Wrestling: Wrapping up events from Atlantic City

Here are a few random stats, quotes and miscellaneous tidbits as we close the book on another state tournament and wrestling season.

It was quite a three-day affair at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, with perhaps the most exciting, not to mention entertaining, set of finals I've witnessed in person since my first tournament in 1984.

Be-Deviled in the finals

Hunterdon Central junior Gary Dinmore came up short in the finals for the second straight year against South Plainfield's Anthony Ashnault. Dinmore, who dropped a 4-2 decision at 138 pounds, was looking to make history by ending Ashnault's run at four titles and an unbeaten career mark.

Dinmore (36-1), who is Central's 39th state finalist and 27th runner-up, took an interesting approach to the tournament and didn't seem a bit fazed by the magnitude of the finals matchup.

"I don't really like or listen to all of the hype," said Dinmore, who is 95-12 in three seasons. "I didn't even look at my bracket."

Dinmore will have one more shot at claiming state gold and becoming the Red Devils' 13th state champion and first since Alex Shaffer in 2010.

Proving their mettle

Six wrestlers, including Lenape Valley sophomore Peter Lipari, dropped their opening bouts in the preliminary round and bounced back by navigating their way through the wrestlebacks to earn state medals in the inaugural year of double-elimination for first-round losers.

Lipari finished seventh at 126 pounds, the first Lenape Valley medal winner since Billy Hagany took seventh at 103 in 2009.

"I pushed myself this year more than last year," said Lipari, who is aiming to become the Patriots' first state champion.

The others to place were Hanover Park's Genaro Cuccolo (fourth at 126), St. Peter's Prep's Jordan Fox (sixth at 182), Wayne Valley's Anthony Landberg (seventh at 195) and Brick Memorial's Tyler Richardson (sixth at 170) and Matt Moore (fourth at 195).

Here's hoping the state will reconsider the tournament schedule by moving it to a Thursday-Friday-Saturday schedule and start earlier than 5 p.m., on Thursday. That way, one round of wrestlebacks can be completed that first night. It's too much to ask of wrestlers to wrestle and win four meat-grinder matches on the second day.

Doing the impossible

Ashnault won his fourth state title and finished a marvelous career at an astounding 170-0. The Rutgers-bound Ashnault was full of emotions on Sunday, and rightfully so, after achieving what no one thought they'd see in their lifetime, and very well might not again.

It was pretty stunning to see Ashnault get ridden out the entire second period, though the South Plainfield star said it was a more common occurrence than one might think.

"My brother [former Tiger Billy Ashnault] for two hours last week [in practice]," said Anthony, on when was the last time he got ridden out for an entire period.

Ashnault had plenty of supporters in the stands clad in green South Plainfield No. 1 T-shirts.

"I'm really grateful to my parents [Bill and Sue] and everyone that helped me through this journey," Ashnault said. "It was a great run and I'm looking to take it right into college."

Ashnault has a score to settle before then as he will participate in the prestigious Dapper Dan All-Star Classic on Sunday at Fitzgerald Field House in Pittsburgh, Pa. He'll face two-time Pennsylvania state champ and Penn State recruit Zain Retherford, who is 130-3.

"I'm pretty pumped," Ashnault said. "He got the best of me last time [we met]. I'm ready and prepared to take it to him."

H-W area sets places in AC

The Hunterdon-Warren area left Boardwalk Hall with four medals -- down from seven a year ago -- three of those to Hunterdon County wrestlers. Since 2000, the nine schools encompassing the two counties have combined to win 79 medals places one through eight.

Hunterdon Central leads the pack with 20, followed by Delaware Valley and Phillipsburg with 14 apiece. All three had medal winners this year: Dinmore for Central, Mike Pongracz (fifth at 126) for the Terriers and freshman Brandon Paetzell for the Stateliners.

Voorhees now has five after Jadaen Bernstein took second at 170.

Belvidere and Warren Hills are next with five each, while Hackettstown and North Warren have four apiece.

Over the last four state tournaments since 2010, Delaware Valley leads the way with six medals, followed by Hunterdon Central's total of five. North Hunterdon and Voorhees have four over that period, Phillipsburg has three and both North Warren and Warren Hills have one each.

County gold breakdown

New Jersey has crowned a total of 960 state champions since 1934. Here's a breakdown of winners produced in each county since that first tournament. The 2013 champs for their respective counties in parentheses:

Union 129
Sussex 113
Bergen 105 (Nick Suriano and Johnny Sebastian, Bergen Catholic; Luis Gonzalez and Razohnn Gross, Don Bosco)
Warren 85 
Ocean 61 (Bryant Clagon, Toms River South)
Somerset 59 (Craig De La Cruz, Bound Brook)
Morris 56 (Dillon Artigliere, Roxbury)
Camden 56 (Alex Thompson, Haddon Heights)
Gloucester 56 (Bryan Dobzanski, Delsea)
Middlesex 40 (Anthony Ashnault and Scott DelVecchio, South Plainfield)
Monmouth 37
Hunterdon 36
Essex 34
Burlington 24 (Wayne Stinson, Northern Burlington)
Passaic 20 (Ethan Ramos, Hawthorne)
Cumberland 12
Atlantic 18
Salem 8
Hudson 5 (Anthony Giraldo, North Bergen)
Cape May 4
Mercer 2

Wrestling: Bernstein, Dinmore fall short in title bids

Try as they might, a state championship just wasn't in the cards this weekend in Atlantic City for Hunterdon Central's Gary Dinmore and Voorhees' Jadaen Bernstein.

The pair of Hunterdon County wrestlers were the lone Open Mike area representatives in Sunday's championship round of the 80th New Jersey State Championships before a sellout crowd of 11,149 at Boardwalk Hall.

Dinmore carved a spot in New Jersey state wrestling history regardless of the outcome on Sunday.

Needless to say, Dinmore would’ve preferred it to be on the winning side, as he dropped a 4-2 decision to South Plainfield star Anthony Ashnault at 138 pounds.

Bernstein, who was second in 2011, came up short in his bid for a title with a 5-2 loss to Hawthorne’s Ethan Ramos at 170.

“Everyone thinks I had a game plan [to beat Ashnault], but my game plan was to just wrestle,” said Dinmore, who lost to Ashnault, 5-2, in last year’s 126-pound final. “I think I could’ve made [the score] closer, but there’s no point if you’re not going to win.”

Ashnault capped one of the greatest high school careers as the first New Jersey wrestler to win four titles and go unbeaten at 170-0. He’s the third four-time champion -- joining Delbarton’s Mike Grey (2003-06) and Bound Brook’s Andrew Campolattano (2008-11).

“There are a lot of emotions going through my mind right now,” said the Rutgers-bound Ashnault, who earned the Donald Ringler Outstanding Wrestler Award in his final Atlantic City appearance. “Ever since eighth grade, I set this goal. It seemed realistic and I made it come true. It feels really great.”

The first 169 wins for Ashnault seemed much easier, as Dinmore made the South Plainfield wrestler work extra hard for No. 170. After being ridden out the entire second period, Ashnault gave up an escape to tie
it at 2 with 1:41 left in the third period.

Ashnault converted the go-ahead takedown with 13 seconds left -- a deep double-leg shot and finish to the delight of what seemed like thousands of fans clad in green South Plainfield No. 1 T-shirts. In the first period, Ashnault took a 2-0 lead with a nice snatch single-leg attempt for a takedown.

“He’s a great opponent. I just came out on top today,” Ashnault said. “I knew I could take him down. I just kept attacking. I knew I could get to his legs again and again. Sooner or later I was going to
finish.”

Dinmore (36-1), who is Central's 39th finalist and 27th runner-up, landed on his head while somersaulting out of bounds to defend a single-leg shot by Ashnault early in the third period and injured his right shoulder late while attempting a throw.

“He pulled my arm really hard and I heard something pop [in my shoulder],” said Dinmore, who is Central’s first repeat state finalist since Todd Patton in 1983-84. “I was a little anxious in the first period trying to get that first takedown. It didn’t work out in my favor.”

Caught up on defense

Bernstein (42-1) was looking to end Voorhees’ 15-year title since John Brienza won at 130 in 1998. A runner-up as a sophomore and seventh as a junior, Bernstein got away from his own offensive attack while
trying to defend single-leg shots by Ramos, who was fourth in the state at 170 last year.

With the match tied at 2 after two periods, Ramos escaped early in the third and converted a takedown off a great scramble with 16 seconds left to ice it. Bernstein actually had Ramos in trouble with his own
single-leg attempt, but somehow Ramos managed to come out on top for the biggest takedown of his season.

Ramos (40-0) is Passaic County’s 20th state champion and Hawthorne’s first since Rusty Read won its only other title at 140 pounds in 1994.

“I knew he had that little shot, and I tried to work my two-on-one, but he kept backing out of it,” said Bernstein, who finishes his career as Voorhees’ all-time wins leader (135-19) and the second to
place three times in the state tournament along with coach Eric Hall (7/8-1994, fourth-1995, second-1996).

“I didn’t want to move forward too much and step into [Ramos’] shot. If he did get angles, I could get out of bounds. He got to his shots before I got to mine."

Bernstein, who gave up only five escapes in three previous wins this weekend, said he made a critical mistake in trying to get that go-ahead takedown in the final 20 seconds.

“I had the leg hooked and I had a cradle locked, but I put my hip down for a split-second and he slid his arm in and got two,” Bernstein said. “I got a little overzealous coming around. Props to him, he kept going to the end until he got it. I should've tried to break his grip instead of trying to snake my arm in. He kept knee-sliding and I had to bail out because I was going to my back.”

Bernstein, despite the bitter taste of disappointment, handled himself as graciously in defeat as he did in victory the last three years. He'll continue his career at the U.S. Naval Academy after prepping for a year.

"It's been a great ride. This is the end of one chapter ... a big chapter," said Bernstein, who is Voorhees' ninth state finalist and 27th placewinner overall. "I wouldn't have wanted to wrestle anywhere else. I have a great coaching staff behind me and a lot of community support. I really wanted that state title, but I'll use it as motivation to get to the top of the NCAA podium."

His coach, along with everyone else in the Voorhees program, will be sorry to see the classy Bernstein leave.

"Win or lose, we walk away proud of him as we ever would," Hall said. "Ultimately, he didn't win, but he walks away as a winner. That's the kind of kid he is."

Back points

Lenape Valley, which has never had a state champion, may have a shot the next two years after sophomore Peter Lipari finished seventh at 120 pounds. At least Lipari is shooting for that distinction.

