Wrestling: Phillipsburg at Kittatinny preview, lineups

What: Phillipsburg Stateliners vs. Kittatinny Cougars.

Where: Kittatinny Regional High School, Hampton Township.

When: Thursday, 7 p.m.

Conference: Independent.

Records: Phillipsburg 3-0; Kittatinny 1-1.

State rankings (New Jersey Wrestling Writers): Phillipsburg No. 13.

Area rankings (Open Mike): Phillipsburg No. 3; Kittatinny No. 8.

Coaches: Dave Post (150-23, 10th season (9-0 vs. Kitt); John Gill (582-189-5, 40th season (6-18 vs. P'burg).

Series history: Phillipsburg leads 18-6 dating to 1994, including last year's 44-12 win at The Pit. Kittatinny has dropped nine straight since a 41-34 victory at home in 2010, while the Stateliners have won 12 of 13 since snapping their four-match skid from 2003-06. No meeting during the 1997-98 season.

Note: Phillipsburg wrestlers listed first with season records in parentheses.

106 -- So. Sean Stasiulaitis (4-5) vs. So. Shane Nelson (7-0).

113 -- So. James Day (11-4) vs. Fr. Anthony Ferrari (2-6).

120 -- So. Hakeem Ransdell (3-5) vs. Fr. Chris Casale (1-2).

126 -- Jr. Logan Maczko (6-2) vs. Fr. Andrew Knutelsky (3-4) or Sr. Ryan Turner (0-1).

132 -- So. Joey Innamorato (8-4) vs. Jr. Patrick Franco (2-1) or So. Avery Yeager (0-1).

138 -- Jr. Jason Tino (9-8) vs. Jr. Scott Wallgren (4-5).

145 -- Sr. Jared Kukor (4-6) vs. So. Steven Dalling (5-4) or So. Tyler Redden (0-1).

152 -- So. Matt D'Onofrio (4-8) vs. Jr. Craig Molfetto (3-5) or Dalling.

160 -- So. Nate Zastowny (11-4) vs. Sr. Gian Knippenberg (3-5) or Molfetto.

170 -- Sr. Denny Perez (3-6) vs. So. Evan Raposo (1-5) or Knippenberg.

182 -- Sr. Jacob Wicks (9-6) or So. David Pierson (8-5) vs. So. Brycen Mafaro (6-2).

195 -- Pierson or Wicks vs. Sr. Robert Bruce (5-3).

220 -- Jr. Gage Horvath (9-4) vs. Jr. Jackson Crawn (6-1) or So. Ty Eldred (5-3).

285 -- Sr. Cody Cruts (8-4) vs. Sr. Jacob Mafaro (0-0) or Eldred or Crawn.

P'burg and Kittatinny prep for Saturday's HWS Tournament.

Breakdown: We haven't seen a close matchup in this series since 2013 (P'burg won 34-22 at The Pit), while the average margin of victory in the previous eight meetings was 23 points. This one, which may feature a total of just six seniors on the mat, could be interesting, especially in the upper weights. Kittatinny has the potential to win six, perhaps seven bouts if things break right. The big questions are the status of Franco, who sustained an injury prior to the loss to High Point on Jan. 2, and Mafaro, who has yet to appear this season. Straight up, P'burg is favored at 113, 120, 126, 132, 138, 152, 160, 170, 182 and 285 (if Mafaro isn't in the lineup). Kittatinny only has the edge at 106 at 220, but 145 and 195 are very close to call. You have to figure that the Cougars will maneuver to get Franco (if healthy) on Tino and Knippenberg on Perez. The 'Liners won't need to make many, if any, moves as they'll have plenty of opportunities for bonus points (in at least five bouts) and that's the big difference here.

Prediction: Phillipsburg, 43-18 (40-21 with J. Mafaro).