"This is team time, not individual yet. I just try to take it one match at a time, get the win, and try to get bonus points," he said.
That was a winning formula for Borgognoni, one of four repeat winners from the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex area as the Braves won their first team championship since 2008 at the 60th annual John Goles Invitational on Wednesday afternoon at Warren Hills Regional High School.
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| Newton celebrates its seventh Goles team title and first since 2008. |
Junior Wyatt McCarthy (152), who earned the Outstanding Wrestler Award, and Borgognoni registered key pins in the finals as Newton topped North Hunterdon by two points (161.5 to 159.5). The Lions had a tournament-best four champions in Connor Robinson (106), Connor Quinn (113), Andrew Gapas (138) and Michael Wilson (145).
Warren Hills was next with three champions -- Codey O'Rourke (126), Jarod Ostir (182) and Nick Galka (220) -- to finish third, while Delaware Valley, the team champion a year ago, was fifth in the seven-team field behind junior A.J. DeRosa (132), a two-time champ.
"We'll take it," said Newton coach Eric Bollette, whose team also had three runners-up and three third-place finishers on the day. "There were some tough teams. North Hunterdon has some good guys, Warren Hills has some good kids. We won by two points. It has to be one of the closest [team races]."
Indeed it was the slimmest margin of victory since 2002, when Delaware Valley edged Scotch Plains-Fanwood by one-half point (161.5 to 161).
McCarthy (8-0), a returning state qualifier and medal round hopeful this season, claimed his first title in a competitive 152-pound class by decking West Morris junior Justin LeMay, fourth in Region 3 last season. McCarthy, who built a 4-0 lead after one period with a takedown and two back points, pancaked LeMay for the pin in 2:58 -- one of five falls in the championship round.
"I knew I was going to wrestle LeMay in the finals and it would be one of the best matches of the day," said McCarthy, who joined Austin Alpaugh (2006) and Kevin Churchill (2009) as OWs for the Braves. "I knew the pancake was going to be there. We wrestled well as a team. It was a good day for us to build confidence and prepare us for the rest of the season."
Borgognoni (8-0) earned his second straight title by using a half-nelson to stick West Morris junior John DeVito in 3:37. Newton held a 10-point lead heading into the finals, but North Hunterdon crowned four champs before 152.
"It's nice. I would've been a three-time champion if I didn't lose to [6-0 to West Morris senior Marco] Gaita [a three-time winner] my sophomore year," Borgognoni said. "I enjoyed this tournament. We had a lot of freshmen step up. I'm happy with how we wrestled."
Finishing second for the Braves were Nathan Fitt (106), Luke Fischer (195) and Matt Somers (285).
Gapas grabs gold
The fourth time was finally the charm for Gapas, an eight-place finisher in last season's state tournament, as he won his first Goles title by pinning Sparta junior Carter Sheridan in 1:29. Gapas (7-0), who had twice finished third and was a runner-up as a sophomore, hit some pretty stiff competition in prior tournaments, losing 12-4 to eventual state placewinner Robert Cleary, then of Edison, in the 2014 quarterfinals followed by losses to three-time champ Matt Valli of Warren Hills -- 4-3 in the '15 finals and 9-3 in the '16 semis.
"It's really nice," Gapas said of his first Goles gold medal. "The competition has been really good. The competition is still good, but I'm at that next level."
Gapas will look to repeat as a champion in what figures to be a brutal 138-pound class in the upcoming Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament on Saturday, Jan. 13.
"I'm just going to go in and have fun, and try to keep my title," said Gapas, who has 79 career wins.
North Hunterdon, which has struggled with injuries and the loss of some key upperweights who decided to not wrestle, went 4-for-4 in the finals (Robinson won his second straight title, while Quinn and Wilson earned their first) and had three third-place finishers in Tucker Kirchberger (152), Nathaniel Fossett (170) and Lorenzo Becerril (220).
"We're just looking to improve and have fun," Gapas said. "We're going to make mistakes. You just have to stay positive."
Ostir keeps rolling
Warren Hills' senior ace is coming off a couple of tough offseasons, which included elbow and knee surgeries, but Ostir (7-0), a two-time state qualifier and a Region 3 runner-up last season, looked pretty good in winning his second championship -- pinning overmatched West Morris junior Luke Stefanelli in 45 seconds for his 70th career win.
"I'm feeling great," said Ostir, who along with Gapas, McCarthy and Borgognoni, shared the award for most team points scored by one individual with 22. "This is always a good tournament, and it's always good to wrestle in front of the home crowd."
Ostir, who hasn't decided if he will drop to 170 later in the season, crossed off another on his list of short goals -- the next being winning his first Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament championship after finishing second last season.
"Then it's districts, regions and states," he said.
Back points
Warren Hills, with three champions, now has a tournament-record 183 overall. The Streaks haven't gone without at least one gold medal since 2002. O'Rourke and Galka, one of seven underclassmen to win, claimed their first titles.
Gaita, one of five returning champions to win titles, became just the 38th wrestler in tournament history to win at least three. He's just the second to do so for West Morris, joining former teammate Shane Metzler (2014-16).
