E.B. wrestling looks to play catch-up in GMC

BY JIMMY ALLINDER Correspondent

East Brunswick wrestling coach, Glen Pazinko, has been around long enough (19 years) to know that winning comes in cycles.

FILE PHOTO East Brunswick High School's Matt Paribello (r) in action from last season. The junior is one of many expected to lead the Bears this year. The team opens its schedule Saturday at the Roselle Park Tournament. FILE PHOTO East Brunswick High School’s Matt Paribello (r) in action from last season. The junior is one of many expected to lead the Bears this year. The team opens its schedule Saturday at the Roselle Park Tournament. He also knows that the current crop of Bear grapplers, for all their heart and desire, fall a little short of the depth, top to bottom, that will be required to challenge the likes of South Plainfield, South Brunswick and Old Bridge for the Greater Middlesex Conference crown. Realistically, all Pazinko wants out of his team, which went 8-10 last season, is to improve to the .500 level. Anything else will be a bonus.

“It’s going to be trial by fire,” he said, meaning East Brunswick will get a lot of heat from those perennial powers previously mentioned. “We don’t have many wrestlers coming back from last season, so more than a few will be getting experience on the job. We’re hoping to grow as the season goes on.”

A look at the lineup reveals the Bears will be stocked with a majority of underclassmen. Marc Webber, a sophomore, starts at 103 pounds, while Fady Youssef, another sophomore who wrestled in that spot last year, moves up to 112 pounds. If Youssef doesn’t move up to 119 pounds, that position will be manned by Daniel Gutierrez, a sophomore.

Matt Paribello, a junior, will wrestle at 125 pounds and is one of the Bears with experience, having finished third in the District last year. Ryan Marosy, a junior, is positioned to wrestle at 130 pounds. As of yet, Pazinko is still searching for who he can slot at 140 pounds.

Andrew Schittone, a junior, brings experience to the 145-pound class, with Ryan Dalton, a senior, moving to the 152-pound position. Brett Kamin, a senior captain, will be at 160 pounds. John Segreto, junior, and Julian Quintin, sophomore, will battle it out for the 179-pound slot, while Rimoun Hanna, senior, or Dan Shirley, senior, are expected to wrestle at 189 pounds.

The Bears will round out the lineup with Matt Scrivanich, a junior, at 215 pounds and Alex Cartelli, a senior, will wrestle at heavyweight.

“With only four wrestlers with any degree of experience,” Pazinko observed, “We’re going to have to rely on hard work to prepare for what we face. That’s the challenge before us.”

East Brunswick opens up the season with participation in the Roselle Park Tournament Saturday and then after during the winter break, will host the Bears Invitational at Churchhill.