2-21-11 Volume III Issue-4

F e b r u a r y 2 1 , 2 0 1 1Volume-I I I - Issue-3F e b r u a r y 2 1 , 2 0 1 1Volume-I I I - Issue-3

www.allshoremedia.com

Football Academic

All-Shore Team

Page�5�

Boys Basketball:

Reg.-Season

Review

Page�6-7

District

Tournament

Wrestling

Page�8-9

Wrestling

Feature:

Keyport's

Greg Velasco

Page�11

RFH, Pt. Beach

Make Splash

in SCT

Page�12

Jackson

Wrestling Wins

Group 4 Title

Page�14

Stumpy's Corner

Page�15

Football Academic

All-Shore Team

Page�5�

Boys Basketball:

Reg.-Season

Review

Page�6-7

District

Tournament

Wrestling

Page�8-9

Wrestling

Feature:

Keyport's

Greg Velasco

Page�11

RFH, Pt. Beach

Make Splash

in SCT

Page�12

Jackson

Wrestling Wins

Group 4 Title

Page�14

Stumpy's Corner

Page�15

Football Academic

All-Shore Team

Page�5�

Boys Basketball:

Reg.-Season

Review

Page�6-7

District

Tournament

Wrestling

Page�8-9

Wrestling

Feature:

Keyport's

Greg Velasco

Page�11

RFH, Pt. Beach

Make Splash

in SCT

Page�12

Jackson

Wrestling Wins

Group 4 Title

Page�14

Stumpy's Corner

Page�15

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the achievements of local athletes in one of the premierconferences in New Jersey. Whether it’s the star of the team or the last

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This year’s Shore Basketball Coaches AssociationSenior All-Star Game will have a premier venue,premier players, and now a premiersponsor.

Open MRI and Diagnostic Imaging ofWall will serve as the title sponsor for thisseason’s games, which will take place onMarch 25 at the newly refurbishedRobert T. Collins Arena at BrookdaleCommunity College, which also held theShore Conference Tournament quarterfinals andsemifinals this season. Brookdale now has a pair ofgyms because it has added the Brookdale Recreationand Events Center to the existing Collins Arena.

The girls all-star game will be at 6 p.m., followedby the boys game at 8 p.m.

“This game continues to get bigger and better, andadding Open MRI as a sponsor only enhances this eventand allows us to send these seniors off on a great note,’’said Matawan coach Tom Stead, who is president of theShore Conference Coaches Association on the boys side.“Their support of Shore Conference basketball is certainlysomething that is appreciated by all the coaches andplayers.’’

The refurbished court with all-new seating and even aluxury box area at Collins Arena was on full display infront of packed crowd at the SCT boys quarterfinals andsemifinals, while the girls played to a big crowd at theRecreation and Events Center. The court at Collins Arenashould serve as a great venue for the Shore Conferenceseniors to play their final game.

“This is an impressive facility,’’ Stead said while takingin the boys quarterfinal games. “They’ve done a great jobwith it, and it should make for a fun day of basketball onMarch 25.’’

“Moving forward, we would love to see a lot of highschool events coming to the campus, especially becausewith the addition of the Brookdale Recreation and Events

Center, we can run two games at the same time,’’ saidBrookdale assistant athletic director Michael Medley.“It’s rare that you see any community college across thenation with a facility like this. We’re excited, and we’dlike to add a Christmas tournament or a preseasontournament moving forward.’’

RKE Athletic is supplying the game shirts for the boysand the girls, and the coaches association also has made abig addition this season with a Futures Game for the boysand the girls, the first of which will tip off at 4 p.m. onMarch 25. The games will feature the top eighth-gradetalent in Monmouth and Ocean counties, as selected bythe youth coaches in the area. It will give fans a glimpse

at the next wave of stars coming to high schoolprograms.

“The games for the seniors are a good way forthem to go out, while the youth games going on

before all-star games give younger kids a chance tocome to our campus,’’ Medley said. “It’s good for us to

promote not only the building, but all the otherthings Brookdale offers to the community.’’

The top player in each of the seniorall-star games will receive the Arthur W. Harmon Jr. MostValuable Player Award, named after the late Art Harmon,a long-time official in the Shore Conference.

The high school games this season should be loadedwith Division I talent, particularly on the girls side.Among the senior class, Neptune’s Shakena Richardson(Rutgers), Syessence Davis (Rutgers) and Chyna Golden(Pittsburgh), St. John Vianney’s Jackie Kates (Univ. ofPennsylvania), Arron Zimmerman (American University),Missy Repoli (Colgate), and Katie O’Reilly (Lehigh),Rumson-Fair Haven’s Nicole Issaacs (Manhattan),Stephanie Isaacs (Fairleigh Dickinson), Victoria Lesko(Boston College), and Ashley Cooper (Holy Cross),Howell’s Sarah Olson (NJIT), Red Bank Catholic’sSamantha Guastella (Quinnipiac) and Kasey Hobbie(Presbyterian), Middletown South’s Meghan McGuinness(Niagara) and Jackson Memorial’s Christa Evans(Rutgers) make up arguably the most talented class inShore Conference history.

On the boys side, Christian Brothers Academy’s MattMcMullen (Colgate) and J.P. Koury (Bentley) as well asPoint Beach’s Jarelle Reischel (Rice University),Monsignor Donovan’s Sean Grennan (Seton Hall),Middletown North’s Shilique Calhoun (Michigan Statefor football), St. John Vianney’s Mike Balkovic(Caldwell), the Lakewood duo of Jarrod Davis and TonyWalker and plenty more talented players should make itan exciting event.

Check our web s i te for more informationon the game www.al lshoremedia.com

GAMeDAY SPonSoRSHIP& ADVeRTISInG oPPoRTUnITIeS

AVAIlABle For The2011 All-STAR GAMe

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GAMeDAY SPonSoRSHIP& ADVeRTISInG oPPoRTUnITIeS

AVAIlABle For The2011 All-STAR GAMe

Space is Limited Call Today!

Contact: Steven Meyer 732-233-4460

smeyer@al lshoremedia.com

oPen MRI oF WAll JoInS SenIoRAll-STAR GAMe AS TITle SPonSoR B y S c o t t S t u m p – M a n a g i n g E d i t o r

With stops in nearly 90 locations in 2011, the

Schuman’s National Underclassmen Football

Combine Camps are coming to the Shore

Conference with two events in the next two months.

Attendees will be evaluated

by Rivals.com, with the results

being sent to colleges ranging

from Division I-A to Division

III. The camps are run by

founder David Schuman and his

staff, who had 24,000 athletes

participate in their combines in

2010 alone and more than 2,000

players from their combines

have received scholarship

money from Division I-A, I-AA

and II schools.

The first combine in the

Shore area will take place on

March 19 at the Atlantic Club in

Manasquan, starting with a

combine for players in eighth

grade through sophomores at 8

a.m. and followed by a combine

for juniors and a last-chance

event for current seniors at 1

p.m. All events are videotaped

and sent to colleges along with

measurables like height, weight and 40-yard dash

times.

“At the NUC, our goal has been to help high

school football athletes, in particular freshmen and

sophomores, but we have expanded to juniors and

eighth-graders to help them gain early exposure to

colleges to showcase their skills,” Schuman said in

a news release.

Another combine and series of events will be

held from April 15-17 at

Matawan High School,

starting with a combine

prep training session at 4

p.m. on April 15, followed

by position skills training

at 5:30 p.m. and then a

recruiting seminar at 7

p.m.

On April 16, a combine

for eighth-graders and

freshmen will be held at

Matawan at 8 a.m.,

followed by a combine for

sophomores at 1 p.m. A

combine for current

juniors will be held on

April 17 at 1 p.m.

The combines are being

held at 88 locations across

the nation from Feb. 5

through June 12 by

Schuman and his staff,

who have worked with more than 85,000 athletes

nationwide.

The combines allow athletes to gain collegiate

exposure, whether they are players at small schools,

up-and-coming elite players or raw prospects

looking to polish their game and get on the

recruiting radar.

With 88 National Football Combine date in 2011,

15 Ultimate 100 camps, one Top Prospect Camp, a

list of partners and sponsors, and 2,000 percent

growth since its inception, NUC is one of the top

high school recruiting showcases in the nation. In

2010, more than 24,000 athletes from grades 8

through 11 participated. Over the past six years, the

NUC has facilitated more than 3,000 athletes with

scholarship offers.

The National Underclassmen Showcase for

Football was founded by the originators of the

National Underclassmen Football Combines. Over

the past five years, the NUC has led more than

2,000 athletes to Division I, I-AA, and scholarship

offers while thousands more have gone on to play

college ball. The company has taken the principle of

the football showcase and is now applying it to

lacrosse, bringing in the best lacrosse coaches and

athletes to run the showcase, combined with the

NUC's timing staff to bring the first true testing and

showcase for lacrosse with the sole aim to get the

athletes recruited for college. All events are

videotaped and the results will be sent to every

college in the U.S. To see what NUC’s done in the

past, visit www.nationalunderclassmen.com. The

company is expanding its program to more than 60

cities and more than 180 events throughout the U.S

For more information on the combines andevents, or to register for one of the upcomingcombines in the Shore area, athletes can go towww.nationalunderclassmen.com to find outmore information.

Schuman Footbal l CombinesComing to the ShoreB y S c o t t S t u m p – M a n a g i n g E d i t o r

4 / ASM Vo lume- I I I Issue-4 2 /21 / 1 1

Founder David Schuman

Football: Academic All-Shore Team Honored

www.allshoremedia.com ASM / 5

The top performers in the Shore Conference onthe field and in the classroom from this year'ssenior class will be honored at the annual AcademicAll-Shore Scholar-Athlete breakfast at Gibbs Hallin Fort Monmouth on Feb 19.

The awards were presented by the Shore FootballCoaches Foundation and sponsored by the U.S.Army. Players from nearly every Shore Conferenceteam will be honored for having kept at least a 3.0grade-point average while also being contributorson the field.

Monmouth University head coach KevinCallahan, Rutgers assistant Rob Smith, U.S. Armyrepresentative Michael Rounds and inspirationalspeaker Lee Rubin were all speakers at thebreakfast. The master of ceremonies wasMonsignor Donovan head coach Dan Duddy, whois the SFCF president.

Also honored were the Coach of the Yearrecipients for each of the Shore Conference's sevendivisions, who were selected by their peers.Manalapan's Ed Gurrieri and Tom Gallahue (ClassA North); Matawan's Joe Martucci and Rumson'sShane Fallon (Class A Central); Brick Memorial'sWalt Currie (Class A South); Freehold's MarkCiccotelli (Class B North); Shore Regional's MarkCostantino (Class B Central); Lacey's Lou Vircillo(Class B South); and Lakewood's Warren Wolf(Class C Central) are this year's winners.

Below are the respective Academic All-Shorerecipients for each team. List provided by SFCFMembership Officer Dom Lepore.

Especially deserving of notice are Barnegat widereceiver Mike DeTroia, Long Branchquarterback/defensive back Miles Shuler,Manalapan running back Josh Firkser, Freeholdlineman Michael Kasten, Red Bank Catholicrunning back/safety Andrew Casten, Lacey runningback/defensive back Jake Dabal, Lacey quarterbackCraig Cicardo, Point Boro tight end Ryan Malleck,Lacey running back/defensive back/kicker JarrodMolzon, Matawan offensive lineman/linebackerAndre Hodge, Raritan lineman Shane Mertz andRumson linebacker Mike Huttner, who were alsoAll Shore Media first-team All-Conferenceselections.

BarnegatLou Buscio, Mike DeTroia, Chris Nueva, CaseyPinto, Nick SanGiacomo

Brick MemorialMike Acquaviva, Travis Barry, Russ Clayton,Dylan Davis, Mike DiGuilmi, Phil Faccone, MattHoffman, Jordan Loiodice, Justin Rubert, LoganSmith, Tom Tressito, Mike Varall, Tim Veltre,Dylan Walsh

BrickJames Gibbons, Sean Henry,Michael Marotta,Dylan McDonnel, Cody Schnebel

CentralGeorge Heiser, Daniel Hortig, Alex Kwzpis, Joe Scheider, Josh Schroeder

Colts NeckArtie Teeter, Billy Spataro, Kevin Weissman

Freehold BoroFrank Caporicci, Michael Hembling, Jesse Hunt,Chris Joseph, Michael Kasten, Harrison Stokes,Kyle Toto, Brandon Weiss, Ryan Wytanis

Freehold TownshipZach Berkowitz, Gene Blanco, DJ Callahan, Joe DeFranco, Andrew Glantz, Kevin Grant, MattIntile, Ryan Kiernan, Toure Lowe, Mike Mullen,Adam Rihacek, Allreal Rosa

HolmdelMike Cantelli, Adam Covino, John J. Cuccurullo,James Livengood, Chris Marciano, Jacob Murtaugh,Adam Sokolski

HowellRyan Dambach, Ryan Handy, Mike Lamantia,Tyler Ott, Christian Peck, Rob Rigby, JesseRockhill, Nick Schwarz

Jackson LibertyRonald Brown, Tyler Castellano, Mike Kafton, Ari Nwobi, Greg O'Connor, Mike Parnes, KristianRuiz, Tyler Sousa

Jackson MemorialJesse Bagley, Kenny Bagley, Tyler Hampton, AnthonyIadisernia, Matt Jamison, Jake Orehostky, Tony Rubbe,Fred Scheer, Dimitrius Smith

KeyportMike Konish, DJ Miragliotta, Greg Velasco,Rob Zakutansky

LaceyCameron Blackwell, Nicholas Bredan,Craig Cicardo, Jake Dabal, Kevin Hanula, ShaneHartley, Dylan Joslin, Jarrod Molzon, TomMurray, Bryan Mykilow, Zach Torrell

Long BranchWilliam Baillie, Miles Shuler, James Parnell

ManalapanThomas Barber, Nicholas Benevento, James DeBlase,Josh Firkser, Reggie Hodge-Grant, Brad Hughes,

Sanmi Jinadu, Daniel Masterov, Michael Pokazanyev

ManasquanRyan Casey, Thomas Corbo, Edward Kapalko,Nick McWilliams, Shawn Miller, Zack Ogden,Evan Shadlun

ManchesterMonwell Brown, Anthony Prendimano, Ron Spicer

MarlboroJohn Belo, Brian Campbell, Kenny Ecchevaria, PhilFailla, Jordan Golinowski, Nick Jensen, CameronKanapathy, Troy Kraft, Preston Kumar, TylerLaQuinta, Pat Rizzi, Brian Rodrio, Max Spano, ChrisVan Curen, Charles Wilson

MatawanJoel Castell, John Faccas, Andre Hodge, AndrewLazar, Andrew Richmond,Terry Rodriguez, Ken Santimauro,Joseph Urciuoli

Middletown NorthFrank Derise

Middletown SouthKyle Bunge, David Elkhatib, Alex Lehr,Rick Lovato, Tom Masi, Scott Meeker,Taylor Rogers, Andrew Suarez

Monmouth RegionalMartin Aborlleile, TJ Eckstein,Brandan Ford,Ryan Greenwood, Shayne Henderson, BrandonMayes, Scott Satcher, Matt Showanes, AnthonyTruncale, AJ Visconti,Brandon Wall, MarkWilliams

Monsignor DonovanTom Albanese, Gary Azzolini, Mike Cook,Angelo DiSalvo, Kennan Duddy, Kevin Kowalski,Ryan Ricciardelli, Patrick Rista, Kyle Rogus

NeptuneMatt Gannon, Phil Seidle

OceanBrian Chittum, Connor Hayes, Tyler Lyster, ScottPembleton, Joey Pingitore, Harrison Raby, KevinRogers, Brian Wobser

PinelandsEric Gilley, Jacob Hartman, Mike Keller, IbnShepperson

Point BeachTaylor Fioretti

Point BoroRyan Malleck, Jim DiOrio, Mike Mazza, DavidHaliday, Austin Smith, Gage Klotz, Dan Delaney,Jeff Lokerson, David Halliday, Nick Prascak

RaritanAnthony Bayer, Sean Bowe, Adam Dayke, MaxDeNardo, Kevin Furlong, Jared Gurczeski ConnorHayes, Christian Marchena, Shane Mertz, ReneMoore, Tyler Murphy, Timothy Pizanie,ThomasWalker, Brandon Weigand

Red Bank CatholicFrank Abt, Anthony Canella, PJ Cassidy, AndrewCasten, Dylan Chayes, Ryan Doyle, Mike Russell,Thomas Vaughan

Red Bank RegionalJahmer Bunch, Noah Gradl, Michael Reardon,Luke Roskowinski, Brian Scanlon, Ron Vilardi

Rumson-FHBen Albainy, Evan Benkert, Andrew Giannotto,Matt Gilbertson, Michael Huttner, Ian Moore,Brendan Reiss, Cory Socha, Michael Villapiano,Sam Waters, Jack Wise

St. John VianneyAdedeji Badru, Nick Dragonetti, Bryon Green,Nick Leonte, Chris Mason, Ben Prevost, MarcoRecchia, Sean Tobin

Shore RegionalShane Carroll, Anthony Lanzano, Eric Lower, Pat Migliaccio, Evan Ruane

SouthernRob Boyle, Patrick Cleary, Eric McMahon, SalMunafo, Jake Rossini, Bill Shimko, Gerry Yost

Toms River EastVincent Arminio, John Costanza, Brett Hayhurst,Rocco Mazzo, Sean Murphy, Stephen Murphy,John Palmer, Kenneth Redmerski, Erik Rokisky,Daniel Wasilick, Erik Zingler

Toms River NorthAnthony Carrington, Eric DeMartino, ToddHardifer, Freddie Tucker

Toms River SouthLuke Grady, Bill Hill, Kyle Kenny, AnthonySaraceno, Dan Slavin, Ron Suarez, Evan Tarver

WallTim Gill, Kyle Janeczek, James O'DonovanKyle Warnick


Now that we’re in the thick of the postseason, it'stime to take a quick look back at what has transpiredso far in each division in the regular season and theplayers to watch as we head into the home stretch.

While All-Shore reputations are forged in the heatof the postseason, these mentioned are the playerswho have put themselves in position for one of the top15 spots between first, second and third-team All-Shore Conference. This is just how I see it as thingsstand now, and as we all know, a lot can change inthe next month.

Let's get to it.

ClASS A noRTH

Champions: Christian Brothers Academy andMiddletown North tied for overall title. CBA was non-publicchamp, Middletown North was public champ.

Player of the Year: Matt McMullen, Sr., F, CBA. It'sreally splittinghairs betweenMcMullenand seniorguard J.P.Koury, and Icould seethem sharingthis award,which is votedon by thecoaches in thedivision.McMullen hasalso been theteam's leadingrebounder anda versatileplayer whohas doneeverythingfrom scoringin the post tobringing theball up thefloor.

All-Division Candidates: McMullen and Koury arelocks, and then it gets really interesting because of the case ofMiddletown North senior center Shilique Calhoun. He was alock for All-Division before being dismissed from the teamlast week for walking out of the gym during a loss to CBA.However, that was North's last divisional game, and Calhounwas a standout throughout the entire divisional schedule. Inother words, on production alone, Calhoun deserves a spot.However, because of the way things ended, it leaves thecoaches (and us) with a tough decision.

We'll see who head coach Mike Iasparro pushes as his All-Division candidates from Middletown North. If Calhoun iscounted out, then it could be John Martens, Jason Huelbig orEric Youncofski. Martens may get the slight edge with thecoaches because he is a senior.

As for other candidates, I would think senior point guardRyan Keegan, Howell's all-time leading scorer, is a lock.High-scoring Manalapan senior Kyle Rubbinaccio also has avery good shot at being an All-Division first-teamer. FreeholdTownship's Casey Skievaski deserves some consideration butdid miss some time with injury.

Coach of the Year: Mike Iasparro, MiddletownNorth. The Lions beat CBA at CBA for the first time ever,and even though the Lions unraveled in that last game againstCBA, they still shared the overall title with the Colts, whichis a rare feat for any public school in this division. I thinkGeoff Billet deserves some consideration, but the feeling isalways that CBA has so much talent and should win everyyear, so the coach rarely gets credit. Anyone who saw theadjustments he made in the second Middletown North gameshould know he deserves consideration. I also thinkManalapan's Rick Garretson deserves a mention for aturnaround season for the Braves.

ClASS A CenTRAl

Champion: Raritan.

Player of the Year: Mike Aaman, Raritan. I thinkthe Rockets' juniorcenter will end upwith this onebecause heroutinely put upbig numbers, witha double-double inalmost everydivisional game. Ithink histeammate, seniorpoint guard KevinFurlong, alsodeservesconsideration. St.John Vianneysenior forwardMike Balkoviccould also elbowhis way into theargument becauseeven though histeam didn't havethe success that theRockets did,Balkovicoutplayed Aamanhead-to-head.That's what makesthese awards sotough because is itpurely the best player and best statistics, or should teamsuccess factor heavily as well?

All-Division Candidates: I think Aaman, Furlongand Balkovic are locks. It will be interesting to see who ispushed for first-team All-Division between the Rumson-FairHaven tandem of guards Kevin Alter and Jack Donnelly.Both have been excellent, but I don't know if both can befirst-teamers unless maybe the coaches put six on first team.

Matawan senior guard Keenan Johnson should get someconsideration, but the Huskies are so balanced that it mayhurt them in the individual awards season because you canmake arguments for several players.

Shore Regional senior guard Zack Hoffman, one of thetop-five scorers in the Shore, should get a first-team spotsimply from his production on a young team that has played ahost of newcomers. Also, Raritan could push for as many asthree guys because it won the title, but Aaman and Furlongare the clear two.

Coach of the Year: Denis Caruano, Raritan. TheRockets nearly went undefeated in the division despiteusually only playing five players, six at max, in most games.I think Matawan's Tom Stead also deserves heavyconsideration for engineering the turnaround at a programthat had been in the wilderness for more than a decade. Ithink the postseason will decide this award.

ClASS A SoUTH

Champion: Jackson Memorial.

Player of the Year: Connor Saker, JacksonMemorial. Again, this will be interesting to see if teamsuccess trumps big individual stats, as Southern senior guardLuke Sheehan is one of the top scorers in the Shore, althoughhe missed some time with injuries and other issues. Saker, asenior, is a hard-nosed defender and clutch scorer for a teamthat went undefeated in the division, so he should get a strongpush.

All-Division Candidates: Saker, Sheehan andSouthern freshman Mike Gesicki all seem like logicalcandidates along with probably either Brandon McDonnell orBrandon Holup from Jackson Memorial, depending on whichone head coach Joe Fagan pushes for consideration. I thinkTim O'Shea of Brick Memorial also deserves a spot, as theguard helped lead the Mustangs to a tie for second place withSouthern in the division.

The rest of the division has some fringe candidates, likepossibly Zack Liguori from Toms River South. Toms RiverNorth didn't necessarily have that one guy from beginning toend and was more of a balanced team, and same goes forToms River East.

Coach of the Year: Joe Fagan, Jackson Memorial. Ata program that is often overlooked because of its powerhousewrestling team, Fagan led the Jaguars to a 10-0 showing indivisional play. It was a heck of a year in A South for JacksonMemorial, whose girls basketball team and wrestling teamalso won divisional titles without losing a game or a match inthe division.

ClASS B noRTH

Champion: Neptune.

Player of the Year: Jaheem Woods, Neptune. On ateam that always seemed to be in flux with injuries,suspensions, and other issues, Woods was consistentlyproductive. He barely played last season as a sophomore, but

Cont inu ed �on � nex t �p age

Boys Basketball: Regular-Season ReviewBy Scott Stump – Managing Editor

the junior guard emerged as a top scoring threat and playedhis best in big games in the division.

All-Division Candidates: Besides Woods, it will beinteresting to see who Neptune coach Ken O'Donnell pushesfor other spots. Junior point guard Ikie Calderon has been upand down at times, junior forward Fuquan McDonald misseda big chunk of the season while sitting out because of transferrules, junior center Josh Jenkins has shown flashes but notevery game, sophomore Spencer Hubbard has beeninconsistent, and sophomore Keith Kirkwood missed threeweeks with mononucleosis. Calderon is most likely the guy.

