3-5-19 Issue - 4 Volume XI NJSIAA Boys & Girls Wrestling Champions

March 5, 2019 Volume-XI Issue-4

Kevin WILLIAMS

Shore Sports Network Director kevin.williams@townsquaremedia.com

Steve MEYER Shore Sports Networkn Director High School Division steve.meyer@townsquaremedia.com

732-233-4460 Managing Editor BOB Badders // bob.badders@townsquaremedia.com

Senior Content Providers MATT Manley // mmanley21@gmail.com GREGG Lerner // glerner3@verizon.net

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Last Ride: Ranney Seniors are Four Wins from Ending with a Tournament of Champions Title

by Scott Stump - Special SSN Contributor “For me it started in seventh grade,’’ Lewis said. “I was dunking in seventh grade so that was always a big deal for everyone. I gradually just kind of got used to it.”

our years ago, the talk was all about the future for a special group of eighth-graders who were eager to transform Ranney from a basketball backwater into a national power.

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“It wasn’t overwhelming,’’ Antoine said. “I wasn’t trying to make a big deal about it.”

While the two had plenty of potential as eighth-graders, they didn’t become the first McDonald’s All-Americans from the Shore Conference since Christian Brothers Academy’s John Crotty in 1987 due to residual hype from their middle school days. They had to put in the work to develop their games to the point where they would be considered two of the top 20 players in the country.

Buzz about capturing Shore Conference and state titles, maybe even winning the NJSIAA Tournament of Champions, was all just a far-off dream back then.

Those dreams are now real, with the trophies to prove it. The potential of 2015 has become the reality of 2019, and now the Panthers are four wins from something else: immortality.

Lewis added substance to his sizzle by becoming the rare acrobatic offensive player who also takes pride in being a defensive stopper who can guard five positions. That takes effort and practice rather than just purely coasting on ability.

The senior class, headlined by McDonald’s All-Americans Scottie Lewis and Bryan Antoine, is four wins away from becoming the first Shore Conference boys team to win a TOC title, completing a historic run at a program that was an afterthought for its entire existence until they arrived.

“Myself and everything other top player, we sacrifice so much of our childhood and our teenage years of growing up and being normal for the love of the game,’’ Lewis said. “There’s a lot of sacrifice and there’s things we have to allow to trump other things as far as hanging out with our friends.”

“It’s amazing that for these guys it’s almost over,’’ head coach Tahj Holden said following a first-round state playoff romp over Timothy Christian. “To have an opportunity to win a state championship with this core group of guys and hopefully get to the Tournament of Champions would be special this year.”

revolutionary in that no Shore Conference team in memory had ever regularly started four freshmen before. Now they have a chance to become the rare group in the history of the Shore to have amassed more than 100 total wins in their four seasons.

“The last four years have gone by fast,’’ Lewis said. “We try to cherish as many moments as we possibly can.”

The Panthers will take on Wildwood Catholic at 7 p.m. on Wednesday at Jackson Liberty in a bid to add their second straight South Jersey Non-Public B title to their consecutive Shore Conference Tournament championships and continue their march into the record books.

Ranney Sr. Scottie Lewis

It’s been an incredible journey for the core four of Antoine, Lewis, guard Alex Klatsky and forward Chris Autino since they first became close as members of Team Rio, an AAU team run by Klatsky’s father, Brian, when they were middle schoolers. They were joined as sophomores by another Team Rio teammate, standout senior guard Ahmadu Sarnor.

Lewis and Antoine, the eighthgraders profiled by Shore Sports Network in 2015, are now bona fide national stars. Lewis has signed with the University of Florida, where he will be joined by Klatsky, who will be a walk-on for the Gators. Antoine is headed to join defending national champion Villanova next season.

The explosive duo have learned to deal with the particular fame that comes with being a top 15 national recruit in 2019.

It’s a little different than the days when Holden was a superstar at Red Bank Regional in the late 1990s before becoming a starter on the 2002 national championship team at the University of Maryland.

Antoine became a ruthlessly efficient scorer who can do damage off the dribble, in the midrange, from behind the arc and at the freethrow line. He became the Shore Conference’s all-time leading scorer earlier this season despite never having attempted 20 shots or cracked 40 points in a game in his career.

“My past four years, I’ve worked extremely hard,’’ he said. “When people had parties or something to do, I was headed to my trainer, lifting and getting in the gym and all that.”

Many 2020 NBA mock drafts list Antoine and Lewis as both being first-round picks. That means if they continue on their current trajectory, they will both be getting ready to be multi-millionaires a year from now, which Lewis admitted he thinks about.

“All the time,’’ he said. “That’s the ultimate goal, so that’s something that definitely lingers in your mind. It’s taking those steps that need to be taken to play at that level. I’m on the right track, and obviously it’s something that’s going to take time and a lot of work that’s being put in.”

While Holden was known across New Jersey, he didn’t have more than 100,000 Instagram followers like Lewis. His highlight clips were not watched across the world on YouTube like Antoine. There weren’t whole companies devoted to capturing a viral video from a showstopping dunk by Lewis.

Chris Autino (32), Scottie Lewis and Bryan Antoine (1) celebrate their second straight SCT championship “Our first year nobody knew who we were, and now I feel like we’re in every single newspaper, every single website, all over social media,’’ Antoine said. “It’s kind of crazy to see.”

All four of them started as freshmen at Ranney, which was

“Ever since I was young, I was focused on the next step,’’ Antoine said. “I’m a senior in high school, so the next step for me is freshman year of college, so I’m really only focused on college right now, and hopefully when I’m at college then I can be focused on the NBA.” Should that scenario come to fruition, it would be yet another piece of history for the Ranney duo. No Shore teammates have ever both been taken in the first round of the NBA Draft, making what is happening now essentially the Shore Conference basketball equivalent of seeing Halley's Comet.

The last player with Shore ties to be selected in the first round of the NBA Draft was J.R. Smith, who went No. 18 overall right out of high school to New Orleans in 2002. Smith starred at Lakewood before finishing his scholastic career at St. Benedict’s Prep in Newark, where he was also selected as a McDonald’s AllAmerican.

“Even though you have the social media platform and there’s YouTube and the Overtime era, it’s still pretty basic,’’ Holden said. “You still have to make sure you’re doing the right things on and off the court.

