Brick Memorial's Mike Kiley (green) battles with Toms River East's Brian Sternleib at 171 pounds. Kiley won, 7-5, to advance to the semifinals.
Jackson's Zach Huxford (black) looks for an opening against Brick Memorial's DJ Santos at 112 pounds. Huxford advanced to the semifinals with an 8-1 decision.
*Click here for highlights from Mat 1*
*Click here for highlights from Mat 2*
*Click here for highlights from Mat 3*
*Click here for highlights from Mat 4*
By Bob Badders - Senior Staff Writer
TOMS RIVER -- John Morano as the No. 7 seed? What the heck is going on?
That was the question many asked after the seeds for the 125-pound weight class for the NJSIAA Region VI Tournament were announced. Despite owning a 34-1 record (his only loss came in a dual with Blair Academy, the No. 1 team in the nation) and being picked by some to win the region title, criteria seeding had Morano down at No. 7, where he had to tangle with No. 2 and undefeated Jordan Beverly of Point Boro in the quarterfinals. An already tough road just got a whole lot tougher.
Morano's brutal early-round matchup, however, may turn out to be a blessing in disguise. By knocking off Beverly, 7-4, Morano has gained valuable momentum heading into his semifinal bout with Wall's Frank Labrusciano on Saturday while eliminating a wrestler who was also picked by many to be a region champion.
The bout of the evening was scoreless after the first period and Morano elected to take bottom to start the second period. He escaped, but Beverly was able to get in a single and finish Morano off with an ankle pick to take a 2-1 lead going into the third. Beverly chose bottom to start the third and escaped for a 3-1 advantage. Morano was able to tie the score with a double-leg takedown but cut the Panthers sophomore loose with over a minute remaining. The two battled back and forth with Morano nearly securing a takedown on the edge before the officials blew the whistle for Morano stepping out of bounds. With four seconds on the clock, however, Morano got in deep on another double leg and took Beverly to his back. He also recorded two near-fall points to win 7-4 and hand Beverly (36-1) his first loss of the season.
The other side of the 125-pound bracket features Jackson's Derrik Russell and Raritan's Cody Mooney. Russell won by major decision over Pinelands Matt Thorn while Mooney pinned Matawan's Cesare Antista.
That was not the only deep weight class to produce an exciting bout on Friday night. At 152 pounds, Long Branch sophomore Nick Visicaro and Toms River East junior Justin Molzon squared off in a rematch from a bout that Visicaro won in the Hawk Classic, 3-2. On Friday, Visicaro won by the same score in a similar bout to advance to the semifinals. After a scoreless first period, Molzon chose bottom to start the second and was able to escape to go up 1-0. Visicaro came back with a clean double-leg takedown that he finished down around Molzon's ankles to take a 2-1 lead. Molzon got out again to tie the score at two heading into the third period. He then cut Visicaro loose but was unable to take him down as the Green Wave sophomore held on for a 3-2 decision.
"I really think it is," said Visicaro when asked if advancing to the semifinals of this deep weight class was an accomplishment in and of itself. "No matter what the score, moving on is what matters now."
Visicaro was not surprised Molzon elected to cut him loose and wrestle on his feet.
"He was going to have to let me go eventually because I wasn't going to let him turn me," Visicaro said.
Next up for Visicaro in the semifinals is the top seed and returning state champion Nick Menditto of Ocean. One of Visicaro's three losses came at the hands of Menditto, but the sophomore was able to take the Spartans senior to triple overtime before falling, 4-1.
"I feel real confident," Visicaro said. "Even though he's a state champ I think I can wrestle well and get a couple of takedowns. You can't go in thinking you're going to lose, you'll just make mistakes. Anything can happen."
Another wrestler who has to go up against a returning state champion is Christian Brothers Academy senior Joe Favia. After defeating St. John Vianney's Tom Kevlin, 2-0, at 160 pounds, Favia gets the unenviable task of drawing Jackson's Scott Winston in the semifinals. To get there, he used his skills from the top position to ride Kevlin out for the entire second period. Working from the defensive position to begin the third, Favia scored a quick reversal and held down Kevlin for the remainder of the bout to improve to 34-2.
"I knew he was a tough kid, I've watched him wrestle a few times and I went out confident, knew my stuff would work and it paid off," Favia said. "Riding out is a big part of the game here so to ride someone out for two whole periods when the score is that close is important."
