Three local wrestlers will head to Atlantic City this weekend to compete in the NJSIAA state tournament at Boardwalk Hall.
Conor Hayes (140 pounds) and Nick Orak (189) of Old Bridge High School and Gary Siriday (103) of Sayreville War Memorial High School are heading down the Garden State Parkway for the competition after strong showings in the Region V competition held at Hunterdon Central High School.
Both Hayes and Siriday won their respective weight classes, while Orak was second in his. The top three finishers from each weight class from each of the state’s eight regions qualify for the state tournament.
Siriday won the Region V title with a 4- 2 success against Nick Wahba of Somerville High School. The sophomore is the Bombers’ top winner with 31 victories. He won the District 20 competition for the second year in a row. Last winter, Siriday finished second in the Region V tourney and competed in the preliminary round of the state tournament. In his two years of varsity competition, Siriday has posted 65 wins.
“Gary has had a very strong season, and the experience he gained by going to Atlantic City last year will help him a lot,” Sayreville coach Anton Atterbury said. “He’s got a strong shot at placing.”
Hayes upped his record to 37-1 with a major decision over Piscataway’s David Powell to win Region V for the second time. That victory also made Hayes Old Bridge’s top career winner with 117 triumphs, one ahead of Kevin Jacoutot, who had held the record since 1982.
Hayes, who also won the District 20 title, previously took the Region V crown in 2008 while competing at 103 pounds.
Orak battled his way to the final at 189 pounds, where he was pinned by Bound Brook’s Andrew Campolattano. The senior is 32-3 on the year and has 86 career victories to his credit. Like Siriday and Hayes, Orak won the District 20 tourney in his weight class.
“We’ll be well represented in Atlantic City,” said Old Bridge coach Bryan Garnett. “Conor and Nick have had outstanding seasons, and we’re looking forward to seeing them do well.”
Meanwhile, both Old Bridge and Sayreville had strong seasons. The Knights went 16-4 and won the District 20 team championship, and Garnett was honored as District 20 Coach of the Year. Sayreville, in its first year under Atterbury, was 16-8.
Old Bridge featured six competitors who won 20 or more matches. In addition to Hayes and Orak, they include: sophomore Joe Suozzo (119), 21-13; junior Phil Sandford (130), 24-9; Jaime Bond (152), 23-9; and Steve Zafrani (171), 30-8.
Several young grapplers will be back next year for the Knights, including freshmen Mike Nadera (103), 17-16, and James O’Connell (HWT), 9-14; sophomores Chris Conway (112), 7-12, and Eli Zafrani (160), 16-15; and juniors Frank Butta (125), 8-18, Steve Vander Valk (135), 11-14, and Vin Rossi (215), 8-17.
For the Bombers, the future continues to look bright as well. Atterbury’s team had eight competitors with 20 or more victories, including freshman Mike Bohling (112), 20- 15; sophomore Alex Yanuzzeli (171), 21-15; juniors Anthony Geiger (119), 33-6, and Noel Santiago (145), 22-9; and seniors Chris Pearson (135), 20-10, Kyle Anderson (140), 24-11, and Gino Schifano (160), 24-12.
Other key returnees include juniors Tyler Carlock (HWT), 18-11, Nick Richiusa (189), 17-15, and Chris Raub (215), 11-16.