As for other candidates, RBC senior point guard LukeOriolo is a pretty sure thing and senior guard Chris Seamanwill probably also get heavy consideration. Colts Neck willdefinitely get one guy and maybe two, so it just depends onwho it will be out of the trio of juniors Hunter Wysocki, SeanO'Reilly and Brian Kenny. My money would be on Wysockiand Kenny. Monmouth senior forward Quaver Smith mayalso get some consideration along with Freehold senior guardJesse Hunt and Long Branch senior forward Nate Bolden, butit may be tough for them to break into the first-team group.

Coach of the Year: Devitt Gillroy, Red BankCatholic. The Caseys were not expected to do much in thepreseason, and nearly ended up tying heavily-favoredNeptune for the overall title on the heels of a 5-win season.

ClASS B CenTRAl

Champion: St. Rose andAsbury Park tied for the overalltitle. St. Rose was the non-publicchamp, Asbury Park was thepublic champ.

Player of the Year:

Jarelle Reischel, Point Beach. Iam very interested in how thecoaches vote on this one becauseAsbury Park's MauriceDickerson and St. Rose's MarkKukoda are also very strongcandidates. Again, it's a questionof individual production vs.team success. Dickerson andKukoda did not face constant

double and triple teams all season like the Rice University-bound Reischel, who still put up big numbers. I thinkDickerson could certainly get this one because of his team'ssuccess and his consistent production.

All-Division Candidates: Dickerson, Reischel andKukoda are all locks, so it comes down the other spots. Iwould think Asbury Park junior Thomond Hammary andPoint Beach senior guard Mike Rotando will get strongconsideration for the other two spots. St. Rose was sobalanced, although forward Andrew Kurtz should be in thediscussion in my opinion. There was a big dropoff from thetop three teams to the rest of the division, so I think guys likeKeyport's Cyrus Williams or Keansburg's Brian Woods are along shot.

Coach of the Year: Dennis Devaney, St. Rose. Theveteran coach guided his squad to a comeback season on theheels of a 9-13 campaign, leading them to a share of theoverall title while dealing with injury issues to top players.

ClASS B SoUTH

Champion: Manchester and Lacey tied for the overalltitle.

Player of the Year: Deon Smith, Lacey. This one isup for grabs. I just threw out Smith's name because the seniorguard was one of the most consistent players in the divisionon a team that tied for the title. Manchester had different guys

stepping up, but I would think senior forwardNate Nickens is also in the discussion.

All-Division Candidates: Smith andNickens are pretty good bets, and even thoughhis team was tied for last, Pinelands seniorJake Hartman put up such big numbers that hehas to be considered. Barnegat's AnthonyMcGugan or Ryan Morris should also nab aspot, and Central's JoJo Hardy also definitelyis in the mix. Manchester and Lacey couldeach get another player on, but they were sobalanced it will come down to which playertheir respective coaches push for the honor.

Coach of the Year: Ryan O'Rourke,Lacey. He led the Lions to a tie for the overalldivision title with favorite Manchester.

ClASS C CenTRAl

Champion: Lakewood.

Player of the Year:

(tie) Jarrod Davis and TonyWalker, Lakewood. Itwould be like splitting hairsbetween these two. If Iabsolutely had to make achoice, I would say Walker,who was a little moreconsistent. No one else isreally in the discussion.

All-Division

Candidates: Davis andWalker are locks, andMonsignor Donovan seniorguard Sean Grennan andsenior center AnthonyDuszczak are also prettysure bets. I also think PointBoro junior point guardShaun Cooke should getheavy mention for a first-team spot, with seniorforward Ryan Malleck alsoin the discussion. Wallsenior guard Kyle Janeczekwill also get pushed hardfor a spot because of hisproduction.

Coach of the Year: Randy Holmes, Lakewood. Therewere still questions about this team and its ability to beconsistent and not play down to competition coming into thisseason. The Piners erased all of those doubts by dominatingto finish unbeaten in divisional play.


Photos � by :

Doug �Bostw i ckw w w . s p o r t s h o t s w l b . s m u g m u g . c o m

Photos � by :

C l i f f � Lave l l ew w w . c l e a r e d g e . z e n f o l i o . c o m


ver the past several seasons,

wrest l ing for Jackson Memorial has

ensured wrest lers a chance to compete

in the biggest of team matches and also

opportuni t ies for individual glory. But f i rs t you

have to crack the l ineup, and sometimes there is

just nowhere to go.

Take Jackson Memorial senior Mike Shupin.

He was ta lented enough to s tar t as a f reshman but

was s tuck behind eventual s ta te champion Tyler

Biscaha at 103 and Zach Huxford at 112. He went

4-2, but met the same fate as a sophomore when

he saw act ion in just 10 matches, a l though he

went 9-1. Shupin f inal ly got his chance as a

junior and turned in a second-place f inish at the

Region VI Tournament . On Saturday at the

NJSIAA Distr ic t 21 Tournament , Shupin

cont inued to make up for lost t ime.

In the 119-pound f inal , Shupin defeated Colts

Neck 's Anthony Anzalone 7-1 to wins his f i rs t

dis t r ic t t i t le af ter placing second las t season.

Shupin won by major decis ion over Jackson

Liberty 's Jonathan Scialabba in the quarterf inals

and again by major over Howell ' s Matt

Lindemann in the semif inals to be named the

tournament 's outs tanding wrest ler.

"I was pret ty surpr ised I won the OW," Shupin

said. "I f igured i t would go to Dal las (Winston)

or Spencer (Young). I t ' s my senior year and this

is exact ly how I want to go out . I 'm get t ing my

chance and t rying to make the most of i t ."

Shupin was one of s ix Jaguars that won t i t les

on Saturday at Manalapan to lead the Jackson

Memorial to i ts 25th dis t r ic t t i t le s ince 1972.

Jackson scored 220.5 points to outdis tance

second-place Howell (154) and third-place

Marlboro (96) . Sophomore Alex Huxford,

sophomore Spencer

Young,

senior

Joe

Bartol ini ,

junior

Dallas

Winston and

senior Joe

Nolan al l

took

t i t les to

cap a

fantast ic team

season for the NJSIAA Group IV

champions. Young won a t ight bat t le

with St . John Vianney 's Rob Cigna, 4-3, a t 125

pounds. Young scored takedowns in the f i rs t and

third per iods and held off

Cigna 's la te charge to

win his f i rs t dis t r ic t

t i t le .

"He's a real ly good

wrest ler but I 've

wrest led him two t imes

before and I knew I

could get in

on his legs ," said

Young of securing the

winning takedown. "I knew I had to take him

down to get the win. He 's real ly funky, but I was

able to get him down."

Bartol ini , who wrest led at Jackson Liber ty his

f i rs t three seasons before t ransferr ing to

Memorial af ter las t season, won his f i rs t dis t r ic t

t i t le by pinning St . John Vianney 's Nick Cioff i in

3:46 at 135 pounds. Bartol ini missed Jackson

Memorial ' s f i rs t s ta te tournament match with an

injury, but s ince returning has won al l f ive of his

bouts with three major decis ions and two pins .

He won by fal l in 19 seconds against Marlboro 's

Jeff Goldrosen in the quarterf inals and scored a

12-1 win over Freehold 's Zach Mostowsky in the

semif inals .

"I feel l ike af ter the High Point match we've

al l been hi t t ing our peak," Bartol ini said. "I 'm

moving a lot bet ter now, so I 'm happy. The knee

slowed me down a l i t t le , but i t feels good. I have

what could be my las t

matches as a high

school wrest ler

coming up so I

just have to do

the best I can."

Howell and

Marlboro

each had

two

champions on the day. Rebels seniors Mike

Shaughnessy and Zach Bohm each captured their

f i rs t dis t r ic t t i t les . Bohm won 9-0 against

Matawan freshman Chris Hart igan, who made a

run to the f inal out of the No. 7 seed.

Shaughnessy defeated Jackson Memorial ' s

Randy Royle, 5-3, a t 140 pounds.

During the NJSIAA Central

Jersey Group IV f inal , Royle

hi t a throw against

Shaughnessy and took a 9-6

decis ion that handed

Shaughnessy just

his second loss of the

season. The Rebels anchor

exacted some revenge on

Saturday to win the t i t le and earn a bye into the

Region VI pre-quarterf inals . Shaughnessy was

second in Region VI at 130 pounds las t season.

