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| Sussex County crowned six champions in Region 1. |
"I wanted to win," said Solando, a District 1 champion, who came in as a No. 6 seed and needed just 59 seconds to deck previously unbeaten Ramapo senior Justin Leonard in the finals for his third pin of the tournament. "I put myself through a lot to get here. I'm happy to get to the finals and win it."
Soldano (38-2) joins current head coach John Gardner and Nick Francavilla, a three-time state champ and Sussex County's all-time wins leader with 156, as the only High Point freshmen to win region titles. That puts Soldano in very select company as both won four region championships.
"That's my goal," said Soldano, who got a quick takedown before throwing in the legs and horsing Leonard to his back to become the Wildcats' 47th champ. "It's great to have [Gardner] as my coach. He always makes sure everybody leaves practice with a smile."
High Point advanced six wrestlers to the 86th State Wrestling Championships that begin on Thursday at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City. Pope John and St. Joseph-Montvale had a tournament-best seven placewinners, while Newton and Sparta each had three qualifiers. Kittatinny (two) and Wallkill Valley (one) round out the local contingent, which sends a total of 22 to AC.
If people don't know how good Soldano is, they're sure to get an idea next week. No High Point wrestler has won a state title as a freshman, and Soldano, who loves to put opponent on their backs (27 pins this season) and himself in precarious positions while doing so, is looking to make a strong AC debut.
"I just mostly try to stay calm and keep wrestling," said Soldano, whose only in-state loss is to St. Augustine's Salvatore Manera -- 13-7 in the Mustang Classic semifinals on Dec. 28 -- a Region 8 third-place finisher.
Lions roar in finals
Pope John ace JoJo Aragona also made school history the second to win four region titles, joining former New Jersey great Mike Frick (1969-72), a three-time state champion and four-time finalist. Aragona was easily the class of the field at 138, racking up three takedowns in a 9-2 win over St. Joseph-Montvale senior Craig Manno in the finals.
"It's a great feeling," said Aragona (37-0), a three-time state placewinner and Rutgers University recruit who is four wins from passing Francavilla as the county's wins leader at 153-6 overall. "I'm starting to put myself pretty high up there in the history books. It's a great accomplishment."
Pope John junior Eddie Ventresca (120) and senior Robbie Garcia (152) won their second titles, while sophomore Shane Percelay (106) and junior Kaya Sement (132) were runners-up. Juniors Matthew Garcia (145) and Connor Fritsch (160) both placed fourth to move on.
Ventresca (35-1), a two-time state placewinner put on a takedown clinic with four in a 9-5 rout of St. Joseph-Montvale junior and former state medalist Justin Bierdumpfel, while Robbie Garcia, who was second here last season after winning as a sophomore, scored a 9-7 win over Pascack Valley senior Matt Beyer.
"I'm really happy and focused, and I'm having fun," said Garcia, who missed most of the season after sustaining an undisclosed injury at the Beast of the East Tournament in December. "There's always room to improve."
Braves battle for gold
Newton seniors Wyatt McCarthy (145) and Luke Fischer (220) became the school's 39th and 40th champs, while McCarthy joined only nine others in winning his second title and the first to do so since Ed Mattice (2008-09).
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| Wyatt McCarthy and Luke Fischer (Newton wrestling) |
"People get hurt, there's nothing you can do about it," said McCarthy, who didn't get to wrestle at all in the District 2 finals last weekend after getting a win by forfeit. "Hopefully he's going to be OK. Newton is such an historic program with the most state champs [82]. I'm happy to be a part of that history. Hopefully I can be No. 83 next weekend."
Fischer continued his monster season with a workmanlike 3-0 victory over Westwood senior Benny Dahdah, the top seed, to win his first region title. Fischer (36-0), who feels like he's a contender for the state title at 220, got the legs in and turned Dahdah, who took bottom to start the second period, for the decisive three back points.
"I knew once I got the legs in, I was pretty solid from there," said Fischer, who fought off two deep shots by Dahdah while on their feet in the first period. "I knew the [double-leg attacks] were coming and I had to stay low. I never thought I'd be undefeated going into states. It's pretty cool. Hopefully I can win it. That's the goal."
Newton senior Nick Brigante will join McCarthy and Fischer in AC with a third-place finish at 170.
Back points
Wallkill Valley senior Zachery Dora made a little history of his own, finishing fourth at 285 pounds to become his school's first state qualifier since 2011, when Brian Gallagher placed third at 171 as only the top three advanced then to Atlantic City. Dora (30-12) was thrilled to join Gallagher and a host of other qualifiers for the Rangers, including former state champion Ryan Callahan, who was their last district (2010) and region winner (2008-10).
"It's insane to look at [the school's Wall of Fame] and see my my name next to theirs," said Dora, who punched his ticket to AC by decking Tenafly senior Isaac Berman in the consolation semifinals. "Callahan, Kodie Silvestri [a two-time state finalists], they're [mythical figures] among men."
It's been a tough stretch since 2010, as Wallkill Valley has battled extremely low numbers, including just nine on the roster this season. But Dora gave coaches Jeff and Kevin Churchill, and former head coach and now assistant Larry Hildebrant plenty to smile about.
"My coaches are always there for me seven days a week," said Dora, who was 5-14 as a freshman before improving to 15 wins as a sophomore and 17 as a junior. "I've just been focusing on defense and getting one good shot offensively for a takedown."
Kittatinny senior Zach Mafaro (182) and sophomore Jackson Crawn (195) finished third to earn their trips to the state tournament. Mafaro, a No. 1 seed and a sixth-place finisher in AC last season, rebounded from a tough semifinals loss with two pins, including one with a cradle to flatten Ramon Hernandez of Pompton Lakes in their third-place bout. Junior Jacob Mafaro (285) finished fifth at 285 after being upset in the quarterfinals on Friday.
Newton's Eric Bollette was named the Region 1 Coach of the Year and will be among eight finalists for State Coach of the Year honors next weekend. It was the second region honor for Bollette, a former state placewinner for Kittatinny and 238-187-1 overall in his 18 seasons in charge of the Braves -- just 12 wins behind legendary coach Henry Boresch for the most in program history.
High Point's Devon Liebl (second at 113), Devin Flannery (third at 120), Billy Talmadge (third at 138), Clayton Utter (fourth at 106) and Josh Gervey (fourth at 132) also qualified for states, along with Sparta trio Cooper Stewart (third at 113), Spencer Stewart (fourth at 120) and Garrett Stewart (third at 126).
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