The unfortunate thing about today is if you don’t do the right thing, it gets magnified because everyone sees it.”

As Antoine and Lewis have journeyed to the national stardom predicted for them at a young age, Klatsky and Autino have also embarked on their own paths.

The accelerated era of fame in the age of viral dunks and endless hype on social media meant the star duo were used to the attention before they even reached high school.

Ranney Sr. Bryan Antoine

See

Ranney seniors

page 22

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s the defending Shore Conference Tournament champions and the No. 1 ranked team in New Jersey, the Ranney boys basketball team was the heavy favorite to win a second straight Shore Conference Tournament championship Then, Manasquan jumped on the defending champs by scoring the first six points of the SCT championship game and for the first time in the last two years, Ranney was looking at a 32-minute battle to win a Shore Conference Tournament game.

Ultimately, Ranney withstood Manasquan's early flurry, took over the lead for good n the second half and pulled out a 70-60 win over the Warriors to capture its second straight Shore Conference Tournament title and earn Week 9 Jersey Mike's Team of the Week honors.

Matt Manley - Senior Staff writer

foot-5 senior and Florida commit led the Panthers with 27 points, 10 rebounds, five steals and four blocks to earn game MVP honors.

Ranney built up a 43-30 lead in the third quarter before Manasquan closed the deficit to 48-44 early in the fourth. The Panthers had one more push in them and built the lead up to 62-50 on the way to a 10-point win.

Senior Ahmadu Sarnor led the second-half effort with 16 of his 18 points coming after halftime. Senior Bryan Antoine added 17 points on 5-for-9 shooting from the floor for the Panthers.

Ranney made it to the SCT final by beating Freehold Township, 78-50, in Thursday's semifinal in Toms River. Antoine led Ranney with 20 points, Sarnor scored 13, junior Phillip Wheeler and freshman Elijah Perkins scored 11 each and Lewis put up 10 points.

Over the past two seasons, Ranney outscored its SCT opponents by an average margin of 26.1 per game in winning the first two Shore Conference titles in school history.

Not only did Manasquan score the first six points of the game but the Warriors also answered a 7-0 Ranney response with nine straight points to take an eye-opening 15-7 lead on the state's top team.

Ranney then closed the first quarter with a 12-2 run to take the lead. Manasquan took one more lead on a Brad McCabe threepointer to make the score 20-19 before Ranney took over the lead for good on a Scottie Lewis basket.

Scottie Lewis baskets were common in Saturday's championship game as the 6-

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Week Eight

Freehold Twp.

Week Four

TR North

t

hroughout the 2019 season, Jersey Mike’s and Shore Sports Network will be selecting a Team of the Week based on its performance over the prior week.

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ith each step farther and farther out into uncharted waters of the Shore Conference Tournament, the Manchester girls basketball team looked more and more at home.

The Hawks had never even been to the SCT semifinals prior to this season and a first ever championship meant having to beat the top two seeds in the tournament No. 2 St. Rose and No. 1 St. John Vianney - in consecutive rounds.

As it turned out, Manchester did not beat the two powerhouse programs: the Hawks handled them.

Manchester defeated both St. Rose and St. John Vianney in convincing fashion last week to capture the program's first ever Shore Conference Tournament championship and earn Jersey Mike's Team of the Week honors.

On Tuesday, Manchester worn down a deeper St. Rose squad over the course of the game on the way to a 6245 win. After the Purple Roses jumped out to a 13-10 lead after the first quarter, the Hawks methodically picked them apart over the final 24 minutes, outscoring them 52-32.

Senior Leilani Correa took over the game in the first half and never let up, scoring 30 points to go with 12 rebounds, six assists and nine steals.

Manchester's ascension to the upper echelon of the Shore Conference - and, in turn, the state - was already in the works with the return of its core players junior Kemari Reynolds, sophomore Destiny Adams and senior Dakota Adams. The addition Correa - a West Virginia

signee and transfer from Rutgers Prep - pushed the Hawks over the top.

Destiny Adams and junior Serenity Anderson added 11 points each in support of Correa, with Adams also blocking four shots on the defensive end.

In Saturday's championship game vs. St. John Vianney, Manchester got off to a lukewarm start before engaging the Lancers in a back-and-forth contest for three quarters. The Hawks took a two-point lead into the fourth quarter and blew the game open with a 23-9 run to close out a 58-42 win and a first ever Shore Conference Tournament championship.

Destiny Adams took home team MVP honors in that game for posting 19 points and 10 rebounds - one of four Manchester plays to record a double-double. Dakota Adams added 12 points, 12 rebounds and four assists while Correa scored 14 points and grabbed 11 boards.

Reynolds also chipped in nine points and four assists in Manchester's championship-clinching performance.

The Hawks have already turned their attention to winning the program's third straight NJSIAA South Jersey Group II championship - a title Manchester had never won before 2016-17, when Dakota Adams was a sophomore and both Reynolds and Anderson were freshmen.

The goal this year, though, is even bigger. The Hawks will look to get over the hump by beating five-timedefending Group II champion Manasquan - that is, if both the Hawks and Warriors win their respective sections on the way to a first ever Group II championship and subsequent Tournament of Champions appearance.

Given the strength of the Shore Conference in the T of C Era, Manchester immediately thrust itself into the small group of teams with legitimate hopes to win New Jersey's ultimate prize in high school basketball.

Week Seven

Week six

Ocean

Midd South

Week Three

Week Two

Week One

RBR

RBC

Wall

Week Five

Matawan

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very week this regular season, Shore Conference Basketball fans will have their chance to vote for the Orthopaedic Institute of Central Jersey/ Shore Sports Network Basketball Player of the Week on our website.

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eek

Week

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Greg

Billups

Freehold Twp.

All-SCT Player of the Week winner is

Manasquan’s Brad MaCabe

Manasquan did not win the Shore Conference Tournament, but the Warriors made a serious bid and its senior swingman marked his territory as one of the Shore's top players during his team's run.

Brad McCabe capped his stellar tournament with one of the great offensive performances in this history of the SCT final. The 6-5 senior went off for 33 points on 11-for-13 shooting, including a ridiculous 9-for-10 from three-point range in a Manasquan loss to Ranney, the No. 1 team in the state.

