It's one of the toughest in-season events on the area calendar and arguably the best county tournament for wrestling in New Jersey.
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| P'burg has crowned a record 30 HWS champs |
Wadle won his only title as a freshman in 2020, while Phillipsburg's Gavin Hawk (132) and Caleb Rivera (190) are among a potential five returning champions from 2022. Hunterdon Central's Anthony Rossi (120), along with Pope John's Carson Walsh (126) and Justin Holly (144), also won titles last season.
High Point (2010), Kittatinny (2016) and Pope John (2017, '18) are the only other schools to win team championships. There was no tournament held in 2021 due to COVID-19.
The biggest mystery surrounding this event every year is whether we will see all of the area's top stars in action. One major issue is the state's 30-bout individual limit before sectionals, which ultimately sidelines some contenders on an annual basis. The Garden State would do well to follow Pennsylvania, which counts competitions (maximum of 22 for teams -- one for a single dual, two for each triangular meet or each individually or team bracketed tournament involving no more than eight teams, and three for each quadrangular meet or each individually or team bracketed tournament involving at least nine teams).
We can only hope change is implemented as bout limits also impact dual meets on this side of the Delaware River, but that's a story for another day.
Let's review the principles in all 14 weight classes as we rank the presumptive Top 10 contestants in each by previous accomplishments and relevant head-to-head results where applicable. Wrestlers are listed at their projected weights, which are certainly subject to change with the plus-three pounds (the allowance for the rest of the season and an additional pound granted with teams wrestling on Friday) in effect.
Official seeds and pairings will be confirmed on Saturday morning.
Notes: Records are through Thursday's matches (we strive for accuracy as a Warren County head coach alluded to during a seeding meeting in December, according to sources). Wallkill Valley, which just reformed its program after a two-year co-op with Vernon, was granted an exemption from the tournament.
106 pounds
1. Sr. Peter Plesh (11-5), Hunterdon Central
2. Sr. Owen Kucharski (14-1), Delaware Valley
3. So. Jake Holly (9-5), Pope John
4. Fr. Augie Szamreta (11-2), Warren Hills
5. Fr. Massimo Gonzalez (10-7), Phillipsburg
6. So. Joseph Celentano (7-4), North Hunterdon
7. Fr. Christian Bollette (14-4), Voorhees
8. Fr. John Barron (7-6), High Point
9. Jr. Ryan Zimmerman (4-7), Lenape Valley
10. Fr. Conor Hallowich (8-6), North Warren
Skinny: Plesh and Kucharski, a semifinalist and fourth-place finisher at this weight last year, drop for the first time this season. Plesh scored a 4-3 win when they met in a dual meet on Dec. 30. Del Val has not had a HWS champion since former state champ Kyle Lightner won at 195 in 2017. Holly was upended in the quarters in 2022 and did not place as there were no wrestlebacks to fifth-sixth due to a shortened COVID-19 format. Szamreta, who just scored a 5-0 win over Gonzalez on Monday, is off to a strong start and had a big win in helping Warren Hills earn a 30-26 victory over Central on Thursday night in what was a hard-fought dual meet. Celentano pinned Bollette, who was winning at the time of the fall. It should be fun watching Nos. 3-8 go at it on Saturday.
The pick: Plesh.
113 pounds
1. Sr. Logan Wadle (13-1), North Hunterdon
2. Jr. Anthony Rossi (15-2), Hunterdon Central
3. Jr. Aiden Scheeringa (15-2), Hackettstown
4. Fr. Dalton Webber (14-4), Pope John
5. Jr. Dawson McWilliams (12-6), Phillipsburg
6. Fr. Davey Rhinehart (12-2), Warren Hills
7. Sr. Marcus Bullock (4-2), Lenape Valley
8. So. Colton Jaust (8-6), High Point
9. So. Logan Bush (9-7), Voorhees
10. Jr. Peter Donnelly (8-5), Sparta
Skinny: One of the deeper weights in the area and whoever wins has a great shot to be the OW. It's loaded at the top with a two-time state medalist, a pair of state qualifiers and a blue-chip freshman. Wadle, a champion in 2020 who lost to Pope John's Carson Walsh in last year's quarterfinals, is looking to become only the sixth wrestler for the Lions to win at least two titles. Former North great Ryan Pomrinca is the school's only three-time winner (2013-15) as the school ranks second to P'burg in all-time winners with 21. Interestingly, Rossi, who won his first HWS title at 106 pounds a year ago, and Wadle (88 career wins) have never met as the latter received a forfeit in their recent dual meet. Scheeringa was a runner-up at 106 in 2022, while Webber finished seventh at the rugged Beast of the East, despite an 8-0 loss to Rossi in the championship bracket. McWilliams was impressive in an 8-5 win over Rhinehart on Monday, while the Blue Streak scored a huge 5-3 sudden-victory win (two takedowns in the final 43 seconds of the bout) over Plesh (who led 3-0 late in the third period) that essentially secured the dual win on Thursday. Hills finished with a remarkable 19-9 edge in takedowns.
