Pack Wins Knolls Behind Neill, Dean and Borgia Gold Medals

12/17/23

By David Yaskulka.

Photographs by Olivia Montuore and Jen Sheppard.

Brody Neill, Brandon Dean and Tommy Borgia led the West Morris Central Wolfpack to a Morris Knolls Wrestling Tournament championship Saturday, each winning gold medals in their weight classes.

Mark Montuore, Sam Rizzuto and AJ Codella won silver at the 10 team competition, where most of WMC’s medalists came from its new full-time starters.

Freshman Mason Vasquez and sophomore Robert Fazzino, who moved from Perth Amboy, took bronze. Sophomore Michael Borgia placed fourth, joining classmate Codella on the podium for the first time since they both placed at the X-Caliber tournament to start last season.

“We had a great tournament as a team,” said Neill. “I was able to execute what I have been working on with my teammates and coaches in the wrestling room,” he said when asked for the key to his early success. Neill (106, 2-0) pinned two highly touted fellow freshmen on the way to gold, including South Plainfield’s Logan Stoeckel in a 50 second finals.

Dean and Tommy Borgia were the two pre-season highest-ranked wrestlers in the tournament (RankWrestlers.com), and neither disappointed, proving critical to WMC’s team win at the 29th annual Knolls tourney.

Dean (157 lbs., 4-0 record, pre-season rank #4) picked up where he left off last season, pinning all four opponents on his way to gold, including Sparta’s Anthony Petrock in the finals. Dean was the most successful sophomore and public school wrestler at his weight last season when he placed sixth in New Jersey, grabbing Goles, County, District and Region championships along the way.

Borgia’s (215, 3-0, #12) gold was his high school first, despite possibly the most outstanding freshman year in WMC history when he advanced to the NJSIAA State Championship competition as a rookie upper weight. Borgia cited his inside knee pull single go-to move, winning by pin, major decision, and ultimately by 10-3 decision over Sparta’s #28 ranked senior Connor White in the Knolls championship.

WMC dominated the team scoring with 157.5 points, followed by Watchung Hills 127, Sparta 115, South Plainfield 105, Montville 94, Seton Hall Prep 78, Morris Knolls 73, Pope John 33, Dumont 17 and Hackettstown 7. Contributing to the Wolfpack victory: a) three champions tieing Seton Hall for the most, b) team depth with nine medalists, and c) the Delaware Beast of the East tournament siphoning off some of these teams’ best.

WMC’s Knolls championship came from contributors up and down the lineup, with coaches Chris Marold, Tom Borgia and Tommy Nicolicchia scrambling from mat to mat to mat to support Pack wrestlers.

Silver

Junior Montuore (120, 2-1, #28 ) advanced by pin, and then by 8-4 decision. In a tight one-point finals, #27 ranked top-seed Cam Kolakowski of Watchung caught Montuore for the gold-getting fall.

Senior Rizzuto (144, 3-1, #23), also a two-seed, shut out the competition with a 16-0 tech fall, 5-0 decision, and a first period pin on the way to the finals. Sparta’s #19 ranked Logan Hrenenko prevailed, leaving silver for Rizzuto.

Sophomore heavyweight Codella (285, 2-1, #113) impressed in his first starting opportunity since taking fourth at X-Calibur last season. Codella scored first-period pins in the quarter and semi-finals. He was leading top-seed and #54 ranked Luke Abilio by 8-2 when the Montville senior nailed a three-point pinning move for gold.

More Medals

Freshman Vasquez (113, 2-1) and classmate Neill look like a powerful rookie one-two punch at the start of the lineup. Vasquez prevailed 6-4 over Hackettstown’s three-seed Dougherty, fell to the eventual champ, then pinned South Plainfield’s #92 ranked Alex Pigna for bronze.

Fazzino (150, 2-1), like Vasquez, Montuore, Rizzuto and Codella, only lost to the tourney champ. Fazzino won by major 12-4 in the quarters, and pinned South Plainfield’s Jose Rodriguez in the consolation championship for bronze.

Tommy Borgia said “Fazzino and Neill showed they could compete at a high level” with their performances Saturday.

