Wrestling: Ten best shots (HWS) at medals in AC

Here is a look at the 10 wrestlers (actually 11) from the Open Mike area who have the best chances at capturing a medal -- it could be quite a haul for the locals -- this weekend in the 85th New Jersey State Wrestling Championships at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City.

In all, there are 48 qualifiers (up one from last year and 17 more than 2016) among Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex schools.

Lewis Fernandes after his 100th win. (Courtesy of Eric Hall)

Lewis Fernandes (38-0), Voorhees -- As the area's lone unbeaten wrestler and of just 24 in the entire tournament, Fernandes, a junior who is really a 220-pounder, has the athleticism and strength to make a run at the gold -- which would be the Vikings' first since John Brienza won the 130-pound title in 1998 and just the second at heavyweight (Lee Getz in 1982). Coach Eric Hall, who was a runner-up in '96, believes Fernandes, the No. 6 seed, is capable of ending the program's title drought. Fernandes, who recently joined older brothers, Michael and Scott, in the school's 100-win club in winning his first Region 4 title, has 24 pins and two majors to go with 10 forfeit wins, has gone the distance only twice -- 7-0 over Montville senior Liridon Leka (37-3), the No. 2 seed at 220, and 2-0 over Bound Brook junior Jervey Sistrunk (33-4), the No. 8 seed at 285. The latter was on Jan. 10. Fernandes could encounter Hackettstown senior Joe Andes (39-1), the No. 11 seed and another strong medal contender, in the pre-quarterfinals on Friday night. They were at different weights in the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament on Jan. 13 as Fernandes went 220.

Career mark: 101-22.
Previous state appearances: 3-2, fourth wrestlebacks at 195 pounds in 2017.
First-round opponent: Overbrook junior Deshon Alexander (28-7, R8-4).

JoJo Aragona (37-1), Pope John -- Part of the Lions' Murderers' Row in the middle, the junior got to the finals in 2017, dropping a 3-1 decision to Glory, after reaching the semifinals as a freshman, where he ran into state champ Joe Manchio of Seneca -- dropping a 3-0 decision -- before he bounced back to take third place. Aragona, now at 138 pounds and on a 34-match win streak, is among seven qualifiers for the Sussex County school, which is looking for its first state champ since Brian Unkert won at 145 pounds in 1990. Aragona, the No. 3 seed who could run into No. 6 seed Cody Harrison of Phillipsburg in the quarters, is very skilled on his feet and that will bode well in an absolutely stacked weight class, which could very well feature the top wrestler in the tournament and one of the best in the country in returning champion and Ohio State recruit Quinn Kinner of Kingsway, who beat Aragona, 10-4, in the Beast of the East quarterfinals. It would be surprising if they don't get another finals rematch in AC.

Career mark: 111-5.
Previous state appearances: 4-1, third place at 106 pounds in 2016; 4-1, second place at 120 pounds in '17.
First-round opponent: Southern sophomore Robert Woodcock (24-6, R8-4).

Brian Meyer after his third region title. (Courtesy of Ray Patt)

Brian Meyer (35-2), Phillipsburg -- The four-time district and three-time region champion is one of the area's best hopes for state gold. The Lehigh-bound Meyer, who is two wins from becoming the program's all-time wins leader, has that college style, a tough rider who is hard to score on after he gets that first takedown. He'll likely have to open it up more in AC at a weight class that features four other returning placewinners, including Bergen Catholic senior and two-time finalist Gerard Angelo, the top seed, and Bound Brook senior Joe Casey, a three-time medal winner and the No. 3 seed. A Casey-Meyer clash -- which did not happen in the regular season as P'burg forfeited the final bout of a 54-21 win over the Crusaders on Jan. 3 -- in the semis could be one of the best matchups this weekend. Meyer handed Casey a 3-1 loss last season, and received a forfeit over Casey in the state consolation semifinals.

Career mark: 127-34.
Previous appearances: 1-2, third round of wrestlebacks at 145 pounds in 2016; 6-1, third place at 145 pounds in '17.
First-round opponent: Mount Olive sophomore Anthony Spera (30-8, R2-4).

Pat Glory and Alex Carida, the R3 OWs (Migdalia Carida).

Alex Carida (40-1), Hackettstown -- The senior is coming off impressive performances in winning his second District 9 and Region 3 titles, including a 2-1 win over Tavoso in the latter at 145 pounds. Carida, who is looking to become the Tigers' first state medalist since Corey Kozimor placed seventh at 119 pounds in 2009, is trying to make even bigger history as the school's second state champ since Doug Blake won the second of his consecutive titles 50 years ago. Carida, the program's all-time wins leader who has won 27 in a row (with 14 pins, three majors and a technical fall) since a 1-0 loss to Cabanillas, is tough to score on and is solid in all three phases (neutral, top and bottom). His hard work with assistant coach and biggest fan Jimmy Berringer, a two-time state placewinner at Hopatcong (seventh-eighth at 130 pounds in 1999 and sixth at 140 pounds in 2000), has paid dividends.

