Wrestling: Hawk soars to 100; DV cruises in semis

Phillipsburg star Gavin Hawk made it perfectly clear that he's "more focused on what's ahead" this season than what's down the road after capturing a program-best third Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament title last month.

Hawk is the first to hit 100 wins as a junior at P'burg

The junior enjoyed another historic moment on the mat on Friday night by becoming the 28th Stateliner wrestler to reach the century mark in career wins as his pin at 150 pounds highlighted Phillipsburg's 65-9 dismantling of Clifton in a Group 5 semifinal matchup in Lopatcong Township.

P'burg (18-0), now 35-4 all-time in state semifinals, will battle an old nemesis in pursuit of the program's 24th state championship when it faces Southern in the Group 5 final at 11 a.m. on Sunday at Rutgers University's Jersey Mike's Arena. 

Southern (17-2), which handed Hunterdon Central a 40-21 loss in the other semifinal, eyes its sixth title overall and second in a row after handing P'burg a 41-14 defeat in the 2023 title match. The 'Liners have finished unbeaten only four times (1967-68, 1968-69, 1969-70 and 2013-14) in their previous 75 seasons.

On an adjacent mat, Delaware Valley (20-1) will face Paulsboro in a rematch of last year's Group 1 final as the Terriers eye the program's first three-peat since winning four straight in Group 2 from 1987-90. 

Hawk (28-1), who is among the state title hopefuls at 150 pounds, improved to 100-17 overall by decking Jarvis Rodriguez in 5:21. In true P'burg fashion, the milestone victory prompted a big hand from the Stateliner faithful while the impressive videoboard on the gym wall displayed his picture in congratulatory fashion.  

Last season's disappointing finish -- a Blood Round loss in the state tournament -- has been a constant source of motivation for Hawk since last March. Hawk, whose only loss is 5-1 to Quakertown's Collin Gaj, a Pennsylvania Class AAA state champion, in the Bethlehem Holiday Classic finals on Dec. 28, seems poised to make another deep run this season in pursuit of his first state medal. He showed that by beating Delsea state placewinner Jamar Dixon Jr. (3-1 in SV on Dec. 23) and Ocean Township's James Farina (pin in 3:28 on Jan. 27).

P'burg (23) is behind only Paulsboro (33) in state titles

"At states last year, I lost to two tough kids [5-3 to Morristown's Jack Meyers and 3-1 to St. Joseph-Montvale's Donny Almeyda -- the third- and fourth-place medalists at 132 pounds]," Hawk said after his HWS run last month. I worked so hard and I was like, 'Why didn't I get the results that I wanted?'

"Even though it sucked, it was honestly the best thing that could have happened because it kept me motivated all offseason and summer, and even this season ... thinking about going to AC and kind of redeeming myself."

Hawk, who helped spark Phillipsburg's last state title win (51-8 against Howell in 2022), joins an elite group of 100-match winners for P'burg and is the first Stateliner to accomplish the feat since James Day (112-32 from 2018-22), who currently ranks 11th on the all-time list.

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Delaware Valley also cruised in pursuit of the program's 11th state championship with a 55-16 victory over Hanover Park in a Group 1 semifinal at Daniel Hutchins Memorial Gym in Alexandria Township.

The Terriers, who reached the 20-win mark for the first time since going a program-best 23-3 en route to capturing the program's eighth and last Group 2 title in 2016-17, are 9-1 all-time against Hanover Park, including a 50-18 win this season on Jan. 20 and a 45-24 victory in the 2023 Group 1 semis.

Senior Matt Roche (25-2 at 132) a returning state placewinner, logged one of seven pins for Del Val, which handed Paulsboro a 34-31 setback in last season's Group 1 final. The Terriers are 4-3-1 in that series, including four postseason meetings.

Kittatinny has won just one title in Group 1 (2008)

Kittatinny saw its season end in the Group 1 semifinals for a season straight season against Paulsboro with a 40-24 loss in Hampton Township.

The Cougars (19-4), who were seeking a Sussex County-best ninth state title and first since 2008, won only five bouts, including a stunning defensive pin at 120 pounds, where sophomore Nikolas Martinez erased a 5-0 deficit against Hayden Holmes.

Holmes (23-7) attempted to throw in the legs while on top and Martinez (16-17) went big bird near the edge of the mat and reached back for the head to secure the fall while laying directly on top of Holmes. That could have been a huge swing, but Paulsboro, which had won key decisions at 106 and 113 to open the match, reeled off wins in five of the next six, including three pins and a major, along with Roman Onorato's key 11-5 decision of Reece Smith in battle of state qualifiers at 157.

The final nail was Luke Metz's stunning pin of Bryce Coesfeld in the 11th bout of the night at 175 pounds that gave Paulsboro an insurmountable 37-15 lead. Metz (17-13) was down 7-2 after two periods and 9-3 in the third, when Coesfeld (28-4) took a poor shot with his elbows out and was pancaked with just four seconds left on the clock.  

That loss typified the evening for Kittatinny, which was thoroughly dominated in the neutral position as Paulsboro (21-2) finished with a 36-7 advantage in takedowns. The loss also dropped legendary coach John Gill's record against the South Jersey power to 0-6, including a 39-21 setback here in last year's Group 1 semifinals. Paulsboro's other wins were in Group 1 title matches (37-25 in 2011, 28-27 in '16, 44-16 in '17 and 63-3 in '19). Legendary coaches Gill (656-208-5 in 44 seasons and Paul Morina (789-52-4 in 40 seasons) have combined for 1,445 wins.

Here are Sunday's title matchups:

Group 5

Phillipsburg (18-0) vs. Southern (17-2), 11 a.m.

Group 4

Mount Olive (15-4) vs. Ridge (20-2), 11 a.m.

Group 3

Delsea (18-4) vs. Cranford (19-2), 1:30 p.m.

Group 2

Jefferson (17-5) vs. Rumson-Fair Haven (17-1), 1:30 p.m.

Group 1

Delaware Valley (20-1) vs. Paulsboro (21-2), 11 a.m.

Non-Public A

Delbarton (16-4) vs. St. Joseph-Montvale (12-0), 1:30 p.m.

Non-Public B

St. John Vianney (13-1) vs. Camden Catholic (15-1), 11 a.m.