"I just want to keep training to become Lenape Valley's first state champ," he said on Sunday. "It felt awesome to know I won the match [6-4 in sudden victory against Nutley's Robert Trombetta] and came home with a seventh-place medal. Seventh is better than eighth."

Patriots coach Doug Vetter (second in 1990) is among three of the school's state finalists, along with Chris Ressa (2001) and D.J. Russo (2006).

Don Bosco and Bergen Catholic matched South Plainfield with a pair of champions in Luis Gonzalez (113) and Razohnn Gross, who won his second title at 195. Gross was the school's first winner in 2012. 

Freshman Nick Suriano (106) and junior Johnny Sebastian (182) made it eight titles overall for Bergen Catholic, as Sebastian won his second straight championship. Bergen County has 105 winners, second only to Union (129) and Sussex (113).

South Plainfield, which had four finalists, saw Ashnault and Scott DelVecchio (132) repeat as champs, while Corey Stasenko (126) and Troy Heilmann (145) finished second. Heilmann is a three-time runner-up -- losing in 2011 at 119 and in 2012 at 120.

Alex Thompson became Haddon Heights' first state champion in winning the 285-pound title. Mel Leary, who finished fourth at 171 pounds in 1999, was the previous highest finisher for the Camden County school, which began the program in 1963-64. Thompson is the county's 56th champion.

Craig De La Cruz, who won a loaded 120-pound class at Region 5, is Bound Brook's 19th state champion and first since Andrew Campolattano won his fourth title in 2011.

It's been 30 years, but North Bergen finally has it's second state champion in Anthony Giraldo (126). He joins John Bott, who won at 170 in 1983. Giraldo also is Hudson County's fifth champion, making it back-to-back years with a winner following Alexander Richardson of St. Peter's Prep, who became his school's first in 2012.

Roxbury junior Dillon Artigliere made it 56 champions for Morris County as he won the 160-pound title on Sunday. He's the first for the Gaels since Ryan Fikslin won at 103 in 2005. Roxbury joins Randolph and Delbarton atop the county leaderboard with eight apiece.

Wayne Stinson -- Burlington County's 24th state champ and the 960th in New Jersey history -- made it back-to-back years with a winner for Northern Burlington with his impressive run to the 152-pound title. Cody Melton won at 285 last year, while Andy Zuckerman is the school's first and only other winner (108 in 1977).

Bryan Dobzanski is the eighth state champion for Delsea and its first since Anthony Baldosaro in 2008.

Bordentown's Justin McTamney (sixth at 132) and New Egypt's Brad Schwarze (fourth at 182) are their school's highest state finishers, as is Mike Russo (fourth at 106) for Jackson Liberty.

Wrestling: High Point trio bolsters HWS medal count

It wasn't 2011 all over again -- that special season when High Point amazingly crowned four state champions. But this time around was pretty sweet for the Wildcats, who finished with an Open Mike area best three state placewinners on Sunday.

Sophomores Mike Derin and Jason Gaccione, and junior Kyle Stoll, all claimed their first medals on the final day of action in the 80th New Jersey State Wrestling Championships at Boardwalk Hall.

In addition, Phillipsburg's Brandon Paetzell, Delaware Valley's Mike Pongracz, Lenape Valley's Peter Lipari and Newton's Josh Sibblies added to the list of medal winners from Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex counties, which includes state finalists Gary Dinmore of Hunterdon Central and Jadaen Bernstein of Voorhees.

'Cats on the prowl

Gaccione earned a fourth-place finish at 145 pounds, the highest individual finish in Sussex, while Paetzell, Pongracz, Sibblies and Stoll all placed fifth. Lipari was seventh and Derin eighth.

"It was great for Sussex County," Gaccione said of the team's three medal winners and the county's total of five.

Gaccione, Region 1 champion, wrapped up his sophomore season by joining his brother, Joe, and his uncle, High Point coach John Gardner, as state medal winners. Joe finished third at 145 pounds in 2011, while Gardner, one of the program's legends, won a state title for the 'Cats at 189 pounds in 1990.

"Just to see the smile on Gardner's face [was great]," said Jason Gaccione, who was pinned by former Camden Catholic state champion T.J. Miller in their third-place consolation final. "I don't have bragging rights yet, but I've got two more years. If you want it bad enough you can get it."

Gaccione enjoyed an amazing run through the grueling wrestlebacks -- knocking off 2012 state placewinner Maaziah Bethea of Trenton Central (4-3 in the consolation semis) and Howell's Ashanti Maurice (6-4), who finished fifth and seventh, respectively at 145.

Derin also was pinned -- in 2:26 by Connor Burkert of St. Peter's Prep. The bout was scoreless before Burkert got a reversal into the low-leg cradle for the quick fall. Stoll, a semifinalist at 195, dropped a 10-5 decision to Hawthorne's Evan Ramos in their fifth-place showdown.

Sibblies gets his reward

It's been a tough couple of years for Sibblies, who missed most of the previous two seasons with knee injuries. He didn't let another one curtail his run at fifth place, as Sibblies cruised to a 3-1 win over Jordan Fox of St. Peter's Prep.

"It was just the cherry on top of the ice cream sundae," Sibblies said of the state medal. "I didn't know until they told me yesterday that I was the first semifinalist since my dad [Ted in 1989]."

