Wrestling: Region recap for HWS by the numbers

We're near the finish line of the high school wrestling season, but before we turn our focus on the 89th State Championships at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, starting on Thursday, let's take a look at some of the highlights from the five region tournaments that house teams from the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex area.

North crowned an area-best 4 champions in the Lions' Den.

But before we do, kudos to North Hunterdon, which did a fantastic job of hosting a region event for the first time in program history as Union High School was unavailable. Region 4 went off without a hitch and completed both rounds on Friday in lightning fashion (just over three hours). Region 2 at Mount Olive and Region 3 at West Orange continued to be excellent hosts, as all three took the time to break things down for finals on one mat, as it should be. West Orange always showcases the finals and adds the nice touch of a matside podium to recognize the placewinners between championship bouts.

That's in stark contrast to West Milford, which runs Region 1 just to get it done. Using three mats for finals and the third- and fifth-place matches -- something the Passaic County School has done as host since 2018 -- is a disservice to the sport. Oh, they have a podium for placewinners, but it's tucked in a corner of one section of bleachers and not visible to the entire gym. Sunday's consolation semis began at 9 a.m., leaving plenty of time to do it right. Instead it was another missed opportunity. 

The podium at North, which was built prior to the event.

One other note, Non-Public schools were atop the Track team standings in all but one, as Delsea ruled in Region 8. Region 1 was dominated by St. Joseph-Montvale with a ridiculous 10 champions and 12 finalists, while Bergen Catholic (seven champs, four runners-up) sat atop Region 2. In Region 3, Delbarton, which went 6-2 in the finals, advanced 11 of 13, St. Peter's Prep (five champs and three runners-up) bested the Region 4 field, while St. John Vianney (three champs and six finalists) stood out in Region 5. 

Here are the Non-Public champs totals in all eight: 11 in R1, 8 in R2, 6 in R3, 6 in R4, 6 in R5, 7 in R6 (all from CBA), 4 in R7, 2 in R8. This only reaffirms what we've known all along -- the Non-Publics are dominating in North Jersey, more so than the rest of the state. Realignment, which has failed miserably in a number of aspects, including watering down districts and regions, has not solved that Non-Public issue in the northern regions, primarily because the balance of power among the private schools fluctuates more often than in the public ranks. You can expect the cries for an All-Non-Public region to get louder this offseason. 

Now, a recap of Regions 1-5:  

49 -- We have that many wrestlers from the HWS area moving on to this week's state tournament (up 12 from 2020 before last year's pandemic-induced super regions), including an area-high eight each from Phillipsburg and Warren Hills. In all, 18 advanced out of Region 3, while Region 1 produced 12. Over in Region 4, Delaware Valley and North Hunterdon (area-best four champions) combined for 11 qualifiers, while Region 5 had six from Hunterdon Central, leaving one wrestler from Lenape Valley (senior Daniel Haws) and Hopatcong (senior Michael Mastroeni) to come out of Region 2. Here are the total number of area qualifiers since realignment in 2017 -- 47 in '17, 48, in '18, 50 in '19, 37 in '20 and 49 in '22. We had 22 a year ago from the Super Regions. As a side note, there have been 10 state medal winners who finished fourth in the regions (not including 2021) and four were from the HWS area -- North Hunterdon's Andrew Gapas (eighth at 132) in 2017, High Point's Brandon LaRue (sixth at 113) and Pope John's Reece Mulduun (seventh at 182) in 2018 and Sparta's Spencer Stewart (eighth at 120) in 2019. There were none in 2020.

50 -- The most noteworthy happening from an HWS standpoint in Region 1 was High Point senior 

Gardner, Soldano and Francavilla. (Courtesy of Cheryl Soldano)

Brian Soldano winning his fourth title. The two-time state champion steamrolled his way through the bracket at 190 pounds and earned the Outstanding Wrestler Award with three pins a total time of 1:35. Soldano (33-0) became the first Sussex County wrestler to pin his way to four titles -- going 13-0, including four falls in last year's North 1 Super Region, with seven under a minute. Soldano, now 122-5 overall with 95 career pins (29 this season), joined head coach John Gardner (1987-90) and Nick Francavilla (2008-11) as the only
four-time region champions for the 'Cats, who have 50 region champions in their history. Pope John's Mike Frick (1969-72) and JoJo Aragona (2016-19) are the only other Sussex County wrestlers to win four. Soldano is High Point's only champ since Kevin Lewis won at 285 in 2016. From 2007-16, the 'Cats crowned 28 champions. Senior Clayton Utter (third at 120) earned his fourth trip to states and is 94-25 overall, while senior Andrew Brevot (fourth at 138) will make his first appearance in AC.

7 -- Speaking of Pope John, super freshman Carson Walsh logged three pins in winning the title at 113 pounds in Region 1 to become the Lions' 36th region champ and extending the program's string with at least one winner to seven straight seasons. Senior Colin Neal was a runner-up at 150, while sophomore Justin Holly (132) and senior Jack Stoll (215) finished third to punch their tickets to AC. Stoll's father, Joe, was a region champion for Vernon at heavyweight in 1984, while older brother, Kyle, was a two-time winner for High Point at 195 pounds in 2013-14.

P'burg has 130 region champions overall.

8 -- Phillipsburg advanced eight wrestlers to the state tournament for the first time since 1998 (when only three qualified from each of the eight regions) as senior David Pierson (215) won his second title and sophomore John Wargo (285) got his first (No. 130 for the Warren County school). Pierson (32-4), who is the Stateliners' first repeat winner since Brian Meyer won three (2016-18) in a row, fought off a single-leg attempt by Warren Hills' Jarett Pantuso and converted a takedown of his own with 10 seconds left for a 3-2 win in the title bout. A fitting result as Pierson now owns a 3-2 lead in their back-and-forth rivalry dating to last season. Pierson has won both region encounters (8-0 in last year's North 1 semis) and their clash in the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex finals (7-1 this season), while Pantuso prevailed in rematches (9-6 in the Blood Round of last year's state tournament and 1-0 in this season's dual meet). Wargo, a No. 8 seed, won for the first time in three meetings with Blue Streaks state placewinner Tyler McCatharn, scoring a 2-1 win in overtime in the quarterfinals. McCatharn, who finished third, had beaten Wargo, 9-2, in the HWS Tournament semis and 5-1 in the dual meet. Freshmen Gavin Hawk (120) and Luke Geleta (132) and senior James Day (126) all finished second, while senior Joe Innamorato (138) and junior Hunter Cleaver (157) placed third and senior Nate Zastowny (165) fourth. P'burg, which finished as the top public school in both the NJWWA Top 20 and Coaches Top 25, went 4-2 vs. Warren Hills over the two-day event.
  

58 -- Warren Hills senior Stephen Malia raised the program total to 58 region champions with his first at 165 pounds in Region 3. Malia (33-1), who has 87 career wins, is the Blue Streaks' first winner at a weight other than 285 since Max Nauta (132) won his second title in 2015. Senior Jared Lee (144) and junior Jarett Pantuso (215) were runners-up, while seniors Kevin Riedinger (fourth at 113) and Owen Frizzell (third at 175), Ryan Galka (fourth at 190) and Tyler McCatharn (third at 285), and junior Shawn Redfield (third at 132), also advanced to the state tournament. The Streaks' eight qualifiers are the most since a program-record nine in 1939 and '47, when they were Washington High School and only district champions advanced to states (regions were introduced in 1961 and only winners moved on from there until 1974). McCatharn (33-4), who finished sixth in the state in 2021, became the ninth member of the school's 100-wins club with his victory in the consolation semifinals and is 101-31 overall.