For the tournament, McCabe averaged 20.25 points, 7.25 rebounds and 3.75 assists over the Warriors’ four-game run. He scored 15 points in Manasquan's win over CBA, including 11 in the first quarter and 13 during Manasquan's dominant first half.

Week

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Ouincy

Davis

Freehold Boro

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Andrew pinelands

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Luke

wiatrowski

pinelands

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Niles

Haliburton

Matawan

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Tahaj

Parland

Mater dei Prep

McCabe opened the tournament with 16 points, six rebounds and six assists against Toms River East and followed that up with 17 points, six rebounds, four assist and four steals in a rout of Red Bank Catholic in the SCT quarterfinals.

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Wathington

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Bryan Antoine & Faith Masonius Named Kerwin Award Winners By

Matt Manley

- Senior Staff writer

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game during his senior campaign with the state's top-ranked team. He is also posting 4.6 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 3.3 steals per game.

Ranney standout Bryan Antoine is the Kerwin Award winner for the second straight year and Manasquan senior Faith Masonius is Manasquan's fourth winner in the last five years, the Kerwin Family announced Saturday via press release.

Antoine is signed to play college basketball at the Villanova University.

or the third straight year the Kerwin Awards are going back to the Ranney School and Manasquan High School - the homes of the top boys and girls basketball players at the Shore.

For his efforts, Antoine was selected to play in the prestigious McDonald's All-American game on March 27 in Atlanta. Lewis will join him as the first two Shore Conference players to play in the game since Christian Brothers Academy's John Crotty in 1987.

Antoine is Ranney's third straight winner after Scottie Lewis won the award as a sophomore and Antoine as a junior in 2018. During the 2018-19 season, Antoine chased down the all-time Shore Conference scoring record and ppassed Croydon Hall’s Norm Caldwell and his 46-year old mark of 2,302 points on Feb. 6 in a Ranney win over Mater Dei. “Antoine is a great shooter," family spokesperson Peggy Kerwin Fleischer said. "He can shoot the deep three, the short jumper or finish a drive to the basket in spectacular fashion.

Bryan is a fearless playmaker who has helped Ranney achieve a national ranking."

Heading into Ranney's Shore Conference Tournament championship showdown with Mansaquan on Saturday, Antoine has 2,366 career points and is averaging 22.2 per

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The Antoine Family & the Kirwin Family present the Kerwin award to Bryan Antoine. (photo courtsey Ranney School)

Faith Masonius

is the third straight Kerwin winner from Manasquan and fourth in the last five years, but the first not named M a b r e y.

Current Notre Dame senior Marina Mabrey w o n t h e a w a r d i n 2 0 1 5 a n d V i r g i n i a Te c h freshman Dara Mabrey won the award in both 2017 and 2018. Michaela Mabrey - who also played at Notre Dame - won the award in 2012 as a senior at Manasquan. “ M a s o n i u s i s a g r e a t c o m p e t i t o r, " K e r w i n Fleischer said. "She has excellent court sense and with it the ability take control of

a game. Despite being double-teamed on a regular b a s i s , s h e s t i l l f i n d s t h e o p e n s h o t . Fa i t h i s a g r e a t a l l a r o u n d p l a y e r : p a s s e r, s h o o t e r, a n d d e f e n d e r. �

Masonius is averaging 19.8 points, 11.4 rebounds and 3.9 assists for a Manasquan team that again r e a c h e d t h e S h o r e C o n f e r e n c e To u r n a m e n t s e m i f i n a l s and is a favorite to win the NJSIAA Central Jersey Group II section.

In Manasquan's SCT semifinal loss to St. John V i a n n e y o n Tu e s d a y, M a s o n i u s n e a r l y c a r r i e d t h e Wa r r i o r s t o v i c t o r y w i t h 3 3 p o i n t s , 1 1 r e b o u n d s a n d three assists before ultimately falling, 53-51, to the tournament's No. 1 seed.

Masonius was an integral part of Manasquan's N J S I A A To u r n a m e n t o f C h a m p i o n s w i n n e r i n 2 0 1 7 - 1 8 and has been a starter since her freshman season at one of the state's top programs. The versatile 6-foot1 Masonius will continue her basketball career in college at the University of Maryland.

Photos by:

The Masonius Family, Head coach Lisa Kukoda & the Kerwin Family present the Kerwin award to Faith Masonius. (photo courtsey Squan Twitter)

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Three Shore Conference girls make history at first girls wrestling state tournament By

O

Bob Badders

- Managing Editor

ther girls will win state titles in the future, but only one group will be the first.

History was made on Saturday night inside Boardwalk Hall during the inaugural NJSIAA Girls Wrestling State Tournament as three Shore Conference girls won state titles, entering the history book among a group of the first 10 girls wrestling state champions in New Jersey history.

Manasquan senior Bella Serrano won the 111-pound title, Raritan freshman Cristine Gavasheli won the 118-pound championship and Manalapan sophomore Jesse Johnson captured the 136-pound title to lead a group of 14 Shore Conference girls in the tournament.

“When I was in my semifinal match I told myself I was born to do this; I was born to be out here,” Serrano said.

When the news broke that New Jersey was going to add girls wrestling as a varsity sport, complete with its own state tournament, it was as if the wrestling gods had finally answered Serrano’s prayers.

“I was actually on my way back home from practice and my friend sent me a text message saying you’re going to be the first state champ,” Serrano said. “It was about time. I waited too long.”

Serrano has been a four-year varsity starter for Manasquan, competing against mostly boys and only a handful of girls. She’s wrestled since fifth grade, hoping one day the time would come for her to shine. That moment came on Saturday night under the bright lights.

At the famous arena by the beach that has been the longtime home of the boys wrestling state tournament, Serrano made history by defeating West Orange’s Daniela Tacuri, 6-4 in sudden victory, to become the first girls state champion from the Shore Conference and also the first Manasquan wrestler – male or female – to win a state championship.

then took Tacuri down near the edge of the circle to take a 4-3 lead with 15 seconds left. Tacuri, however, was able to get to her feet and earn an escape point just as the buzzer was sounding.

