Campbell, Wagner capture titles at Mt. Olive Invitational
By: Rudy Brandl
The Hillsborough High wrestling team spent a long but productive Saturday at the Mount Olive Tournament.
After nearly 12 hours of wrestling and a long round-trip bus ride, the Raiders returned home with two individual champions and six medal winners in all. Senior 145-pounder Matt Campbell and junior 125-pounder Jared Wagner captured titles, while sophomore 103-pounder Andrew Gewain and junior 112-pounder Randy Van Cleef finished second. Junior Dan Miller (160) and freshman Mark Amerman (215) fought back to take third place.
"I was very happy with the first-time showing," Raider head coach Steve Molinaro said. "A lot of the guys did a nice job, but we still need to be in a little better condition."
Molinaro couldn’t complain about the conditioning of his two champions, especially considering that both joined the team late after helping the HHS football team win the sectional title.
Campbell and Wagner swept through their weight classes, each registering one pin and going the distance twice. So much for the football hangover effect.
Campbell, who opened many eyes during a stellar 19-3 campaign that included his first District 18 title, wanted to make sure the late start didn’t stand in the way of his lofty goals for his senior season.
"I had to come out strong and prove myself again," Campbell said. "I wanted to show that’s the type of wrestler I am. I had to show people that I didn’t just have one good year."
Campbell came out so strong that he earned Outstanding Wrestler honors after the tournament. He certainly deserved it, especially after completely dismantling North Warren’s Greg Tierney in a 13-4 major decision in the finals. Tierney is a reigning Region 1 champion.
"It was like 8:30 when we started wrestling the finals, so I knew he had to be tired," Campbell said. "I just went out there and tried to wear him down. He’s a well-respected wrestler, so I knew I couldn’t just muscle him."
Campbell took the early lead with a takedown and exchanged reversals for a 4-2 lead at the end of the first period. Campbell took over from there, building a 10-2 advantage before Tierney scored again.
Wagner became Hillsborough’s first champion of the night when he posted a 12-8 decision over Mount Olive’s Andrew Smith. Wagner, who was still knocking down passes in the Raider defensive secondary two weeks ago, made a winning return to the mat.
"Jared never stops wrestling," Molinaro said. "He won his semifinal and final matches mainly on that aspect. He just kept attacking and he wrestled really smart."
Wagner opened the tournament by scoring an 11-7 win over Perth Amboy’s Maverick Fredericks and pinning Trevor Stanley of Bernards in 1:32.
The Raiders sent two other wrestlers to the finals before Wagner and Campbell. Gewain and Van Cleef, who should give the Raiders a great start in dual meets, settled for second place after tight losses in the final round.
Gewain found himself in a tough 103-pound class but disposed of Madison’s Brian Pincus and Jefferson’s Dave Ciaburri by 6-0 and 9-3 scores, respectively. The HHS sophomore met a familiar foe in Perth Amboy’s Mike Rodriguez in the finals, where one takedown made the difference in a 3-1 decision. Rodriguez avenged an overtime loss to Gewain in last year’s Region 5 Tournament.
"It was one of those matches that could’ve gone either way," Molinaro said. "Both kids are tough."
Van Cleef was looking to continue the momentum he started late last season when he qualified for the regions. After receiving a bye and dominating Rick Magdy of Parsippany Hills in a 14-5 major, Van Cleef dropped a close 7-4 decision to Mount Olive’s Sean Santella.
"He looked real tough," Molinaro said. "He was smooth on his feet and he was pretty tough with the single series."
Molinaro was equally impressed with his two third-place finishers. Miller fought back after a tough 7-6 loss to Perth Amboy’s Andre Rivera, beating Frank Barber of Piscataway (7-2) and Will Kise of North Warren (4-0). Miller made some nice adjustments and looked very polished in his shutout victory for third place.
Amerman showed the same brand of toughness and intensity he displayed in the football trenches. Most freshmen aren’t competitive in the upper weights, but Hillsborough’s 215-pounder looked like a real contender in his first high school tournament.
"He’s an animal," Molinaro said. "He’s got such a high level of aggression and he’ll be a force to be reckoned with. It was unbelievable the way he threw this one kid around."
Amerman pinned Karl Zwick of Bayley-Ellard in 2:16 but got caught by Jefferson star and eventual champ Tim Klemm in 55 seconds. After receiving a forfeit in the first wrestle-back round, Amerman flattened Piscataway’s Talon Morrison for third place. The freshman 215-pounder was the only HHS wrestler to pin two opponents Saturday.
Six of Hillsborough’s 11 varsity competitors returned home with medals. Sophomore heavyweight Antonio D’Amelio was the only other Raider to notch a victory, pinning Bayley-Ellard’s Mike Billia in 2:35. Freshmen Griff Campbell (119) and Pat Jastrzebski (135) and juniors Justin Malyar (152) and Neal Maloney (171) also competed.