BY: Kyle Moylan Sports Editor
Before Thomas Lee could change Bordentown High School wrestling history, he had to first change himself.
“The difference for me this year is that I learned more moves,” said Lee. “Last year I just wanted to pick up people and throw them. This year I worked on learning moves and becoming a better wrestler.”
The result was obvious this past weekend as Lee won the Region VII wrestling title at 189 pounds. Lee is the first wrestler from Bordentown to win a region title since Drew Brophy accomplished the feat in 1982.
“It feels really great to be a region champ,” Lee said. “It made me want to shed a tear. People thought I couldn’t do it, that I was just a musclehead. I proved everyone wrong. It felt great when I had my hand raised.”
Lee decisioned Jared Holliday of Burlington Twp., 3-1, in the 189-pound regional title match.
In earlier action at host Moorestown High School, Lee won by forfeit in the quarterfinals and a 6-5 decision against Paul VI’s Sean Laughlin in the semifinals.
Lee now earns the right to wrestle in the state finals this weekend in Atlantic City. As a region champ, Lee gets a bye in the first round and will start wrestling in the round of 16 on Friday night.
“I think I’ll do good at states,” Lee said. “I think I can be top eight.”
Bordentown had four wrestlers still active when the region quarterfinals began on Friday. A third-place finisher or better earned a spot in the state finals. Khalid Shakir placed fourth.
Shakir (145) was pinned by Haddonfield’s Max Farnath in the quarterfinals. Shakir then bounced back with a 5-2 win over New Egypt’s Mike Schwarze. Shakir followed that with a 4-2 win over Cherokee’s Benjamin Fanjoy. Shakir placed fourth as he was defeated by Eastern’s Dave Newcomer, 8-2, in the match for third place and a spot in the state finals.
“Khalid was a very pleasant surprise,” Bordentown Coach Joe Sprague said. “He was seeded fourth at districts. He wasn’t even supposed to get out of districts. For him to place fourth in the regions as a sophomore is really big.”
Jason Cassidy (135) defeated Cherry Hill West’s Frank Genther, 8-0, in the quarterfinals. Cassidy was then pinned in the semifinals by Camden Catholic’s Taylor Walsh. Cassidy finished in a tie for fifth place as he was pinned by Northern Burlington’s Josh Jones.
Max Bohannan (160) was pinned by Steinert’s Joe Benedetti in the quarterfinals. Bohannan then bounced back with a 9-3 win over Cherokee’s Deven Thomas. Bohannan then finished in a tie for fifth place as he lost a 3-2 decision to Haddon Township’s Tyler Cunningham.
“Max and Jason (both seniors) are just two terrific kids,” Sprague said. “The program owes them a lot. They set the tone for us.”
The second- and third-
place finishers from the districts needed a win on Tuesday, Feb. 24 in order to keep their season alive and advance into the region quarterfinals. With five wrestlers that fit into that group, Bordentown had a very busy night. Lee won at districts and earned a bye into the region quarterfinals.
Cassidy (135) left very little for doubt as he pinned Cherokee’s Evan Lipski just 2:27 into their match.
Bohannan (160) took a little longer than Cassidy, but he also pinned down a spot in the region quarterfinals. Bohannan pinned Paul VI’s Vinnie Bianchini at the 5:29 mark of their match.
Shakir (145) also kept his season going with a 7-3 decision against Lenape’s Connor Wasson.
Andrew Davis (140) was eliminated from the tournament as he lost a 5-1 decision to Haddonfield’s Ray Schlitt.
Brett Pedersen (152) was also eliminated by a 10-8 loss to Pemberton’s Tarrell Barnes.
“Our districts ended up having nine regional champions,” Sprague said. “We were definitely in the toughest district. For us to get six kids out of the districts and into the regions was a huge testament to how far our program has come.”
As the region champs and all-time leader in wins (126-14) at Bordentown, Lee has also come a very long way. Now both Sprague and Lee are curious to see just how far the talented senior can go.
“He’s always been athletic and very strong, but this year he turned into a wrestler,” Sprague said. “He has the talent to go down to Atlantic City and make some noise. He can beat a lot of kids.”
Why not? Lee’s already given Bordentown history a beating.

