Wrestling: Shane Metzler set to guide Voorhees

Let's face it, October isn't the most ideal time to conduct the search for a head wrestling coach. 

Metzler

But Voorhees High School may have knocked it out of the park with the addition of former West Morris star and Rutgers University wrestler Shane Metzler for the fast-approaching 2024-25 season.

Metzler is expected to be approved as the sixth head coach for a storied Voorhees program that is set to embark on its 50th season during Tuesday night's Board of Education Meeting. It didn't take long for the Hunterdon County school, which opened in 1975 and is sitting on 686 dual-meet wins, to find Ricky Kurtz's successor.

Voorhees rescinded the previous appointment of Kurtz, a former star athlete and state medalist for Delaware Valley, as its head coach during the previous BOE meeting on Sept. 24. All coaching positions are contracted on a year-by-year basis. No reason was made public as to why Kurtz, 38, was removed after guiding the Vikings to an overall mark of 53-48 from 2020-24, including a 12-15 campaign last season.  

It's also unclear if any assistants on Kurtz's staff, which previously included former Vikes stars Greg Evans and Eric Zobian, will return this season.  

Metzler was one of West Morris' most decorated wrestlers and a three-time state placewinner under former coach Ken Rossi, who now serves as an NJSIAA tournament coordinator. Metzler, who's the Wolfpack's career wins leader (144), placed fourth, fifth and seventh in Atlantic City, the latter after suffering a quarterfinal loss at 126 pounds in 2017. He finished 39-5 in his final high school season.

Metzler went onto wrestle for Scott Goodale at Rutgers, where he went 22-33 overall and 2-6 in two Big 10 Tournament appearances.  

Kurtz took over the Voorhees program on an interim basis during the 2019-20 season, when former coach and Voorhees star wrestler Eric Hall was suspended following an unspecified incident that occurred during a dual meet at Bridgewater-Raritan in late January 2020. Hall was ultimately not retained that spring, and Kurtz was named as the Vikes' fifth head coach in October of that year. 

Voorhees celebrates its sectional title in 2018

Hall's teams went 183-73 overall in his nearly 10 seasons, capturing three of the school's 17 sectional titles -- two in North 2, Group 3 (2015 and '18) and one in North 2, Group 2 (2013), which ended the program's nine-year title drought.

Eric's father, Bob Hall, built the program into a state powerhouse as his teams went 332-99-5 over his 23 seasons, while capturing 13 sectional titles along with its only four state championships in Group 2 (1982 and '95) and Group 3 (1985 and '87). In 2010, Eric Hall was hired as the program's fourth head coach, following stints by former Phillipsburg coach Rick Thompson (30-26 in three seasons from 1998-2001) and Bob Angstadt (88-86 in nine seasons from 2001-10), who led the Vikes to their only other sectional title in 2004.

When Kurtz took over, Voorhees was struggling with numbers and did not produce a district champion that 2019-20 season for the first time since 2005. After going 4-9 during the COVID season in 2021, the Vikes enjoyed back-to-back winning campaigns in 2021-22 (15-8) and 2022-23 (19-10) before last season's sub-.500 season.

Voorhees also produced six district champs during Kurtz's tenure, including junior Christian Bollette (126 pounds), one of three winners last season and the team's top returning wrestler with a career mark of 55-24. No other returnee has more than 25 career victories. The trio of district golds were the most since the Vikes had four in back-to-back tournaments in 2017 and '18.

Wrestling: Thompson resigns post at North Warren

Rick Thompson's tenure as North Warren's head wrestling coach lasted about one month.

Thompson, 69, who was approved at a Board of Education meeting on July 15, told Open Mike on Thursday night that he submitted a resignation letter approximately two weeks ago. 

The Phillipsburg Hall of Famer, who resides year-round in Myrtle Beach, S.C., cited concerns over not being in the building and living arrangements in-season up north.

North recently approved Mike Lascari as its new head coach and former fellow Patriots wrestler Michael Castles as his assistant.

"I was only going to be there three months [during the season] and that's not how you run a program," said Thompson, who said his resignation had nothing to do with the school's leadership or any other circumstance. "I hope they can find [a coach] worthy of the program. I'm just sorry it didn't work out."

Thompson joined the Slippery Rock HOF in 2021

Thompson said he's already committed to coaching cross country and wrestling once again at Myrtle Beach High School for the 2024-25 seasons. The Seahawks produced one wrestling state champion last season in Mako Musilunas, who won the 4A title at 113 pounds. 

Thompson has not ruled out applying for future positions in the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex area.

The former P'burg head coach and wrestling icon, also had stints in the HWS area with Hackettstown and Voorhees, is often spotted at area dual meets and the New Jersey state tournament in Atlantic City.

"I just want to help kids," Thompson said during an interview with Open Mike when his name surfaced for a potential fourth stint with the Stateliners a few years ago.

North Warren, which went 2-20 in 2023-24 and has won just nine dual meets in the past three seasons, began the coaching search when former Kittatinny state placewinner and High Point assistant coach Kellen Bradley resigned as a teacher and head wrestling coach in late March. His teams went 43-83 overall in his six seasons with the Blairstown-based school. 

Bradley, who was hired in January as a teacher at Kittatinny for the 2024-25 school year, will reunite with his former coach John Gill as an assistant on the Cougars' staff this coming winter. Former High Point star and North Warren head coach Chris Jones, who was Bradley's ace assistant, also won't return to the Patriots' staff.

