Cards top Steinert in regular-season finale

Boys basketball

By: Mike Molaro
   Last Saturday’s 36-28 triumph was bittersweet for the Lawrence High School wrestling team.
   The Cardinals’ victory at Steinert in their regular-season finale clinched second place in the Colonial Division of the Colonial Valley Conference. But it also left the Cardinals (9-9 overall, 9-3 in the CVC) pondering what might have been.
   "The guys know what could’ve been," Lawrence coach Chris Lynne said as he wrestlers prepared for this weekend’s District 17 action at Hunterdon Central. "We could’ve won the Colonial Division. We had some inexperience in the beginning of the season and some complacency at the end."
   Lawrence dropped a 54-19 decision to Hamilton at home Saturday, the only setback Lynne feels the Cardinals should have suffered in the CVC.
   "Hamilton beat us, there’s no denying that," Lynne said. "The match against West Windsor-Plainsboro South could’ve gone either way, and I still believe we should’ve beaten Nottingham. The opportunity to win the division was there. We didn’t grab it."
   Pins by freshman Matt Friedeborn at 103 pounds (1:51), senior Dan Lookner at 189 (1:01) and sophomore Adam Oliszewski at 275 (2:28) highlighted the triumph over Steinert. The Cardinals received decisions from sophomore Matt Friedman at 112 (10-4), junior Mark Savino at 125 (7-0), junior Kyle Miller at 140 (11-4) and sophomore Andy Chalofsky at 145 (3-1).
   Sophomore Alex Parson won via forfeit at 160. Lookner, who will not be competing in the districts, finished his varsity career with a win against Steinert.
   Oliszewski, who earned his 20th victory of the year, clinched the win over Steinert and tied Mike Savino’s school record of 19 pins in a season. Oliszewski will look to set the record during District 17 competition.
   "Adam (Oliszewski) has been on an incredible roll," Lynne said. "He has been a human pining machine. It took Mike (Savino) 34 matches to get the 19 pins. Adam tied it (the record) in 20 (matches)."
   Against the Hornets, Oliszewski pinned in 5:05, Friedman earned a 15-0 technical fall at 103, Savino had a 3-1 decision at 130 and freshman Alex DeHart pinned in 3:00 at 112.
   "Things didn’t go our way in the match (against Hamilton)," Lynne said. "Dan (Lookner) had his man pinned for a good 10 seconds, but the referee got kicked in the mouth and didn’t see it. Dan eventually got pinned."
   The sixth-seeded Cardinals fell to third-seeded Wall 50-19 Feb. 20 in the Central Jersey Group III sectional quarterfinals. Sophomore Alex Parson had a 6-5 decision at 162, Oliszewski pinned in 2:08 at 215, Matt Friedeborn earned a 10-0 major decision at 105 and Savino pinned in 2:40 at 127.
   "We bumped Friedman up to 114 (eighth bout) and had Matt (Friedeborn) go at 105," Lynne said. "We were only down by six points at that point. We were still in it."
   Despite the loss, the Cardinals took away some positives.
   "It wasn’t our goal to be in the sectionals," Lynne said. "We knew we had a tough schedule, and we didn’t think we’d have the record to get it. But we earned the sixth seed, and it was a tribute to the guys that we did qualify. Wrestling in the sectionals was good experience for the guys."
   Lawrence joins CVC rivals Notre Dame, Princeton, Hopewell Valley and Ewing at District 17, along with Hunterdon County powers North Hunterdon, Hunterdon Central and Voorhees.
   Lynne feels the Cardinals should have four top-five seeds in Friedman at 103, Savino (23-2) at 125, junior Brian Friedeborn at 160 and Oliszewski at 215. The seedings were scheduled to be announced Wednesday evening.
   "Mark (Savino) will probably be a second seed," Lynne said. "Matt (Friedman) should be a No. 1 or a No. 2 seed. Omar Mostafa of Ewing is the defending district champ (at 103). Matt has defeated Mostafa twice this year."
   The rest of Lynne’s District 17 lineup consists of DeHart at 112, junior Rob Klontz at 119, sophomore Simeon Zeschky at 130, sophomore Jim Farley at 135, Miller at 140, Chalofsky at 145, sophomore Neal Amato at 152, Pac at 171 and junior Andrew Ilijic at 189.
   Preliminary and quarterfinal bouts will be held Friday evening, with the semifinals, consolations and finals set for Saturday. The top three finishers in each weight class advance to Region V competition, which begins next Tuesday at Hunterdon Central.
   The Cardinals don’t have enough firepower to bring home the team championship, but they are hoping to be well-represented at Region V.
   "Team-wise, we should be fifth (in the district)," Lynne said. "The four Hunterdon County teams will score more points than us. We are looking to be the top Mercer County team at District 17."