Bombers aim to take program to next level
BY WARREN RAPPLEYEA
Staff Writer

Above, South River’s Mike Muccino goes for the pin during his GMC Tournament bout with Old Bridge’s Hamayun Daftani on Saturday in South Brunswick. At left, Spotswood’s Andre Hage works on JFK’s Isaias Rodriguez during their 171-pound bout on Saturday.

With five matches remaining, including one last night at home against Highland Park, the Sayreville High School wrestling team was within a victory of setting a team record for wins in a season.

The Bombers, 14-5, are in the midst of a six-match winning streak and are sitting in second place in the Greater Middlesex Conference’s (GMC) White Division.

This marks Sayreville’s third successive winning season, and includes triumphs over Edison, Woodbridge and East Brunswick, the latter marking the first time Sayreville defeated the Bears in wrestling. The team win record was set last winter.

In addition, Tom Danielson, who competes at 145 pounds, now owns the team record for career wins with 86, having surpassed Tom Martinez’s prior mark of 84 victories.

PHOTOS BY TOM SPERDUTO

Mike Velardi (171), who won his weight class at the GMC Tournament, became the Bombers’ first county champ since 1995 when Jason Porcaro turned the trick. Velardi is the school’s fourth county wrestling champ; the others are Mike Bouchard and former coach Chris Beagan.

Velardi, at 24-1 with eight pins, and Danielson, 24-2 with nine pins, are Sayreville’s top winners. Scott Poore (145) and Eric Tsang (125) are both 20-5. Velardi, Poore and Tsang won their respective weight classes at the District 20 competition last year and will defend their titles later this month.

The Bombers have also received solid efforts from some unlikely sources. Herbert Nieves (215), a newcomer to wrestling, has been a pleasant surprise, posting a 16-8 mark with a team-leading 13 pins. George Kosanovich (130), who struggled through a 3-11 campaign a year ago, worked diligently over the summer and fall and the results are apparent in his 16-9 record.

“George [Kosanovich] is a perfect example of hard work paying off,” said coach John DeNuto. “He personifies the entire team. They’ve been committed to working hard since day one, and they don’t settle for near misses. Every time we’ve had a tough loss, they have responded.”

Earlier in the year, Sayreville geared up for powerful Perth Amboy but came away empty. They were upset by St. John Vianney, and the team finished a disappointing seventh in the GMC tourney.

“Our guys have shown their true character, and our seniors have been good leaders,” DeNuto said. “We didn’t have a great GMC Tournament, but the only thing they can do is look forward. And they have. We’ve been winning ever since.”

The team has received strong contributions from several other grapplers. Sophomore Mike DeLuco (152) is 15-7 with 10 pins, freshman Ramon Santiago (119) is 13-5, and fellow freshman Nick Ronan (103) is 7-3.

Sophomore heavyweight Robert Borzerelli has posted seven triumphs, and sophomore Nick Boulton and freshman Dan Bergfeldt have combined for 10 wins at 112 pounds, and Mike Cuozo (160) is 4-4.

DeNuto noted that a pair of JV competitors, sophomores John Boulton (125) and Rhett Fischer (145), have each picked up a pair of wins. Boulton is 24-1 while Fischer is 22-3 at the JV level.

“As a team, we’re finally starting to crack the next level in the GMC,” the coach said. “We’ve still got some work to do, but we’re right there with the top teams in the county, and now we’re looking hard at the district tournament. All year long our priority has been to come on strong at the end of the season, as we are.”

The Bombers still have four matches remaining, in addition to Highland Park, prior to the tournaments.

On Saturday, Sayreville will visit Old Bridge for a trimatch that also includes West Windsor. John F. Kennedy comes to visit next Wednesday, and Sayreville ends the regular season next Friday at J.P. Stevens.

South Plainfield dominates GMC Tournament

There is little doubt who the top team in the GMC is this year.

And if you had any doubts entering this past weekend’s GMC Wrestling Tournament at South Brunswick High School, the South Plainfield Tigers did everything in their power to erase those doubts.

The Tigers cruised to their third straight title by winning seven individual crowns, and scattering several other wrestlers in top finishes in just about every weight class.

Their dominance (283.5 team points) left the rest of the GMC’s top teams fighting for second place, a spot eventually claimed by Old Bridge with 152 points.

The Knights were led by Steve Fallon, who pulled off the upset win over undefeated Bully Ashnault, of South Plainfield, a state runner-up last year. Trailing 4-1, Fallon caught the Tiger grappler in a near-side cradle and pinned him at 3:37 to claim the 112-pound title, the second GMCT title of his career.

His efforts earned him the lower-weight Outstanding Wrestler award, and should give him a load of confidence with the district tournament looming in a couple of weeks.

While Fallon was the only Old Bridge grappler to win in the finals, his teammate Travis Gerdon put together quite a run throughout the tourney before falling in the 189-pound final to South Plainfield’s Kevin Crilley, a three-time conference champ, 17-2. Gerdon, who was unseeded at 189, knocked off top-seeded Joe Bozzomo, of Middlesex, 9-5, after having already knocked off the fourth seed in the first round.

Brian Suozzo wrapped up third place at 125 with a 2-1 win over Piscataway’s Tyler Adams in their consolation bout. Suozzo lost to eventual winner (and four-time GMCT champ) Jimmy Conroy, of South Plainfield in the semis. Chris Suozzo also took home a third-place finish after knocking off JFK’s Dustin Rudy, 8-7, in their consolation bout. Chris Suozzo also lost to the eventual champ in the semis, falling to South Plainfield’s Eddie McCray in the semis.

Chris Orzechowski also recorded a third-place finish for the Knights by rebounding from a loss to Velardi in the 171-pound semis to beat JFK’s Isaias Rodriguez, 4-1, in a consolation bout.

Monroe finished in 10th place with 68 points, led by Justin Lupo’s second place at heavyweight. Lupo fell to JFK’s Matt Galadyk via pinfall in the final.

Spotswood finished in 13th place, led by Andre Hage’s second-place finish at 171. Hage gave it a valiant effort in the final before falling to Sayreville’s Velardi, 6-4, in overtime. Hage forced the overtime by scoring a desperation takedown with just 2.3 seconds left in regulation.

Drew Mackay also earned some valuable points for the Chargers with his third-place finish at heavyweight.

After falling to Galadyk in the semis, 3-2, he came back to beat Edison’s Dan Walker by the same score in their consolation bout.

With the GMCT now out of the way, it’s on to the state tournament for the Old Bridge Knights. Old Bridge got the fourth seed in the Central Jersey Group IV bracket, which means a trip to Jackson on Tuesday and a first-round match with fifth-seeded Manalapan (10-7).

The winner will face the host Jaguars, the top-ranked team in the state and the recently crowned Shore Conference champs, immediately following the first match.