Wrestling: Cougars hit 700; HWS sends 5 to finals

Add another major milestone to an already lengthy list for the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex area this high school wrestling season.

Kittatinny stands at 700-257-5 in 50 seasons

Kittatinny, which has its sights on the program's 26th sectional championship, picked up wins No. 699 and 700 overall on Monday night in advancing to the North 1, Group 1 title match at 6 p.m. on Wednesday in Hampton Township.  

The Cougars (12-10), who easily dispatched Boonton (58-22 in the quarterfinals) and Emerson-Park Ridge (46-29 in the semifinals), celebrated becoming the eighth HWS school to amass 700-plus dual victories -- joining Hunterdon Central (1,064), Phillipsburg (1,062), Delaware Valley (874), Newton (860), North Hunterdon (833), Warren Hills (829) and High Point (808), which picked up its 800th earlier this season.

"I'm excited about it. It's like the one thing for our little tiny Group 1 school," said legendary coach John Gill, whose Kittatinny teams have gone 668-218-5 overall with 25 sectional and eight state championships across his 45 seasons in charge.

Phillipsburg (North 1, Group 4), North Hunterdon (North 2, Group 4), High Point (North 1, Group 2) and Delaware Valley (Central Jersey, Group 1) will also represent the area in Wednesday's sectional finals. HWS has captured no fewer than three titles and 209 overall since the tournaments began in 1980, and at least four in a season since 2015.

The sectional champions advance to Friday's state semifinal round to be hosted by the higher seed, with the winners then advancing to Sunday's state title matches at Rutgers' Jersey Mike's Arena. 

So much winning

When it comes to sectional finals, Phillipsburg and Kittatinny usually come out on top end -- with a combined record of 66-7 in title matches. 

P'burg won its only N1, G4 title in 2010

The Stateliners, whose 41 sectional championships in 44 finals appearances rank behind only Paulsboro (43), have lost on only three occasions (Warren Hills-1990, Hunterdon Central-2013 and North Hunterdon-2020). Mount Olive, which was the Group 4 runner-up last season and is 0-3 vs. P'burg all time -- including a 48-12 loss in the North 2, Group 3 final in 2003 -- looks to add to that list and avenge a 32-30 loss to the 'Liners on Dec. 21.

"If all 14 of us go out and do their job, we should do pretty well," said senior state medalist Luke Geleta, who at 129-26 is looking to become only the third Stateliner to amass 130-plus career wins, joining all-time leader Gavin Hawk (137) and former state finalist Brian Meyer (131).

Kittatinny, which is 25-4 under Gill in sectional finals and 88-31 overall in postseason matches, rates a solid favorite against New Milford, which has never won a sectional title and had to rally for a 42-35 win over Pompton Lakes in the North 1, Group 1 semifinals. That crazy quarterfinal draw nearly saw the Nos. 6 (Newton) and 7 (Butler) seeds battle for a spot in the title match. Pompton Lakes barely got by Newton (38-36), while New Milford pulled off a 41-36 win over Butler in the other first-rounder.

'Cats eyes on prize

High Point has waited nearly 365 days to get back into this position and reclaim the North 1, Group 2 championship, which eluded the Sussex County power last season after a 32-29 finals loss to nemesis Jefferson that ended the Wildcats' six-year reign.

HP went 6-1 in its previous 7 finals appearances

But the good news is that rookie head coach Billy Smith's team, which knocked off Lakeland (66-12 in the quarters) and Westwood (75-6 in the semis) on Monday, is once again the No. 1 seed. Thus, his 'Cats will enter Wednesday night's title match against Pascack Valley to the strains of John Denver's "Thank God I'm a Country Boy," after having to go on the road last season for the first time since 2016.

"It's nice. We worked hard this season to get [a chance to win] at home," said senior standout Nick Clayton (23-3 at 150), who improved to 107-33 overall on Monday to move past Kyle Stoll (105-26 from 2011-14) and Dom Gallo (105-30 from 2011-15) for 16th on the program's career victories list. 

Smith, who took over the boys program after John Gardner shifted to coach the girls this season, is no stranger to sectional titles having won three (2008-11) as a High Point wrestler and state champion his senior season in '11, while serving on Gardner staff as an assistant for another six. The 'Cats lead Sussex County with 30, which ranks third behind Paulsboro and P'burg statewide.

Hungry Lions

North Hunterdon, which also made things look relatively easy on Monday with lopsided wins over Woodbridge (61-3 in the quarters) and Rahway (55-19 in the semis), will hit the road to take on Middletown North in the North 2, Group 4 final.

North won G4 titles after section runs in 2020 and '23

Longtime coach Dave Bell, now in his second season with North, watched his Lions prevail in 21 of 28 bouts on Monday, including a pair of first-period pins by returning state qualifier Evan Kinney (25-3 at 190). The senior emphasized that his team's 34-24 win over Phillipsburg on Jan. 29 has provided the springboard for a run at North's 18th sectional title, which would break a tie with sister-school Voorhees.

"Ever since Phillipsburg, we've become a lot stronger team," said Kinney, who has embraced his role as one of the team's leaders after starting as a sophomore on North's Group 4 title team in 2023. "I really like how the team is shaking out. I feel like our confidence keeps stacking up and overall, we're going for the title." 

North eliminated Middletown North, which won its lone sectional title in 1996, with a 41-18 victory in last year's North 2, Group 4 semifinals before a 30-28 finals loss to eventual Group 4 champion Ridge.

Terrier tough

Delaware Valley has been the consensus favorite to capture both sectional and Group 1 state titles this season. So far, coach Andy Fitz's team hasn't been tested after blowout wins against Shore Regional (77-6 in the quarters) and Metuchen (73-6 in the semis) in the Central Jersey, Group 1 tournament on Monday.

Del Val is 8-4 in sectional finals since 2008

Del Val (16-3), which has logged double-digit wins in all but one of Fitz's 18 seasons (9-3 in the pandemic-shortened 2021 campaign) in charge of his alma mater, seeks the program's 23rd sectional title, which would match Hunterdon Central for the county lead, when it faces Manville in Alexandria Township. The Terriers won title matchups against Point Pleasant Beach in 2022, '23 and '24 by a combined score of 227-9.

Manville, which won the Skyland Conference Mountain Division title under veteran coach Pat Gorbatuk, seeks its fifth sectional title and first since 1994.

Here are Wednesday's matchups statewide: (Note: Only one No. 8 seed (Montville in 2024) has reached the finals since the field expanded to eight teams in 2017. In addition, Randolph and Wayne Valley (in 2024) are the only No. 7 seeds to win a semifinal match. Since '17, No. 8 seeds are 2-159 overall in the quarters and semis, while No. 7 seeds are 6-158 (Hawthorne and Scotch-Plains Fanwood in 2022 are the only other No. 7s to reach the semifinals).

Group 5

North 1

3-Clifton (15-7, 33.56) at 1-Passaic Tech (22-10, 37.78)

North 2

2-Union (18-7, 34.33) at 1-Bridgewater-Raritan (19-7, 40.00)

Central Jersey

2-Monroe Township (17-14, 39.11) at 1-Old Bridge (13-6, 40.44)

South Jersey

3-Washington Township (17-4, 40.44) at 1-Southern (15-3, 43.00)

Group 4

North 1

2-Mount Olive (15-3, 42.78) at 1-Phillipsburg (15-3, 42.67)

North 2

2-North Hunterdon (14-6, 41.22) at 1-Middletown North (20-1, 41.89)

Central Jersey

2-Colts Neck (12-11, 36.44) at 1-Long Branch (13-8, 39.00)

South Jersey

6-Toms River East (11-11, 35.67) at 4-Toms River South (18-1, 36.22)

Group 3

North 1

2-Wayne Valley (20-0, 38.56) at 1-Old Tappan (17-1, 38.56)

North 2

2-South Plainfield (15-5, 37.89) at 1-Cranford (19-3, 41.67)

Central Jersey

2-Brick Memorial (12-4, 40.89) at 1-Hopewell Valley (21-4, 41.22)

South Jersey

2-Lacey Township (19-2, 42.33) at 1-Delsea (18-2, 42.78)

Group 2

North 1

2-Pascack Valley (17-6, 36.67) at 1-High Point (18-5, 41.00)

North 2

3-Governor Livingston (16-7, 35.89) at 1-Caldwell (22-1, 41.67)

Central Jersey

3-Wall Township (17-4, 40.56) at 1-Rumson-Fair Haven (25-1, 42.22)

South Jersey

5-Middle Township (22-3, 37.56) at 2-Lower Cape May (20-4, 40.44)

Group 1

North 1

2-New Milford (15-1, 33.67) at 1-Kittatinny (12-10, 34.33)

North 2

2-Hasbrouck Heights (19-1, 34.89) at 1-Hanover Park (15-6, 40.00)

Central Jersey

2-Manville (21-5, 33.00) at 1-Delaware Valley (16-3, 42.11)

South Jersey

4-Schalick (25-1, 32.67) at 2-Paulsboro (14-7, 39.00)