Video: Mattituck’s Bokina falls 8-7 at states

One more win stood between Jack Bokina and the podium at the Division II New York State Wrestling Championships Saturday morning. An eighth-grader wrestling for Mattituck/Greenport, Bokina was aiming to become the first Tucker wrestler to finish all-state since 2007.

Bokina rallied back from a third-period hole, but it wasn’t enough to overcome Jacob Nolan of Sarasota, who prevailed 8-7 to advance in the tournament at Times Union Center.

Bokina, the last wrestler standing among the seven Mattituck sent to states, trailed 6-1 early in the third period before turning it on. He scored a reversal for two points and then got it to within one at 6-5. He trailed 7-5 in the final seconds before scoring a takedown for what appeared to be the tying points that would sent the match to overtime.

But Nolan had been awarded an additional point for unsportsmanlike conduct after Bokina slapped his hand on the mat, bringing a crushing end to an otherwise terrific match.

Had he won, Bokina would have wrestled two more matches and been guaranteed at least a sixth-place finish. Bokina went 2-1 on the first day of the tournament Friday.

Click below to see the entire match: