Jackson Memorial High School’s Pete Rinaldi (top) grapples with Jackson Liberty High School’s Jon Scialabba during their 112-pound bout on Jan. 6 in Jackson. Rinaldi decisioned Scialabba, 7-2, and the Jaguars went on to defeat the Lions, 63-6. JEFF GRANIT staff The University of Connecticut women’s basketball team recently had a 90- game win streak snapped. That streak and the UCLAmen’s basketball team’s streak of 88 games set 40 years earlier that the UConn Huskies eclipsed seemed mind-boggling.
Brett Favre started NFL football games for two decades before seeing his streak snapped this season after he sustained a concussion.
Cal Ripken’s streak of appearing in 2,632 consecutive major league baseball games and Joe DiMaggio’s 56-game hitting streak seem insurmountable.
But Team Jackson’s youth wrestling program has its own streak of distinction that it set last weekend — 100 consecutive Jersey Shore matches without a loss. The hearty squad set the standard when it won both matches against Brick Mat Rats I, 49-34, and the 100th in less dramatic fashion over Brick Mat Rats II, 89-19, at Jackson Memorial High School on Jan 8.
The streak spans seven seasons and includes six league titles, and will be tested by another formidable member of the league, Toms River, at home on Jan. 15.
“No matter what happens from here, 100 is the goal that was on the minds of these kids,” said Pete Rinaldi, a coach for nine seasons with the team under head coach Jim Huxford. Both left before the season to spend more time following the wrestling fortunes of their sons at Jackson Memorial.
John Reese has taken over the youth team, which is off to a 6-0 start.
“To do this over a period of time like this, it’s amazing,” said Huxford. “You could have somebody sick or hurt and not have a full lineup and things may change, but fortunately, we stayed healthy.”
Sebastian Rivera, wrestling at 72 pounds, has been a big part of that streak with an improbable win streak of his own of 78 bouts. He is one of nine unbeaten wrestlers on this year’s Jackson team that includes Matt Mc- Gowan at 68 pounds, Mike Spino at 76 pounds, Fred Terranova at 85 pounds, Tim Hamann at 95 pounds, Michael Russo, who wrestles at 95 or 100 pounds, Dom Regina at 114 pounds, and Jarret DiGiontomasso at 122 pounds.
Matt Russo, Michael Russo’s brother, who wrestles one weight class higher than his brother, suffered his first loss last weekend. Combined, the Russos are 156-7.
“We knew it was a great program, but we never had a target, but when we got to the 70s and 80s [wins], we said, ‘Holy mackerel. This is amazing,’ ” Rinaldi said. “To see this continue to this [100 straight wins] is incredibly gratifying. The team website carries the message ‘Continue the winning tradition.’ It’s what Jackson wrestling is about.” The youth program’s success carries onward to the Jackson Memorial High School team, which has been ranked among the best in the state for the past decade, finishing No. 5 last year and currently ranked No. 3 at 5-0 in dual meets and the defending NJSIAA Group IV champion.
Many other youth wrestling teams in the Jersey Shore League feed into Shore Conference high school programs that are among the state’s elite, and that is a testament to the Jersey Shore League.
Huxford still helps the program when he can, but he is busy following his two sons, Zack, who wrestles at 125 pounds for George Mason University in Virginia, and sophomore Alec, who is 7-2 with five pins at 103 pounds for Jackson Memorial.
Rinaldi’s son, who also is named Pete, is a freshman at Jackson Memorial High School and he is 2-1 at 112 pounds for the Jaguars.
“I’m really involved with my sons wrestling, and I felt if I can’t give 100 percent to a team, then I can’t be the coach,” said Huxford. “It was really the right decision for me. ”
One of the wrestlers Huxford coached in his first year with the youth program, Adam Berking, is an assistant to Reese, along with Jared DiGiontomasso.
There were times when Team Jackson’s streak was in jeopardy. Team Jackson last year beat Brick Mat Rats I, 48-44, in a showdown of unbeatens that determined the league title. A year earlier, the team trailed by eight points going into the final two weight classes against Toms River, but pulled out the victory.
“We said the kids had to be perfect and to win every match they were supposed to win, and it worked. The kids performed maybe above and beyond,” Huxford said of last season’s victory over the Brick Mat Rats. “Our kids always show up. They don’t seem to have a bad day.”
Pete Anderson, who coaches the Brick Mat Rats team that has been runner-up to Jackson the last six years, hailed the enormity of the feat.
“Just the pressure to keep on winning,” said Anderson. “It definitely is tough, especially in the years when you may have a younger team. But it’s a very popular sport in those towns, and what helps is when you have families with two or three kids going into the program. They know what it’s about, and you see those kids progressing, which makes for stronger, more competitive teams.”
But there have not been many dramatic victories over the years, including this season when Team Jackson beat Howell I, 49-34, and Howell II, 89-29, as well as Wall, 83-17, and Long Branch, 98-4.
But with the Jersey Shore League expanding to 32 teams two years ago, there was concern that some newcomers might threaten the streak. Instead, it continues from the 2003-04 season, when Team Jackson lost four matches, the last one to Toms River. There also were losses to the Mat Rats and Bayshore.
Back then, the youth wrestling team was known as the Junior Jags (after the Jaguars at Jackson Memorial High School), but with the opening of Jackson Liberty High School in the township, a more general name was sought to typify the program’s tradition built on teamwork.
“That’s one of the things we strived for, to build a program and not one individual on a team,” said Huxford. “They understand what kids before them have done, kids who have come back to help. I think that shows in the longevity of this team’s streak.”
Rinaldi and Huxford credit the commitment of the wrestlers and the support of their families in helping the team win its milestone six straight Jersey Shore titles. The most anyone had strung before that was two in a row, accomplished by Howell and Toms River.