Wrestling – 2020 NJSIAA Region 5 Tournament Recap and Results
Rumson-Fair Haven sophomore Shay Addison won a region title as a No. 8 seed, Shore Regional's Al DeSantis and Mike McGhee made program history and Holmdel's Michael Pavlinetz ended a 37-year drought to highlight a strong showing by the Shore Conference at the NJSIAA Region 5 Tournament at Franklin Township High School.
Addison shook up the 160-pound bracket in the quarterfinals when he defeated Manalapan senior Matt Benedetti, 2-1. Benedetti was the No. 1 seed, undefeated and the returning state sixth-place finisher at the weight. Addison then pinned the No. 5 seed, Perth Amboy's Gilbert Sosa, in the semifinals before finishing off a fantastic run with a 3-1 victory over Hunterdon Central junior Norman Cella. Benedetti was ranked third in New Jersey by NJ.com and Cella was ranked seventh while Addison was ranked eighth entering the region tournaments.
At 220 pounds, Pavlinetz came from the No. 5 seed to become Holmdel's second-ever region champion and the first since John Mullan in 1983. Old Bridge's Elijah Mack won by forfeit over the No. 1 seed North Hunterdon's Ian Gaburo, in the quarterfinals. Pavlinetz faced Mack in the semifinals and won by fall in 4:29 to reach the final. In the championship bout. Pavlinetz won by 7-2 decision over Hopewell Valley's Christian Cacciabaudo.
While the drought was not quite as long for Shore, Blue Devils senior Al DeSantis and junior Mike McGhee became the program's first region champions since 2002 and gave Shore two region champions in the same year for the first time in program history. They are the third and fourth region champs for Shore.
DeSantis was seeded second at 138 pounds and defeated the top seed, Perth Amboy's James Rodriguez, 7-6 in the championship bout. McGhee was the No. 1 seed at 152 pounds and secured the title with a 7-5 win over Princeton's James Romaine.
Rumson-Fair Haven sophomore Aidan Shaughnessy won the 113-pound title as the No. 4 seed. He won 7-3 over the top seed, Hopewell Valley's Jacob Venezia, in the semifinals and defeated the No. 3 seed, Manalapan's Justin Schifter, 7-5, in the championship bout.
Addison and Shaughnessy winning region titles gave Rumson two region champions for the second time in program history and the first since current head coach Bryan Heller and Patrick Berger won Region 6 titles in 2003.
St. John Vianney crowned multiple region champions for the first time in program history as junior Dean Peterson won his second title and junior Blake Clayton and sophomore Nico Diaz each won their first. Peterson was up 10-4 against Shore's Jack Maida late in the third period when Maida reversed Peterson and put him to his back with a headlock. Peterson was able to maneuver his arm free to turn the hold into an illegal headlock, giving him an additional point as he held on for the 11-9 victory. He remained undefeated, improved his career record to 103-2 and extended his winning streak to 67 bouts.
Clayton was the top seed at 182 pounds and delivered a 7-2 decision over North Hunterdon's Nathaniel Fossett in the championship bout. Fossett was a returning region champion and ranked seventh in the state. Diaz scored a takedown in sudden victory to end the Cinderella run of Matawan's Kamrin O'Neil, who upset the No. 1 and No. 4 seeds to reach the championship bout at 120 pounds.
Middletown South freshman Jack Zaleski defeated Marlboro's Harrison Gordon by 14-5 major decision to win the 106-pound title. Zaleski is the second Middletown South freshman to win a region title, joining the legendary Glenn Pritzlaff.
The Shore Conference had 25 state qualifiers out of Region 5.
