The Saturday evening match may be all but extinct in our area, but it was great to see Phillipsburg and High Point battle it out this past weekend -- even if it was a one-sided night affair. The Stateliners' 52-13 win was contested before a packed house in Wantage as the gym was filled with electricity to see two of New Jersey's top-ranked teams go at it.
You will likely hear a lot of reasons why these weekend night matches are no longer taking place -- namely the presence of pesky tri-meets and quads during the day. Another factor is that some schools do not want to pay custodial workers their required overtime pay on the weekends. This to me is absolute hogwash, when you consider the ridiculous amount of money spent on travel for football. How is that even a valid excuse?
Kittatinny travels to Delaware Valley on Saturday in a match between the Nos. 11 and 17 teams, according to the latest New Jersey Wrestling Writers Top 20. Problem is, it will take place in the early afternoon when it's tough for fans to come out and pack Hutchins Gym. Terriers coach Andy Fitz confirmed that his school says no to Saturday night matches, which is a sin at an institution rich in its wrestling history.
Three years ago, Kittatinny scored a 33-30 win over Del Val in one of the season's most exciting dual meets. What a shame that only 50 or so fans were in the stands for that afternoon tri-meet.
Wrestling is hurting from an attendance standpoint. Very few duals pack them in like years ago. Time for school administrators and some coaches to wake up and help make it more convenient for fans to attend matches. And don't even get me started on these 6 p.m. or earlier starts on weekdays. That's basically saying you don't care if fans -- visiting or home -- are sitting in the stands.
Now onto this week's rankings:
1. Phillipsburg (6-0) -- Stateliners cemented their top billing with a 52-13 waxing of No. 2 High Point on Saturday. Tyler Agans (113), DJ Wissing (120), Tylor Petchonka (126), Max Elling (160) and Broderick Bupivi (170) all had pins. P'burg junior Jimmy Schuitema recorded his 76th career win with a big 5-3 decision over Jason Gaccione in a battle of Region 1 champs. Coach Dave Post's squad, which also rolled to a 41-18 win over No. 6 Hunterdon Central last Thursday, is in for a big week with rivalry matches against Warren Hills and Easton (Pa.). 'Liners leads the series with the Blue Streaks 52-14, but are just 14-62 against the Red Rovers.
Up next: at Warren Hills on Wednesday; at Easton (Pa.) on Thursday; Howell at home on Saturday.
2. High Point (5-1) -- Wildcats were humbled in their house with a 52-13 loss to No. 1 Phillipsburg last Saturday, and are just 1-16 in the series dating to 1989. Coach John Gardner's team opened the week with lopsided wins over Nutley (57-15), Morris Knolls (47-16) and Vernon (54-18) -- the latter two raising the 'Cats' record to 3-0 in the Northwest Jersey Athletic Conference American Division standings. The big question is whether Dom Gallo (120) and Jared Kobis (126) will be back in the lineup for Friday's showdown with archrival Kittatinny. Senior Kyle Stoll (195) and junior Jason Gaccione (145) lead the team with 84 and 82 career wins, respectively.
Up next: at Montville on Tuesday; Sparta at home on Thursday; Kittatinny at home on Friday; Bergen Catholic and Bound Brook at home on Saturday.
3. Kittatinny (9-0) -- Cougars rolled to five wins this past week -- Wallkill Valley (58-18), North Warren (52-24), Old Tappan (55-15), Watchung Hills (48-24) and North Bergen (36-27). Coach John Gill's squad was bolstered by the return of senior 152-pounder Nick Romyns (7-3), a two-time District 3 champion, who enters the week with 89 career wins. Unfortunately, junior 145-pounder Brandon Olsen sustained a knee injury and is on the shelf. Gill is closing in on 500 coaching victories, as he enters a six-match week at 495-149-5 in 34 seasons. Big week on tap with rival High Point on Friday -- Cougars are 12-25-1 in the series -- and No. 4 Delaware Valley on Saturday.
Up next: Jefferson at home on Tuesday; at Hopatcong on Thursday; at High Point on Friday; West Morris and Westfield at Delaware Valley quad on Saturday.
4. Delaware Valley (12-2) -- Terriers scored a 33-21 victory over No. 8 Warren Hills to highlight a 6-0 week, as coach Andy Fitz's squad also defeated Bridewater-Raritan (38-20), Lawrence (48-21), Perth Amboy (64-3), Lacey (57-8) and Somerville (42-17). Senior Codey Leh made news by decking Warren Hills junior Max Nauta, a Region 1 champion, in their 138-pound bout. Senior 182-pounder Kody Eichlin reached the 75-win mark and is 12-0 on the season. Big one coming up Wednesday at No. 5 North Hunterdon in a Skyland Conference Raritan Division tilt that figures to be a close one.
