Pack Prevails Again, 48-30 over Hackettstown, Rizzuto, Dean Shine

Long Valley NJ

08 January, 2022

10:54 AM

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By David Yaskulka, photos by Laura Ferrante 01/07/22 LONG VALLEY, NJ -- After 677 days without a win, the shorthanded Wolfpack notched its second triumph of the season, 48-30 over Hackettstown Tuesday 1/4/22. On Wednesday they came stunningly close to winning again versus powerhouse Mt. Olive. With the team score tied 12-12, Brandon Dean (132) pinned Hackettstowns's top wrestler, #30 ranked (RankWrestlers.com) Nicholas Balella in the second period. Sophomore Sam Rizutto (138) then pinned 2020 District 11 champion Austin Zellars to pad the Wolfpack's lead. "The whole team has shown a lot of resilience this year," said Coach Chris Marold. "We have already had to overcome the team getting shut down, losing guys to injury and illness, and having to go into dual meets knowing that we need to be almost perfect to overcome multiple forfeits." Dean Muttart (150) followed Dean and Rizzuto with a pin as well. Freshman Henry DeFrance (157) dominated in his varsity debut, with a pinfall at 5:07. DeFrance, along with the varsity debut of Ethan Toe at 215 lbs., gives the Wolfpack much-needed hope of competing at additional weights in the lineup. "The holes in the line-up are just one more obstacle that we have had to overcome this year," said Marold. "We had a couple of holes in the middle of the lineup to start the year, but it has gotten worse," noting the loss of Cooper Stetz and Toni Kaplinski. In fact, the Wolfpack beat Hackettstown despite forfeiting four weight classes, partly because the Covid-depleted Tigers also forfeited four times. Junior Henry Frayne (HWT) continued his early season dominance with a pin at just 25 seconds. There was no gray area against the Tigers – every bout resulted in six team points (the maximum) for the winner, except for 190 lbs. where both teams forfeited. The Pack delivered five pinfalls. Freshman and 2019 youth state champion Aiden Scheeringa (106) pinned for the Tigers, as did Evan Yanoff (215) Campanaro and Frayne Epic Wins Highlights Valiant Loss to Mt. Olive, 45-33 Michael Campanaro (126) defeated returning NJ sixth-place medalist and North 1 Champ Jack Bastarrika 1-0 Wednesday. Although the match was already lost after a fifth WMC forfeit, Frayne pinned #18 ranked senior Riley Camoia at 1:27. "Michael's win is huge for his confidence that he can beat top tear wrestlers and is a result of putting in a lot of hard work," said Coach Chris Marold. "I think that he can open up even more and increase the margin of victory to more than just a 1 point win." For both WMC junior hammers it was perhaps the signature win of their high school careers. Speaking to the rarity of knocking off top-ranked wrestlers, Marold pointed to Dean, as well as alums Eli Shepard, Marco Gaita and Shane Metzler as recent wrestlers to accomplish the feat. Michael Ferrante (120), Dean, and Rizzuto also dominated for the Pack, delivering pinfalls. Campanaro's win, and Malachi Shepard's loss while bumping up to to face #7 ranked fellow senior David Ryerson are the only bouts that went the distance. Of bouts wrestled, WMC won six of nine by a score of 33-15. That said, most of WMC's forfeits were to highly favored state ranked wrestlers, including #6 Tyeler Hagensen, #15 Brian Bienus, #9 Hunter Perez, and #3 Anthony Moscatello. The neighboring Marauders boast an extremely deep lineup featuring eight of New Jersey's top-20 wrestlers (RankWrestlers.com). They were #18 in NJ.com's pre-season rankings. Gratitude to Mike and Cathy Campanaro Mike and Cathy Campanaro worked tirelessly to help provide opportunities for our wrestlers for over two years. They stepped down as Parents Club President and head of concessions (respectively) Wednesday in an email sent to team parents and administrators. "The Campanaros have been huge contributors to our program," noted Marold. Their successors were not immediately known. The Campanaros' WMC leadership tenure followed their long devotion to the Long Valley youth wrestling program. They succeeded Wolfpack legendary contributors Jeff and Susan Hill, who in turn had succeeded David and Maureen Migliaccio and George and Lena Matthews. All are parents of top Wolfpack wrestlers, including Mike Campanaro, David Migliaccio, AJ Hill and Nick Matthews. NJSIAA Girls Wrestling According to TrackWrestling, the NJSIAA Girls Wrestling season has not yet begun for returning NJ bronze medalist Marisa Di Paolo, the team's only returning state placewinner. NJ.com Ranks Dean #3 NJ.com released its first rankings of the season, choosing the top-eight wrestlers in each weight class. WMC freshman phenom Dean debuted at #3, the only freshman on the list, which is filled with returning state medalists and qualifiers. Dean is also ranked #3 by Full Circle, where WMC hammer Michael Campanaro (126) is ranked top-17 in the state. FloWrestling has Dean at #8, four places behind Bergen Catholic's Ryan Ford, based on a longer resume. Dean beat Ford at X-Calibur. Next Up After kicking off the new year renewing local rivalries versus Hackettstown and Mt. Olive, the team hosts Sparta on 1/13, visits Kittatinny for a quad on 1/15, hosts Emerson - Park Ridge on 1/20, and visits Union for another quad 1/22. The Morris County Tournament is scheduled for 1/28-29. The Wolfpack hosts rival Mendhanm on 2/1. Schedule is according TrackWrestling.com on January 5. Parents are advised to check the school's web site for free tickets, and stay tuned for schedule changes. A major JV tournament is scheduled for 1/9. —--------- Contributing writer David Yaskulka's day job is Senior VP, Corporate Social Responsibility at Mid America Pet Food in Mt. Pleasant, TX. He's also Board Chair of Greater Good Charities, and Board Vice Chair of the Pet Sustainability Coalition. His sons wrestled for the Pack.