“I thought I had it, to be honest, but then (the referee) said overtime and it was like, ‘oh no’,” Serrano said.

Undeterred, Serrano pressed forward on Tacuri, getting in on a shot and finishing off the historic state-championship clinching takedown with 24 seconds left in sudden victory.

“I just wanted that win so bad,” Serrano said. “I needed that takedown and I got it.”

That moment was years in the making for Serrano. She’s worked tirelessly at her craft and become a sponge for wrestling knowledge wherever she could attain it.

“I’ve been wrestling since I was in fifth grade; I watch college wrestling, I watch Olympic wrestling, I watch high school wrestling,” Serrano said.

“Some of the guys here, I watch how they wrestle and I just learn from each and every match.”

Serrano said she received some encouragement from current and past teammates, but she also had her share of naysayers. This state championship was for them, too.

“There’s a bunch of guys on my team who said I wasn’t going to do it,” Serrano said. “I’m just going to laugh in their faces and say, ‘I did it!’.”

Another Shore Conference girl with wrestling experience is Johnson, who entered the season as a USA Wrestling Freestyle All-American. Johnson won by fall over Monroe’s Veronica Whitacre at the 1:39 mark of the first period to bring home the NJSIAA 136-pound state title and reach a goal she set at the beginning of the season.

“Honestly, I just manifested this all year,” Johnson said. “I always believe in myself and the work I’ve done all these years so I thought this moment would happen.”

Johnson entered the South Region tournament as the 136-pound favorite but was pinned by Manasquan’s America Garay in the semifinals. She wrestled back for third to clinch a state tournament berth, and then in the state semifinals she got her revenge by pinning Garay in 2:18 to reach the state championship match.

“I can’t even describe it, it’s so awesome,” Serrano said.

Serrano had to rally to win gold, clawing back from a 3-0 deficit in the second period. After a scoreless first period, Tacuri escaped and then scored a takedown to build her lead.

Serrano escaped near the end of the second period and then chose defense to start the third. Tacuri rode her for nearly 90 seconds in the third period before Serrano escaped with 37 seconds left, trimming her deficit to 3-2. She

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“It wasn’t an easy ride and I definitely had to work for it,” Johnson said. “I definitely just wanted to prove I was better than all these girls in my weight class.”

Johnson’s parents are both Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioners and she has trained in the martial art

since a young age. She began wrestling in seventh grade and has competed in various tournaments at the state and national level. She figured that would be the extent of her wrestling exposure aside from some potential junior varsity wrestling matches on the boys team. Then, the state announced girls wrestling as a varsity sport.

“It was very exciting, I never knew it would happen while I was still in high school,” Johnson said. “And being a sophomore it’s great to know I have more years to come.”

There were several girls wrestlers with years of experience who competed in the state tournament, but there were also plenty more who decided only this year to give the sport a try. Gavasheli falls into that group, but you wouldn’t know it by the way she dominated the region and state tournaments.

A first-year wrestler, Gavasheli pinned her way through the region and state tournaments to capture the NJSIAA 118-pound state championship. In the second period of the championship match, Gavasheli put Notre Dame’s Angelina Romero to her back and finished her off with the fall at the 2:31 mark. She is the first Raritan wrestler, male or female, to win a wrestling state championship.

“It’s my first year and I had no idea I’d be here,” Gavasheli said. “To be the first, it means the world to me. It feels really amazing.”

“We call her the Goliath spider–the bird-eating spider–because she just swallows her opponents,” said Raritan girls coach Melissa Gardner.

Gardner trains mixed martial arts, including BJJ, so when she first saw Gavasheli in the wrestling room she knew she had a lot of potential.

“I do MMA so I know a large component of it is wrestling, even more so than jiu-jitsu because the transition from feet to ground is wrestling,” Gardner said. “If you can wrestle you control the game. She’s not a traditional wrestler. You look at her form and it gives you heart attacks but she has great hips.”

“About my fifth match or so I started to pick up on the moves and started doing better,” Gavasheli said. “I think that’s when I started to keep getting pins.”

The pins haven’t stopped since. And given that Gavasheli is only a freshman, there could be a lot more accolades in her future.

Finishing second in the state were Raritan’s Mia Lazaurs at 185 pounds and Jackson Memorial’s Kayla Gregory at 127 pounds.

Jackson Memorial’s Brandi Rado lost her first bout but wrestled back to finish third at 147 pounds. Jaguars teammate Madison Pesavage finished fourth at 161.

Finishing fifth were Asbury Park’s Quanizja Legagneur at 100, Manalapan’s Julia Manolas at 105, and Toms River South’s Alexandra Johnson at 118. Placing sixth were Red Bank’s Sheridan Torres at 118, Manalapan’s Angelina Vitola at 127, Garay at 136 and Jackson Memorial’s Jordyn Katz at 185.

Like Johnson, Gavasheli also has a BJJ background. When wrestling became an option it seemed like a good fit.

“I’ve been doing jiu-jitsu for a while and I was always kind of good at it,” Gavasheli said. “They made a girls wrestling team and I thought that was pretty cool so I decided to try it out.”

In just a few months, Gavasheli became good enough to win a state title and earn a unique nickname from here coaches.

by:

Bob Badders www.shoresportsnetwork.com Photos by:

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION Contact: Steven Meyer 732-233-4460 steve.meyer townsquaremedia.com

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By Bob Badders

Managing Editor

“I would say it’s been more fuel than anything,” Kanniard said. “It’s a dream that I’ve had and I’ve always wanted to work toward that dream. Every time I lost in the state final as a lose, I learn from it so I take it as a junior, the flame fueling his quest lesson more than a loss.”

ARob Kanniard fter Wall’s

for a state championship only burned hotter. On Saturday night inside Boardwalk Hall, the Wall High School senior completed a dominating run to finish his career at the very top.

Kanniard put on an offensive show for the crowd in Atlantic City, taking down DePaul’s Connor O’Neil four times en route to a 9-4 decision that secured the 2019 NJSIAA 160pound state championship. Kanniard scored a pair of takedowns in the first period and was on his way to finishing off an undefeated season and becoming Wall’s first state champion in 17 years.

“It’s the greatest feeling in the world,” Kanniard said. “I’ve been working for this ever since sixth grade. I’ve been working for this moment for so long and all the hard work has paid off. It feels even better than I imagined.”