It's unclear where North Warren will now turn to find its next head coach,

Thompson is the Phillipsburg wrestling program's all-time winningest coach with a mark of 268-54-1 in 15 seasons across three stints (1980-88, 1991-95 and 2003-06). He guided the 'Liners to 15 sectional titles, the most under any head coach, and eight state championships (five in Group 3, three in Group 4), as well as six runner-up finishes. He won the Wilfred E. Cann Award as New Jersey's Coach of the Year in 1988 and coached 96 district, 39 region and nine individual state champions.

Considered one of the sport's premiere motivators, Thompson stepped down after nine seasons as the head coach at Bangor Area High School in Pennsylvania following the 2016-17 campaign and took over at Bethlehem Catholic for a short 6-1 stint in 2018-19.

"Wrestling is so demanding mentally," said Thompson, a retired health and physical education instructor, during an interview in 2022. "I had people who motivated me. My job was to make a better athlete and find a way to push those buttons in a positive way. 

"Our kids may lose because the other guy is more talented, but not because they were in better shape or stronger. Some kids I coached went on to college and have been successful [off the mat], and I'm proud of that."

Thompson is 477-232-4 overall, with wrestling stops at Mountain High School (now West Orange), Hackettstown, Franklin and Voorhees in addition to his Pennsylvania stints. As a wrestler, he won two state titles (1971 and '73) and placed third ('70), to go with four district and three region championships for the Stateliners under Thad Turner (1970) and later Jan Dutt (132-25 from 1970-80). 

Both coaches also attended Thompson's Hall of Fame induction at Slippery Rock.

'We think highly of him': Veneziano impresses Royals

(Open Mike caught up with Anthony Veneziano shortly before he left for Spring Training in late January. Excerpts from that conversation were used for this story)

It's been a whirlwind five days for Anthony Veneziano as the former Warren Hills and Coastal Carolina University star left-hander shuffled between Triple-A Omaha and the Kansas City Royals.

Veneziano, who was called up to the Majors for the second time in his career to serve as the Royals' 27th man for Wednesday's doubleheader vs. the White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field, did not see action in either game, though he was warming up in the 'pen late in Game 1.

Veneziano owns a 2.08 career ERA in 4 MLB outings

After being sent down to Omaha, by Major League rules, following the twin bill, Veneziano was summoned back to Kansas City on Saturday. He pitched one inning in relief in each the final two games of a series against the reigning American League champion Orioles before being returned to Omaha on Monday.  

Veneziano, 26, who's been working in a hybrid role after beginning the season as a starter for Omaha, yielded two runs (one earned) on four hits and one walk to go with two strikeouts in two frames (45 pitches, 18 strikes) against the O's. But the Royals' No. 13 prospect, according to MLB Pipeline, left a good impression during his most recent stint in the bigs.

"I think Anthony did a good job," Royals manager Matt Quatraro told Ryan Lefebvre during a pregame radio interview prior to Monday night's game against the Blue Jays at Kauffman Stadium. "That was the first time in his life that he's pitched back-to-back days -- not just pro ball or the big leagues. That's a learning experience for a guy that's been a starter his whole life and now he's in the bullpen, and coming up to do it in the big leagues.

"He handled himself well. We think highly of him. We think he can be somebody that can get Major League hitters out consistently going forward."

Veneziano, following a successful debut in the Majors at the tail end of 2023, began this season at Triple-A, where he's 0-1 with a 4.15 ERA in five appearances (two starts for the Storm Chasers). Veneziano, who ranked among Kansas City's Minor League leaders in wins (10, T-2nd), ERA (3.55, 4th) and strikeouts (127, 5th) in 2023,, has yielded six runs on 13 hits and six walks to go with 10 strikeouts in 13 innings in '24.

Veneziano, who went 10-5 with a 3.55 ERA and 127 K's across 132 innings in 26 appearances (25 starts) between Omaha and Double-A Northwest Arkansas in 2023, entered Major League Spring Training in '24 with the mindset of being a starter. 

But he was also ready to do whatever was asked of him at Triple-A or in the Majors.

"They said be ready for any role," Veneziano said in late January. "Could be starter, could be long relief, could be back-end bullpen. It all depends on the situation."

Veneziano was an organizational All-Star in '23

In the offseason, Veneziano throws at Total Arm Care in Wharton, where pitchers from the Cardinals, Cubs and Pirates also train during the winter. He met there with Royals pitching coach Brian Sweeney around last Thanksgiving to catch up. Sweeney also wanted to see Veneziano in action, particularly throwing his bread-and-butter pitch.

"He watched me throw a bullpen and gave me some good feedback," Veneziano said. "He wanted to see some of the stuff with the slider, just kind of dialing in with the analytical numbers matching with what I'm feeling, with the slider especially. They want the slider to move seven inches. If you can chase that seven in the bullpen, every time, that's what [the Royals] want to see. They want the changeup to be the same. 

"In the big leagues, you have to throw all three, four pitches, consistently."

Veneziano, who gives back tirelessly to the Warren Hills community and beyond, said he also worked with high school players at Total Arm Care. Former Major Leaguer and Rutgers star Pete Zoccolillo, now the head coach at Mount Olive High School, owns the building. A connection was made through Veneziano's uncle, Joe, to train there in the offseason.

Last year, Veneziano said he was not used to working out of the bullpen, and admittedly more tired after games, especially mentally. But it turned out to be the perfect primer when he did get to the Majors for the first time last September, because he was able to study other reliever and how they want about their business. He made his MLB debut on Sept. 26 in Detroit.

"I didn't pitch the first four games so I got to see the process of the true relievers and what they did to get ready for a game, pregame, during the game, when their name's called and what to do. I took a lot of good information and [Royals bullpen coach] Mitch Stetter, I've known him. He's been on the Minor League side for awhile, and he's been super helpful. 