4 -- North Hunterdon produced four champions for just the second time and first since 1985 as juniors Logan Wadle (106), Alex Uryniak (190) and Brendan Raley (215) won their first titles and senior Liam Akers (285) won his second. Wadle, who earned the Outstanding Wrestler Award, escaped at the buzzer for a 7-6 win over Adrian DeJesus of St. Peters Prep, who won by fall in 5:34 against the 2021 state runner-up in their dual meet encounter at 113 pounds on Dec. 23. Wadle also gave his household a fourth title as his father, Rudy, won three Region 5 crowns (1991-93) and is among just five Lions to win at least three. North, which finished 17th in the Coaches Association Top 25, sent seven total to AC as senior Nick DeLorenzo (third at 132), junior Daniel Delusant (fourth at 138) and senior Luke Yager (third at 175) qualified for the first time. Two-time state champion Ricky Frondorf, now a youth coach and the Lions' only four-time region champ, was in attendance on Saturday. Gary Bendel (122) and Tom McGourty (158), both state champs, were among the four Region 5 champs for North in '85, along with Stan Barber (170) and Jim Abbott (heavyweight).

18 -- Warren County advanced an area-best 18 wrestlers to Atlantic City, as Hackettstown's Aidan Scheeringa (fourth at 106) and Nicholas Balella (third at 120), who missed mot of the season with an injury, joined the combined 16 from Phillipsburg and Warren Hills. The Tigers have not had a champion since Alex Carida (145), a two-time winner, and Joe Andes (285) won in 2018. Belvidere (R3) and North Warren (R1) were shut out.

17 -- Hunterdon County sent 17 to the state tournament. In addition to North Hunterdon's county-best seven, Hunterdon Central produced six qualifiers out of Region 5, while Delaware Valley moved four from Region 4. Senior Tanner Peake (157) and sophomore Thomas Brunetti (165) won their first titles for Central, which has 103 champions overall, won their first titles. Peake (36-4), who placed sixth in last year's state tournament, scored a 4-3 decision over St. John Vianney's Jasiah Queen to avenge a 3-2 UTB loss in their District 17 final and move into a tie with Jack Bauer for eighth place on Central's career wins list with 119. Sophomore Anthony Rossi (106) and senior Nick Canonica (150) were runners-up, while junior Peter Plesh (113) and senior Aidan Portnoy (144) finished fourth for the Red Devils.  Juniors Owen Kucharski (106) and Chris Colasurdo (150) and seniors Matt Schneider (190) and Trevor Bowen (215) all finished fourth for Group 1 champion Del Val, which snapped a two-year skid without a qualifier and has not had a champ since 2018 and only two since 2014. Voorhees, which produced its first winning season since 2019, did not have a state qualifier for the third straight year and only the fifth time in program history. The only other years the Vikes missed on at least one state qualifier were in 2002 and '03.

Congrats to DV Rasslin's 4 state qualifiers!
106 Owen Kucharski
150 Chris Colasurdo
190 Matt Schneider
215 Trevor Bowen

DV also had 2 5th place finishes.
120 Robert Groogan
175 Anderson Olcott

Nice job done by all our Terriers!! pic.twitter.com/rkcFzGKIJ0

— Del Val Wrestling (@DVRWrestling) February 26, 2022

14 -- Sussex County moved 14 on to Atlantic City as Kittatinny, which had one finalist in senior Ty Eldred (285) and has not produced a champion since 2016 (Austin Scrivani at 138 pounds), had three qualifiers in Region 1. Joining Eldred, who lost by technical fall to 2020 state champion Jim Mullen of St. Joseph-Montvale, are senior Steve Dalling (150) and freshman Ethan Dalling (165), who were third-place finishers. Newton, which has 40 region champions in its history, did not have a finalist (last year's North 1 Super Region aside) for the first time since 2017, but the Braves had two state qualifiers in junior Michael Melillo (third at 138) and senior Melkart Abou-Jaoude (fourth at 190). In Region 2, Lenape Valley's Daniel Haws, a runner-up at 126 and 105-24 overall, earned his third trip to states and passed Matt Moscatello for 11th place on the school's all-time wins list, while Hopatcong's Michael Mastroeni, third at 165, also advanced.

6 -- Phillipsburg, the Group 5 champion, was voted the top public school and No. 3 in the state in the always politically-biased New Jersey Coaches Association Top 25, which was released on Sunday afternoon. In all, six teams from the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex area graced the rankings as Group 3 runner-up Warren Hills was No. 10, three spots ahead of Delsea despite a 29-28 loss to the Crusaders in the state final. North Hunterdon checked in at No. 17 and Hunterdon Central at No. 19, followed by Group 1 champion Delaware Valley at No. 21 and Group 2 runner-up High Point at No. 24.

Wrestling: Regions 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 schedules

Schedules and other information for the regions involving Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex area schools. All tournaments will be held Friday and Saturday (snow dates Saturday and Sunday).

The top four at each weight class advanced to the 89th State Wrestling Championships March 3-5 at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City.

In all, there are 122 wrestlers from the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex area still competing -- up nine from 2020. No district tournaments were held in 2021 due to the pandemic. Here are the total number of area qualifiers by season since realignment (which changes every three years) was introduced in 2017 -- 118 in 2017 and '18; 125 in '19 and 113 in '20. The five-year average is 119.

Here's the team-by team breakdown of qualifiers in this year's tournaments:

Warren Hills (14); Phillipsburg (13); North Hunterdon (12); Pope John (11); Delaware Valley, Hunterdon Central and Kittatinny (10); High Point (9); Newton (6); Lenape Valley and Voorhees (5); Hackettstown and North Warren (4); Belvidere and Sparta (3); Hopatcong (2), Vernon-Wallkill Valley (1).

Note: Tickets must be purchased online for most regions. There will be no sales at the door, but check with your school.

Region 1

At West Milford High School

Area schools: High Point, Kittatinny, Newton, North Warren, Pope John, Sparta, Vernon-Wallkill Valley.

Rest of the field: Butler, Cresskill, Demarest, Don Bosco Prep, Dumont, Emerson-Park Ridge, Glen Rock, Hawthorne, Indian Hills, Jefferson, Kinnelon, Lakeland, Mahwah, Manchester Regional, New Milford, Northern Highlands, Old Tappan, Pascack Hills, Pascack Valley, Pequannock, Pompton Lakes, Ramapo, Ramsey, Ridgewood, River Dell, St. Joseph-Montvale, Tenafly, Waldwick-Midland Park, Wayne Hills, West Milford, Westwood.

West Milford will host R1 for the fourth year since 2018.

Returning champions (4): Sr. Evan Mougalian, Kinnelon (126, N1 in 2021 and R1 in 2020); Sr. Alex Almeyda, St. Joseph-Montvale (138, N1 in 2021, R2 in 2019), Jr. Michael Dellagatta, St. Joseph-Montvale (175, N1 in 2021); Sr. Brian Soldano, High Point (190, N1 in 2021, R1 in '20 and '19).

Previous champions (2): Sr. Joe Manno, St. Joseph-Montvale (132, R1 in 2019); Jr. Jim Mullen, St. Joseph-Montvale (285, R1 in 2020).

Saturday schedule: Preliminaries (three mats), 9 a.m.; quarterfinals, semifinals and wrestlebacks to follow (three mats).

Sunday schedule: wrestleback semifinals, 9 a.m.; third-place and fifth-place consolations plus championship finals (three mats) to follow.

Ticket prices: $5 adults, $3 students and seniors (Friday). $8 adults, $3 students and seniors (all-day pass on Saturday).

Region 2

At Mount Olive High School

Area schools: Hopatcong, Lenape Valley.

Rest of the field: Bergen Catholic, Bergenfield, Bogota-Ridgefield Park, Boonton, Clifton, DePaul, Dover, Dwight Morrow, Elmwood Park, Fair Lawn, Fort Lee, Garfield, Hackensack, Hasbrouck Heights, Leonia-Palisades Park, Lodi, Montville, Morris Hills, Morris Knolls, Mountain Lakes, Mount Olive, Paramus, Paramus Catholic, Parsippany, Parsippany Hills, Passaic, Passaic Tech, Passaic Valley, Paterson Eastside, Paterson Kennedy, Roxbury, Saddle Brook, Teaneck, Wayne Valley, West Essex.

