High Point got it started with a 49-20 win over Kittatinny in a renewal of that rivalry series, which was interrupted for the first time last season. The 'Cats kept it rolling with impressive wins over Roxbury and Southern at home on Saturday.
"Matches [like Kittatinny and Southern] force us to be better," said High Point coach John Gardner following the win over the Cougars, which evened his record in that series to 10-10. "The sooner we learn that the better off we'll be."
The scheduling of that tri-meet could not have been better for Sussex County fans with Phillipsburg traveling to Newton that evening. In fact, a few Stateliners fans made the trip to Wantage to see that match with Southern, which will host P'burg on Jan. 26. They came away very impressed with that juggernaut group of High Point lower weights (a combined 33-2) -- freshman Clayton Utter (6-0 at 106), junior Devon Liebl (5-1 at 113), senior Devin Flannery (5-0 at 120), sophomore Josh Gervey (5-1 at 126), senior Brandon LaRue (6-0 at 132), a Duke University recruit, and junior Billy Talmadge (6-0 at 138).
Flannery, a region runner-up as a sophomore, is looking to make up for lost time after missing most of last season with an elbow injury.
"My goal is to get high on the podium [in Atlantic City]," said Flannery, who improved to 74-18 with a pin and a major decision on Saturday.
The one good thing that came out of Flannery's lost season was Gervey gaining valuable experience as a freshman. After being thrust into the starting lineup, Gervey came on late and recorded a huge victory that sparked High Point in the Group 2 title match against Raritan.
"That was a bad break for us at the time [losing Flannery], and it's fortunate that Devin responded the way he did," Gardner said. "The added bonus was Josh Gervey being better than we thought he'd be."
@PBurgHSWrestlin 45 Newton 12 Final pic.twitter.com/XrDVLJF2RA— PBurg HS Wrestling (@PBurgHSWrestlin) December 23, 2018
On Saturday night, Phillipsburg senior Bryce Parenti sparked his team to a 45-12 win over Newton with an upset-win over JoJo Lotruglio, a district runner-up, at 126 pounds in the opening bout of a matchup between programs with a ton of history. Click here to find out why Parenti, who entered the season with a 2-1 career record, decided to stick it out on the JV level in hopes of eventually making the varsity lineup.
That should be a fun Friday night when Phillipsburg travels to High Point on Jan. 18.
1. Hunterdon Central (4-0) -- Red Devils rolled to a 38-21 win over North Hunterdon on Friday in their first big test after opening the dual meet season with a 57-16 thumping of Franklin in a Skyland Conference Delaware Division matchup. Coach Jon Cantagallo-Rohm's team capped with week with victories over Hillsborough (54-18) and Middletown North (44-21), despite sophomore Brett Ungar state placewinner sitting out both matches. As a result Middletown North state qualifier Tyler Klinsky received a forfeit at 106 pounds. Senior Vincent Romaniello (5-0) is five shy of 100 career wins.
Up next: Hunterdon Central Invitational at home on Thursday; Raritan at home on Saturday.
2. Pope John (4-0) -- Lions finished 13th in the team standings, while senior JoJo Aragona (10-0 at 138) became the Sparta-based school's first champion in the rugged Beast of the East Tournament on Sunday. Aragona, a three-time New Jersey state medal winner, is now 126-6 for his career. Junior Eddie Ventresca (9-1) finished second at 120 pounds and enters the week at 86 career wins.
Up next: Delbarton at home on Friday.Congratulations to Sr. JoJo Aragona @JoJo__Aragona on becoming Pope John’s first Beast of the East champion by way of 3-1 victory over Blair’s Travis Mastrogiovanni! Aragona now has a 10-0 record on the season and a 126-6 record for his career! #WeArePopeJohn #PJWrestling pic.twitter.com/6BNkPf2zSX— Pope John Wrestling (@PJ_Wrestling) December 23, 2018
3. Phillipsburg (2-0) -- Stateliners opened the dual meet campaign with a 68-0 rout of Hillsborough before capping the week with an impressive 45-12 win over Newton on Saturday -- winning 10 bouts, including five pins from seniors Kyle Tino (145), TJ Abode (160), Austin Roth (195), and juniors Jacob Wicks (182) and Cody Cruts (285). Senior Cody Harrison, who is now eight wins shy of 100, scored a 6-3 victory over Wyatt McCarthy at 152 in a battle of state placewinners.
