Wolfpack Wrestlers Topple No. 17 Hanover Park in Huge 35-29 Upset

By David Yaskulka
Photography by Susan Hill, Mollissa LeMay, Margaret Stefanelli and JoAnn Vazquez.

An unranked West Morris Central wrestling squad left the Hanover Park Hornet’s nest Saturday (1/12/19) with one of the greatest wins in school history. The Wolfpack beat Morris County’s top ranked public school team and no. 17 in the state (Wrestling Full Circle), 35-29.

Deadlocked 29-29 with two bouts remaining, WMC junior Kevin Ramos (285, 8-8, ranked no. 137 out of 400+ wrestlers by RankWrestlers.com) took care of business, winning 4-3.

It all came down to a freshman in the final bout pitting evenly matched top-100 wrestlers. Before Ramos, Hanover had just won their third of three “coin toss” bouts with a devastating Anthony Salvemini pin; more bonus points would mean a victory for the heavily favored hometown Hornets.

“Michael Ferrante (106, 10-8, ranked 98) secured the win in heroic fashion,” explained Coach Ken Rossi, “by erasing a 4-0 deficit at the end of the second period and getting a late reversal in the third period for an 8-7 win.” Ferrante’s won five of six.

“In a close match like this every guy makes a difference,” the coach continued. “Having reserves and starters that can wrestle multiple weights allows us to maneuver the line-up so we can get the best match-ups. Eli Shepard (132, 11-6, no. 45), Justin LeMay (152, 14-3, no. 14), and Jack Lyden (170, 5-4, no. 112) secured key pins.

“Lyden was able to get a pin at 182 so we could move up Luke Stefanelli (182, 10-3, no. 38) to 195 to get a major decision. Malachi Shepard (113, 8-10, no. 101) and Kevin Ramos both won decisions in key match ups to swing the dual meet our way,” said Rossi.

Lyden said the pin was, “ecstatic for me personally and it was a great feeling in ultimately helping the team win the match overall, which is my goal every time I step on the mat.”

“I planned to be on the offensive. After taking him down in the first, I went to my cross face cradle, locked it up, and brought my opponent to his back,” said the senior.

LeMay, who has won eight in a row (and has only one loss in-state) pointed to “Ferrante coming in clutch at the end” and “Colin Loughney (145, 11-6, no. 38) giving DeFran a run (losing 8-5 to state qualifier Domenic Difrancescantonio)” as keys to the victory.

John DeVito (160, 14-4, no. 15) added a major victory.

HP hammer Nick Raimo, ranked no. 1 in the state, did not wrestle. Eli Shepard won his fourth in a row by pinning Raimo’s understudy, a possible swing of nine or more points.

With a history of bad blood with Hanover Park – including biting, shoving into bleachers, punches, major forfeits, accusations of dirty play and more -- the upset was especially sweet for the Wolfack, which rises to 6-4 on the season.

Pack Tops Voorhees 43-26 Behind Stefanelli and 5 Pins

The always-tough Voorhees had WMC on its heels, leading 26-21 with five bouts remaining. But the Pack won them all for the 43-26 victory.

Eli Shepard started the streak with a win, followed by a big swing bout Matt Borgia (138, 9-10, no. 140) victory for the Wolfpack lead. Loughney dominated 10-0, LeMay followed with a quick pin, and AJ Hill (170, 10-10, no. 88) finished the scoring by pinning a tough fellow senior in under a minute.

WMC started with a 15-0 lead behind a quick DeVito pin, and then Stefanelli topped no. 40 Matt Brandner 3-1 in perhaps the biggest bout of the match. Brian Cherifi (195, 6-7, no. 89) nailed a key swing bout pin, and Malachi Shepard also delivered a Pack pinfall.

No. 5 Delbarton Tops WMC 50-18 Despite LeMay, Ferrante, Shepard and Bohr

The Pack fell to state powerhouse Delbarton on Wolfpack Night 1/8, despite some big bonus point wins over the no. 5 ranked team in NJ. LeMay impressively dismantled no. 34 fellow state qualifier Dante Stefanelli 13-4. Ferrante upset no. 72 Thomas Fischer 16-8 in perhaps his biggest career win to date. Eli Shepard dominated no. 59 Jack Napeloni 10-0, and Robbie Bohr (120, 8-7, no. 87) delivered the Pack’s only pin in an impressive 22 seconds. Delbarton’s stacked lineup of five top-10 ranked wrestlers – including state champ Anthony Clark and bronze winner Nick Nardone -- plus four more in the top-50, dominated.

Next Up

WMC hosts no. 7 Pope John 1/16 for Senior Night, and then a 1/19 Saturday quad with Delaware Valley, Kittatinny (no. 4 in Group I) and Westfield. Pin Cancer night is Tuesday 1/22 at Mendham. The Morris County Tournament is 1/25-26 at Mt. Olive, followed by matches at Sparta 1/30 and High Point 2/1. The road to Atlantic City begins 2/16 at the District 12 Tournament.