Wrestling: Montville Four Headed to States

Four Montville wrestlers are headed to Atlantic City for the state tournament after competing in the final day of the Region 1 tournament on Saturday at Wallkill Valley Regional High School in Hamburg.

One of those wrestlers, Taylor Bernstein, is now the 215 pound weight class Region 1 champion.

“It’s a great feeling coming out here and finishing. I'll get that first-round bye, which is really important to me," said Bernstein, who was the No. 1 seed in his bracket. "I was torn between this or heavyweight.  I feel like I made the right choice. Ultimately, I’m coming out and going to AC."

Bernstein dominated the final with a 10-2 decision over No. 2 seed Brandon Hull, of Phillipsburg. Holding a slight edge at 4-2 after two periods, Bernstein took over the third, escaping right at the beginning of the period and, after a takedown, earning three more points thanks to multiple stalling calls on Hull.

“At the beginning, he came out aggressive," he said. "Once I started stopping him, he just gave up. He got down and I just kept working.  I got four points worth of stalling calls, one more and they would have stalled him out of the match.”

After the final horn, Bernstein ran off the mat and leapt into the arms of head coach John Krip.

“He told me that if he won the region, he was going to run off the mat and jump, so I was prepared," Krip said. "As soon as I put my arms out he jumped, I realized I wasn’t really ready for that. He’s a great kid…all-around he’s a good worker, a good leader on the team. He wrestled a solid tournament. He seemed in control in all of his matches. I’m glad that he won."

Bernstein is excited for his trip to Atlantic City, and isn't just happy to get there—he's looking to finish among the state's elite.

“It’s great.  I’m looking to place,” Bernstein said. “It’s an indescribable feeling. I can’t explain it. This is my last year ever doing this.  It’s going to be great going out there in front of 10,000 people competing for the top spot.”

Also heading to Atlantic City in stunning fashion is freshman Nick Lizza, who stormed to the 103-pound final as the No. 6 seed.

In the final, Lizza ran into Jan Rosenberg, of Morris Knolls, who went to work right away, picking up three takedowns in the first period, good enough for a 6-2 lead. Working out of the defensive position to start the period, Rosenberg got a reversal and scored a takedown to make it 10-3 after two. Three more takedowns in the third wrapped things up. 

“Nowadays, with the tournaments, everything is based on previous years…placement, advancement,” Krip said. “As a freshman, being able to advance to Atlantic City, it helps him all through high school right now.”

Lizza reached the final by defeating No. 2 seed Joe Cruz of Hopatcong 4-3 in triple overtime.

Also headed with him after winning their consolation matches are 145-pounder Parker Meytrott and 152-pounder Mike Intile.

Meytrott struggled and fought his way to a 7-6 win in quadruple-overtime over No. 6 seed Jake Connelly, of Newton. Controlling the first few minutes of the match, Meytrott struggled to the end of regulation, as Connelly knotted the score at 6.  Three overtimes passed before Meytrott scored an escape four seconds into the fourth overtime.

Meytrott defeated Phillipsburg’s No. 4 seed Joe Moyer 3-1 in the second round of wrestlebacks to reach the consolation match.

“Just keep pushing [was what I was thinking].  I was motivated coming into the tournament to take top three,” said Meytrott, who was the No. 3 seed in his bracket. “It’s been my goal all season to make it to AC.  That’s what was going through my mind—AC.

“It’s been my lifelong goal [to get to states].  I wanted it last year, got to regions and didn’t make it out. This year I was coming in hard to make it out.  It means a lot."

Krip noticed how locked Meytrott was on the mat in the region tournament and expects his competitor to be a force at the state tournament.

“He gets in the zone….he’s going to be a tough kid to beat [come states],” Krip said.

Intile held off No. 4 seed Jacob DiPini, of Pope John, with a 3-1 decision. Intile advanced to the consolation match with a technical fall against No. 7 seed Patrick VanDuyne, of West Milford, by a final of 19-4 at the 4:25 mark.

“Intile wrestled that kid one of his first matches back [from injury],” Krip said. “He wasn’t as quick, the guy got a couple of takedowns on him. He was able to hit him with a throw and put him on his back. He’s been wrestling better. It was nice to see him out there.”

“[Coach Krip] told me this is what I’ve been working for my whole life. ‘Wrestle what you know and what you do and just work hard,’” said Intile, who was the top seed in his bracket.  “[It means] a lot. Especially battling injury and everything.  I’m happy to be in it.”

Just missing a bid to Atlantic City was Mike Polizzi and Ronny Cobilich.

In the 130-pound consolation match, the No. 4-seeded Polizzi fell to top-seed Zak DiPini, of Pope John, by a final count of 13-7.

In the first round of wrestlebacks at the 189-pound weight class, the eighth-seeded Cobilich was pinned just 1:12 into his match against No. 4 seed Lucas Homeijer, of Morris Knolls.

“We had a goal at the beginning of the season team-wise and when it gets to this point, everyone wants to make it down to Atlantic City. It’s a big accomplishment,” Krip said.