Being so close to a trip to Atlantic City for the state tournament has Favia feeling great, but he isn't about to settle even though he is facing a wrestler who is undefeated for his high school career.
"Getting to AC is a big goal of mine but a bigger one is to win the tournament," Favia said. "I'm going in with no fear. I have nothing to lose and no one expects me to win, but I expect myself to win. I'm ready for a bloodbath. That's what it's going to take to beat a kid like that."
At 171 pounds, Brick Memorial junior Mike Kiley scored a takedown with seven seconds left to give him a 7-5 decision over Toms River East's Brian Sternleib. Also on Mat 1, Mustangs sophomore Billy Miller got an escape and a takedown in the third period to take a 3-1 lead over Colts Neck's Jarrod Burge on his way to a 7-3 decision at 189. In total, Brick Memorial advanced nine wrestlers to the semifinals round, including Kiley and Miller, Mike Morales (119), Don Miller (135), Karon Reid (140), Steve Santos (145), Chris Giannios (152), Cody Oliverio (160) and Kevin Docherty (215).
Long Branch was second with seven wrestlers in the semifinals. In addition to Visicaro, Scott Festejo (119), Ray Stathum (130), Justin Clarke (135), Jon Robertson (140) and Ameer Washington (HWT) are still in contention for a region title. Jackson has six wrestlers going to the semis in Tyler Biscaha (103), Zach Huxford (112), BJ Young (119), Russell (125), Sean Byrnes (145) and Winston (160).
Some other bouts of note include Ocean's Mike Berardesco defeating Freehold Township's Gene Accardi, 3-0, at 112. Accardi was the No. 2 seed and a returning state place-winner. Ocean's Zac Coulas advanced via a bye to the semifinals after the 130-pound bracket had to be re-seeded because Howell's Cody Fobes had to drop out. A very unfortunate scenario saw the Rebels senior, who took second in the state last season at 125, come down with an illness that prevented him from wrestling.
The 135-pound weight class had a pair of mild upsets as Colts Neck's Jimmy Somma (No. 4 seed) got revenge on Manalapan's Ryan McGilvray (No. 5 seed) via a 6-2 decision. McGilvray had defeated Somma to win the District 21 title but the Cougars sophomore snapped a 1-1 tie by taking McGilvray to his back in the third period. Also, Southern's Nick Maugeri, who was seeded sixth, scored a 3-1 decision over third-seeded Matt Nobbs of Point Boro. Maugeri will wrestle second-seeded Justin Clarke of Long Branch while Somma gets Miller.
There were no upsets at 145, and that's a good thing as far as fans are concerned. The semifinals in this weight class should be spectacular as Santos and Ocean's Andrew Van Dyk will square off in one semifinal while Byrnes and Pinelands' Rob Semprevivo will battle in the other.
The top four seeds all advanced at 152, 160 and 189, while Kiley as the fifth seed at 171 was the only underdog to win. Southern's Glen Carson has the 215-pound title on lockdown, but he was the only higher seed to win as the door opened for a few other wrestlers to claim a trip to AC. Seventh-seeded Josh Davis of Freehold beat No. 2 Tim Tomaino of Middletown South, 11-6, while Docherty (No. 6) outlasted third-seeded Ricky Lyster of Ocean. Also, Wall's Dave Janssen edged Toms River North's Curtis Kelly, 3-2.
Heavyweight went mostly according to the seeds as well, as Howell's Harry Turner, Manchester's Jimmy Lawson and Long Branch's Ameer Washington all advanced. Toms River North's John Cassidy won his second overtime bout in the Region VI Tournament, defeating Keansburg's Rich Roser, 2-1, in triple overtime.
Action resumes and concludes today with the semifinals and first round of wrestlebacks on three mats starting at 9 a.m. Wrestlebacks will continue on three mats through the consolation finals, which are scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. The gym will be cleared and broken down to one mat for the finals, which are slated to begin at 5 p.m.