Career mark: 136-27.
Previous appearances: 0-2 at 132 pounds in 2016; 1-2, second wrestlebacks at 138 pounds in '17.
First-round opponent: Egg Harbor Township senior Cody Dix (31-6, R8-4).

Brett Ungar (37-1), Hunterdon Central -- The talented freshman has enjoyed a tremendous rookie season, winning District 17 and Region 5 titles, the latter with a thrilling 4-2 decision in the ultimate tiebreaker against outstanding St. John Vianney freshman Dean Peterson (32-1), who many were picking all season to be the state champion at 106 pounds. Ungar, who is the No. 3 seed and owns a not-so-close 7-6 victory over Belvidere junior Quinn Melofchik, the No. 4 seed, has reeled off 19 straight wins since a 4-2 loss to Emerson-Park Ridge sophomore Nick Babin (37-0), the No. 2 seed. Peterson, also is in the bottom bracket as the No. 7 seed, is poised for a quarterfinal clash with Babin. Do yourself a favor, grab some popcorn and just sit back and watch the quarters at this ridiculously loaded weight that also has Bergen Catholic sophomore Nick Kayal, third last year, in the bottom half as the No. 6 seed.

Career mark: 37-1.
First-round opponent: River Dell freshman Matt DiGennaro (35-7, R1-4).

Robert Gennat (36-3), Sparta -- It's been quite the career for Gennat, who etched his name in the Sussex County school's record books as only the second to win a Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex title this season, while becoming its all-time wins leader with his second-place finish in Region 1 on Saturday. After a year to get his feet wet in Atlantic City, Gennat is primed to become the Spartans' first state placewinner since Matt Stoppay finished fourth at 135 pounds in 2003. Gennat, who dropped a 5-3 decision to Pope John senior and No. 3 seed Jake Brown, his 99th win, in the Region 1 finals, drew the No. 4 seed and is in the same quarter of the draw with Voorhees senior Scott Fernandes (36-4), the Region 4 runner-up and No. 5 seed who pinned Gennat on Dec. 30, but was decked in the rematch in the HWS finals. Anyone for the rubber match in the state quarters?

Career mark: 122-30.
Previous appearances: 1-2, second wrestlebacks at 195 pounds in 2017.
First-round opponent: Eastern junior Anthony Franden (30-8, R7-4).

Travis Jones won his first Region 3 title on Saturday.

Travis Jones (37-4), Phillipsburg -- The junior is one of the most dangerous mat wrestlers around --with snake-like flexibility -- and is a lot better on his feet this season, making him a serious medal contender after going 0-2 last season in his first appearance in AC. With what looks like a pretty favorable quarter of the draw as the No. 7 seed at 120 pounds, Jones should reach the quarters, where he'd likely run into returning state champion Antonio Minnino of Gateway-Woodbury. Jones, a two-time District 9 champion who won a wild 6-5 decision over Delbarton sophomore Alex Strashinsky in the Region 3 finals, will see another familiar opponent in the prelims in Southern senior Owen Kretschmer (20-16, R8-4) -- a 14-2 loser against Jones in a dual meet on Jan. 27.

Career mark: 66-19.
Previous state appearances: 0-2 at 113 pounds in 2017.

Hunter Graf (35-4), Hunterdon Central -- Making his fourth trip to Atlantic City, Graf is looking for his second state medal and is two wins shy of unseating former state runner-up Pat Strizki (141) as the school's all-time wins leader. Graf, a four-time district champ, dropped a 4-2 decision in last year's quarterfinals and was eliminated one round shy of a medal with a 6-3 loss to Howell's Darby Diedrich, who finished seventh. Graf, who has a double-loss to Pope John senior Jake Rotunda -- 6-1 and 6-3 in the Hunterdon Central Invitational and Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament finals -- as well as a 10-6 loss to Howell senior Kyle Slendorn, a returning runner-up, and was pinned by Raritan ace Russell Benson in the Region 5 finals. Still, Graf, the No. 10 seed, has the pedigree and plenty of state tournament experience to end his fine career on a high note.

Career mark: 140-27.
Previous state appearances: 0-2 at 106 pounds in 2015; 3-3, eighth place at 113 pounds in '16; 2-2, fourth wrestlebacks at 120 pounds in '17.
First-round opponent: Watchung Hills junior Nick Ciraulo (34-7, R4-3), who lost, 4-2, to Graf on Feb. 3.

