major decisions in each of his four bouts on the road to the title. He began with a 10-2 win over Conard's William Jones, crushed Andrew Turnbull of Fermi 19-5 and frustrated his Farmington rival Malcolm Yancey, 13-3, in the semifinals.
He was never threatened by second-seed Brian Onofrio of Hand in an 11-3 finale. Shane (41-0 in 2007) had defeated Onofrio in two previous encounters this season. He used what he called his "bread-and-butter" move to ease past him a third time.
"It's an outside single but I've been working on a single to the other side and that's what my first takedown was," Shane said. "He was leading with the other foot so he was expecting my usual outside single but I switched it up off the first one. I had a good cushion halfway through the match and I wanted to go with what I feel most comfortable with."
Fiorillo (1st seed, 39-2) was dynamic in tearing through his four foes. He won by first-period fall in the second round, a 14-3 decision over Eric Sassu of Bristol Eastern in the quarters and a 22-9 thumping of semifinal foe David Kerr of Fitch. He scored a technical fall in the final by beating Abraham Casarez of Middletown, 23-8.
"I hadn't gone against him but I'd seen a lot of him," Fiorillo said. "I felt like the seedings in the tournament were kind of lopsided. I thought my side of the bracket (upper) had the better kids and the lower half was misleading to how it was seeded."
Farmington coach Eric Misko, whose construction of the program has drawn raves from far and wide, had hopes of a championship.
"We came in hoping to win but a lot of matches didn't go the way we needed them to," Misko said. "But it was a deep tournament and this is the best the school has ever done."
The 7-2 victory over sixth-seeded Ryan Clarke of East Lyme in the final was anti-climactic for Brignano (top seed, 45-2). His 3-1 overtime win over long-time rival Chris Malenfant of Bristol Central in the semifinals was an epic struggle.
"I've wrestled him four times and it's even," Brignano said. "Last time I beat him right before overtime. I needed to win. I've been training to win the whole year. That was my goal. That was my dream."
Velez, top-seeded and 38-4 on the season, was never challenged in his four bouts.
He won by technical fall (15-0) over Rockville's Julio Amaez in the second round. He pinned Garrett Gitterman of Maloney (3:16) in the quarterfinals, chalked up another tech fall over fourth-seeded Kevin Workman of Bunnell in the semis and had little trouble with Bristol Central sophomore Ryan Carbonell in a 21-7 final.
"That was the second time I faced him," Velez said. "The first time I beat him 4-2 when I had a reversal near the end of the third period. I knew it was going to be a tough match and I wasn't going to take him for granted but I was ready to wrestle."
Farmington received a second-place finish from sophomore Luke Walsh, who lost to Middletown's Casey Leslie, 11-4, in the 112 final. Walsh's signature win was a 7-5 overtime win against Eric Bergeron of Maloney in the semifinals.
Also placing for the Indians were Eric Orrell (5th at 103), Evan Baily (6th at 112), Yancey (3rd at 135), Jim Coyle (5th at 189), Kia Gholampour (5th at 215) and George Robinson (4th at 285).
Placing for Berlin were Kevin Moss (4th at 125), Chris Solek (5th at 130) and Jim Walonoski (3rd at 171). Wethersfield was also represented by Diego Perez (5th at 119) on the winners' platform.