Results
103
Charlie Frankel (Marlboro) by forfeit
Tyler Biscaha (Jackson) tf. Christian Lippai (Pinelands) 15-0
Kyle Casaletto (Lacey) p. Dylan Baldwin (Middletown North) 2:40
Sean Brand (Point Boro) d. Kyle McNulty (TR North) 3-1
Semifinal matchups
#1 (Sr) Charlie Frankel - Marlboro (33-2) vs. #4 (So) Sean Brand - Point Boro (32-6)
#3 (Jr) Tyler Biscaha - (30-3) vs. #6 (Fr) Kyle Casaletto - Lacey (35-4)
112
Joey Langel (Howell) tf. Taylor Smith (Raritan) 18-3
Mike Berardesco (Ocean) d. Gene Accardi (Freehold Township) 3-0
Zach Huxford (Jackson) d. DJ Santos (Brick Memorial) 8-1
Mark Maestry (TR South) p. John Palsi (Point Beach) 5:51
Semifinal matchups
#1 (Sr) Joey Langel - Howell (36-1) vs. #4 (Jr) Zach Huxford - Jackson (23-3)
#7 (Sr) Mike Berardesco - Ocean (29-7) vs. #3 (Jr) Mark Maestry - TR South (31-2)
119
Vinnie DellaFave (TR East) md. Jay Tracy (CBA) 12-4
BJ Young (Jackson) d. Mike Tabasco (Freehold Township) 8-6
Mike Morales (Brick Memorial) d. Mike Maestry (TR South) 7-1
Scott Festejo (Long Branch) d. Chris VanFechtman (Raritan) 9-7
Semifinal matchups
#1 (Jr) Vinnie DelleFave - TR East (37-0) vs. #4 (So) Scott Festejo - Long Branch (31-6)
#2 (So) BJ Young - Jackson (26-7) vs. #3 (So) Mike Morales - Brick Memorial (32-2)
125
Derrik Russell (Jackson) md. Matt Thorn (Pinelands) 12-0
John Morano (TR North) d. Jordan Beverly (Point Boro) 7-4
Frank Labrusciano (Wall) d. J.P. Palandrano (Ocean) 7-0
Cody Mooney (Raritan) p. Cesare Antista (Matawan) 1:58
Semifinal matchups
#1 (Jr) Derrik Russell - Jackson (26-3) vs. #5 (Jr) Cody Mooney - Raritan (26-9)
#7 (Jr) John Morano - TR North (35-1) vs. #3 (Jr) Frank Labrusciano - Wall (34-5)
130
Zac Coulas (Ocean) by forfeit
Johnny Short (Matawan) d. Jason Walters (Southern) 3-2
Ray Stathum (Long Branch) d. Chris Fraley (Colts Neck) 5-4
Mike Tancredi (Wall) d. Chris Boyle (Manchester) 5-1
Semifinal matchups
#1 (Sr) Zac Coulas - Ocean (32-4) vs. #5 (So) Johnny Short - Matawan (35-4)
#2 (Jr) Mike Tancredi - Wall (33-5) vs. #3 (Sr) Ray Stathum - Long Branch (33-5)
135
Don Miller (Brick Memorial) d. Cory Sellers (Monmouth) 12-5
Jimmy Somma (Colts Neck) d. Ryan McGilvray (Manalapan) 6-2
Nick Maugeri (Southern) d. Matt Nobbs (Point Boro) 3-1
Justin Clarke (Long Branch) d. Doug Hamann (Jackson) 5-0
Semifinal matchups
#1 (Sr) Don Miller - Brick Memorial (27-7) vs. #5 (Sr) Jimmy Somma - Colts Neck (35-4)
#2 (Jr) Justin Clarke - Long Branch (31-5) vs. #6 (Sr) Nick Maugeri - Southern (15-3)
140
Jon Robertson (Long Branch) d. Tyler Walengewicz (Point Beach) 11-5
Karon Reid (Brick Memorial) md. Garret Lavaggi (Central) 11-3
Matt Frank (TR East) d. Charlie Croce (Middletown South) 6-2
Bob Hornacek (Raritan) d. Tyler Wilton (Jackson) 1-0
Semifinal matchups
#1 (Jr) Jon Robertson - Long Branch (35-2) vs. #5 (Sr) Bob Hornacek - Raritan (30-6)
#2 (Sr) Karon Reid - Brick Memorial (30-5) vs. #3 (Sr) Matt Frank - TR East (37-0)
145Sean Byrnes (Jackson) md. Jesse Holzhauer (Howell) 13-0