"So, I think I made the transition pretty easy. Obviously, everyone wants to be a starter, but whatever gets me to the big leagues, I am happy."

Wrestling: HWS state roundup by the numbers

As we put a bow on the high school wrestling season, let's take one final look by the numbers at the 91st New Jersey State Championships at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City -- boys and girls edition. 

Lots of interesting stuff involving wrestlers from Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex area, plus some statewide stats and info, as well as the never-ending Public vs. Non-Public debates.

Hawk (fourth from left) is 110-19 overall

11 -- Pope John junior Carson Walsh (132) and Phillipsburg junior Gavin Hawk (150) were the only local finalists on the boys side, but they'll have another shot at state gold next season. It won't get any easier as there were 11 underclassmen who won titles, including four from St. Joseph-Montvale. Two juniors -- Adrian DeJesus and Zach Ballante -- kept HWS off the board as DeJesus, a two-time champ, handed Walsh an 8-4 loss in their 132-pound final, while Ballante, a three-time medalist, knocked off Hawk for the second straight week with an 8-4 victory following a 3-1 win in overtime in the Region 2 finals a week earlier. Juniors Ryan Burton (175) and Rocco Dellagatta (285) also won title for St. Joe. Delbarton has three champs returning in freshmen Cameron Sontz (106) and Ryan DeGeorge (126), as well as junior Alessio Perentin (165). St. John Vianney junior and three-time champion Anthony Knox (120) and Brick Memorial junior Harvey Ludington (190), a two-timer, also return along with a pair of first-time champs in St. Peter's Prep junior Caedyn Ricciardi (138) and Rumson-Fair Haven freshman Sonny Amato (144).

7 -- High Point freshman Ella Poalillo became the second at her school to win a state title in the six-year history of the girls tournament -- scoring a 3-1 win over Sussex County-rival and Newton sophomore Eva Barry in their final 138 pounds. Poalillo, who went 4-2 vs. Barry this season and is just the second freshman girl from the area to win a title (Sparta's Paige Weiss won at 107 in 2023), became the sixth winner from HWS overall. Noelle Gaffney was the first champion for the Wildcats with her victory at 165 in 2022. Phillipsburg's Jewel Gonzalez (2019-20), the area's only OW, and Hunterdon Central's Stephanie Andrade (2019-20), the first champ for HWS, are the lone two-time winners. 

Rossi is HC's first top-three placer since 2019 (Brett Ungar first at 106)

53 -- Wrestlers from public high schools accounted for 54 of a possible 112 medals (48 percent), including seven from the HWS area as Hunterdon Central seniors Anthony Rossi (third at 120) and Thomas Brunetti (fourth at175) placed for the first time in their fine careers after entering the tournament unbeaten. Delaware Valley junior Jaden Perez (fifth at 126), Hackettstown senior Nicolas Balella (fifth at 132) and Voorhees senior Logan Wiecoreck (sixth at 157) also became first-time medalists, along with Hawk, while Phillipsburg senior John Wargo (fifth at 285) became the first Stateliner "heavyweight" to place at least twice since Robert Melise captured three medals (fifth at 220 in 2015 and '17 and second in '16). P'burg now has an area-best 152 placewinners (61 finalists) in its illustrious history.  

32 -- Though the number of medals was a 58-54 split favoring the Non-Public schools, consider this: among the top-four finishers at each weight, Non-Publics accounted for 32 of the 56 (57 percent) medals. It revealed what we already knew in that the talent level is top-heavy in favor of the wrestlers from private schools. Pope John junior Jake Holly (eighth at 106) and sophomore Dalton Weber (third at 126) were among that group, along with Walsh, a three-time placewinner who broke his 0-for-2 skid in state semifinal bouts this season. Non-Publics, which accounted for seven medals at 138 and six at 175, had no fewer than three at every other weight but 144 (one). Region 7 led the way with 20 medals, followed by Region 2 and Region 5 with 19 apiece. Region 3 was next with 16, while Region 4 had 12. Region 1 had 10, Region 6 had nine and Region 8 rounds out the list with seven. 

Coesfeld is the 105th member of Sussex's 100-wins club

233 -- Rossi and Brunetti became the 28th and 29th wrestlers at Hunterdon Central to reach the century mark in wins -- no small feat as this year's seniors were the last of the COVID era in 2021. Rossi (43-1), whose only loss was 3-0 to Donovan Catholic runner-up Kurt Wehner in the state semis, picked up his first medal with a third-place finish. At 125-16 overall, the Virginia-bound Rossi ranks tied for sixth place with Vincent Romaniello (125-36 from 2015-19) on the Red Devils' all-time victories list, while Brunetti (43-2), who also reached the semis at 175 and got No. 100 in AC, finished at 102-22.

"That makes me really happy," Rossi said of putting his name up with some of the Central greats. "I wish it could've been higher, but things happen, COVID. Didn't get a lot of matches [9-3 as a freshman]. Just tried my best and gave my full effort." 

There are now 233 wrestlers from the HWS area to reach this milestone, including Phillipsburg's Hawk (110-19), Luke Geleta (102-25) and Wargo (102-18). This was the first time in program history that three Stateliners hit this mark in the same season. Former state runner-up Brian Meyer (131-35 from 2014-18) ranks first for the 'Liners in career wins. On the Sussex side, Kittatinny senior Bryce Coesfeld became the 19th at his school to hit the century mark (100-28) and first since Jackson Crawn (106-33 from 2017-21) with a 6-3 victory over Madison's Jack McCaffrey in the third round of wrestlebacks at 175. 