Returning champions (7): Sr. Joseph Cangro, Bergen Catholic (113, N1 in 2021, R2 in '20, R2 in '19); Jr. Luke Stanich, Roxbury (120, N1 in 2021, R2 in '20); Jr. Jack Bastarrika, Mount Olive (N1 in 2021); Sr. Joe Fongaro, Boonton (144, N1 in 2021); Sr. Eric Freeman, Paramus (165, N1 in 2021); Jr. Max Acciardi, Paramus Catholic (285, N1 in 2021).

 

Previous champions (1): Sr. P.J. Casale, Passaic Valley (215, R3 in 2020).

Friday schedule: Preliminaries (four mats), 5:30 p.m.; quarterfinals to follow (four mats).

Saturday schedule: Semifinals and wrestlebacks (four mats), 10 a.m.; third-place and fifth-place consolations (two mats), 2:30 p.m.; championship finals (approximately), 4:30 p.m.

Ticket prices: $5 adults, $3 students and seniors (Friday); $8 adults, $3 students and seniors (all-day pass on Saturday).

Region 3

At West Orange High School

Area schools: Belvidere, Hackettstown, Phillipsburg, Warren Hills.

Rest of the field: Barringer, Becton-Wood-Ridge, Belleville, Bloomfield, Caldwell, Cedar Grove, Cliffside Park-Ridgefield, Columbia, Delbarton, East Orange, Glen Ridge, Hanover Park, Hoboken, Kearny, Livingston, Lyndhurst-North Arlington, Madison, Mendham, Montclair, Morristown, Newark Academy, North Bergen, Nutley, Orange, Randolph, Rutherford, Secaucus, Seton Hall Prep, Union City, Verona, Weehawken, West Morris, West Orange, Whippany Park.

Returning champions (7): So. Daniel Jones, Delbarton (113, N2 in 2021); Sr. Joseph Sciarrone, Seton Hall Prep (113, N2 in 2021); Jr. Tyler Vazquez, Delbarton (132, N2 in 2021, R3 in '20); Jr. Cross Wasilewski, Delbarton (144, N2 in 2021, R3 in '20); Sr. Andrew Troczynski, Delbarton (150, N2 in 2021, R3 in '20); Jr. Simon Ruiz, Delbarton (157, N2 in 2021); Sr. David Pierson

P'burg has crowned 128 region champions overall.

, Phillipsburg (215, N2 in 2021).

Previous champions (1): Sr. Tyler McCatharn, Warren Hills (285, R3 in 2020).

Friday schedule: Preliminaries (three mats), 4 p.m.; quarterfinals to follow (three mats)

Saturday schedule: Semifinals, 10 a.m.; wrestlebacks, 11:30 a.m.; third-place and fifth-place consolations, 2 p.m.; championship finals (approximately), 3:30 p.m.

Ticket prices: $5 adults, $3 students and seniors (Friday); $8 adults, $3 students (all-day pass on Saturday).

Region 4

At North Hunterdon Regional High School

Area schools: Delaware Valley, North Hunterdon, Voorhees.

Rest of the field: Bayonne, Bernards, Bound Brook, Brearley-Dayton, Bridgewater-Raritan, Carteret, Colonia, Cranford, Elizabeth, Governor Livingston, Irvington, JFK-Iselin, Johnson, J.P. Stevens, Linden, Millburn, Newark Collegiate, Newark East Side, New Providence, North Plainfield, Pingry, Plainfield, Rahway, Ridge, Roselle Park, St. Peter's Prep, St. Thomas Aquinas, Scotch Plains-Fanwood, Somerville, South Plainfield, Summit-Chatham, Union, Watchung Hills, Weequahic, Westfield.

Returning champions (1): Sr. Liam Akers, North Hunterdon (285, N2 in 2021).

North is hosting regions for the first time.

Previous champions (1): Sr. Alexander Martinez, Bound Brook (150, R4 in 2020).

Friday schedule: Preliminaries (four mats), 4 p.m.; quarterfinals to follow (four mats).

Saturday schedule: Semifinals and wrestlebacks (four mats), 10 a.m.; third-place and fifth-place consolations (two mats), 2 p.m.; championship finals (one mat) to follow.

Ticket prices: $5 adults, $3 students and seniors (Friday); $8 adults, $3 students (all-day pass on Saturday).

Region 5

At Hunterdon Central Field House

Area schools: Hunterdon Central.

Rest of the field: East Brunswick, Edison, Franklin, Highland Park. Hillsborough, Holmdel, Hopewell Valley, Keansburg, Keyport-Hudson, Manalapan, Manville, Marlboro, Matawan, Metuchen, Middlesex-Dunellen, Middletown North, Middletown South, Montgomery, New Brunswick, North Brunswick, Old Bridge, Perth Amboy, Piscataway, Princeton, Raritan, Red Bank Catholic, Red Bank Regional, Rumson-Fair Haven, Rutgers Prep, St. John Vianney, St. Joseph-Metuchen, Sayreville, South Brunswick, South River, Spotswood, West Windsor North, Woodbridge.

Returning champions (3): Sr. Nico Calello, St. Joseph-Metuchen (120, CR in 2021, R4 in '20); Jr. Tyler Sagi, Old Bridge (157, CR in 2021); Jr. Sabino Portella, Red Bank Catholic (175, CR in 2021, R6 in '20).

Previous champions (3): Jr. Jack Zaleski, Middletown South (126, R5 in 2020); Sr. Nico Diaz, St. John Vianney (132, R5 in 2020); Sr. Shay Addison, Rumson-Fair Haven (175, R5 in 2020).

Friday schedule: Preliminaries (four mats), 4 p.m.; quarterfinals to follow (four mats).

Saturday schedule: Semifinals and wrestlebacks (four mats), 10 a.m.; third-place and fifth-place consolations (approximately), 1 p.m.; championship finals (approximately), 3 p.m.

Ticket prices: $5 adults, $3 students and seniors (Friday); $8 adults, $3 students (all-day pass on Saturday).

Wrestling: Gaffney state title a slam dunk for Sussex

High Point senior Noelle Gaffney traded in her well-traveled basketball sneakers for wrestling shoes. That proved to be a history-making decision.

Though far from being a shoe-in to win a state title when the season began in December, Gaffney pinned Brick Township's Jade Huerta at 165 pounds to become Sussex County's first female champion on Saturday in the NJSIAA Girls State Wrestling Championships at Phillipsburg High School.

John Gardner and Noelle Gaffney (courtesy of Rhonda Gaccione).

"It's very cool," said Gaffney, a No. 5 seed who had three pins on the day and completed a trifecta by giving the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex area a champion in all three counties as she joined two-time winners Jewel Gonzalez of Phillipsburg (Warren) and Stephanie Andrade of Hunterdon Central. "It still doesn't feel real. It's awesome."

High Point, which has crowned 12 male state champs, is now building a female dynasty under coach John Gardner. The 'Cats have logged an area-best 11 medals in the four-year history of the girls tournament, including senior Sophia Lombardo, the program's first three-time placewinner. Lombardo, who was third in 2020 and fifth last season, finished fourth at 145. Junior Carney Wyble (sixth at 138) made it three on the day for the 'Cats with her first medal. Randi Miley, a two-time placer and a runner-up at 105 pounds in 2019, was the program's first finalist.

In all, HWS collected 10 state medals (six from Sussex schools). Hunterdon Central and Kittatinny, which are next behind High Point with five placewinners each, added to their collections on Saturday. Evelyn Andrade (fifth at 107) and Paisley Fox (fourth at 138) earned medals for the Red Devils, while Kierra Hubmaster (sixth at 165), a two-time finalist, became the first four-time medalist for HWS. Newton senior Aaliyah Payne-Parris took home her second third-place medal at 100, while North Hunterdon senior Jodi Holder, a runner-up last season, was third at 152. Freshman Caitlin Hart, who placed fifth at 185, is Vernon-Wallkill Valley's first medalist. Warren Hills senior Katrina Kling (third at 120), a two-time runner-up who went 2-3 against three-time state champ Kira Pipkins of Bloomfield this season, is the Blue Streaks' first three-time placer.