The pick: Wadle.
120 pounds
1. Sr. Thomas Dugan (12-2), North Warren
2. So. Charlie Piccione (10-3), Warren Hills
3. Jr. Jake Taylor (11-3), Delaware Valley
4. So. Nick Clayton (9-6), High Point
5. Sr. Jason Athey (9-6), Pope John
6. Jr. Shane Wysocki (7-7), North Hunterdon
7. Fr. Gavin Geleta (6-8), Phillipsburg
8. So. Justin Peterson (5-5), Lenape Valley
9. Fr. Blake Giangrosso (2-4), Kittatinny
10. Fr. Patrick Bruseo (6-7), Sparta
Skinny: Rossi would have been the clear choice here, but kudos to him for dropping into what looks like the toughest class in the tournament. Dugan, who was third at this weight in 2022, looks to become the Patriots' third HWS champion, joining former state medalist Kevin Brown (2010) and Anthony Duardo (2016). Piccione scored a 3-2 win over Taylor, a quarterfinalist as a sophomore, in the John Goles Invitational finals. Clayton was third at 106 last year, but most likely won't compete as High Point is expected to sit several starters.
The pick: Piccione.
126 pounds
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| Only seven wrestlers have won three or more HWS titles. |
2. Sr. Roman Citro (13-2), High Point
3. So. Jaden Perez (14-0), Delaware Valley
4. So. Tyler Redfield (10-3), Warren Hills
5. Jr. Ahmed Hussain (9-8), Hunterdon Central
6. Jr. Jacob Savage (5-8), Kittatinny
7. Jr. Eugene Donnelly (6-6), Sparta
8. Sr. Christopher Dwyer (6-8), Hackettstown
9. Jr. Grant Goldan (2-4), North Hunterdon
10. So. Kyle Beenders (3-9), Phillipsburg
Skinny: Walsh, a returning state medalist, won the HWS title at 113 pounds in his rookie season. Citro was a runner-up at 120, but is not expected to compete, while Perez, who scored an 11-8 win over Redfield in the John Goles Invitational finals, will be making his tournament debut. Redfield's 3-1 win over Hussain closed out Hills' dual win on Thursday.
The pick: Walsh.
132 pounds
1. So. Gavin Hawk (15-3), Phillipsburg
2. Jr. Nicolas Balella (13-2), Hackettstown
3. Jr. Josh Lee (9-4), Warren Hills
4. Sr. Jack Nauta (11-6), Pope John
5. Jr. Evan Thompson (8-3), Hunterdon Central
6. Jr. Matt Roche (12-5), Delaware Valley
7. Sr. Anthony Ferrari (5-2), Kittatinny
8. So. Marc Pavese (7-3), Lenape Valley
9. Fr. Ryan Hrenenko (5-3), Sparta
10. So. Vincenzo Darrow (2-7), North Hunterdon
Skinny: Hawk, a returning state qualifier and halfway to 100 wins, is seeking back-to-back titles after rolling through the field at 120 pounds in 2022. He scored a 3-2 win over Balella (Region 3 semifinals), who was fourth in this tournament in '22, and majored Lee in a dual meet last season. P'burg has produced at least one HWS winner in each tournament since missing in 2010. Roche won by injury default over Thompson in a tight bout on Dec. 30 and the Red Devil returned to action in a 7-6 loss to Lee on Thursday. Nauta beat Thompson, 3-2, at Beast of the East. Thompson's father, Matt, was a three-time state placewinner and 100-match winner for Central, and he won the 171-pound title in the first Hunterdon-Warren Tournament in 1992.
The pick: Hawk.
138 pounds
1. Sr. Shawn Redfield (12-1), Warren Hills
2. So. Luke Geleta (15-4), Phillipsburg
3. Sr. Michael Melillo (9-4), Newton
4. Jr. William Cella (8-3), Hunterdon Central
5. So. Jackson Bush (11-3), Delaware Valley
6. So. Gage Graziano (8-3), Lenape Valley
7. Sr. Chris Casale (7-6), Kittatinny
8. Fr. Jayden Ruplall (7-8), High Point
9. So. Joshua Joubert (5-10), North Hunterdon
10. So. Ethan Pacheco (5-2), Hopatcong
Skinny: Tough call at the top here. Redfield, a runner-up last season, scored a 7-6 win over Geleta last year on a buzzer-beating takedown and the two did not square off in Monday's duel. Geleta finished third at 132 at HWS a year ago as both were in opposite brackets. Redfield knocked off Cella, 6-3 on Thursday. while Bush lost 7-5 to Cella in a dual matchup and 6-5 to Redfield (70 career wins) in the John Goles Invitational finals on Dec. 30. Melillo, a returning state qualifier, makes his first appearance at 138 this season.
