SCT Wrestling – Over the Mountain: Howell 28, Brick Memorial 27
LITTLE SILVER — The time had come for Howell’s wrestlers to rise to the occasion to bring home a championship, this much was clear.
The Rebels had been here before, though, only to watch their dreams wilt in front of their eyes. Brick Memorial, a nemesis of sorts for Howell, had a sizable lead that was cut down by five straight clutch victories by the Rebels. All that was left to do was something Howell had been unable to accomplish in years past: close the deal.
On Saturday night at Red Bank Regional, Kris Lindemann erased years of frustration and disappointment with one incredible performance.
The Rebels sophomore took the mat with his team leading Shore Conference Tournament No. 1 seed and 14-time champion Brick Memorial by three with two bouts left. His opponent was Joe Ghione, the Mustangs’ two-time state medalist and two-time Region VI champion who was finally making his return to the mat after an injury sidelined him on Dec. 21.
Ghione grabbed an early lead, but Lindemann clawed back with authority, twice locking in cradles and nearly earning a fall in a 16-8 major decision that gave the third-seeded Rebels a seven-point lead to clinch their first Shore Conference Tournament title in program history, 28-27 over Brick Memorial.
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“I knew if I could keep it close and get it into the late second, early third period I could take it because he wouldn’t have the energy and the stamina since he was just coming back,” Lindemann said. “I knew he wouldn’t be able to power through (the cradle) because his arm wasn’t full strength. I thought I had the pin, almost did, but the back points worked and I got the major to lock up the match.”
Ghione, who sprained his elbow in the season-opening TCNJ Pride Tournament and wrestled in his first bout since on Saturday, grabbed a 4-1 lead after the first period with a pair of takedowns. Lindemann worked to his feet in the second period to make it 4-2, then took Ghione down and locked up a cradle for three near-fall points to take a 7-4 lead. Off a restart with 10 seconds left in the second period, he again put Ghione to his back to take a 10-4 lead. A reversal by Ghione made it 10-6, and after cutting Lindemann free he took him down once more to cut the lead to 11-8. But Lindemann still had one more big move left. He reversed Ghione to push his lead to 13-8, then found the cradle yet again. He nearly finished the bout with a pin each time, but his points were more than enough to give Howell the lead for good.
“All I could do was jump up and down and scream,” said senior Kyle Cocozza. “I don’t know what I was screaming, but I was screaming. I couldn’t stop thinking about how we just did it.”
“It’s one of the best feelings in the world knowing you locked up the match,” Lindemann said.
This was Howell’s fourth trip to the SCT final. The Rebels lost to Brick Memorial, 48-12, in 1989, to Long Branch, 30-25 in 2008, and again to Brick Memorial, 34-24, in 2012. In the last two SCT finals, Howell had the lead only to see a championship slip through its grasp. The Rebels lost the final six bouts in 2008 and the final three in 2012. This was time was different, and it had to be.
When Tyler Poling walked off the mat after pinning Nate Litowsky at 220 pounds, Brick Memorial had a 21-9 lead. Cocozza then delivered a 6-4 victory over Nick Rivera at heavyweight with a takedown in the final 20 seconds. His win started a streak of six straight wins by Howell to close out the match.
“To be honest, that makes it that much better winning how we did,” Cocozza said. “Over and over losing to Brick, losing to Jackson. To be able to come over the hill and the way we did it. The big thing on the bench was we never though we were out of the match.”
Howell’s wrestlers knew the stigma that surrounded them. They were a great program, but…
“But we could never get that championship,” Lindemann said. “This feels great.”
The Rebels won nine of the 13 contested bouts before forfeiting to Anthony Mitchel in the final bout at 138 pounds. Cocozza’s win was crucial, as was Peter Dee’s 1-0 victory over Gianni Ghione at 106 between two of the best in the state. Nick Lurski won a 1-0 tossup over Connor Owen at 170 and Joey Schultz made the cut to 160 pounds for the first time this season to defeat Cliff Ruggiero, 3-1, on a takedown with five seconds left in the third period. Brick Memorial received pins from Alec Donovan, Nick Costa and Poling, while Rob Ruggiero won by decision over Jack Rada, 8-3, at 152 pounds.
“This is very big,” Schultz said. “We haven’t won but we’ve been in the finals a few times. We always came up short, so it’s just big to take it home, finally.”
Alec Donovan’s pin at 145 gave Brick Memorial a 6-0 lead, and Ruggiero’s win pushed it to 9-0 after two bouts. Schultz and Lurski won to cut the deficit to 9-6, and Stephen Boncimino’s 3-2 win over Bobby Mitler at 182 pounds tied the match at nine. Costa pinned Sean Silverstein at 195 and Poling decked Litowsky in the third period to give the Mustangs a 21-9 lead. It was the last contested bout Brick Memorial would win.
Decision’s by Cocozza and Dee brought Howell to within six at 21-15, and Mikey Sisolak and Jimmy Slendorn earned decisions at 113 and 120, respectively, to tie the match at 21. At 126 pounds, sophomore Anthony Gagliano, the son of 17th-year head coach John Gagliano, held off Jose Bocalman to win 5-4 and set up Lindemann’s heroics.
“We have a lineup that everyone ranted and raved about and, that this is the year,” Cocozza said. “To work hard in the room and to come out tonight and wrestle the way we know how to wrestle and win, it’s an unbelievable feeling I can’t put into words.”
Howell 28, Brick Memorial 27
145: Alec Donovan (BM) p. Anthony Pozsonyi 3:20
152: Rob Ruggiero (BM) d. Jack Rada 8-3
160: Joey Schultz (H) d. Cliff Ruggiero 3-1
170: Nick Lurski (H) d. Connor Owen 1-0
182: Stephen Boncimino (H) d. Bobby Mitler 3-2
195: Nick Costa (BM) p. Sean Silverstein 0:45
220: Tyler Poling (BM) p. Nate Litowskky 5:12
Hwt: Kyle Cocozza (H) d. Nick Rivera 6-4
106: Peter Dee (H) d. Gianni Ghione 1-0
113: Mikey Sisolak (H) d. Luke Vescovi 4-1
120: Jimmy Slendorn (H) d. Luis Bocalman 5-3
126: Anthony Gagliano (H) d. Jose Bocalman 5-4
132: Kris Lindemann (H) md. Joe Ghione 16-8
138: Anthony Mitchel (BM) by forfeit
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