Sibblies (37-6), the Region 1 champion and its Outstanding Wrestler, who finished with a 52-26 career mark, tweaked his left knee in the consolation semifinals -- a tough 8-7 loss to New Egypt's Brad Schwarze. He is the fourth Newton wrestler to medal in five years, joining Austin Alpaugh (seventh in 2008), Kevin Churchill (seventh in 2009 and third in 2010) and heavyweight Evan Chrustic (seventh in 2011).

Braves coach Eric Bollette now has six medals overall, including Trevor Braxton's fourth-place finish in 2002.

Capping a fine career

Delaware Valley senior Mike Pongracz concluded one of the finest careers at the Hunterdon County school with his third state medal -- beating 2012 runner-up David McFadden of DePaul, 4-2, in the fifth-place bout at 126 pounds.

Pongracz (35-2), who was eighth as a sophomore and fifth as a junior, is Hunterdon-Warren's all-time wins leader with a final mark of 148-16. Pongracz will wrestle next season for the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.

"If you look at the names [at Del Val] who have placed three times. It's sweet," said Pongracz, a three-time District 17 and two-time Region 5 champion. "I'm one of those. It's a pretty cool feeling."

Pongracz is only the third Del Val wrestler to place three times in the state tournament -- joining former state champions Brent Conly (fourth-1991, first-1992, first-1993) and Dan Kelly (fifth-2005, second-2006, first-2007).

Bright futures

Paetzell is the first freshman at Phillipsburg to medal since Mike Fania finished sixth at 130 pounds in 2000. Paetzell (37-7), the District 1 and Region 1 champion, also is the school's record holder for single-season wins as a ninth grader.

Lipari (31-10) took full advantage of the new rule this year that allowed all first-round losers to enter the wrestlebacks with a chance to finish as high as third place. The Lenape Valley sophomore converted a throw in sudden victory to beat Nutley's Robert Trombetta, 6-4, for seventh place.

Lipari lost, 7-5, to Livingston's Tommy Heller in the preliminaries, then rolled off three straight wins -- going 4-1 overall -- in the wrestlebacks to earn a medal. He's Lenape Valley's first medal winner since Billy Hagany finished seventh at 103 in 2009.

Wrestling: Bernstein, Dinmore going for state gold

Hunterdon Central junior Gary Dinmore and Voorhees senior Jadaen Bernstein have waited one long year for their shots at redemption. It's finally here, and both are one victory away from making history.

Both are the only wrestlers from the Open Mike area (Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex) going for state titles on Sunday at 3 p.m., when the 80th New Jersey State Wrestling Championships conclude at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City. The tournament resumes at 10 a.m., with the wrestleback semifinals, followed by the consolation finals for third, fifth and seventh places at noon.

Newton's Josh Sibblies and High Point's Kyle Stoll sustained tough losses in Saturday's semifinal round. Both wrestlers will compete in the consolation semifinals at 182 and 195 pounds, respectively.

Dinmore set up a rematch with three-time champ Anthony Ashnault of South Plainfield, who at 169-0, is looking to become New Jersey’s third four-time winner and the first to go unbeaten all four years. Last year, Dinmore (36-0), who defeated Watchung Hills’ Matt Coppola, 5-2, in the 138-pound semifinals before a crowd of 10,777 on Saturday, dropped a 5-2 decision to Ashnault (39-0) in their 132-pound title tilt.

“Last year, I didn’t see the final coming,” said Dinmore, who is Central’s first repeat state finalist since Todd Patton finished second in 1983 and first in ’84. “This year I’ve focused everything I’ve done on getting to the state finals … not placing … winning.”

Very few are giving Dinmore -- Central's 39th state finalist -- a chance to pull off what would be one of, if not the greatest, upsets in New Jersey wrestling history. It seems to be fueling the Hunterdon Central junior, who has looked forward to facing Ashnault all season. The first opportunity at redemption -- in a regular-season tri-meet on Jan. 23 -- never materialized because Ashnault was nursing an ankle injury and did not compete against the Red Devils after wrestling earlier in the day against Bridgewater-Raritan.

Ashnault sitting that one out prompted all kinds of speculation that he was ducking Dinmore and did not want to risk his unbeaten record competing at less than full strength.

“I was so ready to wrestle him [on Jan. 23],” Dinmore said. “I knew I had to get this one. This is my last chance to do something this big. Next year [in the finals] won’t be near as big. All I will say is that I’m ready this time.”

Bernstein, who posted a 5-1 decision over Don Bosco’s Luke Farinaro in the 170-pound semifinals, has been itching to get back to the finals since his surprise runner-up finish at 160 pounds in 2011. The Voorhees senior, who was seventh at 160 in 2012, is trying to become the Hunterdon County school’s fifth champ and first since John Brienza won the 130-pound crown in 1998.

“I’m back [in the final]. It feels good,” said Bernstein, whose coach, Eric Hall, was a runner-up in 1996. “I feel like I’m wrestling my best right now. I have one match left in my high school career and I want to make it count.”

Bernstein (42-0) will take on Hawthorne’s Ethan Ramos (39-0), who finished fourth last year at 170, in a much-anticipated finals showdown. Ramos defeated Bernstein last year at the Junior Nationals in Virginia Beach, Va.

“I had an idea of who I was going to get when I looked at the brackets,” Bernstein said. “It was really hard to step that far down on the podium last year. I need to finish this off. I have six more minutes of hard wrestling.”