The pick: Geleta.
144 pounds
1. Jr. Justin Holly (2-2), Pope John
2. Fr. Rhett Washleski (11-2), Hunterdon Central
3. Jr. Ben Levy (12-3), Delaware Valley
4. So. Logan Hrenenko (7-1), Sparta
5. Sr. Andrew Knutelsky (10-4), Kittatinny
6. Jr. Johnathon Roth (7-7), Phillipsburg
7. Jr. Ty Woods (6-5), High Point
8. So. Jakob Bell (8-2), Lenape Valley
9. So. Evan Kinney (6-6), North Hunterdon
10. Sr. Matthew Francis (8-3), Hackettstown
Skinny: Holly, a champion at 132 pounds last year, has not been on the mat since Dec. 21, so he is not expected to compete. Blue-chip frosh Washleski, whose brother, Colton, was a runner-up in 2020, scored a 7-2 win over Levy on Dec. 30. Hrenenko placed fourth here as a freshman. Knutelsky, who lost, 8-2, to Levy on Saturday, is an interesting story. A starter as a freshman, he came back to the team after playing ice hockey the previous two seasons.
The pick: Washleski.
150 pounds
1. Sr. Daniel DeLusant (12-3), North Hunterdon
2. Sr. Chris Colasurdo (12-3), Delaware Valley
3. Jr. Reece Smith (9-4), Kittatinny
4. Sr. Henry Wilkinson (7-1), Hunterdon Central
5. Jr. Patrick Day (8-6), Phillipsburg
6. Sr. Ryan Lundy (8-6), Warren Hills
7. Jr. Andrew Grant (5-4), Lenape Valley
8. Jr. Travis Cryan (4-6), Voorhees
9. Jr. Anthony Petrock (4-7), Sparta
10. Jr. Zachary Ezzo (3-9), Vernon
Skinny: DeLusant, was a state qualifier last season, while Colasurdo scored a 4-2 win in sudden-victory overtime against Smith on Saturday. Day looks like he's coming on as evidenced by Monday's 7-4 win over Lundy. Not sure we will see Wilkinson, who did not compete in the Beast of the East or Hunterdon Central Invitational tournaments. Ditto for Cryan, who has not been on the mat since the HCIWT in December.
The pick: DeLusant.
157 pounds
1. Sr. Thaylor Sibblies (12-1), Newton
2. Jr. Bryce Coesfeld (12-1), Kittatinny
3. Jr. Logan Wiecoreck (16-1), Voorhees
4. Jr. James Dacunto (9-1), North Warren
5. Jr. Liam Packer (14-5), Phillipsburg
6. So. Joseph Rozynski (10-6), Pope John
7. Jr. Brian Wilson (7-6), North Hunterdon
8. Sr. Brayden Schneider (10-3), Delaware Valley
9. Jr. Jacob Saus (7-7), Hunterdon Central
10. Sr. Shawn Pawlowski (10-8), Hackettstown
Skinny: Sibblies, a runner-up last year whose only loss is 1-0 to Blair Academy's Paul Ognassanti in the Sam Cali Invitational semifinals, avenged a 5-4 loss to Coesfeld in the Region 1 fifth-place bout a year ago with a dominant 12-2 major on Jan. 5. Returning runner-up Coesfeld scored a 5-2 win over Dacunto, who transferred back to North Warren after a stint with Pope John, in the Linn Crawn Memorial Classic finals on Dec. 28. Wiecoreck was a runner-up at 138 and a Region 4 sixth-place finisher last year. Keep an eye on Packer, who's one of the Stateliners' most improved wrestlers.
The pick: Sibblies.
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| The HWS area sent 49 wrestlers to AC in 2022. |
165 pounds
1. Sr. Garrett Tettemer (0-0), Delaware Valley2. So. Ethan Dalling (13-0), Kittatinny
3. Sr. Hunter Cleaver (7-3), Phillipsburg
4. Sr. Cody Miller (10-3), Warren Hills
5. Sr. Shane Woolf (10-4), High Point
6. Jr. Trevor Zabroski (9-7), Voorhees
7. Jr. Jose Alvarenga Giron (8-2), Hackettstown
8. So. Aaron Stone (6-6), Newton
9. Jr. Jackson Call (1-8), Hunterdon Central
10. Sr. Aaron Yarnell (2-7), North Hunterdon
Skinny: Tettemer, a PIAA Class AA state placewinner at Notre Dame-Green Pond, had to sit due to the 30-day transfer rule (he went 21-9 at Del Val as a freshman) and makes his debut on Saturday. He also gives the Terriers, who have not had multiples champs in this event since a trio in 2012, a good chance to end that drought. Dalling, who finished third in Region 1 last year, looks even better this season. Cleaver, also a state qualifier and a third-place finisher at HWS in 2022, scored a 3-0 win over Miller in a tight battle on Monday. Miller beat Call, 8-4, on Thursday. Woolf, who's endured an injury-plagued career, is 5-1 against New Jersey competition this season. Sutter pinned Zabroski in a dual on Dec. 30.
