Top wrestlers in Morris County off to terrific start

The Morris County Tournament doesn't begin until late January, but it's never too early to go through the weight classes and see who the early favorites are.

Many of the best wrestlers stepped up over the weekend. Delbarton's Pat Glory won his weight at the prestigious Beast of the East, while teammates Nick Farro (second at 132) and Val Miele (eighth at 138) had strong showings.

Miele was completely under the radar over the weekend. He was ahead, then was choked out of his first match,  and wound up wrestling back for eighth place.

"He was our Wrestler of the Week," assistant coach Guy Russo said.

Delbarton's Jake Maciejewski (285) won his first two matches at the Beast, including a stunning pin over top-seeded Dan Herman of The Heith School (Massachusetts) in 1:48.

Meanwhile, Hanover Park's Nick Raimo (third at the Beast at 120) and Anthony Olivieri (sixth at 170) had excellent showings at the Beast.

Morris Knolls' Drugac twins, Luke (182) and Dean (195), easily won their weights at the Morris Knolls Christmas Tournament.

Roxbury won the Dover Christmas Tournament, with Tommy Miller (152) making the finals and Craig Roumes (160) winning his weight.

But there are several weight classes — namely, 106, 145, and 220 — in which there are a slew of good wrestlers but not one who could be regarded as a favorite at the MCT yet.

At 106, Montville's Ronald Rumsby, who won 25 matches and was second at District 2 last year, made the finals at Morris Knolls and was majored by South Plainfield's Joe Heilmann. Jefferson's Mason Godfrey won 106 at the Mahwah Tournament. Roxbury's John Tesoriero took first at Dover.

Mendham's Chris Schlegel, who pinned Old Tappan's 18-match winner Declan Ward to win the Mount Olive Tournament in 5:30, returns in the 145-pound weight class. There is also Montville's Dominic Fano, who was second at Morris Knolls.

The 220-pound class is another one that is completely up for grabs in the early going. Roxbury's Todd Eckert, Mount Olive's Dan Colabella, Jefferson's Avery Sheruda, Parsippany's Junid Homsi and Madison's Santiago Arango are the leaders thus far.

Here are the best at each weight:

106: Ronald Rumsby (Montville).

113: Pat Glory (Delbarton).

120: Nick Raimo (Hanover Park).

126: Ty Agaisse (Delbarton).

132: Nick Farro (Delbarton).

138: Val Miele (Delbarton).

145: Chris Schlegel (Mendham).

152: Tommy Miller (Roxbury).

160: Craig Roumes (Roxbury).

170: Anthony Olivieri (Hanover Park).

182: Luke Drugac (Morris Knolls).

195: Dean Drugac (Morris Knolls).

220: Santiago Arango (Madison).

285: Jake Maciejewski  (Delbarton).

Dates to keep

Dec. 27: Mountain Lakes Tournament.

Dec. 28: John Goles, Hunterdon Central, Kittatinny tournaments.

Dec. 29: Roselle Park, Parsippany tournaments.

Jan. 29-30: Morris County Tournament at Mount Olive High School.

Feb. 8: State team sectional tournament quarterfinals.

Feb. 10: State team sectional tournament semifinals.

Feb. 12: State team sectional finals.

Feb. 14: State team Group championships, Toms River.

Feb. 19-20: Districts.

Feb. 24: Region first round.

Feb. 26: Region quarterfinals.

Feb. 27: Region finals.

March 4-6: State tournament, Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City.

Falcons roll at Mahwah

Jefferson scored 158½ points and won the 10-team Mahwah Tournament, beating out Suffern (151½) and Ocean (142).

Mason Godfrey (106) and Butler transfer Shane Connelly (fall at 152) brought home titles, while Chris Shrieks (126), Daun White (170) and Victor Schiavo (195) were second.

"The kids wrestled well," coach Matt Moscatello said. "It was a total team effort, with 10 kids placing in the top four.  Godfrey looked very impressive in beating two district place winners (Ocean's Adam Manzo, North Bergen's Yousef Salem) along the way to his championship.  Sophomore Shane Connolly looked very tough  pinning in the finals.  With a young team I just hope to get better every match."

More wrestlers to watch 

We gave you some of the best wrestlers to watch in Morris County in our preview on Saturday. Here are some more terrific wrestlers to keep an eye on.

Sean Conley, Hanover Park, 132: Conley won Region 3 at 113 last year, and working out every day with the Raimos can only lift his game.

P.J. Gohn, Parsippany, 113: Gohn stunned Emerson's Paco Robles in the first round at Boardwalk Hall last year, and Robles wound up placing in the Top 12.

Val Miele, Delbarton, 138: Miele caught fire in Atlantic City, winning once in the first round and twice in the loser's bracket to place in the Top 12 in New Jersey. His Top 8 finish at the Beast of the East indicates he is ready to place in Atlantic City this winter.

Tommy Miller, Roxbury, 152: Miller placed in the Top 16 in the state at 152 for the Gaels and figures to give the team lower-weight firepower this winter.

Craig Roumes, Roxbury, 160: Roumes had a big first night in A.C., winning two matches before settling for a Top 12 finish at 160 at Boardwalk Hall. Roumes won his weight at the Dover Tournament Saturday.

Luke Anselmi, Delbarton, 160: Anselmi improved greatly as last season progressed and found himself placing in the Top 16 in New Jersey last year.

Alex Zangrilli, Pequannock, 152: Zangrilli, a returning state qualifier, is being counted on as an anchor in the middle of the Golden Panthers' lineup. He won his weight at the Mount Olive Tournament.

Chase Champi, Morristown, 160: Champi got on a late-season roll at Region 3 and qualified for Atlantic City last year. The Colonials expect big things out of him once again.

Pat Daly, Pequannock, 195: Daly won his weight at Region 1 and his pre-quarterfinal match in Atlantic City, which lifted him to a Top 12 finish in the state. He won his weight at Mount Olive over the weekend.

L.J. Castellano, Delbarton, 182: Castellano was one of several Green Wave upper-weight wrestlers who caught fire at the end of last year, and he finished in the Top 16 in New Jersey.