Last season, Kanniard entered the state final with an undefeated record before falling to Bergen Catholic’s Shane Griffith, a three-time state champion. From that moment, Kanniard narrowed his focus even more. Every drill, every roll, every conditioning session was geared toward one moment: getting back to the center mat at Boardwalk Hall and getting his hand raised.

Kanniard entered the state tournament with a 41-0 record and all of his wins coming by at least major decision. While that streak was broken by decision wins in the quarterfinals (14-7) and the state final, those results didn’t make his season any less dominant. Kanniard’s 46-0 record is a Shore Conference single-season record and he went the entire season without surrendering an offensive point. He finished his career with a Shore Conference-record 165 wins to just 10 losses. Six of those defeats came as a freshman. Three more as a sophomore. He was 91-1 over the past two years, virtually unstoppable.

“We talked about if you combined a Nick Angen (two-time state champion at Brick Memorial) and Todd Palmisano (state champion at Brick Memorial) into one you get Robby Kanniard,” said Wall head coach Brian Fischer, who wrestled in high school at Brick Memorial.

“He’s super athletic, that fasttwitch

S e e Kanniard page 14

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all season – a reversal to High Point’s Devin Flannery back in December at the Mustang Classic.

“At the beginning of the third period I probably should have just let him up because I knew he couldn’t take me down,” Peterson said.

“He wasn’t really that strong on his feet so if he shot on me I probably would have just got a takedown.”

S

ince the program began in 1973, St. John Vianney never had a wrestling state champion. No one had ever come close, either.

That was before

Dean Peterson arrived.

On Saturday, March 2nd, inside Boardwalk Hall, Peterson made history by defeating Emerson/Park Ridge’s Nick Babin, 3-2, to win the NJSIAA 113-pound state championship and become the first Lancers wrestler to ever win a state title.

“It hasn’t really sunk in yet but hopefully it will hit me a l i t t l e l a t e r,” Pe t e r s o n s a i d . “ B u t i t feels great.”

A first-period takedown was all Peterson needed to finish the season 35-0 and claim the state championship. He escaped in the second period to extend his lead to 3-0 and held off Babin despite giving up a stalling point and then cutting Babin loose with 10 seconds left.

“It’s very difficult to score on him,” said SJV head coach Denny D’Andrea. “You see guys get right in on him and he gets the head and arm in and gets his hips down. It’s technique and you also have to have a feel for it. When you sprawl the guy can re-shoot but he has that feel to lock in so the guy can’t get his head back up. He posts the head a lot and the guys just can’t do anything.”

“Once he got that first takedown I knew it was over,” said SJV assistant Tony Caravella. “You can’t score on him.

The only time I’ve seen anybody score on him is a reversal. He got taken down in the state final last year and that never happens. He’s good in every position, he’s knowledgeable, he’s athletic and he’s nasty.”

Peterson reached the state championship match at 106 pounds as a freshman, becoming the first SJV wrestler to reach the state finals.

He lost to Hanover Park’s Joey Olivieri, however, squashing his goal of winning four state titles.

“His goal was to be a four-time state champion and when he lost last year he was pissed off,” D’Andrea said. “I said, ‘you can be a threetime state champion. Yesterday is in the past’. He came back with a vengeance.”

“I knew If I hit my angles and finished quick he wasn’t going to be able to scramble,” Peterson said. “On that first takedown I got to his legs, made sure it was clean and finished.”

Babin was never able to get close to scoring thanks to Peterson’s elite defense. In fact, Peterson only allowed two offensive points

S e e Peterson page 15

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Kanniard Cont from page 12

standout Nick Roy. Roy won back-to-back state titles in 2001 and 2002 and was the last Wall wrestler to win a state championship before Kanniard did on Saturday night.

muscle, that unorthodox style and the dominance he has. And he has such confidence and that is a major game-changer when you’re out there.”

“Nick has been coaching me ever since I first started wrestling so having my name under his (on the wrestling wall) and being able to keep up with his records means a lot,” Kanniard said.

“He’s one of the best wrestlers I’ve ever seen and obviously ever coached.

Against O’Neil, who is a fellow Rutgers recruit, Kanniard attacked him in a variety of ways. He hit a slick high crotch in the second period that generated oohs and ahs from the crowd. He hit a double-leg takedown to take a 4-1 lead later in the period. In the second he got behind O’Neil and returned him to the mat for a 6-2 lead, and in the third, he hit a nasty duck-under to make it 9-3.

“It’s all about making mid-match adjustments,” Kanniard said. “I just had to keep him guessing and not knowing what I’m going to shoot next.”

Kanniard is not one to show a ton of emotion. He did, of course, after he beat O’Neil to win the state title, but through the season and especially this weekend he was even-keeled.

“His mental mindset is perfect for this sport,” Fischer said. “Everything was all about business. He treats every match like it’s the state final so when he actually gets to the state final it’s just like every other match.”

Kanniard’s skills have been cultivated and honed inside the Wall wrestling room and at Triumph Wrestling Club, which is operated by former Wall

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“I’ll put that name right up there with Nick Roy,” Fischer said. “Robby’s training is what puts him there (as a state champion). We’re very fortunate on our staff to have two former Division 1 wrestlers (Drew Reca and Ramon Santiago, both Rider University graduates) who wrestle him every day. We also have (sophomore 182-pounder) Jake Whitworth as his partner all the time so he’s constantly being pushed and he’s really reaped the rewards form that.”

No matter how talented a wrestler and regardless of the notion that it may be ‘their time’, the story-book ending doesn’t always materialize.

Dreams have been crushed more than they have come true inside the old seaside arena. But that thought never cross Kanniard’s mind. This was going to be his moment because he was going to make it so.

“I’ve been dreaming of this day for so long,” Kanniard said. “It finally came true.” by:

Bob Badders www.shoresportsnetwork.com Photos by:

Richard O’Donnell www.richardodonnellphotography.com

Peterson Cont from page 13

“Redemption always feels good,” Peterson said.

“I lost two youth state titles and one of those was to (Delbarton’s) Nico Nardone. In the semifinals was the first time wrestling him in four years so that path to the finals made it 100 times better.”

