By Tim Doherty ‘23
The Varsity wrestling team, currently ranked #3 in the state and #15 in the country, has been dominant so far in the young 2022-2023 season. They sit at 7-2 and have made a name for themselves on the national stage, providing plenty of early-season fuel for this veteran group.
After blanking Paramus 80-0 in their season opener, the team traveled to Stillwater, Oklahoma for the inaugural National Wrestling Hall of Fame Dual Classic. The team first cruised to a 61-0 win against Allen High School (ranked #25 in the country) out of Texas before dominating Loyola Academy (Illinois) in a 73-3 victory. SJR also took down Bixby High School from Oklahoma (ranked #17 in the country) in impressive fashion, winning 49-21. The Green Knights went 3-2 overall, taking sixth place in a field of sixteen (all top teams in the country) at the elite Oklahoma tournament.
The competition didn’t get any easier as the team traveled to Pennsylvania to compete in the highly-touted Powerade tournament (individual). In the team standings, the Green Knights took fourth overall out of sixty-six teams. SJR had four medalists and five round of twelve wrestlers. Two-time state champ Jimmy Mullen ‘23 took home the Powerade championship at heavyweight. Michael Dellagatta ‘23 placed second at his weight while Ryan Burton ‘25 and Rocco Dellagatta ‘25 both took sixth. The Green Knights outplaced both the number five and twelve teams in the nation in what was a great weekend for the team.
SJR used this success as momentum for their return to New Jersey. The team took down CBA, the #5 team in the state and #33 team in the country, 37-21 on the road. The win was powered by an impressive victory for Yannis Charles ‘24, who defeated the #1 ranked 144 pounder in the state, a returning state-finalist. The following day, the Green Knights traveled to South Jersey and defeated both St. Augustine (ranked #10 in NJ) and Ocean City in their first tri-meet of the year.
The team is undoubtedly off to a great start as they aim for a Non-Public A championship this year.