Andrew Van Dyk (Ocean) p. Dylan Meade (CBA) 2:50
Steve Santos (Brick Memorial) p. Doug Cornell (Long Branch) 1:59
Rob Semprevivo (Pinelands) d. Franklin Miele (Southern) 6-3
Semifinal matchups
#1 (Sr) Sean Byrnes - Jackson Memorial (34-1) vs. #4 (Sr) Rob Semprevivo - Pinelands (33-6)
#2 (Jr) Steve Santos - Brick Memorial (37-1) vs. #3 (Sr) Andrew Van Dyk - Ocean (32-4)
152
Nick Menditto (Ocean) tf. Ryan Fry (Freehold Township) 15-0
Nick Visicaro (Long Branch) d. Justin Molzon (TR East) 3-2
Chris Giannos (Brick Memorial) tf. Dan Staples (Neptune) 15-0
Brian Broderick (Southern) d. Kyle Grimes (CBA) 4-0
Semifinal matchups
#1 (Sr) Nick Menditto - Ocean (34-2) vs. #4 (So) Nick Visicaro - Long Branch (35-3)
#2 (Jr) Brian Broderick - Southern (27-7) vs. #3 (Sr) Chris Giannios - Brick Memorial (32-4)
160
Scott Winston (Jackson) tf. Manny Jorge (Southern) 26-11
Cody Oliverio (Brick Memorial) d. Mark DeRouville (TR North) 6-3
Jason Ecklof (Howell) d. Anthony Sherman (TR East) 3-2
Joe Favia (CBA) d. Tom Kevlin (St. John Vianney) 2-0.
Semifinal matchups
#1 (Sr) Scott Winston - Jackson (30-0) vs. #4 (Sr) Joe Favia - CBA (34-2)
#2 (Sr) Jason Ecklof - Howell (29-4) vs. #3 (Sr) Cody Oliverio - Brick Memorial (26-7)
171
Dan Seidenberg (Raritan) tf. Mike Kevlin (St. John Vianney) 16-1
Mike Kiley (Brick Memorial) d. Bryan Sternleib (TR East) 7-5
Justin Persico (Middletown North) p. Mike Schumann (TR South) 2:36
Skylar Engelken (Point Boro) d. Aaron Williams (Southern) 8-6
Semifinal matcups
#1 (Jr) Dan Seidenberg - Raritan (34-0) vs. #5 (Jr) Mike Kiley - Brick Memorial (30-7)
#2 (Sr) Skylar Engelken - Point Boro (38-0) vs. #3 (Sr) Justin Persico - Middletown North (33-5)
189
Brian Newman (TR North) md. Joe Birmingham (TR South) 14-2
John Battista (Brick Twp) p. Mike Fish (Middletown North) 5:57
Billy Miller (Brick Memorial) d. Jarrod Burdge (Colts Neck) 7-4
Billy George (Long Branch) d. Ted Callis (CBA) 3-2
Semifinal matchups
#1 (Jr) Brian Newman - TR North (28-5) vs. #4 (So) Billy Miller - Brick Memorial (24-8)
#2 (So) Billy George - Long Branch (33-5) vs. #3 (Sr) John Battista - Brick (26-4)
215
Glen Carson (Southern) p. Justin Georgiano (Jackson) 1:01
Josh Davis (Freehold) d. Tim Tomaino (Middletown South) 11-6
Dave Janssen (Wall) d. Curtis Kelly (TR North) 3-2
Kevin Docherty (Brick Memorial) d. Ricky Lyster (Ocean) 6-5 (4OT)
Semifinal matchups
#1 (Jr) Glen Carson - Southern (34-1) vs. #5 (Jr) Dave Janssen - Wall (26-5)
#7 (So) Josh Davis - Freehold (29-3) vs. #6 (Sr) Kevin Docherty - Brick Memorial (24-12)
Hwt
Harry Turner (Howell) p. John Pawin (Brick Memorial) 4:25
Jimmy Lawson (Matawan) injury default over Greg Velasco (Keyport)
John Cassidy (TR North) d. Rich Roser (Keansburg) 2-1 (3OT)
Ameer Washington (Long Branch) d. Louis Brown (Lakewood) 6-3
Semifinal matchups
#1 (Sr) Harry Turner - Howell (37-0) vs. #5 (Sr) John Cassidy - TR North (21-5)
#2 (So) Jimmy Lawson - Manchester (32-2) vs. #3 (Jr) Ameer Washington - Long Branch (34-4)
E-mail:
badders@digitalsports.com