The pick: Tettemer.
175 pounds
1. Sr. Michael Drazek (12-1), Warren Hills2. Jr. Thomas Brunetti (12-3), Hunterdon Central
3. Sr. Connor Hille (10-4), Phillipsburg
4. Jr. Mitchell Sutter (9-6), Delaware Valley
6. Jr. Tyler Kinney (9-6), Voorhees
7. So. Logan Garriques (7-5), North Warren
8. So. Kyle Blew (10-4), Belvidere
9. Sr. Nicholas McIvor (4-5), Pope John
10. Sr. Brayden Nolan (8-3), Newton
Skinny: Drazek, who lost in the quarterfinals at 157 last season, is as dangerous as they come with the hazzard tilt. He scored an 11-4 win over Hille (getting five back points off tilts) on Monday. Brunetti, who was bumped away from Drazek in Thursday's dual meet, finished third a year ago at 165 and has a double loss to Brick Memorial state champion Harvey Ludington this season. Sutter, who has competed at 165 all season, scored a 4-2 win over Ogar last weekend. Nolan, a tremendous football and baseball player who took up wrestling during the COVID-19 year in 2021, is one of the best athletes in the field.
The pick: Drazek.
190 pounds
1. Sr. Alex Uryniak (13-1), North Hunterdon
2. Jr. Caleb Rivera (15-4), Phillipsburg
3. Jr. Anderson Olcott (15-0), Delaware Valley
4. Jr. Tucker Lockburner (10-2), Kittatinny
5. Fr. David Thomson (10-5), Pope John
6. Sr. Chris Whitehead (9-5), Warren Hills
7. Sr. Eric Perez (9-2), Lenape Valley
8. Sr. Daniel Barry (6-6), Newton
9. Sr. Patrick Kaczmarek (6-7), Hunterdon Central
10. Sr. Luke Hufford (8-8), Voorhees
Skinny: Uryniak, a seventh-place state finisher as a sophomore and sitting on 86 career wins, was a runner-up here a year ago and seeks his first title. Rivera won his first title at 175 in 2022, while Olcott reached the quarters. Lockburner dropped a 9-2 decision to Rivera in the Round of 8. Thomson looks like he will be a force in the upper weights very soon.
The pick: Uryniak.
215 pounds
1. Sr. Brendan Raley (12-2), North Hunterson
2. Sr. Jarett Pantuso (12-0), Warren Hills
3. Sr. Cardin Madry (9-4), Pope John
4. Sr. Bennett Cayero (7-3), Hunterdon Central
5. Sr. Jack Mosier (13-3), Voorhees
6. Sr. Logan Kries (9-7), Phillipsburg
7. Sr. Jacob Hachtmann (12-2), Belvidere
8. Sr. Brody Guerra (8-4), Newton
9. Sr. Jeyss Abreu (10-3), Vernon
10. Jr. Connor White (10-3), Sparta
Skinny: Raley, who finished eighth in the state last year, scored a 5-0 win over Pantuso (eighth in the state in 2021) the day before placing third at this weight in the HWS Tournament. The two never had a rematch as they were on opposite sides of the draw. Pantuso was a runner-up in 2022. Mosier lost by fall to both in dual meets this season. Kries was majored by Pantuso, 10-2, on Monday. Madry was fourth here last year, scoring a 14-7 win over Mosier in the semifinals. Cayero, who dropped a 5-2 decision to Pantuso on Thursday, scored an 11-9 win over Mosier on Dec. 21.
The pick: Raley.
285 pounds
1. Jr. John Wargo (14-2), Phillipsburg
2. Jr. Cameron Baumann (16-2), Voorhees
3. Sr. Louis White (8-5), North Hunterdon
4. Jr. Kyle Cooke (9-5), Delaware Valley
5. Jr. Ryan Seemon (3-8), Hunterdon Central
6. Sr. Arik Hums (9-8), High Point
7. Sr. Bradley Maines (8-2), Sparta
8. Sr. JJ Wohlers (5-3), North Warren
9. Jr. Andrew Bicher (3-8), Lenape Valley
10. Sr. Joebarry Joseph (2-6), Hackettstown
Skinny: Wargo, a Region 3 champion last season and two-way football standout, finished third in 2022. He is without a doubt the most athletic in this class and looks to become Phillipsburg's first champion at 285 since Kyle Nothnagel (2016). Baumann owns a pair of 5-1 wins over Cooke and White, and he beat Seemon, 3-1, on Dec. 21.
The pick: Wargo
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