Michael Borgia (190, 1-2, #188) pinned South Plainfield’s J. Billian in the quarterfinals to assure a fourth place finish for the Pack.

In the JV Tournament, WMC’s Andrew Dominguez took bronze at 165.

First Day Final Word

After taking gold in his first-ever high school tournament, Neill may have set the tone for the rest of the season:

“My goals for this year are simple. It is to take each day how it comes, and getting better every day with my partners in the wrestling room with the help of my great coaches. Then to excel on the mat on match days.”

That’s certainly what the Wolfpack did on day-one of the 2023-24 season.

WMC Opening Tournament History

WMC returned to the Knolls tourney after almost a decade starting the season at the Pennsylvania X-Calibur Tournament. WMC saw four Knolls champions crowned in 2014, where South Plainfield won its eighth straight and WMC placed third.

Last year’s season started at the Pennsylvania X-Calibur Tournament, where Michael Campanaro became WMC’s first champion since Shane Metzler was the first-ever in 2015. Last season Tommy Borgia took silver, and Dean, Henry Frayne (who cheered on his former teammates at Knolls Saturday) and Michael Hare all took bronze. Montuore, Rizzuto and Codella took fourth; Lucas Barisonek sixth, Jacob Fahmi seventh, and Michael Borgia and Vincent Caruso eighth – an outstanding 12 place winners (including four freshmen) and team bronze medal performance for the Wolfpack.

In 2021, freshman Dean announced his arrival by shocking returning NJSIAA medalist Ryan Ford on his way to a silver medal. Ford is now ranked #1 in NJ after prevailing over Dean at their Atlantic City rematch.

WMC last competed at the Morris Knolls Tournament in 2014, as Metzler, Dylan Luciano, David Migliaccio and Kevin Sears were crowned champions; Kade Loughney and Marco Gaita secured silver; and future coach Caleb Isemann came home brandishing bronze. Notably for this writer, Noah Yaskulka majored future Essex County champ Danny Young of Seton Hall Prep. Young qualified for States his senior year (despite losing to future NCAA champion Shane Griffith and All-American John Poznanski along the way).

In 2013 WMC opened the season at its own tournament, where Loughney, Luciano and Jesse Windt were champions.

Last season, South Plainfield won the 10-school Knolls tourney, followed by Watchung Hills, Morris Hills and Morris Knolls.

Pre-Season Ranks and Predictions

Ranking here is from RankWrestlers.com which uses an algorithm based on record, types of win, and strength of opponent to rank every wrestler using data reported to TrackWrestling.com. It’s adjusted throughout the season. Next week we should see Vasquez jump in rank, but since Neill and Fazzino’s best wins were against freshmen, they may not.

Full Circle Wrestling ranks Dean 6th at 150 and #14 among all juniors, and Borgia #12 at 215. Both were recently named Morris County “wrestlers to watch” by the Daily Record.

GardenStateHighSchoolWrestling.com predicts WMC to have a strong winning record, finish 4th in the powerhouse NWJAC American Conference with a preseason rank of third in Morris County. Morris-Sussex Sports however had WMC outside the pre-season top 10.

Next Up

Pope John visits WMC 12/19 for the season’s first dual, followed by 12/20 at High Point, a 12/22 quad at Randolph (including Warren Hills and High Point), and the historic John Goles Tournament 12/28 at Warren Hills. A visit to Mount Olive 12/30 closes out the calendar year. While there’s more wrestling in between, mark your calendars for home matches 1/16/24 for Wolfpack Night vs. Hackettstown (with youth wrestlers competing on an adjacent mat), and 1/31/24 vs. Mendham for Senior Night.

About David Yaskulka

David began living his sportswriter dream to avoid concession duty when his sons Noah and Ben began wrestling for the Wolfpack in 2012. His day job is Senior Vice President Corporate Social Responsibility for Mid America Pet Food, whose family of brands is led by VICTOR Super Premium Pet Food and Nature’s Logic. He also serves as Board Chair of the Pet Sustainability Coalition, and as Board Director at Greater Good Charities.