To make his state-title run even more impressive, Peterson revealed he wrestled the last three rounds with a broken hand suffered in the pre-quarterfinals.

“I broke it in the pre-quarters,” he said. “I went to post on his head and my finger kind of caved in and the knuckle popped out. I wasn’t worried because I broke my hand before.

I broke my left hand when I was eight and I went out to Reno Worlds and won it.”

Only a sophomore, Peterson has entered rarified air at his school and in the Shore Conference. He is 71-2 in his career with a state championship and a second-place finish.

D’Andrea and Caravella, both of whom are Shore Conference and New Jersey wrestling Hall of Famers, have seen it all in the world of wrestling.

Peterson is right at the top among all the greats they’ve coached.

“Him and Nick Angen,” D’Andrea said “Nick Angen was the most talented kid I ever coached, a two-time state champion. This kid is right up there. He’s very talented.”

“I’ve had probably over 2,000 wrestlers and he’s by far the most talented I’ve ever had,” Caravella said.

“And combined with that is he’s hard-working, and that’s a great combination. We’ve had (Vinnie) Santaniello and Angen and (Todd) Palmisano, elite kids, and he is just a different level.”

In two years, Peterson has accomplished things no St. John Vianney wrestler has. He’s set the bar high, but with two years left there’s a good chance he’s going to raise it even higher.

Photos by:

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Calling All Coaches…When Older Joints Need Some Care

By Mark W. Gesell, MD, FACS professional Orthopaedic Associates

G

enerally, the high school athletic population does not need to worry about chronic hip or knee pain.

However, for some coaches and parents, chronic hip or knee pain can sneak up on you and effect your daily life. There are now more options than ever for partial and total joint replacements that help get you back to doing what you love without pain.

Dr. Mark Gesell of Professional Orthopaedic Associates is one of the first orthopedic surgeons in New Jersey to offer total hip replacements, partial knee resurfacing and total knee replacements using a Robotic Assisted Surgical procedure called “MAKOplasty ® .”

The innovative use of the MAKOplasty ® technology takes joint resurfacing to a new level of precision with the creation of a three-dimensional view of the patient's bone surface. The surgeon controls the robotic arm, which allows for greater accuracy when placing the implants. This procedure is less invasive and more precise than traditional total joint replacements.

Dr. Gesell says, “Patients have a more rapid recovery with minimal hospitalization. There is reduced pain, a smaller scar, better motion and a more “natural” feeling knee. In summary, Makoplasty knee & hip surgeries allow patients a less invasive replacement with a quicker recoveries and better outcomes.”

Mark W. Gesell, MD, FACS Hip & Knee Replacement, Arthroscopic Surgery, Degenerative Joint Disease, Revision Joint Replacement

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Brick Mem.’s Vincent Santaniello places 3rd to lead Shore Conference consolation winners By

Bob Badders

- Managing Editor

restling back for third place often Anderson rebounds from injury to place fifth A month ago, there was doubt whether Middletown North senior Jacob Anderson seems as difficult as winning a state would even be able to compete in the individual postseason. championship. Even for those who reach He’s dealt with a shoulder injury for the past two years, and during the Shore the semifinals, two more wins against Conference Tournament 195-pound final against Jackson Memorial’s Kyle Epperly, his shoulder popped out while he had a cradle locked in. He had to injury default, elite opponents are the requirement to ending his hopes of winning an SCT title and also putting his goal of winning a state finish in the top three. It’s not for the medal in jeopardy.

However, on Saturday afternoon, all was right in his world as faint of heart.

Anderson defeated Rancocas Valley’s Drew Bowker, 4-2, to finish

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Brick Memorial’s Vincent Santaniello accomplished just that on Saturday at Boardwalk Hall, and boy did he do it in style.

At the end of a wild third period that featured three reversals, Santaniello scored a reversal and three near-fall points with five seconds left for a sensational 9-4 victory over Bergen Catholic’s Nick Kayal to finish third in the state at 113 pounds during the NJSIAA Individual Championships.

It was an emotional moment for Santaniello, who spiked his headgear in triumph and pointed up to the crowd where his family and a section of Brick Memorial fans were going berserk.

“It felt amazing,” Santaniello said. “I worked so hard this offseason. I don’t know if anyone thought I could but I knew I was going to be one of the top medal winners in this weight class.”

The 113-pound weight class was loaded, including five returning state placewinners and a total of 14 returning state qualifiers among the 24-man field. As confident as Santaniello was, he knew the journey would be extremely difficult. He reached the quarterfinals as the No. 6 seed where he defeated Kayal, 3-2, to reach the semifinals. He was defeated there by Emerson/Park Ridge’s Nick Babin, 3-2, but bounced back in the consolation semifinals with a thrilling 3-1 win in sudden victory over Belvidere’s Quinn Melofchik.

“All these bouts were so tough,” Santaniello said. “We’re all a point away from each other.”

After a scoreless first period, Kayal struck first when he chose defense to start the second period and then reversed Santaniello to take a 2-0 lead. Santaniello answered with a reversal late in the period to knot the score at two and nearly had more with a cradle, but Kayal was narrowly able to avoid giving up any back points.

Then came the nail-biting third period.

Santaniello started on defense and quickly sat where he was able to grab a hold of Kayal’s left foot and start the reversal process. He worked his way around, fighting through Kayal’s grasp of his right leg to finally get two points and take a 4-2 lead with 1:10 remaining. The lead was short-lived, however, as Kayal got free and came out the back while keeping a hold of Santaniello’s right leg. Santaniello tried to rip free but Kayal returned him to the mat to tie the score again, 4-4, with 43 seconds left in the third period.

Off the restart, Kayal tried to insert his leg but Santaniello caught it while grabbing a hold of Kayal’s left wrist and arching his back, nearly exposing Kayal for a defensive pin. Santaniello then reached back and over with his left arm, head-locking Kayal and bringing him to the mat with 20 seconds to go. It took 15 more seconds for the reversal to finally be called, and as it was Santaniello also put Kayal to his back to finish off a fantastic sophomore season.

“It all happened so quick, but I don’t know, I was just going through the motions saying get the points however I can get them,” Santaniello said. “I knew he was going to try to ride and I had to catch that boot. I threw him over and caught a headlock. The ref gave me two later than I was expecting so that was kind of uncomfortable. When I got it, I thought there were 10 seconds left. Man, it was crazy.”