NJSIAA REGION 5 TOURNAMENT
At Franklin High School
Saturday, Feb. 29
Finals
145: 2-Colton Washleski (Hunterdon Central) d. 1-Max Brignola (Rumson), 3-2
152: 1-Mike McGhee (Shore) d. 3-James Romaine (Princeton), 7-5
160: 8-Shay Addison (Rumson) d. 2-Norman Cella (Hunterdon Central), 3-1
170: 2-Marcus Petite (Piscataway) p. 4-James Holder (North Hunterdon), 1:28
182: 1-Blake Clayton (St. John Vianney) d. 2-Nathaniel Fossett (North Hunterdon)
195: 2-Thomas Renna (South Plainfield) p. 1-Gavin Claro (Manalapan), 3:10
220: 5-Michael Pavlinetz (Holmdel) d. 6-Christian Cacciabaudo (Hopewell Valley), 7-2
285: 1-Marcus Estevez (Franklin) p. 2-Keshon Davila (New Brunswick), 1:11
106: 1-Jack Zaleski (Middletown South) md. 2-Harrison Gordon (Marlboro), 14-5
113: 4-Aidan Shaughnessy (Rumson) d. 3-Justin Schifter (Manalapan), 7-5
120: 1-Dean Peterson (St. John Vianney) d. 2-Jack Maida (Shore), 11-9
126: 2-Nico Diaz (St. John Vianney) d. 8-Kamrin O'Neil (Matawan), 3-1 OT
132: 1-Anthony White (South Plainfield) p. 3-Zach Vasile (Marlboro), 1:06
138: 2-Al DeSantis (Shore) d. 1-James Rodriguez (Perth Amboy), 7-6
Third place
106: 6-Joseph Giordano (St. John Vianney) d. Dylan Acevedo (Sayreville), 3-1
113: 11-Desmond Pleasant (Piscataway) d. 2-David Rubin Matawan), 11-6
120: 3-Frank DiEsso (North Hunterdon) md. 4-David Hussey (Middletown South), 11-1
126: Tyler Sagi (Old Bridge) d. Nick Canonica (Hunterdon Central), 6-5
132: Connor Quinn (North Hunterdon) d. Zach Weiner (Spotswood), 7-0
138: Tanner Peake (Hunterdon Central) d. Owen Disbrow (St. Thomas Aquinas), 4-0
145: Connor Doherty (St. Thomas Aquinas) d. Hunter Konstantoulas (Manalapan), 5-4
152: Anthony Romaniello (Hunterdon Central) d. Tyler Brignola (Rumson), 1-0
160: Matt Benedetti (Manalapan) md. Edward Jang (Marlboro), 14-2
170: 1-Jack Kelly (Rumson) p. Victor Wladica (Holmdel), 2:25
182: Nicholas Lodato (Piscataway) md. Josh Beigman (Hopewell Valley), 11-3
195: Luke Tilton (Highland Park) d. Brian LaCross (Hopewell Valley), 6-4
220: Joseph Porcaro (Sayreville) d. Nnamdi James (Franklin), 8-6
285: Liam Akers (North Hunterdon) p. Austin Scott (South Plainfield), 1:08
Fifth place
106: Christian Micikas (Hopewell Valley) by forfeit over Vincent Nadera (Old Bridge)
113: Jacob Venezia (Hopewell Valley) d. Nick Ammirati (Holmdel), 4-2
120: Deon Pleasant (Piscataway) md. Jacob DelVecchio (South Plainfield), 15-1
126: Kendall Jordan (Piscataway) d. Phil Stolfa (Red Bank), 4-3
132: Jack Martin (Pingry) md. Michael Holland (Middletown South), 20-7
138: Tyler Balent (South Plainfield) d. Drew Doscher (North Hunterdon), 4-2
145: Evan Klimas (North Hunterdon) p. Adam Coleman (Matawan), 1:24