Bernstein is among seven Voorhees wrestlers to make the finals and joins Glenn Hall as the only Vikings to make two appearances in title bouts. Hall, the Hunterdon County school's first champion, won in 1981 and finished second in '82 against the same opponent, Millville's Doug Taylor.

Sibblies, who is Newton's first state semifinalist since his father, Ted, took second in 1989, was rolling until getting headlocked and pinned by Hammonton's David Williams in 55 seconds. The two physical specimens were locked up in a bearhug, when Williams hit a headlock near the edge and drug Sibblies back in to get the fall. Sibblies will face New Egypt's Brad Schwarze in the consolation semifinals.

Diaper dandy

Phillipsburg freshman Brandon Paetzell continued his march through the long and winding road known as the state wrestlebacks. After the toughest possible draw -- meeting Bergen Catholic finalist and state favorite Nick Suriano in the pre-quarterfinals on Friday.

Paetzell (36-6) won four times on Saturday to reach the consolation semifinals at 106 pounds. Guaranteed of at least a sixth-place medal, Paetzell is the first freshman to place at states since Mike Fania finished sixth at 130 pounds in 2000, and also broke the Warren County school's record for wins by a ninth grader, eclipsing Rylan Watson's total of 32 in 2008.

"I knew Suriano was tough, ranked No. 1 in the country, obviously," said Paetzell, who dropped a 11-1 decision to Suriano. "[After the loss] I just wanted to let it fly. I had a good season, and I wanted to try and come back to get on the podium and I did."

Paetzell, who is keen on Phillipsburg's rich wrestling traditon, is pleased to be among the best ninth graders in Stateliners history. He's one of only four freshmen -- including Bob Jiorle, Rick Thompson and John Rutledge -- to win region titles their rookie seasons.

"It feels great. I'm happy that I placed," Paetzell said. "Third is the goal. But I'm in the top eight, so I'm happy."

Still going for bronze

Nine area wrestlers have secured top-eight status in AC. Among them are three High Point wrestlers, as Mike Derin (132), Jason Gaccione (145) and Kyle Stoll (195). 

Derin dropped a 4-1 decision to Ocean Township's Zach Hertling in his last bout on Saturday and will face Connor Burkert of St. Peter's Prep for seventh place.

Gaccione kept his third-place hopes alive with a 6-4 win over Howell's Ashanti Maurice. The High Point sophomore also avenged an earlier loss with a 5-3 decision over Hunterdon Central's Tim Higginson, who beat Gaccione, 8-7, in the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex quarterfinals. Gaccione will meet Trenton Central's Maaziah Bethea, seventh last year at 132, in the consolation semis.

Gaccione's brother, Joe, finished third at 145 in 2011, the same tournament in which the Wildcats crowned four state champs (Nick Francavilla, Drew Wagenhoffer, Ethan Orr and Billy Smith).

Stoll, who lost, 11-6, to returning champion Razohnn Gross of Don Bosco in the semifinals, will face Brick Memorial's Matt Moore in the consolation semifinals.

Delaware Valley senior Mike Pongracz, who finished eighth as a sophomore and fifth as a junior, will face 2012 state champion Mike Magaldo of Watchung Hills in the 126-pound consolation semifinals.

Lenape Valley's Peter Lipari will wrestle Nutley's Robert Trombetta for seventh at 120 pounds.

Crunching the numbers

Region 2 was the big winner on Saturday with a tournament-best seven finalists among 16 medal winners. Regions 3 and 5 were next with five finalists, while Region 7 has four in the championship round. Region 8 has three and Region 6 has two. Regions 1 and 4 bring up the rear with one finalist apiece.

South Plainfield has four of Region 3's five finalists and will try to match High Point's total of four champs from 2011. In addition to Ashnault, Corey Stasenko (126), Scott DelVecchio (132) and Troy Heilmann (145) will battle for state titles. Heilmann was a runner-up in 2011 and '12, while DelVecchio won it all last year at 132. Stasenko was sixth at 145.

Region 3 has the most state medal winners with 18, followed by Region 2's total of 16. Regions 5 and 6 are next with 15, while Region 7 has 13. Regions 1 and 4 have 12 apiece, while Region 8 is last with 11.

Wrestling: Dinmore, Sibblies, Stoll advance to semis

And then there were four.

Hunterdon Central's Gary Dinmore, Voorhees' Jadaen Bernstein, Newton's Josh Sibblies and High Point's Kyle Stoll are the lone wrestlers from the Open Mike area to advance to this evening's semifinals.

Action resumes at 5 p.m., in the 80th New Jersey State Wrestling Championships at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City. All semifinalists are guaranteed a sixth-place finish at their respective weight classes. All wrestleback survivors must win one more bout to place top eight.

Dinmore earned a 3-1 win over Jackson Memorial's Brian Hamann in their 138-pound quarterfinal, while Bernstein scored a workmanlike 7-1 decision over Watchung Hills' Mike Carroccia at 170.

Sibblies racked up four takedowns in a 9-5 win over Westfield's Brian Bulger at 182, while Stoll was the lone Wildcat of their three quarterfinalists to win -- 3-2 over Tyreek Smith of Moorestown at 195.