Delaware Valley, which is also enduring its share of inexperience and injuries coming off its first Group 2 title since 1999 last season, had just one finalist in DeRosa. The Terriers, who posted their lowest finish since placing seventh in an eight-team field in 1996, had three thirds in Derek Schepens (106), Gage Crater (138) and Joseph Desapio (160). Schepens recorded the fastest pin of the tournament -- 19 seconds in the bronze match.
Sparta, coming off the program's first sectional title since 2000 after winning the North 1, Group 3 title last season, was a bit shorthanded with only nine wrestlers in the field. Spartans coach Frank Battaglia said his team is battling some sickness as sophomore Cooper Stewart (106) and junior Chris Hwang (126), who both would have been medal contenders, did not compete.
Senior Robert Gennat (8-0), a Region 1 runner-up last season, was among 11 area champions as he cruised to a 7-2 win over Fischer, a junior, in the 195-pound final. Gennat converted three takedowns en route to his first championship after a runner-up finish in 2016.
Sparta, which finished sixth in the team race, had four runner-up in Spencer Stewart (120), Garrett Stewart (132), Sheridan (138), Mason Minetti (170). Garrett Stewart waged a tight battle against DeRosa, dropping a 3-2 decision after yielding an escape with 25 seconds left in the second tiebreaker.
Team standings
1. Newton (N) 161.5; 2. North Hunterdon (NH) 159.5; 3. West Morris (WM) 130.5; 4. Warren Hills (WH) 106; 5. Delaware Valley (DV) 91; 6. Sparta (S) 88; 7. Edison (E) 85.
Championships
106 -- Jr. Connor Robinson (5-2), NH, md. Fr. Nathan Fitt (3-5), N, 9-0.
113 -- Fr. Connor Quinn (3-0), NH, d. Fr. Brett Miller (3-2), E, 5-3.
120 -- Jr. Michael O'Brien (5-0), E, d. Fr. Spencer Stewart (6-2), S, 9-6.
126 -- Sr. Codey O'Rourke (6-1), WH, d. So. Eli Shepard (3-4), WM, 3-1.
132 -- Jr. A.J. DeRosa (8-0), DV, d. So. Garrett Stewart (6-2), S, 3-2 TB2.
138 -- Sr. Andrew Gapas (7-0), NH, p. Jr. Carter Sheridan (5-3), S, 1:29.
145 -- Jr. Michael Wilson (7-0), NH, md. Jr. Chris Ostir (6-3), WH, 8-0.
152 -- Jr. Wyatt McCarthy (8-0), N, p. Jr. Justin LeMay (3-1), WM, 2:58.
160 -- Sr. Jonathon Borgognoni (8-0), N, p. Jr. John DeVito (8-3), WM, 3:37.
170 -- Sr. Marco Gaita (7-1), WM, p. Sr. Mason Minetti (3-4), S, :45.
182 -- Sr. Jarod Ostir (7-0), WH, p. Jr. Luke Stefanelli (7-3), WM, :28.
195 -- Sr. Robert Gennat (8-0), S, d. Jr. Luke Fischer (7-1), N, 7-2.
220 -- Jr. Nick Galka (6-1), WH, d. Sr. Robert Rosen (6-2), WM, 5-2.
285 -- Sr. Keyon Goodwin (6-1), E, p. Jr. Matt Somers (2-1), N, 1:29.
Third-place consolations
106 -- So. Derek Schepens (4-4), DV, p. Jr. Jonathan Chen (2-4), E, :19.
113 -- Fr. Danny Cleary (3-4), N, p. So. Stephen Em (0-4), DV, 3:48.
120 -- So. Colin Loughney (5-4), WM, p. Fr. JoJo Lotruglio (4-4), N, 3:10.
126 -- Jr. Matthew Rosa (7-3), N, p. So. Evan Klimas (3-3), NH, 3:52.
132 -- Sr. Jonathan Vazquez (4-5), WM, p. Sr. Kyle Wulff (4-5), WH, 3:23.
138 -- So. Gage Crater (8-2), DV, d. Jr. Michael Freda (6-4), N, 3-0.
145 -- Fr. Connor Doherty (6-2), E, d. Fr. Anthony DeRosa (5-7), DV, 3-1.
152 -- Sr. Tucker Kirchberger (8-1), NH, p. So. Geir Nemeth (6-4), WH, 1:41.
160 -- Sr. Joseph Desapio (7-3), DV, d. Sr. Kevin Berlin (3-5), S, 8-2.
170 -- So. Nathaniel Fossett (5-4), NH, p. Jr. Nick Brigante (4-5), N, 1:42.
182 -- Sr. Joseph DeLuca (8-2), N, md. Sr. John Spies (5-4), NH, 9-0.
195 -- Jr. Dean Escobar (6-2), E, d. Jr. Brandon Helper (4-5), DV, 6-5.
220 -- Jr. Lorenzo Becerril (4-2), NH, p. Sr. Karl Burke (3-4), DV, 5:58.
285 -- Jr. Duro Ajayi (2-3), WH, d. Jr. Francis Vitelli (1-4), NH, 7-1.
Outstanding Wrestler Award -- Wyatt McCarthy, Newton.
Ryan M. Storm Memorial Award (Most pins in least time by a champion) -- Keyon Goodwin, Edison (two in 2:10).
Alonzo Widenor Memorial Award (Fastest pin) -- Derek Schepens, Delaware Valley (19 seconds).
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