O.B. flexes its muscles at Sayreville tri-match
Shuts out Sayreville
and South River
en route to 2-0 start
JEFF HUNTLEY South River’s Chris Wilson has control of Sayreville’s Brian Fitzgerald during their 125-pound match at Saturday’s tri-match in Sayreville. Fitzgerald came back to pin Wilson, helping Sayreville win the match 46-28.
The Old Bridge High School wrestling team started the season in dominating fashion by shutting out both Sayreville (75-0) and South River (73-0) in a tri-meet on Saturday.
Justin Smigelsky, who normally competes at 103 pounds, picked up a pair of wins at 112 pounds. Mike Mazur (103), Mike Carro (125), Rob Cook (135), Vinny Iodaci (130), Alex Batlle (140), Tony Rispoli (140), Kevin Quinlan (145), Wilhelm Keinhofer (152), Sal Iodaci (171), Aaron Suozzo (215), and Tiago Lucas (HW) each had two wins, including a pin apiece.
Smigelsky, Carro, Quinlan, Sal Iodaci and Ian Gorham, who did not wrestle in the meet, all won more than 20 matches last season. The Knights were 14-2 and finished third in the Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament. Old Bridge finished second in the NJSIAA Central Jersey Group IV tourney.
With a veteran lineup sprinkled with talented newcomers, Old Bridge Coach Ken Scott is "cautiously" optimistic about his team’s chances.
JEFF HUNTLEY Iuri Pinto of South River and Roger Jasiak of Sayreville face off during Saturday’s tri-match in Sayreville. Jasiak won the match with a pin at 5:49.
He noted that the GMC Red Division is especially tough with teams like South Plainfield, South Brunswick and an improved East Brunswick team, among others. And in CJ Group IV competition, teams like Hunterdon Central, last year’s champ, expect to be in the hunt.
"Half to two-thirds of our wrestlers have experience, many of them in big matches," Scott said. "We do have some new competitors, but they’re very talented."
Meanwhile, Sayreville picked up its first win in the other portion of the meet, downing South River 46-28. Eric Pampaloni (119), Brian Fitzgerald (125), Roger Jasiak (130), and Kenny Smith (189) and Nick Starace (HW) helped coach Lenny Zaleski’s Bombers to their first win with pins.
The Bombers have their work cut out for them this year, coming off a 7-8 season under Zaleski, now in his 23rd season. They are a fairly young team, with little varsity experience.
The team will look to senior James Mannion (HW), who was 18-6 last year, and Pamploni (10-10 last year) to offer leadership for this developing squad.
Jasiak, Bryan Jenkins and Smith also bring some experience to the mat and should chalk up some wins this year for the Bombers.
Sayreville will not have many easy matches, however, as they find themselves in the Greater Middlesex Conference’s White Division up against teams such as Bishop Ahr, Middlesex, North Brunswick, Woodbridge, and a Colonia team which is expected to be the class of the division after going 12-3 last year. The Patriots return a slew of starters from last year’s squad which put on a late-season run, carrying them through the district championships.
Sayreville will return to action tomorrow when they travel to East Brunswick to face the rejuvenated Bears. From there, they will prepare for next Wednesday’s Woodbridge Holiday Tournament and Thursday’s J.F. Kennedy Holiday Tournament. It will be a busy week for the Bombers, but one that could go a long way in helping them mature for the rest of the season.
As for the South River Rams, this could be a tough year for a squad which finished a surprising 16-3 last year, but will have to overcome some key losses to graduation.
Second-year Coach Ian Evanovich has a lot of holes to fill this season, particularly in the upper weight classes.
The Rams will be led by a handful of experienced wrestlers, particularly senior Rodney Thomas at 112 (18-11 last year), junior Steven Zdep at 140, junior Greg Mongelli at 145 (16-13 last year), and junior Pedro Mirasol (7-4 last year).
Evanovich will also look to junior Charlie Krieger at 171/89 (14-5 last year) and junior Danny Fodor at heavyweight (10-6 last year) to carry the load for the Rams, who should be a tougher team to beat as the year progresses.
During Saturday’s match against Sayreville, Thomas (forfeit), Zdep (4-1), Mongelli (major decision), Mirasol (6-4), Krieger (pin) and Fodor (pin) all registered wins in the team’s loss.
The Rams will face some fairly equal teams in the GMC Blue Division and could potentially compete with a J.F. Kennedy team, which is expected to be the class of the field. The majority of the teams in the division, including Monroe, Spotswood, St. Mary’s, Metuchen and Highland Park, are young and all working toward improving their programs.
The division race should be a tight one as the teams knock each other off throughout the season.
The Rams will return to the mat next Thursday at the J.F. Kennedy Tournament. From there, they will travel to Keyport on Jan. 3 and then to Highland Park on Jan. 5. Successful outings at both of those events will help to erase the sting of the Old Bridge and Sayreville losses this weekend for a young, but improving Rams squad.