Here are tonight's semifinal matchups:

106 pounds

Michael Russo, Jackson Liberty (R6), vs. Nick Suriano, Bergen Catholic (R2)
Yasel Corporan, Perth Amboy (R5), vs. Kyle Bierdumpfel, Don Bosco (R2)

113 pounds

Luis Gonzalez, Don Bosco (R2), vs. Jean DuBois, Clifton (R4)
Bryan Damon, Jefferson (R1), vs. Kevin Corrigan (R6), Toms River South

120 pounds

Brenden Calas (R3), Seton Hall Prep, vs. Alex Baider (R7), Cherokee
Craig De La Cruz, Bound Brook (R5), vs. Christian Innarella (R3), Delbarton

126 pounds

David McFadden, DePaul (R1), vs. Corey Stasenko, South Plainfield (R3)
Mike Magaldo, Watchung Hills (R3), vs. Anthony Giraldo, North Bergen (R4)

132 pounds

Scott DelVecchio, South Plainfield (R3), vs. Justin McTamney, Bordentown (R7)
Jason Estevez, Livingston (R4), vs. Ron Gentile, Paulsboro (R8)

138 pounds

Anthony Ashnault, South Plainfield (R3), vs. Richard Lewis, Toms River East (R6)
Matt Coppola, Watchung Hills (R3), vs. Gary Dinmore, Hunterdon Central (R5)

145 pounds

B.J. Clagon, Toms River South (R6), vs. Maaziah Bethea, Trenton Central (R7)
Troy Heilmann, South Plainfield (R3), vs. T.J. Miller, Camden Catholic (R7)

152 pounds

Nick Gravina, Northern Highlands (R2), vs. Wayne Stinson, Northern Burlington (R7)
Chad Walsh, Camden Catholic (R7), vs. Dylan Painton, South Plainfield (R3)

160 pounds

Jonathan Schleifer, East Brunswick (R5), vs. Dan Wojtaszek, Brick Township (R6)
Dillon Artigliere, Roxbury (R1), vs. John Balboni, Brearley/Dayton (R3)

170 pounds

Jadaen Bernstein, Voorhees (R5), vs. Luke Farinaro, Don Bosco (R2)
Ethan Ramos, Hawthorne (R2), vs. Joey Balboni, Brearley/Dayton (R3)

182 pounds

Johnny Sebastian, Bergen Catholic (R2), vs. Ali Yildiz, South Brunswick (R5)
David Williams, Hammonton (R8), vs. Josh Sibblies, Newton (R1)

195 pounds

Razohnn Gross, Don Bosco (R2), vs. Kyle Stoll, High Point (R1)
Rory Bonner, West Deptford (R8), vs. Anthony Messner, Franklin (R5)

220 pounds

Bryan Dobzanski, Paulsboro (R8), vs. Mauro Correnti, Holy Cross (R7)
Zack Chakonis, Don Bosco (R2), vs. Ralph Normandia, Franklin (R5)

285 pounds

Kevin Wilkins, St. Joseph-Montvale (R2), vs. Jeff Miller, Camden Catholic (R7)
Alex Thompson, Haddon Heights (R7), vs. John Appice, Manalapan (R6)

Wrestling: Winning is the thing for HWS title hopefuls

The first two rounds of the 80th New Jersey State Wrestling Championships are in the books. As usual, it's all a blur with eight mats going non-stop on Friday night at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City.

Delaware Valley's Mike Pongracz, Hunterdon Central's Gary Dinmore and Voorhees' Jadaen Bernstein all marched into the quarterfinals on Saturday at noon, while High Point moved three of its four -- Mike Derin, Jason Gaccione and Kyle Stoll -- into the final eight at their respective weights.

The tournament resumes at 10 a.m. on Saturday with the first round of wrestlebacks (Friday night losers) followed by the quarterfinals and another round of wrestlebacks at noon. The third round of wrestlebacks are slated for 5 p.m., with the semifinals and fourth round of wrestlebacks to follow at 7 p.m.

Perhaps the most impressive first-round performance was turned in by Newton's Josh Sibblies, who decked Franklin's Kurtis Hewitt in 1:19. Sibblies (35-4), the Region 1 champion in his first AC appearance, converted the opening takedown, before trapping Hewitt's arm across his back and working the Somerset County wrestler over for the quick fall.

Here's a recap of what else went down involving Open Mike area wrestlers. There are 11 area wrestlers alive in the quarterfinals, with 19 dropping into the wrestlebacks with a chance to finish as high as third place. New this year is that first-round losers are still eligible to wrestle.

One tough Terrier

Pongracz had to work a little harder than expected for his 4-3 win over Williamstown's Anthony Racobaldo.

Pongracz (32-0) escaped and converted a takedown off a dump with 35 seconds left in the second period to erase a 2-0 deficit. Pongracz, now 145-14 overall, cut Racobaldo (37-5) loose late in the third to cap the scoring.

“He took me down in the first period and I knew I needed to get those points back,” said Pongracz, a senior, who gave up the first two points off a low-single shot with 20 seconds left in the first period. “I just needed to hold him down and ride tough on top.”

That’s exactly what Pongracz, a tough leg rider, is known for. Surprisingly, Racobaldo took bottom to start the third down, 3-2, considering he got the first takedown early in the bout.

“I thought he was going to take neutral,” said Pongracz, who finished eighth as a sophomore and fifth a year ago. “I was relieved.”

