HHS wrestling stars each win once at SuperRegions
By: Rudy Brandl
RED BANK Randy Van Cleef and Matt Campbell looked very sharp in their first trip to the state wrestling tournament.
Hillsborough High’s final two survivors of the rigorous Region 5 Tournament each won a bout at the SuperRegions in Red Bank to advance to the state championships at the Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford.
Van Cleef, the Region 5 champion at 112 pounds, was already guaranteed a spot in the Meadowlands but advanced to the winner’s bracket final eight with a pin of Somerville’s Jimmy Gattone in the pre-quarterfinals.
Campbell, who placed third in the region at 152, clinched a berth at the Arena when he pinned Brick Township’s Jim Sramovicz in the first round of the Supers but dropped a 4-2 decision to Mike Savino of Lawrence in the pre-quarters to land in the consolation bracket.
Van Cleef, making his first appearance at the state level, received the eighth seed and was pinned in 3:53 by top-ranked Matt Valenti of Kittatiny, who went on to win the state title. That loss sent Van Cleef to the consolation bracket, where he dropped a 9-4 wrestle-back bout to Westwood’s Joe Butcher.
Campbell reached the Meadowlands hoping to fight all the way back for third place. Although it would take five straight victories to accomplish that feat, Campbell knew that he had given some of the state’s best 152-pounders a run for their money this year so anything was possible.
Campbell couldn’t gain any momentum and was knocked out by a familiar 4-2 score in the first round of wrestle-backs by Roxbury’s Dave Sisto.
Van Cleef beat Gattone for the third time in 11 days in the second round of the Supers to stay in contention for a state title. The HHS junior took command right off the whistle and nearly caught Gattone but settled for a 4-0 lead. Van Cleef escaped early in the second for a 5-1 cushion and didn’t let up, converting his next takedown into a fall at 3:22.
"I went for a Russian tie and I just went for it," said Van Cleef, who continued his mastery of Gattone after two prior losses to the Somerville freshman. "It doesn’t usually work, but I decided to try it."
Van Cleef and Gattone were at the edge of the mat and the confident Raider overpowered him for the winning move.
"I’m more aggressive on my feet now," Van Cleef said. "The coaches have been working with me on that. I have to stay low and be tough on my feet."
Van Cleef did a great job countering Gattone’s deep shots. Gattone was able to take down Van Cleef the first three times they met, but not in the Region 5 semifinals or SuperRegions.
"When he shoots, I just try to get my leg out and keep control of his head," Van Cleef explained. "And if I’m near the edge, I try to get out of bounds."
Campbell dominated his first career SuperRegion bout, flattening Sramovicz at 5:52 after building a 5-0 lead. Campbell scored a double-leg takedown in the first period, rode out the second and gained a neutral and a takedown in the third before finishing the job with a cradle.
"That was a good match to get going," Campbell said. "I got the win and pinned him, so there’s not much more I can ask. It was great to get that first win and go to the Meadowlands. That’s the first step, but I still have a lot more work cut out for myself."
Campbell earned a rematch of his region semifinal loss to Savino, the eventual champ. Once again, Campbell came up two points short. Although he didn’t wrestle as well on his feet, Campbell was more dominant in the SuperRegion rematch.
Savino built a 4-1 lead with a pair of early takedowns, but Campbell controlled the rest of the match. The Raider senior couldn’t get anything going from his feet, so he elected to ride Savino in the third period and go for back points. Campbell and his coaches agreed this was the best strategy. There was no second-guessing in the HHS corner after the bout.
"They actually left it up to me," Campbell said. "I had to be real aggressive and try to get back points. I felt I had a better chance of riding him out. He just based out and didn’t let me do anything."
"We had to take a chance with Matt on top because he’s so strong on top," HHS head coach Steve Molinaro added. "He hadn’t taken him down the whole match, so we gave that a shot."
Campbell nearly turned Savino in the first 10 seconds of the final period. One official accidentally stopped the action because he thought his fellow referee was going to call a locked hands violation against Campbell. When the official waved off the ruling, the other blew the whistle just as Campbell was putting Savino in a dangerous position.
"It was close," Campbell said. "I almost caught myself locking, so I don’t blame the refs. It just so happens that I was turning him at the time."
Almost every scholastic wrestler ends his season with a loss at this time of year. Van Cleef and Campbell achieved a great deal as relative newcomers to this level of wrestling. Neither Raider had ever won 20 matches in a single season before this year. They certainly elevated their wrestling and made a memorable charge through state competition this winter.