Gaffney, who attempted a headlock and then landed on top of Huerta to record the pin in 4:17, battled back from a 2-0 deficit when she gave up a reversal while going for a cement mixer. Gaffney escaped and converted the first of three takedowns (two in the second period), giving up two escapes, one while attempting a power half and another with 10 seconds to go, to take a 5-4 lead into the third period. She escaped right away and then hit the winning move -- more of a hip toss, according to Gaffney.

"She had a good day," said Gardner, a state champion for High Point at 189 pounds as a senior in 1990 and New Jersey's all-time wins leader upon graduation with a career mark of 131-8-1. "Noelle wrestled really good. She was 5-5 last year and 26-5 this year. She works hard and is in great shape, and she listens."

Before reaching the finals, Gaffney had a bit of unfinished business with Hubmaster, the No. 1 seed and state title favorite, who was 5-0 (three pins) against Gaffney dating to last season, including two pins this season. But in their previous two meetings before Saturday's semifinals, Gaffney drew closer, dropping a 4-3 decision in the North Region final last weekend at Franklin High School.

Down, 1-0, heading into the third period on Saturday, Gaffney got a reversal and then applied a power half to pin Hubmaster (18-1) at the buzzer.

"We had lots of history," said Gaffney, who was pinned in their 2021 region semifinal clash and finished fourth before going 0-2 in her first state tournament appearance. "Our goal was not to beat her at regions [this season], but beat her at states. She's a very good opponent. I've been practicing some different moves. I usually don't shoot [for takedowns], but I can't snap down every time. I hit a few singles [in the finals] that I practiced on Thursday."

Gaffney went 31-10 over two seasons for HP.

Gaffney also lost to fifth-place finisher and No. 2 seed Kyla Norman of Kingsway, 6-3, on Jan. 22, but she went 12-1 from that point on. Gardner said keeping things basic was the key to a state title run.

"She really responded to everything we tried to get her to do," said Gardner, who will enter the 2022-23 boys season four wins shy of 400.

Gaffney said her conditioning really paid off as Huerta seemed to tire in the second period. In addition, Gaffney wisely used what she learned from Gardner and Brian Soldano, who just won his third district title and is looking to become the second three-time state champion for the 'Cats. 

"It was very nice to pin her there," Gaffney said. "I felt like I had more endurance. Wrestling takes a lot out of you. Coach Gardner is a good coach and he knows what he's talking about. I always listen to him. He makes people love wrestling and draws people back to the program. [In practice] I ask Brian questions and he helps me. Everyone [in the program] supports everyone."

Gaffney, a basketball player since second grade, was first introduced to wrestling a year ago during the pandemic, which allowed athletes to participate in two winter sports. When the hoops season ended, Gaffney, a starting point guard for the 'Cats, took to the mats and has been hooked ever since.

"This may sound bad, but beating people up is fun," Gaffney said. "There's always something new to learn in wrestling and use in life. It's not the whole team. Only you are to blame. If you do something wrong, it's all on you."

Now, Gaffney faces another decision -- whether to continue playing basketball, where she's drawing a lot of interest on the college level, or wrestle. SUNY Morrisville is a suitor and offers a construction management program, her major of choice.

"I'm still talking to schools for basketball," Gaffney said. "It's a very tough decision. I dreamt of [winning a state title]. I never thought it would actually happen."  

Wrestling: District recap for HWS by the numbers

Let's review what happened in the nine districts that house teams from the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex area. In all, there are 122 locals wrestlers still competing -- up nine from 2020. No district tournaments were held in 2021 due to the pandemic. 

Overall, here are the area qualifiers by season since realignment (which changes every three years) was introduced in 2017 -- 118 in 2017 and '18; 125 in '19 and 113 in '20. The five-year average is 119.

The top three at each weight class advanced to the region tournaments that are now a two-day event on Friday and Saturday. Region 1 is at West Milford, Region 2 at Mount Olive, Region 3 at West Orange, Region 4 at North Hunterdon (a host for the first time) and Region 5 at Hunterdon Central.

Here's the team-by team breakdown of qualifiers:

Warren Hills (14); Phillipsburg (13); North Hunterdon (12); Pope John (11); Kittatinny, Hunterdon Central and Delaware Valley (10); High Point (9); Newton (6); Lenape Valley and Voorhees (5); Hackettstown and North Warren (4); Sparta and Belvidere (3); Hopatcong (2); Vernon-Wallkill Valley (1).

We had seven schools win team championships: High Point (D1), Pope John (D3), Kittatinny (D4), Phillipsburg (D10), Warren Hills (D12), North Hunterdon (D13), Delaware Valley (D15).

Here's a closer look by the numbers:

200 -- Warren Hills steamrolled its way to the District 12 team title at Randolph, amassing 319 1/2 points and crowning an area-best and program-record 11 champions -- the most for the Streaks since having nine winners as Washington High School in 1939 and '47. The previous high was six in 1959, '60, '66, '90 and 2017. Seniors Jared Lee (144), Stephen Malia (165), Owen Frizzell (175) and Tyler McCatharn (285), who became the program's 200th overall champion, won their second titles, while Charlie Piccione (106), Kevin Riedinger (113), Josh Lee (120), Tyler Redfield (126), Shawn Redfield (132), Michael Drazek (157) and Jarett Pantuso (215) were first-time winners. Also advancing to next weekend's Region 3 Tournament at West Orange were Cody Miller (150) and Ryan Galka (190), both runners-up, and third-place finisher Ryan Lundy (138). The Lees and Redfields are the first sets of brothers to win titles in the same tournament and the 16th combination to win championships in any year -- done previously by the Ostir brothers, Ryan (2014) and Jarod (2016-18). Current assistant coach and former state champion Marty White (1991) and younger brother, Jason White (1998), are also in that group. Dave Sbriscia, a two-time champ for the Streaks in 2005 and '06 who guided Hills to its first sectional title since 2007 and the program's first Group 3 final appearance since '97, was named the District 12 Coach of the Year, his second such honor in his four seasons as head coach.

P'burg has crowned a total of 367 district champs.

48 -- With eight champions, including three-time winner Joey Innamorato (138), Phillipsburg cruised to its 48th team championship and Brad Gentzle was named District 10 Coach of the Year. Innamorato, who decked Hanover Park's Massimo Mancini in 3:51, is the 29th to win three titles having wrestled their entire four-year careers in the storied program (three others won the first of three titles elsewhere before transferring to P'burg). Seniors James Day (126), Nate Zastowny (165) and David Pierson (215) became two-time champions, while freshman Gavin Hawk (120), senior Matt D'Onofrio (150), junior Hunter Cleaver (157) and sophomore John Wargo (285) won their first titles. Cleaver, who pinned Hanover Park's Edward Dyjeczynski with a spladle in 1:47, joined his grandfather, Rob Rhinehart, who won a title for Warren Hills in 1976, as a district champ. Day, who is 107-29 in his career, tied four-time champion John Horak (2007-10) and two-timer Travis Jones (2017-18) for 12th place on the school's all-time wins list. The 'Liners, who are sending 13 to Region 3, would have had a strong chance to send all 14, but sophomore Caleb Rivera (21-9 at 175-190) sustained an injury during practice last week and could not compete. Freshman Luke Geleta (132), who held a 4-1 lead at the time he was pancaked and pinned in the second period, and junior Connor Hille (175) were runners-up.

227 -- North Hunterdon won its fifth consecutive team championship, as juniors Logan Wadle (106) and Daniel Delusant (138) won their second individual titles to help the Lions roll in the District 13 Tournament at Millburn. North produced eight champs overall, the most since a program-record 10 in 1969, and after previously crowning seven for the only third time in 2020 (1975 and '93 the others). Wadle is now one shy of his father, Rudy, who won his third title for North in '93, while Ben Makaritis (113), Braxton Hanna (126), Nick DeLorenzo (132), Alex Uryniak (190), Brendan Raley (215) and Liam Akers (285) all won their first titles for the Lions, who have produced 227 champions overall -- missing having at least one winner just once in 2008. It's safe to say no one had Hanna winning a title on their bingo cards. The freshman, who entered the tournament a modest 0-1, proceeded to knock off the Nos. 1, 2 and 3 seeds in earning the Outstanding Wrestler Award.