Pongracz, who is at a killer weight class, will face South Plainfield’s Corey Stasenko (sixth at 145 last year) in the quarterfinals. The Del Val wrestler is looking to become his school’s first winner since Dan Kelly in 2007.

Man with a plan

Dinmore, a runner-up at 132 pounds last year, built a 12-0 lead before decking West Orange’s George Luis Terrero in 2:57 at 138 pounds. Dinmore (34-0), a three-time Region 5 champion, has taken a different approach in his third trip to AC as one of the favorites to make the finals.

Hardly anyone is giving Dinmore a chance in the rematch with three-time champion Anthony Ashnault of South Plainfield, who beat Dinmore, 5-2, in last year’s 132-pound final. Ashnault (38-0) ran his career mark to 167-0 with a technical fall win in the pre-quarters.

“I’m not as [unknown here] as I was before,” said Dinmore, now 93-11 for his career and will face Jackson Memorial’s Brian Hamann in the quarterfinals. “It makes me wrestle every match like it’s my last one, like it’s the greatest match ever. I have more of an idea what to do. I have a goal -- to win the whole thing.”

Dinmore’s win was the lone bright spot for Central, which saw five of its six qualifiers fall on the night. Dylan Nace (126), Collin Boylan (132), Tim Higginson (145), Tyler Cote (160) and David Fenton (170) all fell into the wrestlebacks, which begin at 10 on Saturday morning.

Victorious Viking

Bernstein, a runner-up at 160 in 2011 and seventh last year at that weight, is on the other side. The Voorhees senior is a consensus favorite to win this year’s 170-pound title. He opened his third and final state tournament in dominating fashion -- a 12-3 major of Lacey’s Luke Fernandez. Bernstein (40-0) is looking to become the Hunterdon County school’s fifth state champ and first since John Brienza won the 130-pound title in 1998.

“I knew [Fernandez] was a tough kid and he had a good shot [for takedowns],” said a fired-up Bernstein, who will meet Watchung Hills’ Mike Carroccia in the quarters. “I just had to take that away and dominate. I’m feeling good -- and doing everything possible to win a state title.”

Lion with heart

Pomrinca (37-3) continued his amazing run of overtime wins and knocking off fellow state placewinners with a 3-2 decision in the ultimate tiebreaker over Marc Mastropietro of Hasbrouck Heights/Wood-Ridge at 120 pounds. Pomrinca, who defeated Mastropietro, 4-3, on a last-second takedown for seventh place last year at 113, finished third at Region 5 with wins over two state medal winners in the wrestlebacks.

It’s not by design, but Pomrinca has stepped up his training for those OT situations during recent practice sessions. It’s paying off with big wins, as he escaped with 11 seconds left to advance to the quarterfinals for the second straight year.

“Either [teammate] Matt Moncourtois or someone else takes turns riding me for 30 seconds or I try to hold them down for 30 seconds,” said Pomrinca, now 76-8 overall. “My first match [a 1-0 decision over West Deptford’s Tyler Kaminski] I was a little nervous. After my match with Craig [Bound Brook’s De La Cruz] I definitely worked on getting out [on bottom].”

Back points

How about Warren Hills senior Joe Kratochvil? The senior, who was 5-20 as a freshman, moved into the quarterfinals with 6-5 win over Ridgewood's Joseph Oliva at 126 pounds. Earlier, Kratochvil posted a 5-3 win over Cherokee's D.J. Mele.

Kratochvil (33-6) will face Watchung Hills junior Mike Magaldo, a 2012 state champion, in the Round of 8.

Teammate Max Nauta made it two of three Blue Streaks in the quarters as the sophomore earned a 5-0 decision over Bridgewater-Raritan's Matt Noble at 113 pounds. Nauta draws Clifton's Jean DuBois in the quarters.

Phillipsburg's Jimmy Schuitema is the lone Stateliner still going in the winners' bracket and needed overtime to do it as he won a tight 6-4 match in sudden victory against South Brunswick's Jordan Pagano at 152. Schuitema earned a date with South Plainfield's Dylan Painton in the quarterfinals.

Brandon Paetzell (106), Anthony Johnson (132), Max Elling (138) and Jake Kocsis (160) are the P'burg wrestlers in the wrestlebacks. They are joined by High Point's Bobby McDonnell (220), Lenape Valley's Peter Lipari (120) and Matt Benvenuto (138), Kittatinny's Nick Romyns (145) and Kieran Gerrity (170), North Warren's Matt Ritchie (120), Pope John's Noa Merritt (285), Belvidere's J.B. Lawson (220) and Ryan Appleby (285) and Warren Hills' Andrew Pacheco (285).

Region numbers

Regions 3 advanced the most wrestlers to the quarterfinals with 20. Region 2 is next with 16. Region 5 has 15, Region 6 has 14 and Regions 7 and 8 each have 13. Region 1 is next-to-last with 12 and Region 4 has only 9 in the Round of 8.

Region 4 was tied with Region 3 (16) for the most quarterfinalists a year ago.

A unique occurrence at 182, where there is one wrestler from each of the eight regions in the quarters. Region 3 has all three left at 120.

Wrestling: Top eight medalists by weight class

Here are Open Mike's predictions for the top eight finishers at each of the 14 weight classes.