Placing in the top three was a major goal for Santaniello, as was another one: besting his dad, four-time state place-winner Vinnie Santaniello, who finished fourth as a sophomore.

“I always bust his chops saying I’m going to do better than him,” Santaniello said.

“I knew it was going to be hard to take better than fourth, so to do it feels amazing.”

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fifth in the state at 195 pounds.

“I’m just loving it right now,” Anderson said. “Three weeks ago, I didn’t know if I was going to be able to come back because of my shoulder and coming down here and getting on the podium was always a goal of mine. I’ve been coming here since I was little, watching all these crazy wrestlers like Anthony Ashnault, and I never thought I’d be on these mats. But something happened in my high school career, where freshmansophomore year I said I can be good enough to be on these mats.

I didn’t get my goal of getting to the final but fifth place feels pretty good right now.”

Anderson was the No. 6 seed and, in the quarterfinals, defeated the No. 3 seed, Montville’s Joe Daddario, 4-3 on a late reversal to reach the semifinals. After finishing one win short of a top-eight finish as a junior, he had now secured a spot on the podium. He fell to Paramus’s Kyle Jacob, 3-0, in the semifinals, and from there winning at least once more was paramount.

“I definitely didn’t want to hit the semis slide – lose two and get sixth – and have people say it was just a lucky run,” Anderson said. “I wanted to prove I’m one of the top guys.”

Epperly digs out from hole to finish seventh.

For much of the season, Jackson Memorial junior Kyle Epperly was undoubtedly one of the best 195-pound wrestlers in New Jersey. But then, during the Region 7 Tournament, Epperly started to fall apart.

Entering region week undefeated, Epperly lost in the region semifinals and then in the consolation finals to finish fourth. He entered the state tournament as the No. 26 seed and lost his first bout to Pitman’s Zane Coles. He now had to win four straight bouts to finish in the top eight, and the way he was wrestling that seemed highly unlikely.

“I had a bad week,” Epperly said. “I was having some mentally unstable thoughts, thinking I wasn’t as good as I was. But I got my mind straight and got ready to wrestle.”

Starting in the first round of wrestlebacks, Epperly ripped off four straight wins to clinch a state medal. He fell in the fifth round of wrestlebacks, but ended his season with a victory by majoring Eastern’s Anthony Franden, 12-4, to finish seventh in the state.

“I knew I could place in this tournament, so I talked to myself, got my mindset right and I didn’t give up,” Epperly said.

In the process, he broke Jackson Memorial’s single-season wins record with 43, eclipsing the previous mark of 40 held by Scott Winston, Dallas Winston and Sean Byrnes. He also learned a little something about his own heart and resolve.

“It’s just hard work and dedication,” Epperly said. “I’m satisfied for my season but I definitely want to come back strong and place higher in the state next season.”

The Shore Conference finishes with 16 total place-winners In addition to Wall’s Rob Kanniard (160) and St. John Vianney’s Dean Peterson (113), 14 other wrestlers left Boardwalk Hall placing in the top eight in their respective weight classes.

Middletown North junior Tyler Klinsky finished second at 106 pounds, suffering his only loss of the season in the final, 13-6, to Hunterdon Central’s Brett Ungar. He was the Lions’ first state finalist since 1974.

Southern senior Nick O’Connell placed second at 152, falling to Pope John’s Robert Garcia, 13-5, in the final. O’Connell was Southern’s first state finalist since 2011.

Howell junior Shane Reitsma lost to Paulsboro’s Brandon Green, 13-9, in the

170-pound state final. It was a rematch of the Region 7 final won by Reitsma, 6-4.

At 182 pounds, Rumson-Fair Haven Nick Addison finished fourth for the second straight year. Addison is Rumson’s third two-time state medalist and tied for the highest state tournament finish in program history.

Shore sophomore Jack Maida finished sixth at 106 pounds to become the Blue Devils’ second state medalist in program history. Also finishing sixth was Manalapan junior Matt Benedetti at 160 pounds.

Finishing seventh were Jackson Memorial senior Vin Scollo at 120 pounds, Howell senior Christian Murphy at 182 and St. John Vianney senior Paul Liseno at St. John Vianney.

Finishing eighth were Toms River North senior Louie Gagliardo at 106 pounds and Toms River North junior Nick Boggiano at 145 pounds.

Photos by:

Richard O’Donnell www.richardodonnellphotography.com

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Faith Masonius 2000 points Milestone, one of many!

By

Gregg Lerner

- SSN Staff writer

he list of accomplishments compiled by Faith Masonius seems about as endless as the variety of ways in which the Manasquan senior has achieved them.

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For the last four years, the 6-1 swing has been a fixture in the Warriors’ starting five, a polished presence with a vast repertoire of sharpened skills that constantly allowed her to make contributions across the board.

Need a rebound? She’ll hammer the boards, with over 1,000 to her credit. See an open shooter? So, does Masonius, an accomplished distributor since she was a freshman. Score the basketball? That’s never been an issue and the Maryland recruit has over 2,000 points to reinforce that claim. Along the way, Masonius has crafted a rather complete resume and shined on the grandest stages. She’s been a pivotal piece in Manasquan winning a Shore Conference Tournament, a Tournament of Champions crown and three straight Group 2 state titles. Her style has always hinged on offering what the team needs above individual glory.

But, her reliable play and the versatility within it are impossible to ignore and were determining factors in Masonius being named the Kerwin Award recipient, annually bestowed upon the top player in the Shore Conference.

Masonius, who is heading to Maryland, has put together a stellar senior year for

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Manasquan. She is averaging 20.2 points, 4.0 assists, 11.6 rebounds and 2.6 steals per game for the Warriors. She is shooting 54 percent from the field and posted 20 doubledoubles this season.

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Ranney Seniors Cont

from page 3

Klatsky has become a 3-point specialist who also is an outstanding student. His work as a builder and programmer helped the four-person Ranney robotics team win the New Jersey championship out of 150 competing teams last week.

“I’ve been in the robotics program for five years now,’’ Klatsky said. “Winning this in my senior year means so much to me because of all the time I spent over the course of these five years working to this goal.”