DISTRICT 13 FINAL PLACES:

Wadle, Makaritis, Hanna, Delorenzo, Delusant, Uryniak, Raley, and Akers place 1st.

Hewitt, Wilson, Lewis, and Yager place 2nd.

Overall Team Champions.@NHHS_Lions @NorthJungle @NHHSBoosterClub @bradwsports @PatLanniHS @ZedalisJoseph @Mike_Weilamann pic.twitter.com/sAL4CAsbh1

— North Hunterdon HS Wrestling (@NorthHuntHSWres) February 20, 2022

11 -- Pope John cruised to its seventh district team championship overall and the Sussex County school's fourth since 1981, as the Lions produced six champions -- one shy of matching the program record -- for the fourth consecutive tournament in topping the District 3 field. Freshman Carson Walsh (113), juniors Jason Athey (120) and Jack Nauta (138), and seniors Jack Stoll (215), a 2021 state medal winner, and Jake Rubin (285) all won their first titles, while senior Colin Neal (150) picked up his second for the Lions, who advanced 11 to the Region 1 Tournament at West Milford, which hosted District 3 since Sparta was unable to host for unknown reasons. 

39 -- Hunterdon Central, which previously won five straight district team championships, and 10 in 12 years, was denied the program's 40th overall with a second-place finish behind St. John Vianney in District 17 at Franklin High School. Senior Tanner Peake (157), who was looking to become the Red Devils' first three-time winner since Peter Nace (2014-16), dropped a 3-2 UTB decision to Vianney's Jasiah Queen. In addition to Peake, Central, which is believed to have no champions for the first time since 1957, had six other runners-up in Anthony Rossi (106), Peter Plesh (113), Evan Thompson (132), Henry Wilkinson (138), Aidan Portnoy (144) and Nick Canonica (150). In all, Central is sending 10 to Region 5, which will be held at the Field House.

Gardner, Soldano and Billy Smith are all 3-time winners for HP. 

128 -- High Point ace Brian Soldano became the 15th wrestler at the Sussex County school to win at least three titles as the Wildcats, who have 128 champs overall, won the District 1 team championship at River Dell. Soldano (30-0), a two-time state champion, logged three pins (26 this season and 92 career) in a combined time of 4:08, including a 33-second job in the finals at 190 pounds to improve to 119-5 overall. Senior Clayton Utter (120), whose father, Paul, was a three-time champion (1985-87) while uncle Alan won twice (1981 and '82) for the 'Cats, claimed his second title to go with a runner-up finish in 2019. Clayton, a three-time state qualifier, scored a 6-4 win over River Dell's Taisei Kurachi, seventh in the state last season, and earned the Outstanding Wrestler Award. Former state champ John Gardner, a three-time winner for the 'Cats who led the program to a Group 2 runner-up finish last weekend, is the District 1 Coach of the Year. High Point moved nine onto Region 1.

28 -- District 4 team champion Kittatinny, which did not host for the first time since the early 1980s, extended the program's streak with at least one winner to 28 seasons as senior Steven Dalling (150) won his second title, while younger brother, freshman Ethan Dalling (165) picked up his first. Their father, Steve, a two-time state champion and three-time finalist, was the first in program history to win four district titles (1988-91). Sophomore Reece Smith (138) made it three champs for the Cougars, who advanced 10 wrestlers to Region 1. Shane Nelson (120), Chris Casale (132), Bryce Coesfeld (144), Tucker Lockburner (175), Tyler Holste (190) and Ty Eldred (285) were runners-up, while Avery Yeager (144) was third. John Gill, who guided the Sussex County school to its 23rd sectional title, was named District 4 Coach of the Year.

Congratulations to Kittatinny for winning the team title at The District 4 tournament today in Jefferson. pic.twitter.com/2juTQ3M4H0

— KittatinnyHSWrest (@KittatinnyHSWre) February 19, 2022

121 -- Delaware Valley went to the head of the class in District 15 at The Hutch behind five first-time winners -- Owen Kucharski (106), Jake Taylor (113), Chris Colasurdo (150), Matt Schneider (190), Trevor Bowen (215). Colasurdo shared the Outstanding Wrestler Award with Watchung Hills' Christian Calvo, who won at 144. The Terriers, who now have 121 winners in their illustrious history, have also had at least one champ in 24 straight tournaments since missing in 1997. Kucharski (25-7) is the first to win at the lowest weight class since Cody Barbiche, a former state placewinner, logged his second title at 103 in 2011. 

DV Rasslin wins District 15!

12 place winners and 10 region qualifiers. Nice! pic.twitter.com/za3UH4FVhW

— Del Val Wrestling (@DVRWrestling) February 19, 2022

7 -- Belvidere and Hackettstown combined for seven placewinners in District 10 at Phillipsburg. Senior Patrick Horvath (113) became the 58th champion for the County Seaters, needing a reversal with six seconds left in the third period for a thrilling 3-2 decision over Hanover Park's Santino Danise and avenging a 6-0 loss when they met in a regular-season dual meet on Jan. 19. Sophomore Aidan Scheeringa won at 106 to give the Tigers 66 champions overall. 

6 -- Over in District 8, Lenape Valley senior Daniel Haws (126) became the sixth wrestler in program history to win three titles -- joining Gary Mikolay (1996-98), Derrick Goduto (1999-01), Chris Ressa (1999-01), Matt Benvenuto (2011-13) and Jacob Falleni (2015-17). All but Falleni are in the Patriots' 100-win club as Haws (29-3), who previously won titles at 106 and 113, became the 16th to hit the century mark last weekend and is 103-23 overall. Lenape advanced five to Region 2 at Mount Olive. Crosstown rival Hopatcong, which has 75 champs overall, trailing Lenape Valley now by two, missed for the third straight time and only the fifth since 1989. Michael Mastroeni (second at 165), who was looking to join Frank and Anthony Mastroeni, the school's last winners in 2018, as champions, and Tommy Feinberg (150) are the only Chiefs moving on to Region 2.

125 -- After missing in 2020, Voorhees had a pair of champions in District 13 as Hunter Cryan (120) and Mike Mosier (144) won their first titles to raise the Hunterdon County school's overall total to 125. The Vikes sent five to Region 4 at North Hunterdon as Josh Evers (113), Logan Wiecoreck (138) and Jack Mosier (215) all finished third. Former Delaware Valley state placewinner and Region champion Ricky Kurtz, who guided Voorhees to a third-place finish and its first winning season since 2019, was deservedly nominated for the District 13 Coach of the Year Award, which went to Irvington's Kyle Steele.

8 -- Newton's run of at least one champion extended to eight straight as junior Thaylor Sibblies (144) and senior Melkart Abou-Jaoude (190) won their first titles in District 3 as the Braves advanced six to Region 1. Sibblies, who was ecstatic after his 12-3 finals victory over Lakeland's Sean Walker , became the first of his siblings to win a district championship as older brother, Josh, a runner-up in 2013, won a Region 1 title and was named the OW before placing sixth in the state that season. Senior Takeo Sibblies was second at 150. Their father, Teddy, the school's last state finalist, also won district and region titles as a senior in 1989. Sparta's string of seven tournaments with a champion ended, but freshman Logan Hrenenko (132) and juniors Sebastian Gomez (165) and Bradley Maines (285) moved on to Region 1 with third-place finishes.

16 -- North Warren and Vernon-Wallkill Valley had cause to celebrate at District 4. Sophomore Zach Haase (113), who decked Max Alonso of host school Jefferson, became the first champ for North since 2014 (Matt Ritchie at 126) and the Warren County school's 16th overall. Ritchie, who also won in 2011 and Kevin Brown (2009-10) are the only two-time winners for the Patriots. Junior Daniel Lovett, a runner-up at 165, made history as the first region qualifier for Vernon-Wallkill Valley, which became a co-op starting in 2021. The last district medal winner for Vernon was John Alvarez (third at 160 in 2019). Both Vernon and Wallkill Valley had no qualifiers in 2020.     