Weber and Perez on the podium at 126

44 -- Perez, who got hot at the right time during the postseason, added the 44th state medal to Delaware Valley's collection with his run to fifth place at 126 pounds. He's the Terriers' highest finisher since Kyle Lightner won the title at 195 in 2017 -- the school's ninth championship. Perez also gave his school medals in consecutive seasons (senior Matt Roche was eighth at 132 in 2023) for the first time since 2012-13. Along the way, Perez, who's 85-18 overall, avenged an earlier 16-9 loss to Weber in a highly-entertaining HWS Tournament final with a 10-9 decision in their Region 4 title bout. We were one win away from Round 3, but Perez lost 4-3 to Camden Catholic's Sammy Spaulding in the state consolation semis and Weber went on to deck Spaulding in 1:55 to place third. 

"It's not the result I wanted, but it's the result I got," Perez said. "I'm not mad [about] it, but there's definitely some stuff to work on [in the offseason] for sure. Hopefully, I can get that No. 1 next year."

72 -- Rossi and Brunetti were the first pair of semifinalists and top-four finishers for Central since 2000, when Mike Carr won the state title at 215 and Dan Eberstein placed fourth at heavyweight in the Meadowlands. Overall, the Red Devils now have 72 top-four state finishes in the program's 68 seasons.

"Obviously the semis didn't end how I wanted to, but things happen," said Rossi, a four-time state qualifier. "Big difference between this year and the other years is that I'm not treating it like a job. I'm really having fun out there. I'm scoring points and not worried about getting taken down. If I get taken down, I'm going to get out, get my points and have fun, try and get a takedown. 

"Good things come when you're not worried about aspects like that."

Zobian (2nd from left), Wiecoreck, Kurtz, Evans (far right)

32 -- A state medal was the one thing missing from Wiecoreck's resume as the senior became Voorhees' 32nd medalist and first since heavyweight Lewis Fernandes won back-to-back titles in 2018-19. At 118-25, Wiecoreck ranks fifth on the Vikes' career wins list -- behind Fernandes (153), Jadaen Bernstein (135), Kyle DiNapoli (127) and Eric Hall (120). It also helps having several Voorhees legends and former placewinners in your corner. Vikes assistant and former Bridgewater-Raritan head coach Greg Evans (third at 103 in 1988 and sixth at 102 in '87) was in the chair next to head coach Ricky Kurtz, a fourth-place finisher at 160 for Del Val in 2004, while Eric Zobian (seventh-eighth at 189 in '88) also is on staff. Evans and Wiecoreck are the only Vikes to earn sixth-place medals.

85 -- It's been awhile for the five schools in Warren County, which has produced 85 champions -- now fourth behind Bergen (140), Union (129), Sussex (121) and Morris (90) -- in the 91-year history of the State Championships. Washington-Warren Hills has 46 of those, which is second only to Newton (82) statewide, but none since Justin Colaluce won back-to-back titles in 1997-98. Phillipsburg's last and 33rd boys champion was Brandon Hull (220 in 2012). Morris County surpassed Warren with five champions (four from Delbarton) in this year's tournament -- including Mount Olive senior Tyeler Hagensen (113), the Region 2 OW, who ended his school's title drought. Anthony Guidi (152 in 1988) was the Marauders' first champ.

Balella (37-9), who finished 15 wins shy of 100, gave Hackettstown state medal winners in consecutive seasons for the first time in 15 years (Cory Vernon seventh and Zach Ulm eighth in 2007; Owen Vernon third in '08 and Corey Kozimor seventh in 2009). Tigers coach Jim Berringer was a two-time placer for Hopatcong (sixth at 140 in 2000 and seventh-eighth at 130 in '99). Balella's uncle, Jim, a current assistant coach, also was a standout wrestler for Hackettstown.

"These coaches are [among] the best in the state, I truly believe," said Nicolas, who avenged a 6-5 OT loss in the semifinals to St. John Vianney's Patrick O'Keefe with a 4-3 win in their fifth-place bout.

"They are all really talented and push me in the [practice] room every day to get better. I really wanted to make the semis, that was my main goal, but we got set back in overtime. We continued to fight. I'm OK with fifth place. Not too bad."

Interesting story here as Aiden Scheeringa, who was sixth at 106 in '23, had one more year of high school eligibility at Hackettstown, but his family moved to South Carolina and he enrolled early at Liberty University. He competed at 125 pounds this season, going 16-17.

Poalillo is the new 'face' of High Point girls wrestling

ATLANTIC CITY -- High Point freshman Ella Poalillo is fully aware of the proud tradition and history of success that's associated with the boys wrestling program at her school. 

Now, she's looking forward to playing a huge role helping to shape the future of a relatively new girls program.

Poalillo joined the list of Wildcat wrestling greats in becoming the school's second female state champion and just the third overall in Sussex County with a thrilling 3-1 victory over Newton sophomore Eva Barry in their 138-pound final on Saturday in the sixth New Jersey Girls State Championships at Boardwalk Hall.  

Poalillo and Barry on the podium in AC

In doing so, Poalillo (29-3) joined Noelle Gaffney (165 pounds in 2022) as the only girls to win state titles at High Point, which has produced 13 on the boys' side, including head coach John Gardner (189 in 1990) and assistant coach Billy Smith (285 in 2011). Both were in Poalillo's corner in AC. 

"It's just an honor and all of them at High Point, including Noelle, have just supported me so much," said Poalillo, who along with Barry, gave the HWS area a total of 15 girls state finalists since 2019. 

"I'm just so thankful for her and my coaches, and Nick [Francavilla], who I train with and who won [three] state titles at High Point. I was just so thankful to be trained by a tradition of people."