Marlboro 's Vinnie Leone won his second

dis tr ic t championship by defeat ing Jackson

Memorial ' s Brandon Kosheff , 6-5. I t i s the

second t i t le for Leone, who won the 112-pound

championship in 2009. Mustangs senior Mitch

Seigel capped a dominat ing tournament with a

58-second pin over Matawan's Francis Polumbo

in the 215-pound f inal . Seigel won by fal l in 42

seconds in the quarterf inals and pinned in 46

seconds in the semif inals . With Wall ' s Andrew

Marr, las t season 's Region VI 215-pound champ,

missing the postseason because of an injury,

Seigel wil l enter the Region VI Tournament as

the clear favori te to win a region crown.

"I t feels good because I 've worked hard for

i t ," Seigel said. "All the offseason t ra ining,

l i f t ing and the workouts a t c lub; i t a l l pays off .

I 've got the hardware r ight here . I t ' s unfortunate

that Marr got hurt because we' re real ly good

fr iends and we wanted to wrest le each

other. I 'm going to have to take this

opportuni ty and real ly go af ter i t

to take the crown at Region

VI."

Colts Neck senior

Alex Brown won his

f i rs t dis t r ic t t i t le

by defeat ing

Howell

sophomore

Ben

Esposi to 7-1 at

112 pounds.

Jackson Liber ty

senior Chris Zak

took a 9-2 decis ion from Howell ' s

O

Making History:District Tournament Wrestling RecapMaking History:District Tournament Wrestling RecapBy Bob Badders – Senior Staff Writer

Marlboro’s Mitch Seigel

Jackson Memorial’s Joe Nolan

Ashant i Maurice in the 145-pound f inal to

become the Lions ' f i rs t two-t ime dis t r ic t

champion. Zak, a four- t ime dis t r ic t placewinner,

had lost to Maurice, 8-6, las t week. St . John

Vianney sophomore

Anthony Ferraro won

his f i rs t dis t r ic t

t i t le by defeat ing

Jackson

Memorial ' s

Rob Hennings

11-7 at 160 pounds. Matawan

sophomore Glenn Cross a lso won his f i rs t t i t le

with a 12-9 decis ion over Marlboro 's Zach

Goldrosen at 171.

Di s t r i c t 2 2

Rari tan used championships f rom Nick Ligouri

(125) , Joe Masi (160) and Ryan Lynch (171) to

win the team t i t le with 196 points over second-

place Ocean (168) . Chris t ian Brothers Academy

had the most champions - four- and f inished third

with 155.5 points while defending champion

Long Branch was fourth with 151.5.

Long Branch senior Matt Eggie knocked off

Ocean 's PJ Parr ino, the top seed at 140 pounds,

with a 3-1 decis ion. Parr ino had two wins over

Eggie this season. Long Branch also had a win

from senior Luis Fi l ipe, who won by major

decis ion 12-0 over Ocean 's Withler Marcel in .

CBA's four champs included freshman Erik

Beshada at 103 pounds. He knocked off Rari tan

junior Matt Lindo, the defending champ, 7-6.

Chris t ian Cassel l i fol lowed with a 7-1 win over

Rari tan 's Vin Masi a t 112. Junior Vin Favia a lso

won his f i rs t dis t r ic t t i t le af ter placing second

last season. He defeated Long Branch sophomore

Jake George 7-0 at

152 pounds.

Hayden Hrymack

rounded out a

qual i ty tournament

for the Colts by

edging top-seeded

Tyler Lyster of

Ocean, 6-2 in

overt ime, a t 189

pounds.

Ocean had three

champions as Jason

DaCruz majored

Keansburg 's

Romello Union at

119, Seth Rubel

topped Rari tan 's

Jason Bohal 6-0 at

130 and 215-

pounder Colton

Bigelow eked out a

1-0 win over Long

Branch 's James

Parnel l .

Keyport

senior

heavyweight

Greg Velasco

was named as

the

tournament 's

outs tanding wrest ler for

a phenomenal performance that

included three pins in a total of

1:56. He pinned Rari tan 's Adam

Daniels in e ight seconds in the f inal

to improve to 34-0 this season and

become just the second two-t ime

dis tr ic t champion in Keyport ' s

his tory.

Middletown South 's

Nick Herr ing won his

second dis t r ic t t i t le and

earned his third medal

when he beat Red Bank Cathol ic 's

James Loures , 8-3, a t 145 pounds.

Red Bank Cathol ic coach Joe Gal lagher was

named Distr ic t 22 Coach of the Year.

Di s t r i c t 2 3

Brick Memorial won i ts

24th dis t r ic t t i t le in 26

years with 199 points to

top Point Boro (153) and

Brick (134) . Senior DJ

Santos won his fourth

dis t r ic t t i t le as one of

three Mustangs

champions. Junior

Sean

Stephenson

pinned

Point Boro 's

Nick

Onnembo in

4:35 in the 112-

pound f inal and fel low

junior Evan Bert i cont inued his breakout season

with a 6-3 win over St . Rose 's Chris t ian Bozinos

at 140. Santos pinned Point Beach 's Taylor

Fioret t i in 5:04 at 135 pounds to

join Vin Santaniel lo (1987-

1990) , Marc Rosenfield (1999-

2002) and his brother Steve

Santos (2006-2009) as the only

four- t ime dis t r ic t champs in

Brick Memorial his tory.

Brothers Ryan and Matt Harter

each won t i t les for Point Boro

with Ryan also br inging home

outstanding wrest ler honors .

Ryan Harter, a sophomore,

defeated top-seeded Nick Melon

of Brick, 4-3 in t r iple overt ime,

in the semif inals before holding

on to beat Brick Memorial

freshman Joe Ghione 7-6 in the

103-pound f inal . Matt Harter

beat Brick 's Steve Cimmino 3-2

in double overt ime. Neptune had

i ts f i rs t dis t r ic t champs s ince

2008 as Karl Waldron won 4-3

over Point Boro 's Ryan Budzek at

119 and senior Phi l Seidle topped

Point Boro 's Dave Hal l iday, 12-

6, a t 215 pounds. Pete Kinsel la (160) and Colin

Egan (189) each won for Wall while Luke Bush

(145) and Derek Arnet te (130) won t i t les for

Shore. Bush defeated Brick Memorial f reshman

Nick Costa , who handed Bush his only loss of the

season on Feb. 5 , 13-3, to become Shore 's f i rs t

two-t ime dis t r ic t champ. Undefeated Point Beach

freshman Dylan Kel ly won the 171-pound t i t le

with a 3-2 decis ion over Brick Memorial ' s

Anthony Mil ler and teammate Andrew Gross won

the heavyweight crown with a 2-1 win over Point

Boro 's Dane Bongiovi . Brick senior Connon

Brennan majored Brick Memorial ' s Tyler

Richardson, 20-8, to win his f i rs t dis t r ic t t i t le .

Brick head coach Matt Opaci ty was voted as

Distr ic t 23 Coach of the Year.

Di s t r i c t 2 4

Southern had four champions and s ix second-

place f inishers to win the team t i t le by near ly

100 points , 238.5-153 over Toms River South.

Senior Kyle Casalet to defeated Manchester ' s Ken

Theobold, 9-1, a t 125 pounds and was named

outstanding wrest ler. Jake Campana won at 140

with a 4-3 decis ion over Lacey 's Danny Moore,

Anthony Messler edged Central ' s Chris DeDyn,

3-2, to win the 145-

pound t i t le and

Kyle Cox

outlas ted Toms

River East ' s

Fernando

Perez, 1-0, a t

heavyweight .

Toms River South

sophomore BJ

Clagon beat Southern 's Bubba Lanno 9-6 at

130 to remain indefeated. Fel low sophomore

Kevin Corr igan majored Southern 's Zach Wilhelm

8-0 at 112. Kyle Kenny was the 152-pound champ

with a 3:00 pin of Manchester ' s Matt Riegert and

Evan Tarver pinned Southern 's Cody Smead in

3:37 in the 215-pound f inal .