Wrestling: District schedules for HWS schools

District 1

At River Dell High School

Area teams: High Point.

Rest of the field: Cresskill, Don Bosco Prep, Emerson-Park Ridge, New Milford, Pascack Hills, Pascack Valley, River Dell, Tenafly, Waldwick-Midland Park.

Saturday schedule: Preliminaries and quarterfinals, 9:30 a.m.; semifinals to follow; third-place consolations (two mats), approximately 3:30 p.m.; championship finals to follow (one mat).

District 3

At West Milford High School

Area teams: Newton, Pope John, Sparta.

Rest of the field: Dumont, Hawthorne, Lakeland, Mahwah, Pequannock, West Milford.

Saturday schedule: Preliminaries and quarterfinals, 9 a.m.; semifinals, 11 a.m.; third-place consolations and championship finals (side by side), 1 p.m.

Ticket prices: $10 adults, $5 students/seniors (all-sessions pass).

District 4

At Jefferson Township High School

Area teams: Kittatinny, North Warren, Vernon-Wallkill Valley.

Rest of the field: Butler, Jefferson, Kinnelon, Manchester Regional, Pompton Lakes, Wayne Hills.

Saturday schedule: Preliminaries and quarterfinals (three mats), 10 a.m.; semifinals (two mats), noon.; third-place consolations (two mats), 2 p.m.; championship finals (one mat), approximately 3 p.m.

Ticket prices: $12 adults, $6 students/seniors (all-sessions pass). $6 flat fee for finals only.

District 8

At Mount Olive High School

Area teams: Hopatcong, Lenape Valley.

Rest of the field: DePaul, Dover, Fair Lawn, Hasbrouck Heights, Lodi, Mount Olive, Paramus, Saddle Brook.

Saturday schedule (approximate times after first round): Preliminaries and quarterfinals, 9:30 a.m.; semifinals, 11:30 a.m.; third-place consolations, 1 p.m., with championship finals to follow.

Ticket prices: $12 adults, $8 students/seniors (all-sessions pass). Purchase online.

District 10

At Phillipsburg High School

Area teams: Belvidere, Hackettstown, Phillipsburg.

Rest of the field: Columbia, Glen Ridge, Hanover Park, Rutherford, Verona, Whippany Park.

Saturday schedule: Preliminaries and quarterfinals, 10 a.m.; semifinals, noon; third-place consolations, 2:30 p.m.; championship finals to follow at approximately 4 p.m.

Ticket prices: $13 adults, $9 students/seniors (all-sessions pass, available at door starting at 8:45 a.m.); $5 adults, $3 students/seniors (consolations and finals for entrance starting at 2:30 p.m.).

District 12

At Randolph High School

Area teams: Warren Hills.

Rest of the field: Becton-Wood-Ridge, Caldwell, East Orange, Madison, Mendham, Montclair, North Bergen, Randolph, Secaucus.

Saturday schedule: Preliminaries and quarterfinals, 9 a.m.; semifinals, 11 a.m. (approximate times after quarters); third-place consolations, 1 p.m.; championship finals, 3 p.m.

Ticket prices: $12 adults, $6 students/seniors (all-sessions pass).

District 13

At Millburn High School

Area teams: North Hunterdon, Voorhees.

Rest of the field: Cranford, Elizabeth, Irvington, Iselin Kennedy, Millburn, New Providence, Rahway.

Saturday schedule: Preliminaries and quarterfinals, 9:30 a.m., semifinals, noon; third-place consolations (two mats), 3 p.m.; championship finals (one mat), 4 p.m.

Ticket prices: $13 adults, $8 students/seniors (all-sessions pass). $5 adults, $3 students/seniors (per round).

District 15

At Delaware Valley Regional High School

Area teams: Delaware Valley.

Rest of the field: Bernards, Bridgewater-Raritan, Colonia, Governor Livingston, Pingry, Scotch Plains-Fanwood, Summit-Chatham, Watchung Hills, Weequahic.

Saturday schedule: Preliminaries and quarterfinals, 9 a.m.; semifinals, 11 a.m., third-place consolations (two mats), 1 p.m., championship finals (one mat), 3 p.m.

Ticket prices: $15 adults, $10 students/seniors (all-sessions pass). $10 adults, $5 students/seniors (after quarterfinals); $5 adults, $3 students/seniors (after semifinals).

District 17

At Franklin High School

Area teams: Hunterdon Central.

Rest of the field: Franklin, Hillsborough, Manville, Montgomery, Princeton, Rutgers Prep, Sayreville, St. John Vianney, West Windsor North.

Saturday schedule: Preliminaries and quarterfinals, 10 a.m.; semifinals, noon; third-place consolations and championship finals, 2 p.m.

Ticket prices: $15 adults, $10 students/seniors (all-sessions pass). $10 adults, $7 students/seniors (prelims through semifinals). $7 adults, $5 students/seniors (consolations and finals).

Wrestling: P'burg top public in final NJWWA Top 20

Perhaps no New Jersey high school wrestling team bounced back better than Phillipsburg this season. As a result, the Stateliners, who suffered a brutal 20-point loss in January, finished the season as the top public school and No. 4 overall in the final New Jersey Wrestling Writers Association Top 20 released on Wednesday night.

The NJWWA, for the second straight season, will award trophies to both the top public and Non-Public teams. The trophies, which are donated by NJWWA president and Region 5 ranking chairman Ron Mazzola of Prestige Imaging in Old Bridge, are to be presented at the 89th State Wrestling Championships March 3-5 at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City.

Bergen Catholic, the No. 1 team overall, will receive the Non-Public trophy, while P'burg collects its first. (Note: Open Mike voted Mount Olive as the top public based on its previous ranking and a 33-27 win over Group 3 runner-up Warren Hills, which beat the Stateliners, 35-15, 15 days later on Jan. 14, along with a solid resume that included wins against two state champions (Delaware Valley, 38-21, and Pope John, 46-24) as well as Group 2 runner-up High Point, 47-18 and No. 15 Brick Memorial, 32-29. The latter was in the Group 4 final as the Marauders claimed their first state championship and Morris County's seventh all-time in the public ranks, joining Jefferson (1992-94), Randolph (1993), Hanover Park (2015) and Montville (2020).

Mount Olive's lone losses this season were to No. 6 Southern (31-30 on Jan. 8) and No. 2 Delbarton (45-22 on Jan. 25).

Phillipsburg (16-1), which dropped 11 bouts in that loss to Warren Hills, reeled off 13 straight from that point -- including a 27-25 win over Southern in the Group 5 semifinals -- to capture the historic program's 39th sectional, 23rd state and Skyland Conference (Raritan Division) championships. 

P'burg celebrated its first state title since 2018.

First-year coach Brad Gentzle's team won its first state title since 2018 and its first in Group 5 with a 51-8 drubbing of No. 16 Howell. The 'Liners have now won titles in three classifications -- previously winning 14 in Group 4 and eight in Group 3. P'burg won its five postseason tournament matches this season by an average of 49.8 points.
 

Delaware Valley (Group 1) and Pope John (Non-Public B) -- both unranked by the NJWWA this season -- also won state championships as the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex area matched its own record with three. It's now happened twice since 2018 and only six times -- 1982, '83, '87, '89 were the others -- since the Group tournaments formed in 1982. 

There have been three HWS public school winners on just two occasions (Phillipsburg, Delaware Valley and Voorhees in 1987; P'burg, Del Val and Hunterdon Central in '89) and HWS (17 schools) now has 66 state titles overall (22 in Sussex, 25 in Warren and 19 in Hunterdon).

Warren Hills, North Hunterdon and Hunterdon Central also represent the HWS area in the final Top 20. 

WH celebrates its sixth sectional title.

