First of all, what a joke it is they didn’t approve my media credential. Whatever, I’m only still a little bitter over it.
Well, Liz, you said I could still write my stories, so here’s a couple, one of which not so great for the NJSIAA. Maybe instead of being so concerned about my company you make a more detailed schedule of each session available to the public. Wrestling starts at 9. What round? All the rounds? Quarterfinals at noon, no quarterfinals at 11, no quarterfinals immediately after the first round of consolations. Who can keep track of that? Do better.
Anyway, here’s my 3 biggest takeaways, and the list of boys and girls champions.
It’s not often things that are crazy hyped live up to the hype. In fact, it’s rare enough that you can probably think of some singular events or moments or pieces of art like a movie or album that did live up to lofty expectations. Much more are those things that disappoint, leave us wanting, saying that’s it, that wasn’t worth the wait or I can’t believe I was all excited for that. What a let down.
Well Ludington, who my friend Brock Hite (with me in attendance) and I affectionately dubbed “Luddy”, and Ruiz, who we didn’t tag with a nickname, definitely falls under that group of things that lived up to it. The hype.
It was the most anticipated of all 14 finals matches. A weight for the ages in terms of depth and quantity of contenders. But it had a 1, 2 seed, a 1, 2, punch that everyone was holding out for. Two state champions. A sophomore looking to stay alive for 4. A senior looking to close out a stellar career. And we got it. Friday night solidified it. And from then started the countdown.
The individual match itself was fantastic. An early takedown for the veteran Ruiz and he was able to finish the 1st period without giving up the escape, keeping the 2-0 score in tact. That first period ride out would foreshadow the match’s end.
Period two began with Ruiz taking down and he was able to get out with about a minute thirty left. This meant Luddy – sorry we’re not actually going to keep calling him that but for now – had that long to try to cut into Ruiz’s lead before the final frame. And when it looked like Ruiz may slide into the 3rd with a 3-0 lead, Ludington struck pay dirt on a leg attack and got the 2, almost as time expired. And then time expired.
Trailing 3-2 heading into the 3rd, Ludington would choose down. While the math on that decision generally checks out, the information gained from the 1st period might have suggested you go down to Ruiz, you may never get back up. You take neutral and you have 2 minutes to get a takedown from a vantage point – on your feet – that Ludington had proven to be Ruiz’s equal. Some will say it’s a tough call. Others will say choosing down is a no brainer. I still maintain I’d rather take my chances with a full period of neutral.
Anyway, the crowd screamed for stalling as Ruiz put on a 2 minute clinic of mat wrestling. There were moments where Ludington looked to be getting free, so close. But not quite ever out. And that’s how it would end. With Ruiz on top. In this match, on the podium. For his career.
He’ll be at Cornell starting next year while Ludington gets two more shots at another NJ state title, being only a sophomore.
We commend both on an excellent main event and the best way to end a great three days of Garden State grappling.
Now, the last match of the finals was great in and of itself. And for those left in attendance, they were rewarded for sticking around. I do wonder how much more excitement there could have been had the crowd known about the team race brewing.
Earlier in the day, Brock and I looked at the team score and looked out to mat 5 where Aidan Schlett was getting ready to battle for a St Joseph’s Regional team that had come fighting back to take the team lead from Delbarton. Surprised, we started figuring the math. Schlett can get 2 plus any bonus for 5th. 3 finalists means 4 points each plus any bonus after the finals.
Well, they entered the finals with a 6.5 point lead. If all 3 finalists win, it’s up to 18.5. Delbarton had 5 finalists of their own. One big underdog at 120 and then 4 favorites. That would be 16 points for the Green Wave and put them 2.5 points behind. They would need bonus in one or two to push them over the top. Either way, it was going to be drama-filled to the end, like the dual between them a month or so ago.
And the finals started at 190 and SJR’s Michael Dellagatta came out and handled his business. One down. Mullen took the mat 2 matches later and ultimately had his hand raised in another one of the best battles of the night. Well, 2 for 2. And SJR had themselves a 14.5 point lead.
Then the Green Wave had Dan Jones against Anthony Knox and an upset there would have been huge for the team score but it was a massive task as Knox is one of the state’s best pound for pound. So after 120 it would be 138 for the next shot at a champion. And senior Tyler Vazquez came through. Lead down to 10.5.
At 144, SJR’s lone remaining finalist, Yannis Charles, took the mat against the kid who had pulled one of the weekend’s most memorable moments with a pin in the semifinals over top seed Julian George. And while SJR entered as the favorite, you just can’t count out the sort of run Richie Grungo was having and sure enough he continued it right on through to the 1st place finish. That would mean SJR holds onto its 10.5 point lead. And a Green Wave was forming in the distance.
At 157, Delbarton has the start of its own murderer’s row. 3 favorites. Back to back to back. Like Drake, but even more. And as they took the mat, Alessio Perentin first, you started to see it. Unfolding before our eyes. Clock runs out. Perentin the winner. Lead down to 6.5.
At 165, it was junior Louie Cerchio and he held serve against a foe he had beat earlier in the season. 1st title for Louie, team win in their sights. Lead down to 2.5.
And then there was one. One match left. And it was the main event. 175. Senior state champion against a sophomore who had won it as a freshman. Not only was it a chance for Ruiz to close out his career atop the state’s best weight class, it was also the chance for Delbarton to storm all the way back and capture the team crown.
And he did. And they did. And the crowd went wild. Oh no wait the state doesn’t recognize a team champion so all that build up and drama and added excitement didn’t exist. And for a sport that can use more storylines and intrigue to get new fans engaged, it was a missed opportunity.
I posted about it in a New Jersey wrestling forum and quickly got replies about how New Jersey doesn’t recognize a team champion. Yeah well, it should. That isn’t a positive, something to brag about. It’s a disappointment and hopefully something someone can do something about in the future.
A team trailing, making a comeback, having to win 3 in a row, ending on their superstar, movies make billions off of stories like that. Instead, it went relatively unnoticed.
Well, Delbarton knew (they’ve now won 4 of these “unofficial” titles in a row). I knew. And now you do too.
What is there to say about one of the best wrestlers to ever come through the state, and arguably the best heavyweight. I don’t know. I mean so much has already been said.
What I will say is that the future is perhaps even brighter than the past, and it’s been quite the past up to this point. He’ll be at Virginia Tech competing both in football and wrestling and I’m quite sure we’ll see him in NFL draft talks in a few years and also Olympic team trials competition.
I have yet to meet young Jimmy but by all accounts he’s an even better person than wrestler, and everyone always says that, but for Mullen you can see – even from a distance – how true that is.
I’ve never seen a picture of him not smiling and little kids already love him like a global icon. And the show of sportsmanship between him and Max Acciardi at the end of a very competitive finals is something you don’t often see. But Mullen himself is something you don’t often see. And now we can’t wait to see where his career takes him. And wherever it takes him, it’ll be as a 3 time New Jersey state champion.
Wrestlers in bold earned their first career state title:
Based in Western PA. Right in the heart of WPIAL country, Todd brings an insider’s view from the country’s epicenter of wrestling. He’s excited to build on the TKDWN tradition of starting with the story first. The athletes, the coaches, their families and supporters, there is no shortage of stories to tell. And Todd will bring his unique perspective to help us continue to deliver top notch content for the world’s greatest sport!