152: Owen Fitzgerald (Middletown South) vs. Xavier Santos (South Plainfield)
160: Jarazell Bull (New Brunswick) by forfeit over Gilbert Sosa (Perth Amboy)
170: Dylan Waller (Manalapan) d. Elijah Ade-Festus (Sayreville), 7-4
182: Nick Jairdullo (South Brunswick) p. Mike Ponenti (Rumson), 4:43
195: Liam Horan (Rumson) d. Alex Uryniak (North Hunterdon), 1-0)
220: Elijah Mack (Old Bridge) by forfeit over Bryand Garcia (New Brunswick)
285: Abrahim Mohamed (Piscataway) p. Wilber Ramirez-Gomez (Edison), 5:45
Semifinals
106
1-Jack Zaleski (Middletown South) d. 5-Dylan Acevedo (Sayreville), 6-0
2-Harrison Gordon (Marlboro) p. 6-Joseph Giordano (St. John Vianney), 5:08
113
4-Aiden Shaughnessy (Rumson) d. 1-Jacob Venezia (Hopewell Valley), 7-3
3-Justin Schifter (Manalapan) d. 2-David Rubin (Matawan), 13-11
120
1-Dean Peterson (St. John Vianney) p. 4-David Hussey (Middletown South), 1:22
2-Jack Maida (Shore) md. 3-Frank DiEsso (North Hunterdon), 15-4
126
8-Kamrin O'Neil (Matawan) d. 4-Nick Canonica (Hunterdon Central), 11-4
2-Nico Diaz (St. John Vianney) d. 3-Kendall Jordan (Piscataway), 3-1
132
1-Anthony White (South Plainfield) md. 4-Connor Quinn (North Hunterdon), 11-1
3-Zach Vasile (Marlboro) d. 2-Zach Weiner (Spotswood), 6-3
138
1-James Rodriguez (Perth Amboy) d. 5-Owen Disbrow (St. Thomas Aquinas), 6-4
2-Al DeSantis (Shore) d. 3-Tanner Peake (Hunterdon Central), 3-2
145
1-Max Brignola (Rumson) p. 5-Connor Doherty (St. Thomas Aquinas), 4:45
2-Colton Washleski (Hunterdon Central) d. 3-Evan Klimas (North Hunterdon), 11-6
152
1-Mike McGhee (Shore) d. 4-Tyler Brignola (Rumson), 1-0
3-James Romaine (Princeton) d. 2-Anthony Romaniello (Hunterdon Central), 11-10
160
8-Shay Addison (Rumson) p. 5-Gilbert Sosa (Perth Amboy)
2-Norman Cella (Hunterdon Central) p. 3-Jarazell Bull (New Brunswick), 5:30
170
4-James Holder (North Hunterdon) d. 1-Jack Kelly (Rumson), 7-5
2-Marcus Petite (Piscataway) p. 3-Victor Wladika (Holmdel), 3:15
182
1-Blake Clayton (St. John Vianney) md. 4-Josh Beigman (Hopewell Valley), 11-1
2-Nathaniel Fossett (North Hunterdon) p. 3-Nicholas Lodato (Piscataway), 1:39
195
1-Gavin Claro (Manalapan) d. 4-Alex Uryniak (North Hunterdon), 10-4
2-Thomas Renna (South Plainfield) d. 3-Liam Horan (Rumson), 3-1
220
5-Michael Pavlinetz (Holmdel) p. 8-Elijah Mack (Old Bridge), 4:29
6-Christian Cacciabaudo (Hopewell Valley) p. 2-Nnamdi James (Franklin), 3:06
285
1-Marcus Estevez (Franklin) d. 12-Austin Scott (South Plainfield), 2-0
2-Keshon Davila (New Brunswick) d. 3-Liam Akers (North Hunterdon), 7-4
Friday, Feb, 28
Quarterfinals
106
1-Jack Zaleski (Middletown South) p. 8-Henry Wilkinson (Hunterdon Central), 1:13
5-Dylan Acevedo (Sayreville) d. 4-Christian Micikas (Hopewell Valley), 10-4
