As it has in recent years, the strength of the St. Peter’s Prep wrestling lineup primarily resides in the lower weight classes. While less acclaimed than their lighter teammates, the Marauders’ upper-middle and heavier weights used Saturday’s Hudson County Duals as the latest reminder that they are also capable of big things on the mat.
”We haven’t had that balance in a couple of years so to be able to showcase that a little bit yesterday, but also, as the season goes on, to see how much our upper-middleweights and upper weights have progressed since December,” St. Peter’s Prep coach Anthony Verdi said. “This is where we want to be in terms of lineup balance at the right time of the year.”
Even with several of its star lightweights out of the lineup, St. Peter’s Prep, No. 4 in the NJ.com Top 20, rolled to a 14th consecutive County title in Kearny, defeating North Bergen, 60-23 in the final.
At the forefront of that victory - as well as earlier wins against Weehawken in the first round and Bayonne in the semifinals - was the performance of its upper weights.
Senior Anthony Verdi, son of the coach, won all three of his matches by fall, the last two at 165 pounds. Joseph Ruiz (157), Anthony Harris (190), Domenick Lettini (215) and Connor Reynolds (285) all went 3-0 on the day with Harris and Lettini each earning two pins out of those upper weights.
Another upper-middleweight, 175-pounder Carmen Marano, won his first two bouts by fall before taking a technical fall defeat to North Bergen’s undefeated state runner-up Josh Palacio.
”The guys performed pretty well yesterday,” said Verdi. “My son (Anthony), Dom, Connor. Anothony Harris has been having a great year as well. Carmen Morano had a great day as well. He ran into a tough one in the final, but Carmen’s wrestling better. They’re progressing really well and giving balance in our lineup.
”We’ve been creating tougher matchups up top than we have in the past so it’s a little bit harder for teams to be able to try and figure out where they’re going to get bonus points or where they’re going to get some wins. It’s a lot more difficult (for them) than it was last year and the year before.”
Anthony Borrometi (113) and Angelo Pellicci (138) also had two fall victories apiece as they each went 3-0 on the day.
Four of the Marauders top wrestlers - Gino Schinina (120), Caedyn Ricciardi (126), DJ Chavis (132) and Max Nevlin - did not compete due to either minor injuries or match limit restrictions. But Verdi said all four will be ready to go for Tuesday’s NJSIAA Non-Public A opening round.
The Marauders, seeded fourth in this loaded bracket, will host 13th-seeded Notre Dame in the first round, the winner moving on to face Paramus Catholic-Paul VI later that night. The winner of the four-team pod will move on to the semifinals on Thursday. Eight of the state’s top 10 ranked teams are in Non-Public A.
North Bergen earned a second consecutive trip to the final after a 43-33 victory over Secaucus in the semifinals. After a back and forth start, which featured three pins for each team, North Bergen took the lead for good in the seventh bout of the dual when Alvin Mercader won his 150-pound match by decision and Justin Bermeo and Abdou Mbengue followed with pin falls at 157 and 165.Bayonne defeated Secaucus in the third place match, 48-23.
Secaucus, Bayonne and North Bergen all qualified for the state team tournament, which begins on Monday. Bayonne is the fourth seed in North Jersey, Section 2, Group 5 and will face Newark East Side in a quarterfinal hosted by top-seeded Phillipsburg. North Bergen is the fifth seed in North Jersey, Section 1, Group 5 and will face Morristown in a quarterfinal hosted by top-seeded Passaic Tech. Secaucus is the fifth seed in North Jersey, Section 2, Group 1 and squares off with Cedar Grove is a quarterfinal host by top-seeded Hanover Park.
Quarterfinal winners will also wrestle their semifinal matches that Monday night, while the sectional finals will be held on Wednesday at the higher-seeded team.
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