Wrestling: 7 pins help Phillipsburg tally 1,000 wins

Phillipsburg wrestling and tremendous milestones go hand in hand, and the Stateliners' 70-10 thumping of Watchung Hills was another cause to celebrate as the program became just the fourth in New Jersey history to record 1,000 wins in a Skyland Conference crossover clash on Thursday night in Lopatcong Township.  

P'burg is 1,000-273-7 overall in 74 seasons.

"I said to the kids before they ran out tonight, 'This is so much bigger than any one person, coach, team, kid. P'burg has been forever about team wins and the team winning state titles,'" said rookie head coach Brad Gentzle, whose club was coming off a thrilling 34-30 win over Hunterdon Central for No. 999 on Tuesday.

"To be able to come out here tonight and to be able to get it done in front of an awesome crowd, and just have a great performance by everybody, it was a lot of fun."

Phillipsburg (2-0) needed just under one hour to join Hunterdon Central as the only Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex area schools to reach 1,000th wins, as the 'Liners recorded seven pins and one major decision to go with four forfeits. Freshman Luke Geleta started the match by decking Teagan Wittmaack with a half nelson in 3:40 at 132 pounds before senior James Day capped the evening with a 12-2 major at 126. Senior David Pierson received a forfeit at 215 to ice the match with five bouts remaining.

Paulsboro and Roselle Park are the only other New Jersey schools to record 1,000 wins.

"I was a little more nervous for this one than I was for [Hunterdon Central] because I know what this means. This matters," Gentzle said. "I don't know that any one person is worthy of this. This is [74] years of wrestling tradition and history that luckily this group of kids gets to be a part of. There's no other accomplishment that can compare to this."

#1000Wins pic.twitter.com/kkxRFTGxyu

— Phillipsburg Wrestling (@PBurgHSWrestlin) January 7, 2022

In one of only three bouts to reach the third period, junior Hunter Cleaver, whose 15-7 major secured No. 999 on Tuesday, hit a peterson for four points in the third before using a spladle to deck Harry Liu in 5:12. Cleaver, who trailed, 3-1, in the second period, executed a lateral drop for the tying takedown just before the buzzer.

Phillipsburg looked a lot sharper as a team overall than it did in the home opener against Hunterdon Central, though Watchung Hills (0-2) was undermanned and hit hard by graduation after the 2021 season. The Warriors' only wins were bonus-point efforts at 144 and 190.

The Stateliners return to action at home on Saturday in the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament before making the trek to Wantage on Monday to take on High Point in an independent clash.

PHILLIPSBURG 70, WATCHUNG HILLS 10

132 -- Fr. Luke Geleta (9-3), P, p. Sr. Teagan Wittmaack (3-3), 3:40.
138 -- Sr. Joey Innamorato (8-5), P, forfeit.
144 -- Jr. Christian Calvo (3-1), WH, p. Sr. Jared Frazer (0-1), 2:46.
150 -- Sr. Matt D'Onofrio (8-4), P, p. Sr. Nevin Echavarria (0-1), 2:38.
157 -- Jr. Hunter Cleaver (9-4), P, p Jr. Harry Liu (0-2), 5:12.
165 -- Sr. Nate Zastowny (3-3), P, p. Jr. Nirio Garcia (0-4), :50.
175 -- So. Caleb Rivera (8-5), P, forfeit.
190 -- Sr. Christopher Baker (4-0), WH, md. Jr. Connor Hille (6-4), 16-3.
215 -- Sr. David Pierson (10-3), P, forfeit.
285 -- So. John Wargo (8-4), P, forfeit.
106 -- So. Dawson McWilliams (1-3), P, p. Fr. Nick Valenti (0-4), :39.
113 -- Sr. Miguel Lopez (8-5), P, p. Fr. Vincent Glynos (0-2), 1:26.
120 -- Fr. Gavin Hawk (13-5), P, p. So. Jordan Bash (3-2), 1:24.

126 -- Sr. James Day (11-2), P, md. Sr. Jack Scuderi (2-2), 12-2.
Note: Phillipsburg records the program's 1,000th win.
Records -- Watchung Hills 0-2; Phillipsburg 2-0.
Official -- Doug Fischer.
JV score -- Phillipsburg, 48-13.