Pope John leads the area with 7 state qualifiers.

Jake Rotunda (35-4), Pope John -- A four-time district champion and region finalist, the fourth time might be the charm for the Lions' all-time wins leader to come back with some hardware after coming so close in 2016 -- a one-point loss to Bound Brook ace Joe Casey in the blood round. Rotunda has not had much luck here overall, having to default out of the 2015 and '17 tournaments, sustaining a shoulder injury last year up 8-0 in his first-round match at 126. Looking to start anew, he steamrolled to a second Region 1 title and seems to be on a mission. The No. 5 seed, whose only losses to New Jersey opponents came back-to-back on Dec. 23 -- 12-0 to Delbarton state champion Patrick Glory and 6-3 to Camden Catholic state placewinner Lucas Revano, the No. 4 seed -- has reeled off 29 in a row since. A third meeting with Rotunda -- who beat Revano, 3-1, at the Beast of the East -- could be on tap in the quarterfinals.

Career mark: 125-22.
Previous appearances: 1-2 at 113 pounds in 2015; 2-2, fourth wrestlebacks at 120 pounds in '16; 0-1 at 126 pounds in '17.
First-round opponent: St. Joseph-Montvale sophomore Stefano Sgambellone (24-7, R1-4), who lost, 8-1, to Rotunda in the region semifinals.

Andrew Gapas (34-2), North Hunterdon -- After steaming to an eighth-place finish last season at 132, the senior is looking to bounce back from an upset-loss -- 9-7 to JFK-Iselin senior Andrew Coleman -- in the Region 4 semifinals at 138 pounds. Gapas, who became the Lions' 12th 100-match winner this season, is the No. 4 seed with Coleman drawing the No. 5 seed, setting the stage fora likely rematch in the quarterfinals. The winner would surely face Kinner in the semifinals, but a top-six medal is guaranteed at that point. Until that loss to Coleman, Gapas had been cruising right along, winning 15 in a row after getting pinned by Aragona in the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament finals on Jan. 13, including a 5-3 win over Harrison, one of five qualifiers here with losses to Gapas this season.

Career mark: 106-23.
Previous state appearances: 4-3, eighth place at 132 pounds in 2017.
First-round opponent: Monroe senior Andrew Lombard (33-8, R5-4), who lost, 7-0, to Gapas in the Neptune Classic finals on Dec. 16.

Robert Garcia (34-5), Pope John -- After going 0-2 as a freshman, Garcia stormed to the semifinals and a fourth-place finish at 132 pounds as a sophomore, dropping a 5-2 decision to Kinner in the semis. This season, 145 pounds is wide open and Garcia, the No. 4 seed in a tough upper half of the draw that includes DePaul state runner-up Ricky Cabanillas (36-1), the No. 1 seed who beat Garcia, 5-2, this season, and Delbarton senior Travis Tavoso (30-5), the No. 5 seed, should be right in the title mix, despite coming off a stunning 15-7 loss to Newton junior Wyatt McCarthy -- who should also be in the medal hunt -- in the Region 1 finals. Garcia could also see Region 5 champ Stanley Wojdylak of Middletown North in the second round.

Career mark: 101-20.
Previous appearances: 0-2 at 126 pounds in 2016; 4-2, fourth place at 132 pounds in '17.
First-round opponent: Cresskill senior Michael Chambers (36-2, R1-4), who lost, 11-2, to Garcia in the Region 1 semifinals.

Other area qualifiers (37):

Belvidere -- Quinn Melofchik (106)
Delaware Valley -- AJ DeRosa (126), Shawne Ramsby (170), Eli Kalfaian (195)
Hunterdon Central -- Colton Washleski (113), Jack Bauer (120), Pasquale Vizzoni (138), Vincent Romaniello (145)
Phillipsburg -- Cullen Day (113), Kyle Tino (132), Cody Harrison (138), Lance Wissing (170)
Pope John -- Eddie Ventresca (113), Kaya Sement (120), Reece Muldoon (182), Jake Brown (195)
Hackettstown -- Joe Andes (285)
High Point -- Brandon LaRue (113), Billy Talmadge (132), Shane Kobis (138), Trey Osborn (152)
Hopatcong -- Anthony Mastroeni (126)
Kittatinny -- Calvin Brook (152), Zach Mafaro (182)
Newton -- Wyatt McCarthy (145), Jonathon Borgognoni (152), Lance Fischer (220)
North Hunterdon -- Frank Diesso (113), Tucker Kirchberger (152), William Hughes (160)
Sparta -- Garrett Stewart (126)
Voorhees -- Aidan Taylor (120), Scott Fernandes (195), Sam Huff (220)
Warren Hills -- Codey O'Rourke (126), Jarod Ostir (182), Nick Galka (220)