Jalen Ramos (119) and Kalphy Hardy (160)

each won t i t les for Central . Ramos got past Toms

River East ' s Rich Lewis , 1-0, while Hardy

decis ioned Toms River South 's Anthony Ravl lo ,

8-6. The Manchester duo of Jesse Meaney (130)

and Anthony Prendimano (171) won t i t les while

Lacey 's Lex Knapp won at 189 and Monsignor

Donovan's Anthony D'Anton captured the 103-

pound t i t le .

Southern head coach John Stout was voted as

Distr ic t 24 Coach of the Year.

SIGn UP & BeCoMe A MeMBeR ToDAYV i e w V i d e o H i g h l i g h t s & M u c h M o r e

Ocean’s Seth Rubel


Jackson Libertyl’s Chris Zak

Matawan’s Glenn Cross

Photos �&V i deo �H i gh l i gh ts � by :

Bob �Badde rswww.al lshoremedia.com


In a day and age where most wrestlers attend private

wrestling clubs and travel around the country to

compete in countless bouts against top competition,

those who forgo what has become the traditional

training regimen are usually not considered a serious

threat.

But then there is Keyport senior heavyweight Greg

Velasco.

In his quest for wrestling greatness, Velasco doesn't

have the luxury that other wrestlers around the Shore

Conference have. He doesn't wrestle for an elite

program, for which the Shore has several. He doesn't

get the opportunity to wrestle in big team matches

where the entire wrestling community is watching. He

doesn't get to enter prestigious tournaments where he

can test his skills against the best competition in the

area. Yet even with all those restrictions, Velasco has

flourished to become the best wrestler in Keyport

history.

He gets his mat schooling in workouts with assistant

coach Pete Christathakis, who pretty much was

Keyport wrestling until Velasco arrived as a freshman

for the 2007-2008 season. Christathakis won the

Region VI heavyweight title in 1999 and ended up

finishing sixth in the state tournament. He remains

the only Red Raiders grappler to accomplish either

feat. Both Velasco and Christathakis hope the record

book gets rewritten in the next two weeks.

"I'm proud that he's overcome all my

accomplishments to this point where he's at,"

Christathakis said. "And I hope he overcomes

them all. It's hard work on the mat that has put

him in this situation, and it's paying

dividends."

This past weekend, Velasco

matched one of Christathakis's

records when he captured the NJSIAA

District 22 heavyweight championship to become

just the second two-time district champ at

Keyport. As a junior, Velasco dominated en route to

being named the tournament's outstanding wrestler,

winning by pin in the final in just 30 seconds. He was

once again the easy choice for OW on Saturday at Red

Bank Regional as he won by fall in all three of his

matches in a staggering total of 1:56. In the final he

wrestled Raritan senior Adam Daniels, who entered

with a 24-7 record for the No. 4 team in the Shore

Conference.

Velasco won by fall. In eight seconds.

He may not have the pedigree or the resume of other

heavyweights around the state, but the results speak

for themselves. This season Velasco is a perfect 33-0.

He was 29-3 as a junior and on Feb. 9 became the first

Keyport wrestler to win 100 career bouts. He finished

third in Region VI last year and won a match down in

Atlantic City against South Plainfield's Bobby Sacks

before falling to West Orange's Emiliano Betancor and

then Randolph's Peter Wolmart. That was an important

step, and Velasco is ready to climb another rung of the

ladder at the Region VI Tournament this weekend at

the Poland Spring Arena in Toms River.

"I've been looking forward to this time all year,"

Velasco said. "I've been practicing and training hard,

and I work myself harder and harder every day

because I want to win a Region VI title."

That work ethic is what Christathakis and the

Keyport coaching staff see every day and is what has

them believing that Velasco will end his wrestling

career in style.

"What I see in him is a lot of discipline,"

Christathakis said. "The kid has a work ethic that I've

never seen in my

entire life. He's

never

unwilling to

do another

sprint,

wrestle

for

20

more minutes or get in a Sunday workout."

Velasco has the intangibles. In addition to his

revered work ethic he is also a committed contributor

in the classroom. While he was busy winning a district

championship on Saturday, he was also being honored

by the Shore Football Coaches Foundation as an

Academic All-Shore recipient at their annual scholar-

athlete breakfast. Velasco was a star defensive lineman

for the Red Raiders football team and was selected as

the Class B Central Defensive Player of the Year and a

third-team All Shore Media All-Conference member.

He also has great measurables. As a junior he

weighed in at over 300 pounds during football season

and cut down to 285 for wrestling. He

made the effort to slim down before

this school year began and entered

football at a svelte 270. The

result has been a quicker and

stronger wrestler who has

increased his versatility.

"I didn't really want to lose

weight as much as I wanted to

get bigger muscularly

and lose all the fat,"

Velasco said. "I

usually weight in at

around 265,

270, which

was the

The Road less Traveled:K e y p o r t ’ s G r e g V e l a s c o B y B o b B a d d e r s – S e n i o r S t a f f W r i t e r

SIGn UP & BeCoMe A MeMBeR ToDAYV i e w V i d e o H i g h l i g h t s & M u c h M o r e

S e e

Velascop a g e 1 3


When Nick Catania interviewed for the boysbasketball head coaching job at tiny Point Beach, onething was pretty obvious about a program that had noteven won a division title since 1968.

"When I first interviewed for the Point Beach jobseven years ago, I'm sitting with the principal, we'retalking, and he goes, 'Hey, we're not CBA here, and we'renever going to be CBA,''' Catania said. "I agreed withhim at the time. I would've said the same thing.''

One year after having perennial power ChristianBrothers Academy on the ropes in the Shore ConferenceTournament quarterfinals and letting the Colts slip away,the smallest public school in Ocean County whipped itsrock right in Goliath's eye this time at BrookdaleCommunity College on Feb. 19. Two game-winning freethrows by senior guard Kevin Donohue with 18.8seconds left in the game put the Garnet Gulls over thetop in a 56-55 upset of the two-time defending SCTchampions, capping a day in which Point Beach seniorstar Jarelle Reischel poured in 27 points to go with 11rebounds and 5 assists.

"Eight years later, guess what? We just beat CBA,''Catania said.

The eighth-seeded Garnet Gulls, who finished third intheir own division, punched their ticket to the SCT

semifinals for the first time since 1968 with the win.After being inconsolable following a 55-52 loss to CBAin last year's SCT quarterfinals, Reischel and histeammates found a way this time, which included a 16-for-16 performance from the foul line as team. Seniorpoint guard Mike Rotando added 14 points in the win.

"Every practice and every game I had that CBA gamein the back of my head,'' Reischel said. "I was so happyto play them today. I will look back in 20 years and beproud to be part of this program and be with theseteammates. We have a special relationship. We're likebrothers, and I think that's what helped us in the endtoday.''

After a free throw by Matt McMullen gave CBA a 52-49 advantage with 1:42 remaining, Reischel drew a roarfrom the crowd at Collins Arena when he buried a 3-pointer from the right wing to tie the game.

"I have a lot of confidence in myself and myteammates, and big players take big shots and makethem,'' Reischel said. "So that's what I did.''

With 18.8 seconds left in the game, CBA’s J.P. Kourywas whistled for an offensive foul for pushing off to getopen, putting Point Beach senior Kevin Donohue at theline. Donohue, who is known more as a defensivespecialist, sank the first free throw to tie the game before

CBA coach Geoff Billetcalled timeout to ice him.He went back to the lineand sank the biggest shotby a Point Beach playerin 43 years for his sixthpoint of the game and a56-55 lead.

"(Donohue) never asksfor the glory or thecredit,'' Catania said."He's a kid who's beenthrough a lot, and hedeserves those freethrows. He's the bestteammate you could askfor, and it's ironic that itended up that way.''

"I was actually notnervous,'' Donohue said."I was really confident.Jarelle and I have beenshooting free throws fora while now - 100 shots aday. I'm just confident..''

After finishing in thirdplace in Class B Central,Point Beach has caught

fire in the last twoweeks, startingwith an overtime

victory against second-seeded Lakewood in the regular season that ended thePiners' 16-game winning streak.