The 'Cats are quickly becoming a statewide force in the female ranks as they lead the tri-county area in state medals with 14 since the sport became sanctioned in 2019. Sparta sophomore Paige Weiss, who finished fourth at 114 pounds this season, is the only other state champ from Sussex county having won a title at 100 pounds in 2023. 

Phillipsburg's Jewel Gonzalez (2019-20) and Hunterdon Central's Stephanie Andrade (2019-20) are the only other female champs produced by the HWS area and the only two-time winners. Poalillo, Barry and Weiss were among nine HWS medalists, along with three-time placewinner Caitlin Hart of Vernon and two-time medal winner Olivia Raia of Warren Hills, who finished fourth and fifth, respectively, at 185 pounds. 

Newton-Kittatinny's Liliana Zaku-Ramos, a 2023 finalist, was third at 126, North Hunterdon's Riley Conaty (eighth at 138) earned her first medal, while Vernon's Natalie Tucker (sixth at 132) and Lily Henderson (eighth at 107) round out the local contingent. 

Gardner, who is recognized as one of the all-time great boys coaches, will concentrate on leading the High Point girls program full-time starting in 2024-25. There's a long way to go to match the boys' success, but the girls are off to a great start with two champs in three years.

"With Ella, she had a successful youth [wrestling] career, too. But before that, Noelle [was a former basketball player]," Gardner said. "Hopefully what you see is some kids get involved with wrestling a lot earlier and do a little more. We've never had a face of girls wrestling because it didn't really exist. So then Noelle kind of breaking that a little bit and hopefully we got a couple of kids because of that. 

"But really you're not going to see that until the young kids come through and hopefully Ella will help with that process as well. She spent a lot of time this past season working with a group of younger girls at Sussex. When you're willing to give back to the community and the program, I think that says a lot about who she is."

The season-long mat rivalry between Poalillo and Barry, her school's second state finalist, was of epic proportions. And the sixth and final installment did not disappoint. 

Poalillo, who went 4-2 vs. Barry (32-4), including a pin in the region finals, held a slim 1-0 lead after an early third-period escape, but two warnings for stalling knotted things up with just 14 seconds left on the clock. The state title bout seemed destined for overtime, but Poalillo spun behind Barry, who appeared to relax for a split-second, at the edge of the mat to secure the winning takedown right before the buzzer.

"I think she let go for a second and I felt the pressure come off, so I just used that as my opportunity to spin behind as quickly as you can," Poalillo said. "I went into the match, obviously trying to score my points, but I really didn't want to make any mistakes.

"Even though there was stalling and I was thinking about getting a point against me, you really don't want to take any bad shots or have any slipups happen because that's going to cost you a state title."

Poalillo may one day join the school's list of 100-match winners

The intense season series went back-and-forth until Poalillo's fall in 4:28 in the region final on Feb. 25. Prior to that one, Barry won by pinfall twice following 2-0 decision losses on Dec. 17 and again in the HWS Tournament finals on Jan. 21. 

Why were the results so mixed?

"We've been training partners for a long time so it's kind of hard to do the same stuff you'd normally do," said Poalillo, who deftly fought off Barry's tie-ups the entire bout and a pair of single-leg attempts late in the final period. "It's the same thing if someone watches your film leading up to big matches because they know what's coming and they know how to prevent you from maybe taking the shots you take or getting the ties you get to. 

"It's just whoever wants it more."

Gardner is also no stranger to wrestling an opponent multiple times in a season. He shared the story with Poalillo about his championship run as a senior, when Gardner went 5-0 against Lenape Valley's Doug Vetter, including an 8-5 victory in the state final at Princeton University's Jadwin Gymnasium. 

"Anytime you can get a win when you're back-and-forth, then the advantage has to shift a little bit, however it happens," Gardner said of that tiebreaking pin for Poalillo that put her ahead 3-2 in the series. "For us to win a match differently at the region tournament put us in a really good spot to be here.

"I've been there before so I was able to let her kind of understand that it's no different whether you're 2-2 or if we were down 2-3, or in my case having won four, you still get to the state finals and there's nerves. I thought she responded real well. She stuck to the game plan and was able to perform."

Francavilla (2009-11), who now runs the Ironhorse club in Sparta, and Brian Soldano (2020-22), now the starting 184-pounder for Rutgers, are the only High Point wrestlers to win three state titles. So a chance to make even more wrestling history is within Poalillo's sights. 

"That's the goal," Poalillo said of becoming the school's first four-time champion. "That would be great. I'm really looking forward to wrestling these next three years at High Point."

Wrestling: Walsh, Hawk ride wave to state finals

ATLANTIC CITY -- The third time was definitely a charm for Pope John junior Carson Walsh, one the three-time state medalist hopes will lead to gold.

Walsh, who lost two previous semifinal appearances, finally got off the schneid with a 3-2 victory over Southern junior Bryce Manera at 132 pounds to highlight action in the 91st State Wrestling Championships on Friday night at Boardwalk Hall. 

"I'm hot right now and it's good," said Walsh (38-3), who has reeled off 30 straight wins since a 3-1 loss to 2024 Rhode Island state champion David Perez of Ponaganset High School in the Sam Cali Invitational finals on Dec. 28, 2023. 

Walsh will next face St. Joseph-Montvale junior Adrian DeJesus, a three-time medalist and 2022 state champion, in Saturday afternoon's finals slated for approximately 3:45 p.m., following the girls championships.

Hawk is Phillipsburg's 61st state finalist

Also earning his first state championship finals appearance was Phillipsburg junior Gavin Hawk, who decked Bergen Catholic senior Jayden Iznaga with a cradle in 3:26 of their 150-pound semifinal. Hawk declined to be interviewed following his victory.

