Rebels, Braves dominate all-district wrestling team
Cunliffes, Hilt, Gaeta, Manochio head squad
JERRY WOLKOWITZ Manalapan’s Brenden Provow, shown here escaping from the grasps of Howell’s Matt Metta, was one of the main reasons the Braves enjoyed such success on the mats this season. Provow earned himself a spot on the All-District Wrestling Team.
The Freehold district’s powerhouses, Howell and Manalapan, again dominated the wrestling scene. They battled for the Shore Conference A North Division title (won by Howell), met for a second time in the state playoffs (won by Manalapan), and were ranked in the top 20 in the state all year.
Until losing in the Shore Conference Tournament semifinals, Howell was top-ranked in the Shore. Manalapan began the season winning the Neptune Classic.
Between them they produced three state place-winners: Zac Cunliffe (119) of Howell, and Nick Manochio (103) and Dan Hilt (112) of Manalapan.
While the Rebels and Braves were ruling, Marlboro quietly had its finest season ever, winning 13 matches, and produced a District 21 champion.
As would be expected, Manalapan and Howell dominate the News Transcript’s 2002 All-Freehold District Wrestling Team.
Joining Cunliffe, Manochio and Hilt on the team are Manalapan’s Sean Burns (130), Mike Gaeta (140), Brenden Provow (145) and Evan Sliwoski (215). From Howell come Rod Cunliffe (125), Matt Ingrassia (152), Scott Kirk (160) and Brian Farrington (189). Representing Marlboro are Randy Frankel (135) and Evan Weiner (heavyweight). Rounding out the team is Colts Neck’s Chris Stoop (171).
Even with the luck-of-the-draw approach to dual meets, where the starting weight class was drawn out of a hat, Manochio and Hilt were as good as it gets as a one-two punch. In fact, they did not lose a single dual-meet match all year. That’s how dependable they were.
The junior Hilt matched and surpassed his sophomore season, where he was a state place-winner. He repeated as Neptune Classic, District 21 and Region VI champion, and at the state championships in Atlantic City he advanced to the semifinals before losing, then wrestled his way back to a third place. He was 34-2 on the season.
Manochio surprised everyone but Manalapan, which had seen how good he was in 2001 when he was wrestling against Hilt every day in practice. Hilt wrestled 103 last year, and that kept Manochio on the sidelines. The sophomore bided his time, and when he got his chance, was astonishing this year. He went undefeated until the quarterfinals of the state championships. He won preseason tournaments at Neptune and Hunterdon Central and captured his first District 21 and Region VI titles. He did not shrink before the pressure of the state championships in his first appearance as he finished fourth. For the season, he was 35-2.
Cunliffe has done everything he could in high school wrestling save win the state title. As a junior, he still has the opportunity to do that. He was marvelous again in 2001-02. He won Neptune (where he was Most Outstan-ding Wrestler) and Westfield for the third time, was perfect in the regular season, and won his third straight District 21 title and second straight Region VI crown.
He was seeded third at the state championships and that is where he finished, but it was the way he finished third that says all you need to know about his talent and pride. Cunliffe dropped his first match of the state finals, eliminating himself from a chance at the gold right from the start. It could have been enough to break many wrestlers, but Cunliffe would bounce back to win five straight matches over two days to finish third for the second straight year. With a fifth/sixth-place finish as a sophomore, he is a three-time state place-winner.
Along the way to his third-place finish, Cunliffe set the Howell and Freehold District career win marks. After three seasons, he has a 102-7 mark.
This year, Cunliffe had company in the family as a district champion. Older brother Rod Cunliffe won his first tournament title for the Rebels at 125, winning an exhausting overtime match from St. John Vianney’s Anthony Castro, who was undefeated at the time. That earned Rod Cunliffe Most Outstanding Wrestler honors. The Cunliffes were a very solid one-two punch all year for Howell as the Rebels pulled off an A North three-peat. Cunliffe, a senior, concluded his season with a 25-6 record.
