Wrestling: Lights-out Lions roar in win over 'Liners

CLINTON TWP. -- North Hunterdon sophomore Cayden Wadle was all about continuing the family business of beating Phillipsburg. And business has been good for the Lions in recent seasons. 

As it turned out, Wadle's clutch decision in sudden-victory overtime at 106 pounds was the swing bout in North's impressive 34-24 victory over P'burg in the 72nd meeting between Skyland Conference rivals on Wednesday night in the Lions Den.

North is now 7-25 all-time at home vs. P'burg

Wadle rallied for an 8-5 win when he spun behind freshman Zack Swingle to secure a takedown 19 seconds into OT. Two stall calls on Swingle -- the second was highly questionable as it appeared his momentum carried him off the mat while defending a shot attempt -- in the final 10 seconds of the third period knotted the bout at 5.

"He was a tough opponent," Wadle said. "[Swingle] always came out on top every time we wrestled when we were younger. I didn't even notice he had the first [stall warning]. I was kind of confused. I thought [there was just one] stall call, and I looked up and had a point on the board. I knew I had to push and give it my all in overtime." 

North Hunterdon (10-6), which snapped a three-match skid against P'burg (11-3), has won four of the last seven matchups dating to 2020. That season, the Lions knocked off the Stateliners twice (30-24 in the regular season and 37-12 in the North 2, Group 4 sectional final) en route to the program's only unbeaten campaign. 

Wadle's older brother, Logan, was a freshman on that Group 4 title team and a sophomore when North won its third in a row the following season (32-23 at home) for the first time in series history. 

Logan Wadle (2nd from right) was 109-17 at North

"He said it meant a lot to him. Beating P'burg is huge," Cayden Wadle said of Logan, a two-time state finalist and champion for North (the program's 13th overall) at 106 pounds in 2023 and currently wrestling at Lehigh University. 

"This one is big to me because I've always been watching in the stands and wanting to wrestle under the lights. Actually doing it means a lot to me."

North also delivered for veteran coach Dave Bell, who picked up his first win over P'burg in his second season with the Lions. Bell's Bergen Catholic team never got the opportunity to wrestle the 'Liners even though the programs competed separately in the former Easton-Phillipsburg Duals at Lafayette College in the early 2000s.

"It was a good night for sure," said Bell, whose ledger now stands at 393-119-1 over 27 seasons. "Beating P'burg .. they're the most storied program in the state. I've always had a great deal of respect for them and followed them for years. To step on the mat it's always an honor and to win a match is huge. In victory and loss, we wrestled our butts off."

Phillipsburg, which has now lost three of its last five dual meets, entered the contest ranked No. 11 in the New Jersey Wrestling Writers statewide Top 20 poll. The Stateliners suffered their first blow in the second bout of the night at 157 pounds, when North senior Vincenzo Darrow worked Benny Mendoza for an 8-0 major decision.

"Vincenzo did great," Bell said. "He's been out awhile and back. He looked awesome, really smooth, really good tonight."

North is now 12-59-1 all-time vs. P'burg 

Bell also cited wins by senior Evan Kinney (175) and junior Owen Dandeo (190). But sophomore Anthony DeSimone firmly set the wheels for an upset in motion with his 12-7 win over Kevin Buonocore, a Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament champion at 215 pounds despite weighing around 190. Two third-period takedowns by DeSimone were the difference.

"I'm feeling better now and getting on a streak of winning matches," said DeSimone, who's battled the flu and a sprained ankle this season. "I'm not surprised because I put in a lot of work in the offseason. [Buonocore] was a little lighter than most 215s. I trusted myself in what I could do. I knew I could beat him.

"Coach Bell always says we can wrestle with anybody. It wasn't a doubt [about whether we could beat] P'burg. We believe in ourselves that we can do it. We felt like we belong. It feels great." 

North erased a two-point deficit through nine bouts with senior Joseph Celentano's pin of Matthew Velez at 120 pounds. Celentano, who led 6-2 after two periods, signaled for an optional start to begin the third and pancaked Velez 10 seconds in to give the Lions a 23-19 lead that they didn't relinquish.

North also finished with a 24-17 edge in takedowns, but Phillipsburg managed just seven in the 12 bouts not wrestled by Gavin Hawk (165) and Luke Geleta (144), who combined for 10. Lions senior Joshua Joubert even got one against Hawk (23-1), his school's all-time wins leader (133) and a state runner-up last season, in a spirited 24-10 loss.

"Wow, that's a great statistic," said Bell, whose team will look to secure the Skyland Conference Raritan Division title with a win over Ridge at home on Friday. "We've been working a lot on our hand fighting and we've emphasized defense the whole year in positions. We're getting there."

NORTH HUNTERDON 34, PHILLIPSBURG 24

150 -- Jr. Gavin Geleta (20-4), P, p. So. Dylan McGuinness (8-12), :53.

157 -- Sr. Vincenzo Darrow (8-8), NH, md. Sr. Benny Mendoza (7-6), 8-0.
165 -- Sr. Gavin Hawk (23-1), P, md. Sr. Joshua Joubert (16-11), 24-10.
175 -- Sr. Evan Kinney (22-2), NH, d. Sr. Derek Stone (17-7), 15-11.
190 -- Jr. Owen Dandeo (14-9), NH, md. Sr. Jesus Alfaro (12-15), 14-4.
215 -- So. Andrew DeSimone (7-12), NH, d. Jr. Kevin Buonocore (12-9), 12-7.
285 -- Jr. Ben Ellis (15-10), P, p. Fr. Dajinder Dhillon (4-5), :34.
106 -- So. Cayden Wadle (20-5), NH, d. Fr. Zack Swingle (18-6), 8-5 SV.
113 -- So. Anthony Pettinelli (21-6), P, d. Fr. Owen Fol (14-12), 8-1.
120 -- Sr. Joseph Celentano (13-12), NH, p. Fr. Matthew Velez (7-16), 4:10.
126 -- Jr. Reid Buzby (19-8), NH, d. Jr. Massimo Gonzalez (20-8), 4-0.
132 -- So. Aidan Yarussi (23-4), NH, tf. Fr. Mason Hawk (1-2), 19-4, 3:44.
138 -- So. Kieran Raley (13-15), NH, d. So. Owen Garriques (17-8), 7-2.
144 -- Sr. Luke Geleta (23-1), P, tf. So. Matthew Esposito (8-8), 17-2, 4:14.

Records -- Phillipsburg 11-3; North Hunterdon 10-6.
Officials -- Rick Solofsky and Dave Marotta.