Not as fortunate was teammate and senior John Wargo, who was pinned by St. Joseph-Montvale junior Rocco Dellagata at 285 pounds as the Stateliners put two in the state semis for the first time since Brandon Paetzell (132) and Robert Melise (220) finished as runners-up in 2016.

Hunterdon Central seniors Anthony Rossi (120) and Thomas Brunetti (175) both suffered their first losses of the season in the semifinals, while Pope John sophomore Dalton Weber (126) and Delaware Valley junior Jaden Perez (126) also came up short in their bids to reach the finals.

In all, 10 wrestlers from the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex area secured medals earlier in the day as the locals went 7-2 in the quarters and 3-3 in the consolation Blood Round. That was after an 0-6 start to Day 2 in the second round of wrestlebacks.

Pride of the Lions

How hot has Walsh been of late? Of his 10 postseason wins, five have been by technical fall, to go with one pin and one major decision as he cruised to District 11 and Region 3 titles. Walsh, who scored a 5-3 win over Delbarton's Chase Quenault in the quarters, joined three other Pope John wrestlers -- Mike Frick (1969-72), JoJo Aragona (2016-19) and Eddie Ventresca (2017, '19 and '20) -- as the only ones to win at least three region crowns. Frick and Aragona are the only Lions to win four. 

"I know wrestling-wise, I can hang with anybody," said Walsh, who was sixth at 113 as a freshman and fourth at 126 as a sophomore in AC. "The mental [part] is the biggest different this year. It's a mental game, one match at a time. Lock [in this win] and be ready to go tomorrow."

Walsh is now 11-5 all-time at Boardwalk Hall

Walsh, a University of Pittsburgh commit, has looked to some heavy hitters in the sport for advice in his quest to become Pope John's 10th state champion and fifth since 2019, when Robbie Garcia, Aragona and Ventresca all won that year. Nick Lodato (2021) is the last Lion to win a state gold.

According to Walsh, former Middletown South great and three-time state champion Glenn Pritzlaff shared a story with him during his club practices about not getting caught clock-watching and keeping up the intensity on offense, while Aragona, a four-time medalist and two-time finalist, has helped immensely with the mental approach. 

"All this mental stuff comes from [Aragona]," Walsh said. "He's been on this stage many times. He's watched me wrestle all year and he knows no one can go with me on the mat. But when I'm not myself, I'm not the same."

Walsh took a 1-0 lead into the third period against Manera and converted what ended up being the difference-making takedown while later not giving up two on a wild scramble with 20 seconds left on the clock.

"I was just looking for offense," Walsh said. "What [Prtizlaff] wanted me to know by telling that story is to always look for my offense no matter what the score is because when I do that, I'm dangerous."

Chasing No. 34

Phillipsburg's state championship drought is an annual topic of conversation during this time of year and really throughout the regular season and offseason with the diehard 'Liner faithful. It's amazing to think that P'burg has only produced two state champions in 28 years -- Marc DeFrancesco in 1996 and Brandon Hull in 2012, the 33rd and last on the boys side when he captured the 220-pound title here. 

Making it even more remarkable is when you consider that since '97, the 'Liners have won 14 of their 23 state team championships. All of this was not lost on first-year head coach Tim Longacre and ace assistant Brad Gentzle, who both mentioned the high importance of getting that 34th state gold.

Hawk (38-2), who ranks 13th on the school's all-time wins list at 110-18, locked up a cradle during a takedown attempt and flattened Iznaga as the throng of P'burg fans roared in approval. Hawk is the Stateliners' first finalist since Brian Meyer finished second at 152 pounds in 2018.

Wargo (34-2), who joined Hawk and junior Luke Geleta, a 2023 medalist who fell in the Blood Round, as the first P'burg trio to win their 100th career bout in the same season on Thursday, lost to Dellagatta, a 2023 fourth-placer at 175, for the second time in as many weeks. 

Dellagatta (34-4) racked up five takedowns in an impressive 10-4 win in their Region 2 finals encounter last Saturday at Mount Olive High School. The start of this one was exactly the same, only Wargo was able to execute a single-leg attempt out of the gate for a quick lead. But the momentum quickly shifted as Dellagatta escaped and converted an inside-trip for a takedown before turning Wargo with a bar and a half for a 6-2 lead through one period. He added two more second-period takedowns before getting another turn for the pin.   

Back points

Perez helped Delaware Valley put a wrestler on the podium in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 2012-13, as he rallied for a 9-7 win in sudden victory over Shawnee's Luke Sherlock, who led 6-2 during their quarterfinal matchup. In '12, Mike Pongracz (fifth at 126) and Will Van Doren (eighth at 170) earned medals, while Pongracz also took fifth at 126 in '13. Senior Matt Roche, who did not make it out of Region 4, had snapped the Terriers' six-year medal drought since those two with an eighth-place finish in '23. 

For the first time in seven years, HWS collected 10 medals. Here are the totals since 2011 -- (9) 2023; (9) 2022; (13) 2021; (10) 2020; (16) 2019; (18) 2018; (11) 2017; (8) 2016; (6) 2015; (9) 2014; (4) 2013; (7) 2012; (7) 2011. As you can see, our area has boosted the count considerably post-realignment starting in '17.

Here is the statewide breakdown by region: R7=20; R2 and R5=19; R3=16; R4=12; R1=10; R6=9; R8=7. Of the 112 medals, 58 were earned by the Non-Publics to the 54 for public school wrestlers.