6-Joseph Giordano (St. John Vianney) d. 3-Vincent Nadera (Old Bridge), 5-2
2-Harrison Gordon (Marlboro) d. 7-Logan Wadle (North Hunterdon), 7-4
113
1-Jacob Venezia (Hopewell Valley) tf. 8-Julian Irizarry (South Plainfield), 5:00 (16-1)
4-Aidan Shaughnessy (Rumson) d. 5-Nick Ammirati (Holmdel), 16-12
3-Justin Schifter (Manalapan) d. 11-Desmond Pleasant (Piscataway), 5-2
2-David Rubin (Matawan) d. 7-Nick DeLorenzo (North Hunterdon), 6-0
120
1-Dean Peterson (St. John Vianney) tf. 8-Chris Balzano (Manalapan), 5:01 (15-0)
4-David Hussey (Middletown South) d. 5-Deon Pleasant (Piscataway), 8-3
3-Frank DiEsso (North Hunterdon) d. 6-Jacob DelVecchio (South Plainfield), 7-3
2-Jack Maida (Shore) p. 10-Tristan Izzo (Rumson), 3:17
126
8-Kamrin O'Neil (Matawan) p. 1-Tyler Sagi (Old Bridge), 5:50
4-Nick Canonica (Hunterdon Central) d. 5-Gage Crater (Delaware Valley), 5-0
3-Kendall Jordan (Piscataway) d. 6-Daniel Delusant (North Hunterdon), 5-1
2-Nico Diaz (St. John Vianney) d. 7-Phil Stolfa (Red Bank), 8-6
132
1-Anthony White (South Plainfield) d. 8-Jack Martin (Pingry), 7-1
4-Connor Quinn (North Hunterdon) tf. 5-Vincent DePierro (Manalapan), 4:45 (15-0)
3-Zach Vasile (Marlboro) p. 6-Michael Holland (Middletown South), 3:09
2-Zach Weiner (Spotswood) d. 10-Darren Figueroa (Sayreville), 3-2
138
1-James Rodriguez (Perth Amboy) md. 8-Jaydin Mahon (New Brunswick), 13-2
5-Owen Disbrow (St. Thomas Aquinas) d. 4-Drew Doscher (North Hunterdon), 4-3
3-Tanner Peake (Hunterdon Central) md. 6-Corey Crater (Delaware Valley), 15-2
2-Al DeSantis (Shore) md. 10-Tyler Balent (South Plainfield), 14-4
145
1-Max Brignola (Rumson) p. 9-Jake Wagner (Sayreville), 1:18
5-Connor Doherty (St. Thomas Aquinas) d. 4-Hunter Konstantoulas (Manalapan), 5-0
3-Evan Klimas (North Hunterdon) d. 6-Dominic Riendeau-Krause (Princeton), 8-1
2-Colton Washleski (Hunterdon Central) md. 7-Adam Coleman (Matawan), 9-1
152
1-Michael McGhee (Shore) md. 9-Xavier Santos (South Plainfield), 11-3
4-Tyler Brignola (Rumson) d. 5-Kyle Anderson (North Hunterdon), 3-1
3-James Romaine (Princeton) d. 6-Owen Fitzgerald (Middletown South), 11-7
2-Anthony Romaniello (Hunterdon Central) d. 7-Mike Malucelli (Marlboro), 9-2
160
8-Shay Addison (Rumson) d. 1-Matt Benedetti (Manalapan), 2-1
5-Gilbert Sosa (Perth Amboy) d. 4-Tyler Lagun (Delaware Valley), 5-2
3-Jarazell Bull (New Brunswick) d. 6-Edward Jang (Marlboro), 8-5
2-Norman Cella (Hunterdon Central) md. 7-Alex Abrahamsen (Montgomery), 12-0
170
1-Jack Kelly (Rumson) p. 8-Shane Lallkissoon (Manville), 1:39
4-James Holder (North Hunterdon) d. 5-Dylan Waller (Manalapan), 3-1
3-Victor Wladika (Holmdel) md. 6-Elijah Ade-Festus (Sayreville), 9-1