Autino, meanwhile, has taken an unorthodox path to his future. This past fall was the first season of a cooperative program in which students from Ranney, which does not have a football program, could play for the football team at Mater Dei Prep.

They have all come of age under Holden, who became a head coach for the first time when he took the Ranney job. All he was charged with doing was developing Antoine and Lewis into All-Americans and winning conference and state titles at a program that often didn’t even qualify for postseason tournaments, let alone win them.

“I’ve definitely gotten better as a coach by coaching these guys,’’ he said. “One thing having so much talent makes you do is you’ve got to come in prepared every day. These guys know immediately when they’re not prepared.”

Holden has dealt with the pressure of coaching the state’s No. 1 team and the presumptive TOC fa vorite while also enduring a difficult family situation. His youngest son, Max, 2, is being treated for a type of cancer called neuroblastoma.

Max is in the midst of radia tion trea tment and has weeks of treatment remaining.

“When I was their age, I would go to the gym and it would be my sanctuary,’’ Holden said. “There’s not much difference now. I get the opportunity to come here for two hours to escape the reality of what Max is going through.

“It’s always in the back of my mind.

He is so strong.

Literally every day the kid’s got a smile on his face going through some tough treatment.”

Ranney Sr. Alex Klatsky

Autino came out for the team as a senior and played tight end for a Seraphs team that reached the NonPublic Group III final. He sho wed enough promise in only one season tha t he ended up signing to play a t the FCS program a t Georgetown University.

The players have often worn "Max Strong" T-shirts supporting him, as well as participating in charity games to raise money to defray the cost of his medical treatment.

Autino also has persevered despite the loss of his mother, Theresa, who died at 52 in 2017 from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). He honored her by running a charity event with his Ranney teammates that year to help raise money to benefit the Joan Dancy & PALS foundation, which helps people diagnosed with ALS and their families in Monmouth and Ocean counties.

Those four seniors ha ve helped mentor newcomers like point guard Elijah Perkins, one of the top freshman talents in New Jersey, and junior swingman Phillip Wheeler, a transfer from Rumson-Fair Haven and Division I talent.

Head coach Tahj Holden

“We’re just a lot closer,’’ Lewis said. “Max and the Holden family give us another reason to play for besides ourselves and each other. The fact that he comes to practice every day and puts aside his

personal life, we can’t take that granted.”

That close bond will help when it comes to running the gauntlet to become the first TOC winner in Shore Conference histor y.

If the Panthers can take care of Wildwood Catholic, it will mean a rema tch in the Non-Public B final with either Roselle Ca tholic, which they bea t during the regular season, or Gill St. Bernard’s, who is the only N.J. squad to hand them a loss this winter.

Roselle Ca tholic bea t the Panthers 63-61 in the Non-Public B final last year on a late bucket by LSU freshman and Asbur y Park native Naz Reid.

The Non-Public B final would most likely be their biggest hurdle in their quest to win the TOC, as the Panthers would be strong favorite in the remaining two games after getting a bye into the semifinals.

Should Ranney win it all, it would stamp the Panthers as the best Shore team of the TOC era, which began in 1989. Only the 2002 N e p t u n e t e a m l e d b y D i v i s i o n I t a l e n t s Ta q u a n D e a n , M a r q u e s Alston and Terrance Todd has ever reached the TOC final.

A TOC victor y would also put them in the discussion as the best Shore Conference team of all time, regardless of era.

The last Shore team to finish No. 1 in the sta te is the 1983 Red Bank Regional squad tha t went 31-0, which still stands as the last unbea ten season by an y Shore bo ys team.

The bright lights of major college basketball and the millions in the NBA Draft are all on the horizon, but right now it's about a group of close friends giving themselves four more games to enjoy the ride and cement themselves as legends.

“That would be something,’’ Holden said about taking their place in history.

“There’s been some incredible teams. It’s probably the toughest road to get to the Tournament of Champions, but if you want to be the best, you’ve got to beat the best.”

Photos by:

Paula Lopez & Ray Rich Photography

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to all the PHOTOGRAPHERS who allow us to use their great photos seen throughout all our Issue as well as our website: shoresportsnetwork.com

FOR ADVERTISING & SPONSORSHIP INFORMATION Contact: Steven Meyer 732-233-4460 22

steve.meyer@townsquaremedia.com

High School Coaching Yesterday and Today By

Kevin Williams

- Shore Sports Network Director

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here are not enough hours in the day to talk about the changes in high school sports from my days in the early 70’s to what exists today but I’ll give you one.

Old Days- Athlete (likely male) comes home from practice or a game and complains to parents about their coach, usually about playing time but it could have been because they were singled out or yelled at because of something they did or did not do. Of course the athlete is looking for an ally in their parents and wants them to have sympathy for their situation.

However what they likely find is a Dad and/or Mom who not only takes the side of the coach but delivers a stern lecture to their child about how teenagers should not question authority but rather should learn to respect it. This is where you were also told to shut your mouth, work harder at practice and not complain AND if you didn’t like those terms then you should quit the team which by the way would be a poor reflection on the family.

In extremely rare cases a parent might get involved and question the coach who would likely end the discussion rather quickly. On the other side you had instances where parents wanted to meet with a coach to express dissatisfaction but their own child objected over fear of embarrassment and humiliation.

Today- On their way home son or daughter texts parents that the coach yelled at them in practice and made them run two extra laps because they were a couple of minutes late. At dinner both Mom and Dad bad mouth the coach and tell their child he or she is not being treated fairly and deserves to be a starter because they won all those awards at the five camps they were sent to in the offseason which cost the family a small fortune.

At this point parent calls coach at home who is having a late dinner after being away from their family all day. The coach tries to explain that the best players play and at this point the young teenager is not one of them. Parents refuse to accept this and demand a meeting with the coach, athletic director and principal.

Everyone is somewhat sympathetic and seeking a solution because nobody wants to say the truth: the athlete is just not that good. In the end the entire matter turns into a mess and divides the team and other parents.

At the end of the season the coach resigns because they can make more money bartending or waitressing one night a week and won’t lose part of their summer because of pre-season practices.

School posts job seeking new head coach, athlete transfers to another school.

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