As a side note, there are now 12 state medal winners who finished fourth in the regions (not including 2021) and five hail from the HWS area as Pope John junior Jake Holly (106) became the latest to do it on Saturday. The other locals are: North Hunterdon's Andrew Gapas (eighth at 132) in 2017, High Point's Brandon LaRue (sixth at 113) and Pope John's Reece Mulduun (seventh at 182) in 2018 and Sparta's Spencer Stewart (eighth at 120) in 2019. There were none in 2022 and '23.

A year ago, Hunterdon Central did not have a placewinner for the first time since 2015. But Rossi and Brunetti secured their first state medals with quarterfinal wins. Rossi (41-1) came up short in the semis with a 3-0 loss to two-time Donovan Catholic placer Kurt Wehner, while Brunetti (42-1) ran into a buzzsaw in reigning Delbarton state champ Louis Cerchio, who scored a 21-6 win by technical fall in their 175-pound semifinal.

Voorhees senior Logan Wiecoreck (157) and Hackettstown senior Nicolas Balella (132) also earned their first state medals with wins in the Blood Round. 

Wiecoreck is the 32nd placewinner for the Vikes and first since Lewis Fernandes won back-to-back titles at 285 pounds in 2018-19, while Balella is his school's 13th. It also gave the Tigers medals in consecutive seasons for the first time in 15 years (Cory Vernon-seventh and Zach Ulm-eighth in 2007, Owen Vernon-third in '08 and Corey Kozimor-seventh in '09).

Wrestling: State Tournament information, stats, picks

What: 91st New Jersey State Wrestling Championships.

Where: Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City.

When: Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

Thursday's schedule: Girls pre-quarterfinals (eight mats), 10 a.m.; boys preliminaries (8 mats), approximately, 10:40 a.m.; girls quarterfinals (eight mats), approximately, 2:30 p.m.; boys pre-quarterfinals (eight mats), approximately, 3:15 p.m.; girls wrestlebacks two (eight mats), approximately, 5:25 p.m.; award presentations (coach of the year, assistant coach of the year, No. 1 team), 6 p.m.; boys wrestlebacks one (eight mats), approximately, 6:30 p.m.   

Boardwalk Hall has hosted 29 state tourneys since 1992

Friday's schedule: Boys wrestlebacks two (eight mats), 9 a.m.; boys quarterfinals (mats 3, 4, 5 and 6) and wrestlebacks three (mats 1, 2, 7 and 8), approximately, 11:10 a.m.; girls semifinals (mats 7 and 8) and boys wrestlebacks four (mats 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6), approximately, 1:20 p.m.; girls wrestlebacks three (at least four mats), approximately, 3:40 p.m.; award presentations (John Vogeding Media Award, Vinnie Russo Golden Whistle Award, Harry E. Lake Award), 5:45 p.m.; boys semifinals (two mats) and girls consolation semifinals (four mats), 6 p.m.; boys wrestlebacks five (four mats), approximately, 6:50 p.m.  

Saturday's schedule: Boys consolation semifinals (six mats), 9 a.m.; boys consolation finals (third through eighth places) and girls consolation finals, approximately, 9:45 a.m.; girls championships (approximately) 1:10 p.m.; boys championships (approximately) 3:45 p.m. 

Returning state champions (5, 2023 weights): Jr. Anthony Knox, St. John Vianney (first-2023, first-2022, 120); Sr. Matt Henrich, Southern (first-2023, seventh-2022, 150); Jr. Alessio Perentin, Delbarton (first-2023, fourth-2022, 157); Sr. Louis Cerchio, Delbarton (first-2023, fourth-2022, sixth-2021, 165); Sr. Hudson Skove, Rumson-Fair Haven (first-2023, 215).

Previous state champions (2, 2023 weights): Jr. Adrian DeJesus, St. Joseph-Montvale (third-2023 for DePaul, first-2022 for St. Peter's Prep, 120); Jr. Harvey Ludington, Brick Memorial (second-2023, first-2022, 175).