Up next: at North Hunterdon on Wednesday; Montgomery at home on Friday; Kittatinny, West Morris and Westfield at home on Saturday.
5. North Hunterdon (7-2) -- Lions squeaked past No. 7 Voorhees -- 24-22 last Wednesday -- before closing the week with wins over Steinert (63-18) and Lawrence (64-8) on Saturday. Coach Tim Flynn's squad got big wins from its upper weights to beat the Vikings, as Kyle Stevens (195), Tim Bartlett (220) and Brandon Leonidas (285) all earned decisions. Junior Ryan Pomrinca (19-0) is five wins shy of 100 for his career, as he enters the week at 95-10 overall. Wednesday's showdown with No. 4 Delaware Valley will break the tie in the series, which stands at 23-23.
Up next: Delaware Valley at home on Wednesday; Franklin and Hillsborough at Watchung Hills quad on Saturday.
6. Hunterdon Central (6-3) -- Red Devils opened last week with a 34-26 win over Watchung Hills on Wednesday before a 41-18 loss to No. 1 Phillipsburg on Thursday at the Field House. Senior 145-pounder Collin Boylan (18-2) avenged a previous loss with a 2-1 win over the Stateliners' Jimmy Schuitema, who scored a 1-0 decision in their Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex final four days earlier. Coach Steve Gibble's squad closed the week with a 36-27 win over Ocean Township and a 38-24 loss to Southern on Saturday. Senior Gary Dinmore (17-0 at 152) earned an impressive 5-0 win over Ocean Township's Zac Hertling in a battle of state placewinners.
Up next: at Bridgewater-Raritan on Wednesday; at Jack Welch Duals on Friday and Saturday.
7. Voorhees (11-3) -- Vikings rebounded from a tough 24-22 loss to No. 5 North Hunterdon with wins over Montgomery (54-9) on Friday and Morristown (54-6), Ridge (46-13) and Franklin (52-15) in a quad on Saturday. Sophomore Harley Sacks (106), Mike Muscatello (138), Christian Okulicz (145) and Jordan Juliano (170) all had big wins in the loss to North. Sacks beat Paul Robinson, a District 17 champ, 4-1, while Okulicz took out Brian Smolinsky, a Region 5 qualifier, 5-4.
Up next: at St. Benedict's Prep on Tuesday; Somerville at home on Wednesday; Hackettstown and Lenape Valley at Belvidere on Saturday.
8. Warren Hills (6-4) -- Blue Streaks opened last week with a 42-24 win at Montgomery before dropping a 33-21 decision to Delaware Valley at home on Friday. The Warren County school has lost five in a row to the Terriers and 13 of the last 14 meetings dating to 1999, and is 18-27 overall in the series, which began in 1963 when the Streaks were Washington High. Junior Max Nauta (14-3) was pinned for the first time in his high school career while leading Codey Leh, while senior Steve Cleaver (12-1) decked Del Val's Luke Zehnbauer with a cement job while trailing in their 182-pound bout. Coach Jarrett Hosbach's team rebounded with wins over Hackettstown (61-10) -- Streaks hold a 48-9 edge in the series with Tigers dating to 1957 -- West Morris (45-24) and North Warren (52-24) on Saturday.
Up next: Phillipsburg at home on Wednesday; Roselle Park and Paramus at Ramsey quad on Saturday.
9. Sparta (6-4) -- Spartans started last week with a 57-18 pasting of Vernon on Tuesday and a 33-32 win over Morris Hills on Wednesday in a pair of NJAC American Division matches before closing with a 42-21 loss to Wayne Valley in an independent clash on Saturday. Coach Frank Battaglia's team won 11 bouts against Vernon, as junior Ian Burke (18-2) recorded one of the team's six pins in the victory at 138. Sophomore Al Falco, a Region 1 qualifier, scored a nice 5-4 win over Wayne Valley's Zach D'Apolito at 170.
Up next: at Pope John on Tuesday; at High Point on Thursday; Wallkill Valley and Hopatcong at Dover quad on Saturday.
10. Lenape Valley (4-4) -- Patriots rolled to four straight wins last week, starting with a 54-23 victory over North Warren on Tuesday, followed by a 42-25 thumping of Newton on Wednesday, sparked by the return of junior Glenn Haines (3-0) who scored a 5-2 decision over Michael Larsen in their 138-pound bout. Haines had been sidelined with a shoulder injury and did not compete in Lenape's wins over Demarest (42-30) and Robbinsville (39-30) or the loss to Delbarton (53-18) on Saturday.
Up next: at Hopatcong on Tuesday; Wallkill Valley at home on Thursday; Voorhees at Belvidere tri-meet on Saturday.
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