Pointers’ Dom Ambrosino flips script for state title

Sparrows Point junior Dom Ambrosino faced seemingly insurmountable obstacles in his path to last year’s 120-pound Class 2A-1A state championship given the presence of three undefeated wrestlers.

Two of those grapplers were returning state runners-up, and one, South Carroll senior Ryan Athey, had vanquished Ambrosino, 5-2, earlier that year.

A third opponent, Hereford’s Owen Bell, was unbeaten at 36-0, having beaten Ambrosino once in their freshman county title bout and once each in the regional finals of their freshman and junior seasons.

“I started wrestling when I was 5 for the Sparrows Point Spartan’s junior league program, and the highest I have placed is second at states,” said Ambrosino, 17. “Owen and I battled all through junior leagues and I always came out on top. But in high school, I beat him one or two times before he came back and beat me in the county and regional tournaments.”

In addition, Ambrosino was less than two weeks removed from having suffered a concussion that forced him to miss the Feb. 18-19 Baltimore County Tournament.

“I was wrestling against Pikesville and we clashed heads really hard, causing the concussion. I had trouble psychologically with dizziness, loud noises and bright lights, getting cleared to start the concussion protocol a week before regionals,” said Ambrosino, a 6-3 loser to Bell in last year’s Class 2A North Region finals on Feb. 26.

“I was officially cleared to wrestle two days before going into regionals with a day or two of practice. I was a little weak, but I went out there and gave all I had. I wasn’t too worried about winning regionals, but more about states. Once regions were over, that kind of flipped a switch in me.”

Ambrosino’s “flipped switch” meant “making sure to go to the gym” and “running and training harder to get prepared for that first match at states,” he said.

The “first match” was Ambrosino’s 43-second pin of sophomore Class 1A North Region champion Christopher Beegan of Loch Raven. Ambrosino followed with a quarterfinal 6-1 victory over sophomore Class 2A North West Region champion Stephen Stottlemeyer of Middletown.

“Dom was just a different wrestler that weekend,” said 18th-year coach Mike Whisner. “That just shows the drive and determination of the young man.”

In succession, Ambrosino registered an overtime fall in his semifinal triumph over Athey before pinning previously unbeaten Williamsport senior Landen Harbaugh in 4:33 of their state title match.

“My mindset used to be, ‘I can’t lose this match.’ I didn’t care what it took, I was going to at least make it to the finals,” said Ambrosino, who finished at 16-2 last season.

“But I changed my mindset to, ‘this is my year, and I’m gonna take matters into my own hands and I’m gonna win states.’”

Athey entered his bout with Ambrosino at 34-0, had been a state runner-up as a 106-pound freshman following a 1-0 loss to Jesse Fresh of Mountain Ridge, and placed third as a 113-pound sophomore.

“I realized from my first match with Athey that from neutral, he didn’t take too many shots, so I learned that I needed to dictate the match,” Ambrosino said. “In overtime, we were both dead-tired, but we were in a scramble and I saw his shoulders on the mat. Once I saw that, I just drove him forward and didn’t move.”

Next up was Harbaugh, who had gone 49-2 as 126-pound sophomore, losing that year’s state final, 4-3, to South Carroll’s two-time state champion A.J. Rodriguez. Harbaugh entered his bout with Ambrosino at 31-0 following his 4-0 semifinal victory over Bell.

“I didn’t see his match with Owen Bell, had an opportunity to watch Harbaugh wrestle at the state duals while I was sidelined with a concussion. I talked to a couple of guys, but they didn’t tell me how he wrestled as much as they just told me, ‘you got this,’ which gave me confidence going into the finals,” Ambrosino said.

“During the handshake, I didn’t see much spark in Harbaugh’s eyes, so my mindset was to try to dominate the match. After I got the first takedown, I said, ‘I got this.’ Harbaugh kept trying to do a Peterson roll, and I felt safe in that position. In the third period, he chose neutral. I countered his shot, bullied him over and pinned him with a half-nelson.”

Athey finished third following a 2-1 victory over Bell, who entered the tournament at 36-0.

“I wasn’t sure Dom was going to come back from that concussion last year,” said Whisner. “But the way he came back and won states was incredible to watch.”

Ambrosino finished fifth at states as a freshman, going 4-2 with his three pins including a first-round, 91-second fall over Bohemia Manor’s Colin Honaker. Honaker’s next match was an 8-4 decision over Bell, who was eliminated from the tournament.

“Throughout my whole life, I had always been second, third, fifth and never won a state title,” Ambrosino said. “There was always that guy who was just a little bit better. But after 12 or 13 years, I was tired of that feeling. By winning states, I finally did something about it.”

Off the mats, Ambrosino is a 4.0 student who never has earned lower than a B in any course.

“I’ve always taken advanced courses and right now I’m taking AP classes and never gotten below a B. My older sister, Marian, always got straight A’s, which forced me to strive to do better,” Ambrosino said.

“Right now, I’m looking at the college that gives me the most money because I don’t want to come out of college in debt. If I can’t find a college to give me enough money, I might go to a trade school for welding because they make good money.”

Back on the mats, the third-ranked Ambrosino is 14-0 with nine pins wrestling at 138 and 145 pounds this year. Ambrosino went 39-10 as a freshman and is 69-12 for his career, representing the first Pointers wrestler to return to his as a senior state champion.

“Max Hammond was a sophomore in 2017 when he won the state title but he transferred to St. Paul that summer,” said Whisner, who has coached five state champions.

“So Dom is my first returning state champion. Dom is an extremely hard worker and the captain and leader of our team. I am very excited for Dom to have the opportunity to have a full season for the first time since his freshman year.”

The Pointers (14-0) return to action at county rival Dundalk on Jan. 5 before entering the Jan.6-7 Iron Horse Duals at C. Milton Wright High in Harford County. Top-ranked teammate Damon Nelson (182) is 14-0 with 11 pins.

The Pointers won the county tournament for the fourth time in five seasons last year, falling by half a point to Owings Mills in 2019. The Pointers have won the last five regional dual meet crowns, being regional champions in six of the past seven seasons and state dual meet runners-up three times.

It is unclear whether or not Ambrosnio will yet again face Bell, a senior two-time Baltimore County and regional tournament champion who is ranked fourth at 126 pounds.

“There is a little more pressure returning as a state champ,” Ambrosino said. “But at least I was able to do the one thing I had never accomplished before.”