"I think just likethe Lakewood game,we had nothing tolose,'' Rotando said."All the pressure wason (CBA) becauseno one expected usto win. I think we'vestarted playingtogether as a team.We bought into notcaring who scores,just as long as we'vegot more points thanthe other team. Wecan beat anyone.''

The Garnet Gullsare also maximizingtheir time withReischel, a RiceUniversity recruitwho is a rare talentfor a small-schoolprogram like PointBeach. He moved toLavallette as asophomore aftergrowing up inGermany as the sonof a military father,and he has helpeddrive the program toheights it hasn’t seenin nearly 50 years.

“Of course that'sthe urgency, but ourJV team is 14-2, soafter Jarelle therewill be Point Beachbasketball,’’ Catania said. “I don't know if we're going tobeat CBA every year, but that will be the goal, just like itwas before Jarelle.’’

The new Kids in Town: Point Beach,Rumson Make Cinderella Runs in SCTBy Scott Stump – Managing Editor

Pt. Beach's Mike Rotando

Pt. Beach's Jarelle Reischel

Cont inu ed �on � nex t �p age

Point Beach isn’t the only team to burst into thespotlight in the SCT, either, as Rumson also won itsquarterfinal game to advance to its first SCT semifinal inprogram history. For the superstitious types, gettingseeded No. 13 in the Shore Conference Tournamentmight have seemed like a ominous omen for Rumson-Fair Haven.

Instead, the Bulldogs decided to make it bad luck foreveryone else.

Rumson-Fair Haven edged 12th-seeded Howell, 54-51, in a battle of Cinderella squads BrookdaleCommunity College to make school history.

"All I'm saying is that we're unlucky No. 13,'' seniorforward Jack Wise said. "Anyone who plays us so far hasleft with an unlucky result.''

Junior guardJack Donnellyscored a game-high 24 points,senior pointguard Kevin"Pookie'' Alteradded 18 pointsand 5 assists, andWise had ninerebounds, five onthe offensiveside, to helpRumson hold onfor a win over theRebels, who werealso seeking theirfirst SCTsemifinal berth..

Alter gotthings rolling byscoring 14 of his18 points in the

first half, which included four 3-pointers, one of whichwas from about 25 feet off the dribble. Rumson shot outto an 18-8 lead at the end of the first quarter thanks to a9-2 run that included two 3-point bombs from Alter andanother from Donnelly. The match-up between Alter andKeegan was one of the more eagerly anticipated ones ofthe day, as both are considered top point guards in theShore.

"Kevin Alter is the best point guard in this conferenceby far,'' Wise said. "He's been kind of injured this wholeseason and has had to sit there and listen to, I'm notgoing to name names, but hearing about all these otherplayers that are better than him. I think he's proving nowwhen he's at full health that that's not the case, and he'sthe best point guard in the Shore. He's our leader, and weall kind of follow his lead.''

After not having even made the SCT quarterfinals for30-plus years before reaching them last season, theBulldogs took the next step in putting their program onthe map. Their boisterous "Dawg Pound'' student sectionas well as Los Angeles Clippers guard Randy Foye, aRumson resident home for the NBA All-Star break whois close with Champeau, were right there to witnessprogram history.

"This is a bunch of tough kids,'' Champeau said. "Tome, Rumson has never been thought of as a basketballschool, so for us to do this is a nice thing.''

"We kind of play with a chip on our shoulder becausewe know not a lot of people in this area really respectus,'' Wise said.

S A D D - S h o r e R e g i o n a l C h a p t e r S h o w i n g t h e i r S u p p o r t

(from left to right) SADD National Rep. Pamela Clark, Shore Regional rep. Jennifer

Czajkawski, Paige Woodie, Chelsea Amaroso, Nick Nuvan, Kay Honda’s Jason Woods

and General Manager George Rodriguez.


Rumson's Jack Donnelly

Photos � by :

Doug �Bostw i ckw w w . s p o r t s h o t s w l b . s m u g m u g . c o m

Rumson �Photo � by :

C l i f f � Lave l l ew w w . c l e a r e d g e . z e n f o l i o . c o m

same I weighed during football."

"You look at him and he's got a 38-inch waist,

weighs 270 pounds and moves very well,"

Christathakis said. "He has the intangibles that a lot

of others just don't."

The Red Raiders heavyweight notes that he's an

athlete more than anything else. He starred as a

lineman for the football team and has been a

tremendous wrestler during his four-year varsity

career, but won't label himself as one or the other.

Velasco is also a thrower for the track team during

the spring season. That is music to the ears of

Christathakis, who, in a world of ever-growing

specialization, believes that playing multiple sports

can only help a student-athlete.

"I don't like a student-athlete just being labeled

as a baseball player or a basketball player," said

Christathakis, who also is an assistant football

coach at Freehold. "There's things you learn from

one sport that you can bring to your other sports

and I think that's what it takes be a successful

multiple-sport athlete."

Like last season, Velasco will enter the Region

VI tournament undefeated. He was the No. 3 seed

last season and lost to Toms River East's John

Clark in the quarterfinals. Clark finished second in

the region and placed eighth in the state. Velasco

showed guts by beating Point Boro's David

Halliday, Jackson Liberty's Brendan Kahle and

Lacey's Mike Stuppiello, who was the No. 2 seed,

to place third and punch his ticket to the state

tournament. When he takes the mat on Friday,

Velasco should do so as a top-two seed. It is

expected he will face Jackson Memorial's Joe

Nolan in the final. Like Velasco, Nolan is a football

player who is big (285) and athletic. Velasco is

eager for that opportunity.

"That's my goal," Velasco said. "I want to be in

that final and win it. It's one of my goals and it's

why I work harder and harder every day."

VelascoC o n t i n u e d f r o m p a g e 11


Photo � by :

An thony �Paynew w w . p a y n e s p h o t o v i s i o n . c o m


Winning a sectional title was one thing, but itseemed as if injuries would finally catch up to JacksonMemorial during its quest for an NJSIAA Group IVtitle.

The Jaguars navigated their way to a sixth NJSIAACentral Jersey Group IV championship on Feb. 11despite being without two of their best and two of thetop wrestlers in their respective weight classes in NewJersey, Brian and Doug Hamann.But getting through arch rivalSouthern Regional before ameeting with either HunterdonCentral or Phillipsburg in theGroup IV final looked toodaunting of a task without thefirepower provided by theHamann brothers. Wrestlingwithout two surefire statemedalists at this time of yearusually means bad things.

On Feb. 13 at the PolandSpring Arena in Toms River,however, it was merely anotherobstacle for Jackson Memorial totrounce.

After dispatching of Southernfor the second time this season inthe semifinals, the Jaguars easilyhandled Phillipsburg, 34-24, totake home their second straightNJSIAA Group IV championship.Pins by Dallas Winston, AlecHuxford and Spencer Youngkeyed an eight-bout majority and delivered JacksonMemorial its fourth overall group championship, all ofwhich have come in the last six seasons.

"The Hamann brothers are tremendous wrestlers,and we knew it wasn't going to be easy without them,"said Jackson Memorial head coach DoughWithstandley. "But like (junior) Randy Royle said afterwe beat Howell, 'Even without those guys we're stillthe best team in the state.'"

Young, a sophomore, put the match out of reachwith his pin over Justin Lane in 1:01 at 125 pounds.Brad Royle clinched the championship when he heldMatt Lane without bonus points at 130 to make thescore 31-18 with two bouts left. Young had a great dayas he also wrestled tough in a 6-3 loss to state runner-up Kyle Casaletto of Southern. Winston was dominantwith a technical fall against Southern's Zeb Collinsand a pin against Phillipsburg's Anthony Pare. Senior

heavyweight Joe Nolan looked like one of the best285-pounders in the state with a 3-0 win overSouthern's Kyle Cox and a 14-1 major decision overDerek Pierson of Phillipsburg.

The day started with the rubber match againstSouthern. The Jaguars won the first meeting, 39-9,before the Rams stunned them in the SCT final, 28-23.This time the result was closer to the first meeting as

Jackson won eightbouts and forfeited thelast two to Southernwhen the match wasalready in hand. Evenwithout injured BrianHamann (125) andDoug Hamann (152),both of whom werestate qualifiers lastyear and figured toplace prominently inAtlantic City thisseason, the Jaguarslooked much betterthan they did on Jan.29. The matchups theylost last time were reversed. They won the tossup bouts.They got bonus points from one of their top wrestlers

and allowed the Rams nothing but decisions. The finalscore was 27-24, but only after Jackson forfeited thefinal two bouts up 27-12.