The 13th-ranked Blue Streaks (17-4) produced one of the storied program's finest dual seasons in recent memory -- winning the Skyland Conference Valley Division title and their first sectional championship since 2007, but they were edged by Delsea, 29-28, in a bid for the school's third Group 3 title and first since 1997. Besides P'burg, Warren Hills, sitting on 787 wins overall in 86 seasons, also logged wins over Howell (39-22 on Jan. 22), No. 20 Livingston (41-15 on Feb. 2), Group 2 champion Raritan (39-21 on Dec. 22) and Group 1 winner Del Val (57-3 on Feb. 1), while falling to No. 2 Delbarton (53-17 on Jan. 22), No. 7 Mount Olive (33-27 on Dec. 30) and No. 17 North Hunterdon (33-22 on Jan. 7).

NH claimed its 16th sectional championship.

The Lions (16-5), who will enter their 67th season next December three wins shy of 800, captured their second straight North 2, Group 4 sectional championship, fell to Group 4 runner-up Brick Memorial, 39-28, at home in the state semifinals. Coach Chris Hrunka's team also scored wins over Warren Hills (33-22 on Jan. 7), No. 18 South Plainfield (35-33 on Jan. 15) and Delaware Valley (40-20 on Jan. 25), while its losses included P'burg (44-14 on Jan. 9) and No. 9 St. Peter's Prep (44-27 on Dec. 23), Howell (39-28 on Jan. 15) and No. 14 St. John Vianney (35-33 on Jan. 22).

Central (17-4), which battled injuries and illness most of the season, slots in at No. 20. The Red Devils nearly ended Howell's postseason run in a 31-26 loss to the Rebels in the Central Jersey, Group 5 sectional final. Coach Jon Cantagallo-Rohm's team, which beat Del Val, 29-28, on Jan. 31, also lost to Phillipsburg (34-30 on Jan. 4), Brick Memorial (38-25 on Jan. 15) and Mount Olive (43-24 on Jan. 22).

One of the most dramatic matches in the history of New Jersey high school wrestling determined who finished ranked No. 1 in the NJWWA Top 20. 

Bergen Catholic's win over then No. 1 Delbarton in the Non-Public North A championship match on Criteria J -- most near fall points after a 23-23 tie -- gave the Crusaders the inside track to No. 1. They then closed the deal with a 38-20 win over Christian Brothers Academy in the Non-Public A state championship match. 

Bergen Catholic (12-1) finished No. 1 for the first time since 2019. Delbarton owned the No. 1 spot the previous two seasons. The Crusaders had finished No. 1 six consecutive seasons from 2014-19. 

Here is the final NJWWA Top 20 for 2021-22: 

Rank	School	Record	Previous
1	Bergen Catholic	(12-1)	2
2	Delbarton	(12-2)	1
3	St. Joseph-Montvale	(7-3)	3
4	Phillipsburg	(16-1)	13
5	Christian Bros. Academy	(18-3)	12
6	Southern	(17-1)	6
7	Mount Olive	(18-2)	7
8	Paramus Catholic	(12-3)	4
9	St. Peter's Prep	(8-2)	5
10	Kingsway	(11-2)	9
11	St. Augustine	(13-4)	NR
12	Delsea	(20-5)	10
13	Warren Hills	(17-4)	11
14	St. John Vianney	(16-4)	8
15	Brick Memorial	(19-4)	19
16	Howell	(22-5)	15
17	North Hunterdon	(16-5)	16
18	South Plainfield	(16-3)	17
19	Middletown South	(15-5)	14
20	Hunterdon Central	(17-4)	20

Listed in alphabetical order: Donald J. Brower (gardenstatehswrestling.com); Frank D’Esposito (theshoreconference.com); Steven Falk (Asbury Park Press and APP.com); Sean Farrell (The Record and NorthJersey.com); Jane Havsy (Daily Record and DailyRecord.com); “Screwy” Louie Lazzari (New Jersey wrestling historian); John Lewis (Burlington County Times and phillyburbs.com); Ron Mazzola (NJWWA president and Region V ranking chairman); Tom McGurk (Courier Post and courierpostonline.com); Andy Mendlowitz (Courier News, Home News Tribune and MyCentralJersey.com); Andrew Tredinnick (New Jersey Herald and njherald.com); Greg Tufaro (Home News Tribune and MyCentralJersey.com); Michael Weilamann (Open Mike and mikeopen.blogspot.com), Brad Wilson (lehighvalleylive.com/The Express-Times). 

Wrestling: P'burg rolls to 23rd; Streaks, 'Cats fall shy

Phillipsburg's wrestling team had some serious soul searching to do about a month ago following one of the worst losses in program history. 

But the Stateliners never lost sight of the ultimate goal and the drive to No. 23 was never sweeter as they steamrolled Howell, 51-8, in the Group 5 championship match on Sunday afternoon at Franklin High School.

Delaware Valley (Group 1) and Pope John (Non-Public B) also captured titles earlier in the day as the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex area matched its all-time best with three state championships. It's happened twice since 2018 and only six times -- 1982, '83, '87, '89 were the others -- since the tournaments formed in 1982. There have been three public school winners on just two occasions (Phillipsburg, Delaware Valley and Voorhees in 1987; P'burg, Del Val and Hunterdon Central in '89). 

P'burg has won an HWS-best 23 state titles.

P'burg (16-1), which dropped a 35-15 decision to Group 3 runner-up Warren Hills on Jan. 14, never looked back -- winning 13 in a row, including a thrilling 27-26 victory over Southern in the Group 5 semifinals on Friday -- en route to capturing the program's first title since 2018 and first in Group 5. The 'Liners, who won 12 bouts against Howell (22-5), previously won 14 state championships in Group 4 and eight in Group 3.

This one got out of hand quickly as sophomore Dawson McWilliams started P'burg off with a pin at 106 pounds. After Howell took a brief 4-3 lead through two bouts, super Stateliner freshman Gavin Hawk started a 7-0 P'burg run with an impressive 5-2 decision over highly regarded sophomore Sebastian Ortega, who finished fifth in the state tournament at 113 in 2021.

Senior James Day followed with a 5-4 decision at 126 -- moving him to 104-29 overall and ahead of Brandon Paetzell (103 from 2012-16) for 19th place on the school's all-time list -- and freshman Luke Geleta (132) tacked on a pin at 132 for a commanding 18-4 lead through five. The 'Liners won eight of the next nine to close it out, as 2021 state champion Hunter Mays provided the only other win for the Rebels with a 16-4 major over former state qualifier Nate Zastowny at 165. 

Phillipsburg started the celebration a bit early when wrestlers dogpiled sophomore John Wargo before he could get his hand raised and return to the bench following a 12-4 major of Thomas Richards in the final bout at 285.

The Stateliners had good cause to be a bit overenthusiastic after coming up short against Kingsway in the 2019 Group 4 final (26-20) and against 2020 Group 4 champion North Hunterdon in the North 2, Group 4 sectional final (37-12) that season. Prior to those tough losses, P'burg had won five straight Group 4 titles (2014-18).

First-year head coach Brad Gentzle and rookie assistant coach Tim Longacre embraced for several minutes following the victory. No doubt savoring the moment after having taken over the always heavily-scrutinized program last spring under tough circumstances. Gentzle was part of six state championships as an assistant, while Longacre. a longtime and respected youth coach, was a starter on the 1992 Group 3 title team.