2-Marcus Petite (Piscataway) p. 7-Alex Ipeker (Montgomery), 1:48
182
1-Blake Clayton (St John Vianney) p. 9-Michael Ponenti (Rumson), 4:11
4-Josh Beigman (Hopewell Valley) d. 5-Alex Abarca (Manville), 3-1
3-Nicholas Lodato (Piscataway) d. 6-Nick Jairdullo (South Brunswick), 7-6
2-Nathaniel Fossett (North Hunterdon) p. 10-Alejandro Avellan (Edison), 3:15
195
1-Gavin Claro (Manalapan) p. 9-Ryan Bouchard (Sayreville), 2:38
4-Alex Uryniak (North Hunterdon) p. 5-Brian LaCross (Hopewell Valley), 2:16
3-Liam Horan (Rumson) d. 6-Luke Tilton (Highland Park), 9-4
2-Thomas Renna (South Plainfield) p. 7-Zach Zuchowski (Delaware Valley), 0:48
220
8-Elijah Mack (Old Bridge) by forfeit over 1-Ian Gaburo (North Hunterdon)
5-Michael Pavlinetz (Holmdel) d. 4-Bryand Garcia (New Brunswick), 3-1
6-Christian Cacciabaudo (Hopewell Valley) d. 3-Joseph Porcaro (Sayreville), 5-3
2-Nnamdi James (Franklin) by injury default over 10-Brandon Donoghue (Hunterdon Central), 3:29
285
1-Marcus Estevez (Franklin) p. 8-Abrahim Mohamed (Piscataway), 1:16
12-Austin Scott (South Plainfield) d. 4-Ryan Sutter (Delaware Valley), 3-2
3-Liam Akers (North Hunterdon) d. 11-Wilber Ramirez-Gomez (Edison), 4:36
2-Keshon Davila (New Brunswick) d. 7-Vincent Rebak (Sayreville), 2:16
Wednesday, Feb. 26
Pre-quarterfinals
106
5-Dylan Acevedo (Sayreville) tf. 12-Christopher Spinelli (Hillsborough), 2:19 (17-1)
4-Christian Micikas (Hopewell Valley) md. 13-Julien Dawson (Edison), 14-2
6-Joseph Giordano (St John Vianney) md. 11-Anthony Vitola (Manalapan), 13-0
2-Harrison Gordon (Marlboro) p. 15-Brendan Nichols (Shore), 1:02
113
5-Nicholas Ammirati (Holmdel) d. 12-Cristian Diaz (St. Thomas Aquinas), 5-0
11-Desmond Pleasant (Piscataway) tf. 6-Robert Groogan (Delaware Valley), 5:06 (15-0)
7-Nick DeLorenzo (North Hunterdon) d. 10-Jackson Ratcliffe (South Brunswick), 5-4
2-David Rubin (Matawan) p. 15-Nick Cammarano (St John Vianney), 2:34
120
8-Chris Balzano (Manalapan) d. 9-Jaden Williams (Franklin), 7-0
3-Frank DiEsso (North Hunterdon) p. 14-Aidan Portnoy (Hunterdon Central), 2:53
6-Jacob DelVecchio (South Plainfield) tf. 11-Cooper Gill (Delaware Valley), 3:22 (18-2)
10-Tristan Izzo (Rumson) d. 7-Lee Rubin (Matawan), 9-6
126
8-Kamrin O'Neil (Matawan) tf. 9-Andrew Loniewski (South Plainfield), 4:55 (16-1)
4-Nick Canonica (Hunterdon Central) md. 13-Matthew Klimkiewicz (South Brunswick), 12-1
7-Phil Stolfa (Red Bank) d. 10-Devon Pham (Monmouth), 3-2
2-Nico Diaz (St John Vianney) md. 15-Vincent Aboosamara (Hillsborough), 19-10
132
5-Vincent DePierro (Manalapan) p. 12-Tucker Cochrane (Red Bank), 3:17
3-Zach Vasile (Marlboro) p. 14-Joseph Witcoski (Hillsborough), 1:53
6-Michael Holland (Middletown South) md. 11-Tom Ammirati (Holmdel), 12-4
