Monday, January 7, 2019

Wrestling: Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex rankings

We're counting down to the big one on Saturday as all of our local teams converge on Phillipsburg High School for the 10th annual Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament.

Check out our early weight-by-weight preview and more on the tournament here later in the week. Official pairings and seeds will be released on Friday.

How about that 152-pound class featuring three state medal winners -- Phillipsburg senior Cody Harrison, Newton senior Wyatt McCarthy and Pope John senior Robbie Garcia -- who all seek their first HWS title. Harrison owns a 6-3 win over McCarthy this season, while Garcia has not been in the lineup since the Beast of the East in December.

We've also got a big dual on Tuesday as Newton travels to Kittatinny for a key NJAC Freedom Division matchup. Can the Braves earn back-to-back wins in this rivalry series for the first time since winning four in a row (including two postseason victories) in 2009-10? Check out our full preview that will be posted on Monday night, while the first New Jersey Wrestling Writers Top 20 will be unveiled on Tuesday afternoon.
The 14th Henry Boresch Duals were a smashing success.

Speaking of Newton, hats off to the staff and athletic director Ryan Hashway for an entertaining and well-run Henry Boresch Duals this past Saturday. The 14th annual edition featured several of New Jersey's top teams, as Paulsboro rolled to a 37-17 win over South Plainfield for its second straight championship.

It seems this event gets bigger every year and you can count on the South Jersey power, which is the state's winningest program at 1,161-88-12 over 76 seasons, to return for a chance to win three in a row.

"We lose some of our studs, but we'll be back," said Paulsboro coach Paul Morina, whose teams are 684-42-4 in his 33 seasons at the helm. "This is great for our kids."

Paulsboro (7-0), South Plainfield and Hanover Park are all sure to be in the field for 2020, and hopefully Kingsway will be back as well. Keep an eye on the Dragons, who have a fine youth program, in Group 4 over the next few seasons. Will Howell will return to the Boresch Duals?

Now, onto this week's team rankings:

1. Hunterdon Central (9-0) -- Red Devils opened last week with a 38-21 win over Delaware Valley before sweeping a quad at Robbinsville on Saturday. Coach Jon Cantagallo-Rohm's team has been shorthanded with senior Pasquale Vizzoni (145) day to day with a back injury, while senior Lukas Bakerian (220) recently left the team. On a positive note, senior Vincent Romaniello (152) became the 23rd wrestler at his school to reach the 100-win mark on Saturday. Senior Jack Bauer (126), who is sitting on 98 wins, is next in line.

Up next: Bridgewater-Raritan at home on Wednesday; Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament at Phillipsburg on Saturday.

2. Pope John (5-1) -- Lions rolled to a 46-22 win over Mendham on Thursday to even their NJAC American Division record at 1-1, while coach Mark Piotrowsky's team captured the team title in the Sam Cali Invitational on Sunday. Senior JoJo Aragona (138), junior Eddie Ventresca (120) and freshman Shane Percelay (106) all won titles, while juniors Kaya Sement (132) and Matthew Garcia (145) were runners-up. Aragona also became the school's all-time wins leader at 131-6.

Up next: at Sparta on Tuesday; at Roxbury on Thursday; Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament at Phillipsburg on Saturday.

3. Phillipsburg (5-0) -- Stateliners cruised to a 49-12 win over Warren Hills in their home opener, and followed up with a 37-24 victory over Raritan on Thursday and a 42-28 waxing of Monroe on Saturday in independent matchups. Freshman James Day (14-5) started P'burg on the comeback march vs. Raritan, which led 24-10 through eight bouts, with a pin at 106, while sophomore Joey Innamorato (120) and senior Travis Jones (132) also had pins to fuel a six-match run.

Up next: Montgomery at home on Wednesday; Kittatinny at The Pit on Thursday; Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament at home on Saturday.

4. High Point (3-0) -- Wildcats represented New Jersey well at the Cheesehead Invitational in Wisconsin over the weekend. Freshman Brian Soldano (160), who finished third, was the team's highest placewinner, while junior Billy Talmadge (138) was fourth. Junior Devon Liebl (113) was fifth and senior Devin Flannery (120) placed sixth.

Up next: at Hackettstown on Thursday; Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament at Phillipsburg on Saturday.

5. North Hunterdon (8-1) -- Lions, who opened the week with a 40-21 victory over Voorhees, kept rolling with an impressive 38-24 win over Raritan as they swept a quad at Wayne Valley on Saturday. Senior Michael Wilson had a key 11-8 win over Anthony Aquilano at 160 for coach Chris Hrunka's team, while Connor Quinn (120), Evan Klimas (138), Nathaniel Fossett (170) and Frank Diesso (113) also had pins.

Up next: at Delaware Valley on Wednesday; at Hanover Park on Thursday; Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament at Phillipsburg on Saturday.

6. Newton (4-3) -- Braves rolled to a 44-16 win over Jefferson on Wednesday in a rematch of last season's North 1, Group 2 sectional semifinal, won by the Falcons. Coach Eric Bollette's team went 1-2 in their own Boresch Duals on Saturday -- rebounding from a 49-16 loss to Kingsway with a 44-25 win over Cranford before capping the day with a 36-29 loss to Toms River North. Senior Wyatt McCarthy (11-1 at 152) is two wins shy of securing fourth place on the school's all-time list.

Up next: at Kittatinny on Tuesday; Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament at Phillipsburg on Saturday.

7. Warren Hills (9-1) -- Blue Streaks rebounded from a 49-12 at Phillipsburg on Wednesday with a 60-18 win over Lenape Valley. Freshmen Jared Lee (10-5 at 106) and Tyler McCatharn (10-5 at 182) went 3-0 in a quad at Montgomery on Saturday, along with seniors Chris Ostir (12-4 at 145), Nick Galka (13-2 at 220) and Duro Ajayi (15-1 at 285) and juniors Greg Slivka (13-2 at 120) and Nick Hildebrant (10-4 at 170).

Up next: Somerville at home on Wednesday; Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament at Phillipsburg on Saturday.

8. Kittatinny (7-4) -- Cougars went 2-1 in a quad at Old Bridge on Saturday -- earning wins over Old Bridge (57-21) and Pingry (45-29), while falling to Sayreville (37-29). Senior Zach Mafaro (13-1 at 182), sophomore Jackson Crawn (15-2 at 220) and junior Jacob Mafaro (5-0 at 220) all went 3-0 on the day.

Up next: Newton at home on Tuesday; at Phillipsburg (The Pit) on Thursday; Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament at Phillipsburg on Saturday.

9. Delaware Valley (3-3) -- Terriers dropped a 45-14 decision to Watchung Hills on Wednesday and fell 38-21 to Hunterdon Central on Thursday. Senior A.J. DeRosa (11-0 at 138) will bid for his first Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex title on Saturday after a runner-up finish last season.

Up next: Robbinsville at home on Tuesday; North Hunterdon at home on Wednesday; Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament at Phillipsburg on Saturday.

10. Voorhees (9-3) -- Vikings bounced back from a 40-21 loss to North Hunterdon in their annual rivalry matchup on Wednesday by sweeping a quad on Saturday with wins over Bridgewater-Raritan (54-15), Brearley-Dayton (70-12) and Piscataway (36-30). Senior Lewis Fernandes (17-0 at 285), who moved into third place on the Vikes' all-time wins list at 123-22, will look to become the second wrestler in school history to win multiple Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex titles on Saturday.

Up next: Bernards at home on Wednesday; West Morris at home on Friday; Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament at Phillipsburg on Saturday.
Posted by Mike Weilamann at 12:49 AM

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