PHILLIPSBURG 51, HOWELL 8

106 -- So. Dawson McWilliams (12-9), P, p. Fr. Mason Hultman (6-9), 3:41.
113 -- Fr. Xavier Ortega (27-5), H, md. Sr. Miguel Lopez (17-13), 12-2. 
120 -- Fr. Gavin Hawk (28-6), P, d. So. Sebastian Ortega (17-4), 5-2.
126 -- Sr. James Day (29-2), P, d. So. Sawyer Ostroff (16-9), 5-4.
132 -- Fr. Luke Geleta (22-7), P, p. Jr. Kieran Bruen (19-10), 4:51.
138 -- Sr. Joey Innamorato (25-6), P, d. So. Giovanni Scafidi (17-8), 6-4.
144 -- So. Liam Packer (10-8), P, d. Sr. Rob Wiessel (17-9), 2-1.
150 -- Sr. Matt D'Onofrio (18-10), P, tf. Jr. Gavin Merkel (14-10), 18-2, 5:43.
157 -- Jr. Hunter Cleaver (23-8), P, md. Sr. Nick Acque (21-6), 15-7. 
165 -- Sr. Hunter Mays (29-1), H, md. Sr. Nate Zastowny (14-6), 16-4.
175 -- Jr. Connor Hille (18-8), P, md. Sr. Ian Soutar (17-10), 12-1.
190 -- So. Caleb Rivera (21-9), P, p. Jr. Robert Owen (0-6), 3:17.
215 -- Sr. David Pierson (26-4), P, p. So. Dane Colfer (13-13), 2:23.
285 -- So. John Wargo (22-8), P, md. Jr. Thomas Richards (17-11), 12-4.
Note: Phillipsburg penalized two team points for unsportsmanlike conduct.
Records -- Howell 22-5; Phillipsburg 16-1.

Streaks slip vs. Delsea

Warren Hills had waited for a quarter century to get another shot at winning a Group 3 title. The Blue Streaks will have to wait a bit longer after a disappointing 28-27 loss to South Jersey power Delsea in one of the most entertaining finals on Sunday.

Warren Hills won its only Group 3 titles in 1990 and '97.

Coach Dave Sbriscia's Streaks (17-4), which cruised to the program's first sectional title since 2007 in North 2 and were making their first state finals appearance since 1997, won the first four bouts to open the match, including junior Shawn Redfield's 6-4 thriller in sudden-victory overtime against Alex Zimmerman. Redfield (28-3) converted the tying takedown 40 seconds into the third period and the winner off a slick slide by with just 31 seconds left in OT.

Hills, which gave up a pin and a major in the next two, was still in good shape halfway through with a 17-10 lead after Jared Lee's 7-1 victory at 144, but the match-turner came at the turn when Cody Miller was decked by Austin Boos in what was considered a tossup bout. Despite being the dominant wrestler on his feet (three takedowns to none), Miller was curiously put on bottom to start the third despite a 6-3 lead and Boos looked strong on top, using an arm lever to a half for the stunning fall in 5:15.

Delsea (20-5), which captured its third state title and first since 2015 after falling short in 2016, '17, '18, '19 and '20, also got a key decision at 157 before its powerful upper weights, who were a bit better than Hills' strong contingent, sealed the deal. The end run started with two-time state placewinner Jared Schoppe's 5-0 win at 175, and Luke Maxwell's 4-3 win over state medalist Jarett Pantuso, who gave up a decisive third-period reversal, sealed it. The Crusaders opted to give 2021 state placewinner Tyler McCatharn a forfeit win at 285. 

Warren Hills, which beat three Group champions (P'burg, Delaware Valley and Raritan) and a runner-up (Howell) this season, will look to regroup for next weekend's District 12 Tournament at Randolph High School. 

DELSEA 28, WARREN HILLS 27

106 -- Fr. Charlie Piccione (19-4), WH, d. Fr. Gage Summers (25-8), 5-4.
113 -- Sr. Kevin Riedinger (24-5), WH, d. Fr. Zavier Stokes (21-9), 4-2.
120 -- So. Josh Lee (22-6), WH, tf. Jr. Jacob Hassett (13-11), 17-0, 4:48.
126 -- Jr. Shawn Redfield (29-3), WH, d. Jr. Alex Zimmerman (22-9), 6-4 SV.
132 -- Fr. Jamar Dixon Jr. (26-8), D, p. Sr. Max Pagano (5-2), 2:54.
138 -- Jr. Giovanni Degeorge (21-11), D, md. Jr. Ryan Lundy (11-16), 14-5.
144 -- Sr. Jared Lee (29-2), WH, d. Sr. Marius Fennal (17-14), 7-1.
150 -- Jr. Austin Boos (18-13), D, p. Jr. Cody Miller (19-10), 5:15.
157 -- Jr. Tyson Derenberger (24-9), D, d. Jr. Michael Drazek (21-7), 3-2.
165 -- Sr. Stephen Malia (27-1), WH, md. Jr. Michael Hopkins (0-7), 12-1.
175 -- Jr. Jared Schoppe (30-1), D, d. Sr. Owen Frizzell (25-5), 5-0.
190 -- Jr. Danny Digiovacchino (29-3), D, md. Sr. Ryan Galka (26-6), 9-2.
215 -- Jr. Luke Maxwell (30-3), D, d. Jr. Jarett Pantuso (24-6), 4-3.
285 -- Sr. Tyler McCatharn (27-3), WH, forfeit.
Records -- Delsea 20-5; Warren Hills 17-4.

'Cats fall to Rockets

High Point seemingly had things going its way early, but three pins turned the tide and ultimately were the difference in a 37-27 loss to Raritan in the Group 2 final.

The Wildcats (13-5), who were coming off winning the program's 29th sectional title and a 44-21 win against Collingswood in the state semifinals on Friday, jumped out to a 9-4 lead through three behind a pin from two-time state champion Brian Soldano -- his 23rd fall this season and 89th career -- to open the match and freshman Nick Clayton's 6-2 decision at 106. 

High Point is 2-2 in state finals since 2018.

Soldano (27-0) extended his match win streak to 63 dating to 2020 and raised his career record to 116-5 overall.

But the first sign of trouble came at 113, when freshman Colton Jaust, who had been wrestling well of late, was decked with a second-period cradle in a scoreless bout with Matt Erven. Senior Clayton Utter, who fell shy of a state medal in two of his three state tournament appearances, steadied the ship with a 4-1 victory at 120 and junior Roman Citro's pin at 126 made it 18-10, before Raritan, which won its second title and first since 2012, turned things with Braden Kmak's pin with a first-period cradle at 132.

The Rockets, who won eight bouts, took a 19-18 lead that they would not relinquish on Logan Acevedo's 6-0 decision at 138 and added their third of four pins on the day at 144.

Junior Shane Woolf (157) and senior Troy Tiger (175) were the only winners in the final eight bouts for High Point, which won the Group 2 title in 2020 and beat Raritan, 30-25, in the 2018 title match.

RARITAN 37, HIGH POINT 27

215 -- Sr. Brian Soldano (27-0), HP, p. Sr. Sean Lane (18-8), :30.
285 -- Sr. Nick Burns (28-2), R, md. Sr. Noah Ripley (9-10), 17-8.
106 -- Fr. Nick Clayton (22-5), HP, d. So. Aidan Davis (22-9), 6-2.
113 -- Jr. Matt Erven (14-6), R, p. Fr. Colton Jaust (6-4), 3:22.
120 -- Sr. Clayton Utter (15-2), HP, d. Jr. Ryan Mansueto (22-7), 4-1.
126 -- Jr. Roman Citro (13-4), HP, p. Jr. Jake McCully (2-12), :41.
132 -- Jr. Braden Kmak (25-5), R, p. So. Ty Woods (14-10), 1:39.
138 -- So. Logan Acevedo (11-5), R, d. Jr. Nate Clayton (1-5), 6-0.
144 -- So. Zach Reilley (26-1), R, p. Sr. Andrew Brevot (16-9), 3:52.
150 -- Sr. Alex Auletta (22-8), R, d. Jr. Will Gomez (2-10), 7-1.
157 -- Jr. Shane Woolf, HP, d. Sr. Quinn Peters (22-9),, 4-0.
165 -- Jr. Bobby Mulligan (15-14), R, p. So. Dalton Yetter (7-9), 3:19.
175 -- Sr. Troy Tiger (14-5), HP, p. So. Stephen Moser (1-3), 3:02.
190 -- Jr. Kieran Falzon (18-10), R, d. Sr. Alfred Castellani (3-1), 5-4.
Records -- Raritan 22-6; High Point 13-5.