Returning medal winners (44, previous finishes, 2022 weights): So. Nathan Braun, Bergen Catholic (second-2023, 106); So. Salvatore Borrometi, St. Peter's Prep (third-2023, 106); So. Johnathon McGinty, St. Joseph-Montvale (fifth-2023, 106); So. Anthony DiAndrea, Watchung Hills (seventh-2023, 106); So. Matthew Gould, St. John Vianney (eighth-2023, 106); Sr. Logan Brzozowski, Seton Hall Prep (second-2023, 113); So. Jayden James, Delbarton (third-2023, 113); Sr. Kurt Wehner, Donovan Catholic (fifth-2023, seventh-2022, 113); Jr. Devin Ryan, New Milford (sixth-2023, 113); Sr. Jake Talarico, St. Peter's Prep (eighth-2023, 113); Jr. Vincent Paino, St. Joseph-Montvale (fifth-2023, 120); So. Giovanni Schinina, St. Peter's Prep (seventh-2023, 120); Sr. Dylan Ross, Paramus Catholic (eighth-2023, eighth-2022, 120); Jr. Caedyn Ricciardi, St. Peter's Prep (second-2023, sixth-2022, 126); Jr. Carson Walsh, Pope John (fifth-2023, sixth-2022, 126); Sr. Jackson Young, Camden Catholic (seventh-2023, fifth-2022, 126); Sr. Jack Myers, Morristown (third-2023, 132); Jr. Donny Almeyda, St. Joseph-Montvale (fourth-2023, 132); Jr. Wyatt Stout, Southern (sixth-2023, 132); So. Chase Hansen, Lower Cape May (seventh-2023, 132); Jr. Patrick O'Keefe, St. John Vianney (eighth-2023, second-2022, 132); Sr. Alex Nini, Christian Brothers Academy (third-2023, fourth-2022, eighth-2021, 138); Sr. Zach Reilley, Raritan (fifth-2023, 138); Jr. Luke Geleta, Phillipsburg (sixth-2023, 138); Sr. Ryan Ford, Bergen Catholic (fourth-2023, seventh-2022, third-2021, 144); Sr. Jonathan Fuller, St. Peter's Prep (fifth-2023, fourth-2022, 144); Jr. Jamar Dixon Jr., Delsea (seventh-2023, fifth-2022, 144); Jr. Hayden Hochstrasser, Southern (eighth-2023, 144); Sr. Frank DiBella, St. Joseph-Montvale (fourth-2023, fourth-2022, 150); Sr. John Quinonez, Paramus Catholic (sixth-2023, 150); Sr. Drew Roskos, Delran (seventh-2023, 150); Jr. Jordan Chapman, Cranford (third-2023, 157); Jr. Zach Ballante, St. Joseph-Montvale (sixth-2023, fifth-2022 for Paramus Catholic, 157); Sr. Austin Craft, Camden Catholic (seventh-2023, 157); Jr. Ryan Burton, St. Joseph-Montvale (third-2023, 165); Sr. Daniel Rella, Paramus Catholic (fourth-2023, sixth-2022, 165); Jr. Rocco Dellagatta, St. Joseph-Montvale (fourth-2023, 175); Sr. Tyler Bienus, Mount Olive (seventh-2023, 175); Sr. Edward Terreri, Paramus Catholic (eighth-2023, 175);  Jr. Vincenzo LaValle, Hanover Park (third-2023, third-2022, 190); Jr. Xavier Williams, Paramus Catholic (eighth-2023, 190); Jr. Benjamin Shue, Bergen Catholic (fourth-2023, 285); Sr. Daniel Elyash, Paramus (fifth-2023, 285); Sr. John Wargo, Phillipsburg (seventh-2023, 285); 

Previous medal winners (6, 2023 weights): Sr. Tyeler Hagensen, Mount Olive (fourth-2022, 113); Sr. Benjamin Marchetto, West Milford (eighth-2022, 113); Sr. Jacob Zearfoss, Gloucester City (sixth-2022, 144); Sr. Roman Onorato, Paulsboro (eighth-2022, 150); Sr. Nicholas Campagna, Christian Brothers Academy (eighth-2022 for South Plainfield, 150); Sr. Lorenzo Portella, Red Bank Catholic (seventh-2022, 285).      

Returning medal winners by region

R1 (3, Brzozowski, Ryan, Marchetto)

R2 (13, McGinty, Hagensen, DeJesus, Paino, Almeyda, Geleta, Ballante, DiBella, Burton, Bienus, Dellagatta, Elyash, Wargo)
R3 (6, Braun, Walsh, Myers, Ford, LaValle, Shue)

R4 (7, DiAndrea, Ross, Quinonez, Chapman, Rella, Terreri, Williams)
R5 (6, James, Reilley, Perentin, Cerchio, Skove, Portella)

R6 (7, Borrometi, Wehner, Talarico, Schinina, Ricciardi, Fuller, Ludington)
R7 (13, Gould, Knox, Nini, Young, Stout, O'Keefe, Onorato, Hochstrasser, Henrich, Roskos, Craft, Campagna, Zearfoss)

R8 (2, Dixon Jr., Hansen)

Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex area qualifiers (40)

Phillipsburg (7) -- Owen Garriques (120), Gavin Geleta (132), Luke Geleta (144), Gavin Hawk (150), Liam Packer (175), Nathan Smith (215), John Wargo (285)

Delaware Valley (7) -- Jake Taylor (113), Jaden Perez (126), Jackson Bush (138), Ben Levy (150), Mitchell Sutter (157), Kevin Roman (175), Anderson Olcott (215)
North Hunterdon (5) -- Reid Buzby (106), Aidan Yarussi (113), Shane Wysocki (126), Brian Wilson (165), Evan Kinney (175)

Hunterdon Central (4) -- Anthony Rossi (120), William Cella (138), Rhett Washleski (150), Thomas Brunetti (175)

Pope John (4) -- Jake Holly (106), Dalton Weber (126), Walsh (132), Justin Holly (138)

Kittatinny (3) -- Reece Smith (150), Ethan Dalling (165), Bryce Coesfeld (175)

Warren Hills (3) -- Augie Szamreta (106), Charlie Piccione (120, R5 injury replacement), Josh Lee (138)

North Warren (2) -- Conor Hallowich (106), James Dacunto (157)

Belvidere (1) -- Kyle Blew (190)

Hackettstown (1) -- Nicolas Balella (132)
High Point (1) -- Nick Clayton (132)
Newton (1) -- Joey Catalano (144)

Sparta (1) -- Logan Hrenenko (144)

Voorhees (1) -- Logan Wiecoreck (157)

Open Mike championship picks

106 -- Killian Coluccio, Christian Brothers Academy
113 -- Paul Kenny, Christian Brothers Academy
120 -- Anthony Knox, St. John Vianney
126 -- Sammy Spaulding, Camden Catholic
132 -- Carson Walsh, Pope John
138 -- Caedyn Ricciardi, St. Peter's Prep
144 -- Sonny Amato, Rumson-Fair Haven
150 -- Gabe Logan, Delbarton
157 -- Matt Henrich, Southern
165 -- Alessio Perentin, Delbarton
175 -- Ryan Burton, St. Joseph-Montvale
190 -- Harvey Ludington, Brick Memorial
215 -- Hudson Skove, Rumson-Fair Haven
285 -- Rocco Dellagatta, St. Joseph-Montvale