When: Friday.
Where: Warren Hills Regional High School, Washington Township.
Participating teams (9): East Stroudsburg North (Pa.); Delaware Valley; Hopewell Valley; Manville; Newton; North Hunterdon; Verona; Warren Hills; West Morris.
Schedule (approximate): Pigtails and quarterfinals, 9:30 a.m.; Championships, 4 p.m.
Returning champions (4, 2019 weights): Nathan Fitt, Newton (120, District 2 third); Connor Quinn, North Hunterdon (132, 2017 champion); Colin Loughney, West Morris (170, District 12 first, Region 3 third); Ian Gaburo, North Hunterdon (220, District 20 second, Region 5 fourth).
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| North Hunterdon eyes back-to-back team titles. |
Notes: Sadly, this will be the first Goles (second oldest consecutive annual holiday tournament in the nation) since the passing of longtime director and Warren Hills icon Bill Lunger in October. Lunger, 61, the school's public address announcer for many decades, loved this tournament with a passion. He will be remembered with a moment of silence, and the plaque awarded to three-time champions will forever bear his name. The program sold at the door, which encompasses tournament history from the previous 61 years, was his labor of love. He will be missed. ... North Hunterdon, featuring returning champions Connor Quinn (2017) and Ian Gaburo, and ranked No. 7 in the state by the New Jersey Wrestling Writers Association, is the heavy favorite to win a second straight team championship, which would be a first for the Lions, who have won four team titles overall (1995, 2010, 2014 and 2018). Drew Doscher, who won a title at 132 pounds last year, was not entered for North. ... Newton, which won the team championship in 2017, amassed a tournament record 254 points in winning the 2008 championship. ... Warren Hills has crowned a tournament-best 184 champions overall. The Blue Streaks haven't gone without at least one gold medal since getting shut out in 2002, while they've won or shared 22 team championships since the tournament's inception in 1958, including its last title in 2013. Delaware Valley has won 11 of the previous 21 team titles, including its last in 2016. ... East Stroudsburg North and Manville join the field for the first time in tournament history. Edison, which had appeared in 42 straight tournaments since 1977 and won its third team title in 2006, is out after back-to-back last-place finishes, along with Columbia and Sparta. Edison crowned 60 champions during its tenure, including four-time winners Joe Duhigg (1986-89) and Mike Franco-Bandiero (2005-08). Duhigg earned the Outstanding Wrestler Award in 1987 and '89, while Franco-Bandiero won it twice in 2007 and '08. Warren Hills' Julius DiRisio (1985, '88) and Doug Detrick (1990, '91) are the only other two-time OWs. ... Weights to keep an eye on are 120, 132, 170 and 220. Newton has produced at least one champ in all but three tournaments since 2000. Speaking of which, assistant coaches Andy Iliff (1985-86) and Ted Sibblies (1987-88) were two-time winners for the Braves. Warren Hills head coach Dave Sbriscia was a two-time champion in 2004 and '05, while Del Val assistant Gregg Wiseburn (1999-2000) and North Hunterdon head coach Chris Hrunka (2006) were also champs for the Blue Streaks. Del Val assistant coach Chris Cancelliere (2009-10) was a two-time champion for North Hunterdon.
Championship picks: Michael Camponaro, West Morris (106); Jacob Venezia, Hopewell Valley (113); Greg Slivka, Warren Hills (120); Gage Crater, Delaware Valley (126); Robert Bohr, West Morris (132); JoJo Lotruglio, Newton (138); Eli Shepard, West Morris (145); Garrett Tettemer, Delaware Valley (152); Jack Lombardino, Manville (160); Colin Loughney, West Morris (170); Nate Fossett, North Hunterdon (182); Alex Uryniak, North Hunterdon (195); Ian Gaburo, North Hunterdon (220); Ryan Sutter, Delaware Valley (285).
Team champion: North Hunterdon.
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