106 -- 1. Nick Suriano, Bergen Catholic; 2. Kyle Bierdumpfel, Don Bosco; 3. Michael Russo, Jackson Liberty; 4. Yasel Corporan, Perth Amboy; 5. Brandon Paetzell, Phillipsburg; 6. Ty Agaisse, Delbarton; 7. Zack Firestone, Clearview; 8. Patrick D'Arcy, Holy Spirit.

113 -- 1. Luis Gonzalez, Don Bosco; 2. Kevin Corrigan, Toms River South; 3. Jean DuBois, Clifton; 4. Max Nauta, Warren Hills; 5. Bryan Damon, Jefferson; 6. A.J. Vindici, Randolph; 7. Nick Farro Delbarton; 8. Michael Russo, St. Peter's Prep.

120 -- 1. Brenden Calas, Seton Hall Prep; 2. Jon Mele, Governor Livingston; 3. Christian Innarella, Delbarton; 4. Craig De La Cruz, Bound Brook; 5. Marc Mastropietro, Hasbrouck Heights/Wood-Ridge; 6. Robert Trombetta, Nutley; 7. Ryan Pomrinca, North Hunterdon; 8. Sal Profaci, Monroe.

126 -- 1. Anthony Giraldo, North Bergen; 2. Corey Stasenko, South Plainfield; 3. Mike Magaldo, Watchung Hills; 4. Mike Pongracz, Delaware Valley; 5. David McFadden, DePaul; 6. Joseph Oliva, Ridgewood; 7. Joe Kratochvil, Warren Hills; 8. Billy Ward, Buena.

132 -- 1. Scott DelVecchio, South Plainfield; 2. Jason Estevez, Livingston; 3. Ron Gentile, Paulsboro; 4. Nick Anderson, Delbarton; 5. Mike Derin, High Point; 6. Zach Hertling, Ocean Township; 7. Ben Esposito, Howell; 8. Connor Burkert, St. Peter's Prep.

138 -- 1. Anthony Ashnault, South Plainfield; 2. Gary Dinmore, Hunterdon Central; 3. Brandon Keller, Timber Creek; 4. Richard Lewis, Toms River East; 5. Brian Hamann, Jackson Memorial; 6. Brian McCrystal, Bishop Ahr; 7. Ryan Burkert, St. Peter's Prep; 8. Alec Donovan, Brick Memorial.

145 -- 1. B.J. Clagon, Toms River South; 2. T.J. Miller, Camden Catholic; 3. Troy Heilmann, South Plainfield; 4. Maaziah Bethea, Trenton Central; 5. John Van Brill, Clearview; 6. Spencer Young, Jackson Memorial; 7. Jason Gaccione, High Point; 8. Rhys Weinberger, Hillsborough.

152 -- 1. Chad Walsh, Camden Catholic; 2. Nick Gravina, Northern Highlands; 3. Jimmy Schuitema, Phillipsburg; 4. Wayne Stinson, Northern Burlington; 5. Dylan Painton, South Plainfield; 6. Colin Barber, Westfield; 7. Dom Ruggierrio, Timber Creek; 8. Jordan Pagano, South Brunswick.

160 -- 1. Dillon Artigliere, Roxbury; 2. Jonathan Schleifer, East Brunswick; 3. Josef Johnson, Delbarton; 4. John Balboni, Brearley/Dayton; 5. Connor Donahue, Clearview; 6. Bryce Shade, Timber Creek; 7. Sonnieboy Blanco, Burlington City; 8. Sam Button, Mendham.

170 -- 1. Jadaen Bernstein, Voorhees; 2. Ethan Ramos, Hawthorne; 3. Joey Balboni, Brearley/Dayton; 4. Mike Carroccia, Watchung Hills; 5. Parker Meytrott, Montville; 6. Dylan Dobzanski, Delsea; 7. Kieran Gerrity, Kittatinny; 8. Dae'Sean Brown, Neptune.

182 -- 1. Johnny Sebastian, Bergen Catholic; 2. Josh Sibblies, Newton; 3. Nick DePalma, DePaul; 4. Nick Zak, Jackson Liberty; 5. Brian Bulger, Westfield; 6. Kurtis Hewitt, Franklin; 7. Ali Yildiz, South Brunswick; 8. Phillip Azzari, Haddon Heights.

195 -- 1. Anthony Messner, Franklin; 2. Razohnn Gross, Don Bosco; 3. Matt Moore, Brick Memorial; 4. Rory Bonner, West Deptford; 5. Shane Haddad, Governor Livingston; 6. Michael Oxley, Christian Brothers Academy; 7. Ken Bradley, Jackson Memorial; 8. Kyle Stoll, High Point.

220 -- 1. Bryan Dobzanski, Delsea; 2. Zack Chakonis, Don Bosco; 3. Ralph Normandia, Franklin; 4. Mauro Correnti, Holy Cross; 5. Vin Cordasco, Cedar Grove; 6. J.B. Lawson, Belvidere; 7. Christian Jenco, Bergen Catholic; 8. Robbie Maggiulli, Emerson-Park Ridge.

285 -- 1. Alex Thompson, Haddon Heights; 2. Kevin Wilkins, St. Joseph-Montvale; 3. John Appice, Manalapan; 4. Anthony Tufaro, Scotch-Plains Fanwood; 5. Andrew Pacheco, Warren Hills; 6. Carmine Goldsack, Bergen Catholic; 7. Stephen Johnson, Bound Brook; 8. Roy Lucas, St. Joseph-Hammonton.