"It's such a big rivalry and we wanted to beat themso bad after they beat us in Shore Confernce," Winstonsaid. "We felt great coming out of that match."

The good feelings certainly carried over into thechampionship match against the Stateliners. RandyRoyle started off with an 8-6 decision over Joe Moyerat 145, but James Opdyke dropped a 5-1 decision toVictor Delmonico and Dan Brockerhoff came throughwith a pin for Phillipsburg over Dylan Harrington.Phillipsburg led 9-3, but the Jaguars forged ahead witha decision by Rob Hennings at 171 and a pin byWinston at 189. Winston accounted for 11 team pointsin his two bouts Sunday.

Max Sunder lost 6-0 to Brandon Hull at 215, butavoided giving up bonus points after being thrown tohis back in the first period. Nolan manhandled themuch smaller Derek Pierson at heavyweight en routeto a 14-1 major decision and the sophomore Huxfordscored a pin in 28 seconds at 103 to cap a 19-3 run.

Freshman Peter Rinaldi wrestled arguably his twobest bouts of the season on Sunday. He took Southern'sZach Wilhelm down to the wire before losing 5-4 andlooked good against Zach Fisher before thePhillipsburg sophomore picked up three near-fallpoints late for a 5-2 win. Senior Mike Shupin, who hasbeen so patient over the last four years while at timesbeing stuck behind state champs and medalists, scoreda 3-0 decision over Andrew Kaluzny at 119 to stretch

the Jaguars' lead to25-15. Young, whosucked down to 125in Hamann'sabsence, stuck JustinLane in 1:01 to allbut escort the 'fatlady' onto the mat.The Group IV titlewas officiallyclinched when BradRoyle limited MattLane to a decision at130 pounds. DylanMcLaughlin pickedup a win in the finalcontested bout,beating Tyler Rehl4-1 at 135, before

the Jags forfeited to Rylan Watson in the final bout. Itwas the equivalent of taking a knee on the finalpossession of a football game. The match was over.The Jaguars had done all they needed to do.

"I'll tell you what. Being able to forfeit that lastmatch and not having to worry about anything is agreat feeling," Nolan said.

Wrestling is an individual sport at its core, but itwould be redundant to call any win a team effort. Acouple of wrestlers, no matter how good they are,cannot carry a team by themselves. Jackson Memorialknew that, and more importantly, had the confidence towin without the Hamann brothers. The Jaguars didn'tsqueak by to win a title, they handled each team theywrestled over the past two seasons in the grouptournament.

Jackson Memorial is indeed a dynasty, and the finalday of Group IV wrestling proved exactly why

The Best of the Best: Jackson Mem.Wrestling Wins G r o u p I V T i t l eB y B o b B a d d e r s – S e n i o r S t a f f W r i t e r

V ideo �H i gh l i gh ts � by :

Bob �Badde rswww.al lshoremedia.com

Junior Dallas Winston


It’s a day

that seems to come and go in the midst

of Shore Conference Basketbal l

Tournament fever, but I think i t ’s

one that needs to be more

celebrated and also dupl icated

by other sports in the Shore.

The Shore Football Coaches

Foundation honored its All-Shore

Academic Team on Feb. 19 at its annual

breakfast banquet at Gibbs Hall in Fort

Monmouth, awarding a large group of Shore

Conference seniors for their academic performance as

well as their athletic performance, which you can read

about in this issue.

It’s a day that seems to float under the

radar because football season is not in full

swing, but it’s one that every senior

should aspire to be a part of. Players had

to have had at least a 3.0 grade-point

average and have been contributors on the

field to have been honored by the SFCF.

A lot of these players aren’t just lesser-known

special teams guys, either. Some of the Shore

Conference’s biggest names were at the banquet,

which is great to see after a 2010 class that had

numerous academic casualties among the top

players in the Shore.

This year boasted players like Barnegat

wide receiver Mike DeTroia, Long Branch

quarterback/defensive back Miles Shuler,

Manalapan running back Josh Firkser,

Freehold lineman Michael Kasten, Red

Bank Catholic running back/safety Andrew

Casten, Lacey running back/defensive back Jake

Dabal, Lacey quarterback Craig Cicardo, Point Boro

tight end Ryan Malleck, Lacey running back/defensive

back/kicker Jarrod Molzon, Matawan offensive

lineman/linebacker Andre Hodge, Raritan

lineman Shane Mertz and Rumson linebacker

Mike Huttner. All of them were first-team

All-Shore Conference selections by All

Shore Media, and Firkser was the Offensive

Player of the Year.

Shuler, who is headed to Rutgers,

is considered a top-five recruit in New Jersey

from this year’s class, and the list of some of

schools where these players are headed is

impressive from an academic standpoint:

Harvard (Casten), Northwestern (Mertz),

Cornell (Huttner for lacrosse), Virginia

Tech (Malleck) and Georgetown

(Kasten). It’s great to think that even if

things don’t work out for these players

athletically, they will be armed with a great

degree to reach for success in another area.

Plus, those are just the players from the

ASM first-team All-Conference squad. There

are plenty more, like Pinelands senior Jake Hartman

(Bucknell), St. John Vianney long snapper Sean

Tobin (Georgia Tech) and Freehold Township’s

Matt Intile (Holy Cross) who are headed to

great academic schools.

I think sometimes we get so

caught up in celebrating the

Knowshon Morenos for their

high athletic achievements, and

I am just as guilty as anyone,

that we don’t talk more about guys like Harry

Flaherty, a former Red Bank Catholic star who

recently graduated with a degree from Princeton.

While this season it has lessened a bit, there

are still plenty of players who I ask coaches

about as far as their college future is

concerned and they can only shake their

head.

“No grades.’’

Players think that since they

are the big man in their school, somehow

everything will just work itself out. Then

they barely graduate, and instead of being the

highly-recruited players who had everyone

kissing their backsides, they become guys

sitting in their rooms all alone with a box full of

now-worthless letters with college logos on

them wondering what they are going to do

now.

I just like that these high-level

players from this season’s class

cared enough about their future

to give themselves options if

football doesn’t work out by excelling the

classroom. Shuler may be a bigger

inspiration to the youth of Long Branch as a

student than as a player by showing them

academics are important, too.

Not everyone has to go directly to

Harvard, either. It simply takes dedication

and hard work, even if it’s at a small

school off the radar. You can go the

junior college or prep school route

and still succeed, but it takes

perseverance and the willingness to

put in the effort even though the spotlight isn’t on

you.

The perfect example is Neptune graduate Vinny

Curry. He did not academically qualify for a

scholarship at the end of his career with the

Scarlet Fliers, so he went to Harmony

Community School in Cincinnati for a

semester. That’s right about when most

players drop off the radar for good

and are never heard from again, or

they come home whining about how it

was too hard and their friends weren’t

there.

Instead, Curry earned a scholarship to Marshall,

then was declared academically ineligible at first.

Again, he could’ve packed it in at that point. He

worked hard to get eligible and soon became a

star for the Thundering Herd as one of the

most productive defensive ends in their

conference. Now he is on pace to get a

degree while also giving himself a

shot at the NFL.

In a perfect world, a day like the

annual breakfast at Gibbs Hall for the

All-Shore Academic Team would be just as anticipated

as the day that the All-Shore teams come out. It will

never be that way, but I still think it’s an event that I

would love to see spread to basketball, baseball and

other sports to show that academics are held in high

regard.

Getting picked to an All-Shore team is a

great thing and a memorable day, but

ultimately taking a seat at the breakfast

at Gibbs Hall means far more in the

long run. It means that those players

haven’t put all their eggs in one

basket and that academics mean

something to them. They realized that

high school football was a big part of their life, but

not the only part, and that one day football is going to

end and the real world is going to have to be

navigated.

That’s why I will always remember this

year’s senior class. Not because there were

10 Division I-A signees, but because there

were so many high academic achievers

among the top players in the Shore.

That’s the bar that the future classes

should aspire to meet.


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