"We are a dual meet team. That's our identity," said 'Liners coach Dave Post, whose team won 10 bouts against Newton.
Up next: Bethlehem Holiday Classic at Liberty (Pa.) High School on Friday and Saturday.
4. High Point (3-0) -- Wildcats enjoyed a big week, starting with a 49-20 waxing of rival Kittatinny on Tuesday, as coach John Gardner's team kept rolling with wins over Roxbury (42-22) and Southern (34-28) on Saturday. Freshman Brian Soldano (6-0 at 160) iced the victory over Southern, which jumped out to a 12-0 lead three bouts in, with a 28-second pin off a cement mixer in the next-to-last bout at 170, before scoring a 10-2 major over Evan Vazquez, a fifth-place finisher in Region 2, in the nightcap of a tri-meet.
"Brian and Clay [Utter] are freshmen who have done a lot of learning and growing," Gardner said. "They handled the situation [against Southern] really well."
Up next: Mustang Classic at Brick Memorial on Friday.
5. Newton (2-1) -- Braves rolled to a 51-20 win over Sparta and a 60-16 victory over Hackettstown in an NJAC Freedom Division clash before closing the week with a 45-12 loss to Phillipsburg at home on Saturday at a packed Henry Boresch Memorial Gym. Senior Luke Fischer (5-0 at 220) stayed unbeaten with a 9-2 win over Stateliners sophomore Gage Horvath. Coach Eric Bollette's team will look to rebound by defending its team championship at the John Goles Invitational.
Up next: John Goles Invitational at Warren Hills on Thursday.
6. North Hunterdon (3-1) -- Big weekend for the Lions, who knocked off Emerson-Park Ridge (39-32) and Pascack Valley (42-31) -- both sectional champions last season -- on Saturday after hanging tough in a 38-21 loss to Hunterdon Central on Friday. Senior Michael Wilson (6-1 at 160) scored a key 10-8 win in sudden victory against Emerson-Park Ridge, while junior Ian Gaburo (2-2 at 220) had a nice 6-4 win in sudden victory against Hunterdon Central's Lukas Bakerian.
Up next: John Goles Invitational at Warren Hills on Thursday; at West Morris on Saturday.
7. Warren Hills (5-0) -- Blue Streaks opened last week with a 37-19 victory over Voorhees in a key Skyland Conference Valley Division clash -- sparked by freshman Stephen Malia's 13-4 major of state qualifier Aidan Taylor at 126, while senior Nick Galka scored an 8-4 win over Sam Huff in a showdown between state qualifiers at 220 pounds. Coach Dave Sbriscia's team capped the week by sweeping a quad at Cresskill on Saturday.
Up next: John Goles Invitational at home on Thursday.
8. Kittatinny (4-1) -- Cougars marked two milestones in a 57-16 win at Wayne Hills on Saturday as the victory marked the program's 600th overall, while senior Zach Mafaro, a returning state medal winner, recorded his 100th career win with a 26-second pin at 182 pounds to improve to 5-0 on the season. Coach John Gill's team opened last week with a 49-20 loss at High Point before bouncing back with three wins at the West Milford Duals on Thursday.
Up next: Linn Crawn Memorial Classic at home on Thursday.
9. Voorhees (3-2) -- Vikings stumbled in a 37-19 loss to Warren Hills on Wednesday in the Skyland Conference Valley Division opener for both teams. Senior heavyweight Lewis Fernandes (8-0), a returning state champion, created quite a buzz with an amazing three-second pin against Hopatcong on Saturday. Coach Eric Hall's team scored a 78-3 win over the Chiefs and a 48-33 win over host Randolph, while dropping a 42-32 decision to Pequannock.
Up next: at Lenape Valley Tournament on Thursday; North Warren and Newark Academy at Sparta on Saturday.
10. Delaware Valley (2-0) -- Terriers scored a 34-27 win over Hopewell Valley in an independent matchup on Tuesday and followed up with a 49-13 victory over Somerville in a Skyland Conference Valley Division clash on Wednesday. Junior Gage Crater (5-0 at 132) is off to a strong start. Coach Andy Fitz and his team had the weekend off before returning to action in the John Goles Invitational.
Up next: John Goles Invitational at Warren Hills on Thursday; Pingry at South Plainfield on Saturday.DV wins 34-27 over Hopewell to win the first "Dawg Brawl in the Valley" trophy. Nice! pic.twitter.com/jahHTgPSTW— Del Val Wrestling (@DVRWrestling) December 19, 2018
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