Phillipsburg wrestling wins every tossup, dominates Hunterdon Central

11/01/2024

Phillipsburg’s Patrick Day beats Hunterdon Central’s Grant Thompson at 157-pounds on Jan 10, 2024. Day won the bout.

Phillipsburg senior Nate Smith got the snowball rolling in the third bout of the Stateliners’ match against Hunterdon Central.

Smith’s 3-1 win in sudden victory over fellow senior Ryan Seemon at 215 pounds gave Phillipsburg the first tossup in a battle of two top-20 teams in the state, but more importantly seemed to give it unstoppable momentum as it rolled over the Red Devils 45-13 Wednesday night.

“Just looking to get a shot off there when we went into overtime. That was a big deal, big win for the team. I think a big contribution to how tonight played out,” Smith said. “It was nice to see that. We took off from there and we kept grinding and we kept going from there.”

The Stateliners, ranked No. 9 in the state by NJ.com, won the takedown battle 19-8 over No. 14 Hunterdon Central and got decision wins in tossups from sophomores Massimo Gonzalez (113) and Gavin Geleta (132) and junior Gavin Hawk (150).

“It just builds, it’s like a monster. We’ve gotten beat already by momentum, it happens to every team, I don’t care how good you are. It went our way,” Phillipsburg first-year coach Tim Longacre said. “When we get Nate’s (win) and we get 113 and then we kinda keep rolling and we get Dawson (McWilliams) back… All that energy that, it just builds into something special.”

Phillipsburg’s John Roth and Hunterdon Central’s Jacob Saus wrestle at 165-pounds on Jan 10, 2024. Roth went onto win the bout.

Smith’s win, which the senior clinched after he spun behind and controlled Seemon following the first clean shot of a bout that was mostly hand fighting, was the first time that the Stateliners (8-0) came up with a clutch moment in a pivotal bout, but it was certainly not the last.

“Put a lot of work in this week, those five a.m. wakeups, definitely hard,” Smith said. “Being a first-year varsity starter, I just had to take a breath and breathe a little bit and realize I got this… Definitely a lot of hand fighting, I finally got to a good shot there at the end and took it and it led to the win.”

Smith’s win gave P’burg a 9-6 lead through three bouts and senior heavyweight John Wargo, still clearly not at 100 percent after suffering an injury at the Bethlehem Holiday Wrestling Classic, made an early takedown stand up in a 3-2 decision win over junior Tyler Suk.

Freshman Anthony Pettinelli delivered an expected pin in 50 seconds at 106 to extend the Stateliners’ early edge to 18-6.

Gonzalez got to his offense consistently as he scored one takedown in each period. The sophomore’s ability to keep away from danger paid off too as he fought off a reversal attempt by Red Devils senior Ryan Sherlock at the end of first and, in the final seconds of the bout, just managed to stay off his back when Sherlock scored his second takedown to hold on to a 7-5 win.

Phillipsburg’s Gavin Hawk and Hunterdon Central’s Rhett Washleski move in to shake hands before wrestling at 150-pounds on Jan 10, 2024. Hawk won the bout.

“Really happy with Nate Smith at 215, had confidence that we could get that one there and I absolutely had confidence at 113,” Longacre said. “I think a lot of people in the building were like, ‘That’s gonna be a tough one, that’s gonna be a tossup or go towards Central.’ We got all those ones that most people didn’t think we’d get.”

Phillipsburg’s John Roth and Hunterdon Central’s Jacob Saus wrestle at 165-pounds on Jan 10, 2024. Roth went onto win the bout.

Geleta admitted he doubted whether or not he’d be victorious in the waning moments of his 5-4 win over senior Ahmed Hussain.

After McWilliams, wrestling for the first time since the Stateliners’ first bout of the season due to a knee injury, offset Hunterdon Central senior Anthony Rossi’s 11-1 major at 120 with a fall in 47 seconds at 126, Hussain had to win to keep any faint chance at a Red Devils’ comeback alive.

“Kinda pumped me up a little bit but also calmed me because I knew we were going to win either way,” Geleta said of being a bit relieved by P’burg being up 27-10 ahead of his bout.

Geleta scored an early takedown but Hussain escaped in the first and second to tie the bout at 2-2 and then secured a takedown at the end of the second. Up 4-2, Hussain seemed to have a solid ride going in the third but, after a stalling call that drew the ire of the Hunterdon Central bench, Geleta got out quickly from the ensuing restart.

