WRESTLING: The Falcons finished fourth overall, but captured individual titles in the 152- and 171-pound weight classes.
By: Neil Hay
Brian Kinsella and Keith O’Donnell each won an individual title as the Peddie School wrestling team hosted the state prep tournament last Saturday.
Peddie placed fourth place with 135 points. Blair Academy won another state championship, easily outdistancing the field with 285 points. Lawrenceville (166.5) and St. Benedict’s (150.5) claimed the next two spots.
Kinsella and O’Donnell combined for five wins to finish atop their respective weight class. Kinsella (32-4, 11 pins) won at 152 when he defeated Hun’s Mike Russo, 9-5, and Lawrenceville’s John Henry Flood, 7-3. O’Donnell (35-1, 23 pins) showed he was the state’s best 171-pounder when he pinned St. Ben’s Roger Sowell in 1:54, and Wardlaw-Hartridge’s Ken Beckett in 1:38. Then, in the finals, O’Donnell decisioned Blair’s Matt Maciag, 7-0.
Warren Clanton (30-9, 19 pins) had to settle for second place at 189 when he lost in finals, by a 10-1 major decision, to Blair’s Pete Mosley. Earlier Clanton pinned Pennington’s Brandon Stoneking (:58) and Hun’s Greg Roman (1:28).
Peddie wrestlers claimed four thirds. At 125 Dan Gollin (29-7, 20 pins) had three wins by pin: against Lawrenceville’s Mark Shkolnikov in 4:17, over Mark Hartman of Gill-St. Bernard’s in :57, and in :42 against Rutgers Prep’s Emil Crystal. Gollin’s lone setback was a 15-0, 2:56 T-fall loss to Blair’s Greg Romano.
Paul Stanton (23-15, 7 pins) won three matches, each in a different way, at 130. He blanked Lawrenceville’s Simon Hong 7-0, pinned Jim DuPont of Wardlaw-Hartridge in 3:56, and major-decisioned Robert Cheese of Rutgers Prep, 12-2. But Cory Copperman of Blair spoiled Stanton’s day with a :30 win by pin.
At 135 Sam Greene (15-20, 5 pins) gave Peddie third-place points with four wins in five bouts. Greene defeated St. Ben’s Naji Williams 5-2, Hun’s Scott Wong 4-1, Rutgers Prep’s Alan Reyes 12-6, and Williams again, 3-2. Only Gill-St. Bernard’s Justin Meininger was better, and just by a 3-2 score.
Another Peddie third went to Randall Totten, at 145. Totten (24-8, 16 pins) had falls in 1:56 (over Rutgers Prep’s Matt Santisi), :32 (Robert Katerman of Gill-St. Bernard’s), and 3:20 (Wardlaw-Hartridge’s James Kim). His only defeat was a 14-7 decision to Andrew Ciccone of Lawrenceville.
Jason Auletta took fourth place at 275. He had one win, a 1:00 pin of Hun’s Matt Yunque. Auletta also was pinned in 1:22 by Lawrenceville’s Brian Lyons, and defaulted to Blair’s Steve Mocco. At 103 Josh Dudick was pinned in his three matches, in 3:22 by Pennington’s Matt Rudnyansky, in :31 by Blair’s Jay Guiuicich, and in 5:02 by Lawrenceville’s Zach Goodman.
Dave Bascik (10-25, 5 pins) had one win in three matches at 119. His 3:48 pin of Billy Leahy of St. Ben’s was sandwiched by a 21-7 major decision loss to Blair’s John Stout and a 3:32 pin by Rutgers Prep’s Charles Cunnell.
Going at 140, Eric Bowes was pinned in 1:55 by Blair’s Zach Stevens, in 3:22 by Hun’s Louis Goldin, and in 2:45 by Trevor Sholly of Lawrenceville.
J.R. Fels, Peddie’s entry at 160, lost 13-8 to St. Ben’s Keith Kaufman, was pinned in :59 by Pennington’s Ryan Bennett and was decisioned 7-3 by Lawrenceville’s Seth Roncoroni.