10-Darren Figueroa (Sayreville) d. 7-Seth Rotondella (St John Vianney), 7-5
138
8-Jaydin Mahon (New Brunswick) d. 9-Alejandro Lopez (Hopewell Valley), 6-4
4-Drew Doscher (North Hunterdon) md. 13-Daniel Mikita (Piscataway), 9-1
6-Corey Crater (Delaware Valley) p. 11-Mohamed Mahmoud (Franklin), 5:37
10-Tyler Balent (South Plainfield) d. 7-Matteo Pinnero (Holmdel), 5-3
145
9-Jake Wagner (Sayreville) md. 8-Kevin Cartagena-Walsh (Monmouth), 12-3
4-Hunter Konstantoulas (Manalapan) d. 13- Luke DuPont (Holmdel), 10-8
6-Dominic Riendeau-Krause (Princeton) p. 11-Zion Blanco (New Brunswick), 1:22
2-Colton Washleski (Hunterdon Central) tf. 15-Nick Holland (Middletown South), 4:48 (20-5)
152
9-Xavier Santos (South Plainfield) md. 8-Thomas Cleary (Holmdel), 10-2
5-Kyle Anderson (North Hunterdon) p. 12-Brian Zeglarski (Hopewell Valley), 4:47
4-Tyler Brignola (Rumson) p. 13-Gabe Jones (St John Vianney), 3:05
7-Mike Malucelli (Marlboro) d. 10-James Grande (Manalapan), 4-2
160
8-Shay Addison (Rumson) p. 9-William Cole (North Hunterdon), 4:28
5-Gilbert Sosa (Perth Amboy) d. 12-Dennis Whitford (Sayreville), 11-5
3-Jarazell Bull (New Brunswick) d. 14-Daniel Borsos (South Plainfield), 7-1
6-Edward Jang (Marlboro) d. 11-Brendyn Challenger (Edison), 5-3
170
5-Dylan Waller (Manalapan) md. 12-Sean Fitzpatrick (Middletown South), 12-3
3-Victor Wladika (Holmdel) d. 14-Michael Foley (St John Vianney), 9-6
7-Alex Ipeker (Montgomery) p. 10-Tommy Zovich (West Windsor-Plainsboro North), 1:48
2-Marcus Petite (Piscataway) p. 15-Will DalPra (Red Bank), 3:13
182
9-Mikel Ponenti (Rumson) md. 8=Shane Zimmerman (Keyport), 8-0
5-Alex Abarca (Manville) d. 12-Jack Willi (Middletown South), 6-4
6-Nick Jairdullo (South Brunswick) p.11-Isaiah Ayala (Franklin), 1:57
10-Alejandro Avellan (Edison) p. 7-Mohamed Elhomossy (North Brunswick), 2:36
195
9-Ryan Bouchard (Sayreville) d. 8-Timothy Glynn (West Windsor-Plainsboro North), 7-4
4-Alex Uryniak (North Hunterdon) p. 13-Hans Tejada (North Brunswick), 0:20
6-Luke Tilton (Highland Park) d. 11-Jacob Ventura (Pingry), 8-2
7-Zach Zuchowski (Delaware Valley) p. 10-Marcus Granadeiro (South River), 3:02
220
8-Elijah Mack (Old Bridge) p. 9-Cade Torres (Shore), 1:13
4-Bryand Garcia (New Brunswick) p. 13-Nick Moose (Delaware Valley), 3:53
3-Joseph Porcaro (Sayreville) md. 14-Eliezer Wolfskehl (Piscataway), 13-5
10-Brandon Donoghue (Hunterdon Central) d. 7-Christian Steensen (Marlboro), 8-2
285
12-Austin Scott (South Plainfield) d. 5-Johan Coria (Perth Amboy), 5-1
3-Liam Akers (North Hunterdon) d. 14-Kyle O'Hara (Rutgers Prep), 3-0
11-Wilber Ramirez-Gomez (Edison) p. 6-Matt Kovacs (Manalapan), 2:53
7-Vincent Rebak (Sayreville) p. 10-Adam Mirza (Marlboro), 3:31