Geleta, who was the aggressor on the feet throughout, finally chained together a takedown with less than five seconds left at the edge of the mat to pull out the win.

Phillipsburg’s Luke Geleta and Hunterdon Central’s William Cella wrestle at 144-pounds on Jan 10, 2024. Geleta won the bout.

“Five seconds left, I really thought it was over,” Geleta said. “I had to come out with the win… I knew it was really short time but I knew I was going to get it when I was on the edge of the mat.”

That put P’burg up 30-10 and sent the Stateliners’ home crowd into a frenzy.

“Felt really good when I heard the crowd, amazing,” Geleta said. “The coaches and teammates were really happy.”

Longacre was thrilled, but not surprised.

“The ones that I wanted to win, I thought we could. I thought we’d get Geleta, had complete faith in him like there was no tomorrow,” the first-year coach said. “He’s been wrestling fantastic all year, different level than where he was at last year.”

Senior Evan Thompson (138) earned the Red Devils’ final win of the match with a 3-0 decision over junior Anthony Ashford, that was really more of a win for P’burg due to the lack of bonus, before junior Luke Geleta (144) sealed the Stateliners win with a pin of fellow senior William Cella off a tilt 10 seconds into the third.

“I got no idea, it just happens,” Gavin Geleta said of his older brother’s ability to create pins out of nowhere.

“It’s dynamic. His flow of wrestling is like nobody else on the team,” Longacre added on Luke Geleta. “He can get in those scrambles and roll through and he always pops out on top because he has good awareness of his body, most people don’t have that.”

Phillipsburg coach Tim Longacre reacts as Phillipsburg’s John Roth and Hunterdon Central’s Jacob Saus wrestle at 165-pounds on Jan 10, 2024. Roth went onto win the bout.

With the win sealed with three bouts left, junior Gavin Hawk’s 5-1 decision over sophomore Rhett Washleski, who qualified for states as a freshman, seemed almost routine.

Both teams will be back in Phillipsburg Saturday for the Hunterdon/Warren/Sussex individual tournament.

“It’s huge for all of those three that most people thought were tossups, it’s enormous,” Longacre said of added individual confidence from the tossup wins. “We’re seeing the progress get better and better and better.”

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Desmond Boyle may be reached at [email protected].

Hunterdon Central’s Thomas Brunetti beats Phillipsburg’s Derek Stone at 190-pounds on Jan 10, 2024.

Hunterdon Central’s Jace Brownlie is dejected as Phillipsburg’s Dawson McWilliams acknowledged the cheers from the student section after losing at 126-pounds on Jan 10, 2024.

Phillipsburg’s Owen Garriques and Hunterdon Central’s Anthony Rossi wrestle at 120-pounds on Jan 10, 2024. Rossi won the bout.

Phillipsburg’s Massimo Gonzalez and Hunterdon Central’s Ryan Sherlock wrestle at 113-pounds on Jan 10, 2024. Gonzalez won the bout.

Phillipsburg’s Gavin Geleta and Hunterdon Central’s Ahmed Hussain wrestle at 132-pounds on Jan 10, 2024. Geleta won the bout.

Phillipsburg’s Gavin Hawk and Hunterdon Central’s Rhett Washleski wrestle at 150-pounds on Jan 10, 2024. Hawk won the bout.

Phillipsburg’s John Roth and Hunterdon Central’s Jacob Saus wrestle at 165-pounds on Jan 10, 2024. Roth went onto win the bout.

Phillipsburg’s Luke Geleta and Hunterdon Central’s William Cella wrestle at 144-pounds on Jan 10, 2024. Geleta won the bout.

Phillipsburg’s Luke Geleta makes a face as he walks back to the center of the mat as he faces Hunterdon Central’s William Cella at 144-pounds on Jan 10, 2024. Geleta won the bout.

Phillipsburg’s Luke Geleta beat Hunterdon Central’s William Cella at 144-pounds on Jan 10, 2024.

Phillipsburg’s Anthony Ashford and Hunterdon Central’s Evan Thompson wrestle at 138-pounds on Jan 10, 2024. Thompson won the bout.

Phillipsburg students wave their cell phone lights as John Roth dominates Hunterdon Central’s Jacob Saus at 165-pounds on Jan 10, 2024. Roth went onto win the bout.