Rizzuto Win Wraps Epic Wolfpack Wrestling Comeback Over Mendham

2/6/22

by David Yaskulka

(2/1) West Morris Central grappler Sam Rizzuto faced the biggest bout of his life. Win, and secure an epic team comeback to topple rival Mendham – but lose, and the comeback crumbles, concluding a ninth consecutive Wolfpack loss to the Minuteman.

Rizzuto left no room for doubt, dominating 11-1 to cement the Wolfpack 40-37 victory. The sophomore has been excellent all season, with a 14-3 record and only one in-state loss. RankWrestlers ranks him number 69 out of 457 at his weight.

Mendham had taken a 37-18 lead after a huge 4-3 nail biter win from their outstanding 106 pounder Blaise Pasquier. WMC would need to win all four remaining bouts with near-maximum bonus points to prevail.

Then WMC’s trio of intrepid “Michaels” went to work to give their team a chance. Michael Ferrante (113 lbs., 21-7 record) went against 16-8 Rafe Fonte and pinned him in the first period.

Returning state qualifier Michael Campanaro (120, 20-7) followed with his own first period pin against a winning-record wrestler.

And finally Michael Hare (126, 19-7) gave his teammate Rizzuto a chance to be the hero with the Wolfpack’s third consecutive pinfall.

Earlier, Brandon Dean (132, 25-3) and Malachi Shepard (138, 18-7) delivered pins, and Henry Frayne (215, 23-7) a DQ victory to keep WMC alive.

Mendham had won every match between the West Morris rivals since the Shane Metzler-led 2014-15 squad won. That string includes two playoff matches, and one tied match going to Mendham on criteria.

NJSIAA Girls

(2/5) Returning West Morris Central NJSIAA Girls bronze medalist Marisa DiPaolo picked up where she left last season - - as one of the best wrestlers in the state. At Saturday’s Morris Hills Girls Jamboree, DiPaolo pinned two of the three grapplers she faced – one of them in just 18 seconds. Her one loss is to the defending NJSIAA 185 lb. champion, Amanda Pace of North Bergen.

DiPaolo may have an opportunity to avenge that loss at the 2/12 Girls North District playoffs, and if they both advance, at the NJSIAA Girls State Championships 2/20 at Phillipsburgh.

Ranking Site Recognition

Perhaps overdue, but the Full Circle ranking site just selected Ferrante as one of the highest ranking wrestlers in New Jersey at #14, where RankWrestlers also places him. Dean is at #4 and #5 respectively, and Campanaro 19 and 23. Frayne fell out of Full Circle’s rankings, and is #33 at RankWreslters, which also places Shepard (33), Mark Montuore (47), Hare (54), Rizzuto (69) and Muttart (93) in the state’s top quartile.

Team Playoff Preview

On Monday 2/7 the Wolfpack enters the North Jersey Section 2 Group 3 team playoffs as the six- seed versus three-seeded Cranford, at West Essex. Winner will face the Par Hills/West Essex winner.

Cranford has had a terrific season, but the Wolfpack lines up especially well against them. Cranford’s dominant six wrestlers, ranked from #13 to #58, are at 165, 285, 157, 150, 190, and 175 – all weight classes at which WMC is less experienced. Key bouts could be at 215 if Cranford bumps up their 190 pound hammer Shane Kanterman to face Frayne, and at 106 where Jake Zarzecki is ranked #101. Overall, WMC outranks Cranford at eight of 14 weight classes. But with Cranford bonus points possible everywhere else, it remains a very tough match.

WMC vs. West Essex, if both were to advance, would be an even tougher assignment, with West Essex outranking Wolfpack wrestlers at eight weights – though Shepard would be just a slight underdog vs. #21 ranked Mike Pescatore at 138.

NJSIAA District 11 Preview

Based on RankWrestlers as of 2/6, here’s a preview of the weights at which WMC has a contender likely to place in the top-3 to advance to Regions. Note that rankings are different from seeding, and that some wrestlers may - - and likely will - - change weight classes.

At 106, Montuore is solidly ranked third. At 113, Ferrante ranks second, but advancement is clouded by a tough four-man race. Campanaro is the favorite at 120, but that’s also a four-man race.

Hare is solidly ranked third at 126. Dean is a strong favorite at 132 – and his closest-ranked competition is WMC’s own Rizzuto (who could sadly find himself without a weight class). Shepard solidly ranks second at 138.

Muttart ranks third at 144, but it’s a tightly-matched six-man race. Henry DeFrance is a dark horse at 157 – but after the likely top seed, there are no top-100 wrestlers in the class. Frayne is the solid two-seed at 220. At HWT, Shaun Seabeck ranks seventh, but the weight class – known for upsets – lacks even a single top-100 wrestler.

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.