Clagon Suffers First Loss in State Final

Toms River High School South sophomore B.J. Clagon was perfect — unbeaten through the regular season, the district and regional tournaments.  Not only had he won every match, no opponent had taken him down to the mat.

So it was no surprise that as he entered the 130-pound weight class this weekend at the NJSIAA state finals at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, that Clagon seemed glide through the brackets to the final match.

He had already beaten Ron Hoover of Haddon Township,  9-2. He got past Julian Quintero of North Bergen, 8-5, in the second round. He even upset top seeded Charlie Huff of  Washington Township with a 2-1 tie-breaking victory.

Unfortunately for Clagon, his perfect record was not meant to last as he took on Anthony Perrotti of West Essex in the finals. Clagon's 36-0 record matched up well with Perrotti's 37-0 record. But with one shot with 40 seconds to go in the first period, he found himself in the unusual position of being taken down, and trailing in a match.

When he was called for a locking hands violation in the second period,  the match started to really slip away from him.  By the time the 4-2 loss was over, Clagon was already thinking about next year, and the year after.

"I've got two more years for this. I've just got to work hard," he said. "I've got to improve my wrestling and I have to work harder than I did this year. Ten times harder to become state champion." 

Clagon eloquently described the obstacles the loss placed in front of him as a "brick wall," and said, "You've got to jump over that brick wall. Just hop over it and wrestle 10 times better than you did."

After collecting his runner-up medal, it was obvious that while Clagon was disappointed, he knew he had a good support system to get him through this rough patch.

"I've still got fans to support me, the coaches support me still even though I have a big loss. I've just got to keep wrestling my way and not let this get over me and become a state champion next year,"  Clagon said.

It was the fans in the stands that had made the trip from Ocean County that Clagon seemed to really enjoy most about the experience. As the last member of the South squad standing, Clagon said he only wished he could have given them a winning show.

"It feels great to be here wrestling for my school," he said. "To lose in front of them I feel I disappointed them, but I know they'll be there for me to support me next year."

Toms River South coach Ron Laycook said he knows Clagon was disappointed, but also knows this is not the end for him either.

 "It's his dream to win a state title. He talks about it all the time," Laycook said.  "It's unfortunate that it happened, but he has two years left."

If nothing else, the coach said Clagon feeling what it is like to lose in the finals could end up serving him well in the future.

"I said to him after the match you have to remember what this feels like," Laycook said.  "So next year when you get this, or all year long you train to win this thing because you don't want to feel like this."

The feeling of losing may not be a good one for Clagon, but it likely cannot erase all the good he has enjoyed during a remarkable season.