After Manochio and Hilt at 103 and 112, the strength of the Braves was their talented middleweights.
Burns started it off for the Braves at 130. The junior won the Neptune Classic and finished second in District 21. He went on to reach the semifinals in the region. He was 25-5.
Gaeta, a junior, was as dependable as ever. He won his third-straight Neptune Classic in December and his third-straight district title in February. He finished second in Region VI and this year took the extra step, qualifying for Atlantic City at the Super Region wrestle-in. Gaeta’s season mark was 28-5.
Provow, another of Manalapan’s outstanding juniors, was Mr. Steady in the middle of the lineup, following Gaeta. Top seeded in District 21, he went out and backed it up, capturing his first district title after placing second as a sophomore. He advanced to the region semifinals and finished the year with a 24-5 record. He began his year with a Neptune Classic win that set him up for the rest of the season.
Sandwiched between the Braves’ trio is Marlboro’s Randy Frankel, who won the District 21 title from the third seed. One of Marlboro’s top wrestlers throughout the season (he was second at the Holmdel Christmas Tournament), Frankel pulled off two big upsets in winning his first District title, including an 8-3 decision over the No. 1 seed from Jackson, Adam Berking, 8-3. Frankel was 25-8.
Moving to the higher weights, you run into Howell’s formidable trio, Ingrassia, Kirk and Farrington, who were the backbone of the Rebels’ A North title drive. Senior Ingrassia was consistent throughout the season, starting off with second-place finishes in Neptune and Westfield. Dependable during the dual meet season, he won his second-straight district title and went on to finish second in Region VI and forge a 25-7 mark.
Kirk wrestled at 160 or 171, depending on where Howell needed him during the dual-meet season. He scored many clutch victories for the Rebels. A defending champion in District 21, he was seeded fifth this year, but that didn’t stop him from reaching the finals, where he lost on a disputed last-second takedown. He was 17-8 on the season. Injury prevented him from competing at the region tournament.
Farrington was troubled by injury early in the season, but it had little impact on his standing among district wrestlers. He was second at Neptune and Westfield and confirmed his ranking as the area’s best 189-pounder by winning the District 21 title. The junior finished the season 16-6.
Sandwiched between Howell’s upper-class standouts was Colts Neck’s Chris Stoop, who made school history, becoming the first Cougar to make the All-District First Team last year. Stoop repeated his performance in ’02 as he went 19-4 during the regular season and placed third at the district championships. He went 22-6.
Sliwoski moved back and forth from 189 and heavyweight in dual meets, but he really was a 215-pounder. He had the chance to prove himself at the district meet, where he backed up his top seeding by winning three straight matches by fall to claim the championship. He was 18-11.
In a wide-open weight class, Marlboro’s Evan Weiner seized his opportunity and was the district’s best heavyweight. He confirmed his solid 20 win regular season by reaching the District 21 final. The senior, who won the Icebreaker Tournament in December, reached the region semifinals and was 23-8 for the season.
Second Team All-District honors went to: Bret Frimer, Marlboro (103), third in the district; Jay Ucci, Howell (112), second in the district and region; Scott Beckerman, Manalapan (119), third in the district; Shawn Wilson, Freehold (125); Danny Sabba, Howell (130), third place in the district; Joe Anastasio, Manalapan, (135) third place in the district and fourth place in the region; Erik Nomikos, Howell (140), second place in the district; Joe Parisi, Marlboro (145), second place in the district; Matt Parisi, Colts Neck (152), second in the district; Dominick Lipariti, Manalapan (160), fourth in the district; Gary Mangarella, Freehold Borough (171), fourth in the district; Chris Rock, Manalapan (189), second in the district; John Yard, Howell (215), fourth in the district; and Matt Crowe, Colts Neck (heavyweight), third in the district.
Those earning honorable mention in 2002 were Howell’s John Reilly (103), Marlboro’s Brett Bzura (119), Freehold Borough’s Chris Iorio (135) and Marlboro’s Avery Ellis (152).