Wrestling: Phillipsburg sets schedule for 2017-18

Phillipsburg coach Dave Post confirmed on Wednesday that his schedule for the 2017-18 season is nearly complete, with the exception of two dates -- Dec. 20 and Feb. 1, 2018 -- that have yet to be determined. 

Phillipsburg celebrates its fourth straight Group 4 title in February.

The Stateliners, who finished 16-1 this past season and won their fourth straight Group 4 title for the program's 21st state championship overall, will open next season by returning to the King of the Mountain Tournament at Central Mountain (Pa.) High School, where they competed from 2010-13. Post's teams had opened the past two seasons at the Beast of the East Tournament in Newark, Del., since the Warren County school was unable to attend King of the Mountain, which ran the weekend before the season officially opened in New Jersey.

"We are really excited to go back," said Post, whose 2014-15 team went to the Reno Tournament of Champions. [King of the Mountain] finally moved [the dates] back this past year so we could go, but we unfortunately sent the Beast of the East contract in already."

In addition to its mandated six dual meets against Skyland Conference Raritan Division opponents, Phillipsburg, which is 112-18 overall in Post's seven seasons, will once again face Raritan, Cranford, Kittatinny and Hanover Park in independent matchups. All four of those teams appeared in the final New Jersey Wrestling Writers Association Top 25 poll for 2016-17.

One notable addition is Newton, which owns a 9-6-1 edge overall against P'burg dating to 1947. The Braves are the only program in the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex area that leads in an all-time series vs. the 'Liners, including a 31-27 victory in the last meeting on Dec. 30, 2009. P'burg, which is 260-52-3 against HWS teams in its 71-year history, won the six previous matchups from 1956-2008.

P'burg, which returns 10 starters, including state medalists Cody Harrison (eighth at 126) and Brian Meyer (third at 145), will square off against Ocean Township for the first time in its final dual meet of the regular season on Feb. 3, 2018. The 'Liners are 41-15 overall against Shore Conference schools.

The annual matches against Pennsylvania's District 11 are also on the docket -- Easton (Jan. 20) and Parkland (Jan. 25). The 'Liners have beaten Easton in three of the last four seasons, including a 40-27 victory on Jan. 21 -- the most points ever scored against the Red Rovers in the series. However, Easton still has a 63-17 overall lead since the storied rivalry began in 1947.

Here's the complete P'burg schedule:

Dec. 15-16 -- at King of the Mountain Tournament (Mill Hall, Pa.)
Dec. 20 -- TBD
Dec. 22 -- Delaware Valley
Dec. 23 -- Newton
Dec. 28-29 -- at Bethlehem (Pa.) Holiday Classic (Liberty High School)
Jan. 3 -- at Bound Brook
Jan. 4 -- Raritan
Jan. 6 -- Cranford
Jan. 10 -- at Hunterdon Central
Jan. 11 -- at Kittatinny
Jan. 13 -- Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament (at Phillipsburg)
Jan. 17 -- at Warren Hills
Jan. 18 -- at Hanover Park
Jan. 20 -- at Easton (Pa.)
Jan. 24 -- North Hunterdon
Jan. 25 -- Parkland (Pa.)
Jan. 27 -- Southern
Jan. 31 -- Voorhees
Feb. 1 -- TBD
Feb. 3 -- Ocean Township
Feb. 5 -- Sectional first round
Feb. 7 -- Sectional semifinals
Feb. 9 -- Sectional finals
Feb. 11 -- Group championships at Toms River North
Feb. 17 -- District 9 Tournament at Phillipsburg
Feb. 21, 23-24 -- Region 3 Tournament at West Orange
March 2-4 -- State Tournament at Atlantic City

Note: Bold indicates Skyland Conference Raritan Division matches.