Roselle Park wrestlers capture North 2, Group 1 sectional title, to tangle with Paulsboro Sunday morning at the Ritacco Center in the Group 1 semifinals

By JR Parachini
Union County Sports Editor

ROSELLE PARK - When you're going to wrestle Paulsboro in the Group 1 semifinals you're going to need every bit of momentum you can muster.
That's what top-seeded Roselle Park was seeking when it tangled with second-seeded Madison Saturday afternoon in the North 2, Group 1 championship match at T. Ralph Williams Gymnasium.
After Madison tied the match at 9-9 with a pin, Roselle Park was able to accomplish what it set out to do the rest of the way, dominating the visiting Dodgers en route to a commanding 51-19 triumph. The Panthers won 10 of the 14 bouts - including eight of the final 10 - and recorded six falls, with three of them coming under a minute.
Now the Panthers will get a bit of rest before heading south to the Ritacco Center in Toms River to face South Jersey champion and defending Group 1 champ Paulsboro Sunday morning at 10 in a Group 1 semifinal. The other semifinal pits repeat North 1 champion Newton vs. Central Jersey champion Robbinsville.
The Group 1 championship match will take place later Sunday at Ritacco.
Roselle Park lost to Newton 30-29 in last year's Group 1 semifinals and fell just short of facing Paulsboro in the final.
"We worked hard all year and this is just one of our goals to getting the Group 1 state championship," said Roselle Park 160-pound senior Dennis Carroll, who defeated Madison's Anthony Costa 6-3 for his 100th career victory.
That milestone by Carroll came in a milestone victory for Roselle Park, which improved to 21-2 and set the school record for wins in a season, breaking the 20-2 mark established in 2008. The Panthers first won 19 matches in 1998 and again in 2009.
Since the present format of group semifinals and finals was put in place for the 1981-1982 season after the sectionals began in 1979-1980, Paulsboro has won 26 of the 28 Group 1 titles, including last year's crown.
"I just feel like we're rolling now," Carroll said. "We're coming through with everything we've got tomorrow."
Roselle Park captured the first Group 1 title in 1982 before Paulsboro won 25 in a row from 1983-2007, including one shared with Roselle Park in 1997. Kittattiny defeated Collingswood in the 2008 Group 1 final after Collingswood - not Paulsboro - captured the South Jersey sectional title that season.
Paulsboro came back to win last year's Group 1 final for the 26th time, defeating Newton in the final.
Roselle Park appeared in its 15th straight sectional final and captured North 2, Group 1 for the first time since the last year it was in the section in 2003. In the past six seasons in Central Jersey, Group 1, Roselle Park reached the final all six years, going 3-3 in those title bouts.
The Panthers have now won 19 sectional championships - 16 in North 2, Group 1 and three in Central Jersey, Group 1.
This year's squad has lost only at home to North 2, Group 2 champion Brearley 30-25 on Jan. 13 and at Ocean Township 36-29 on Jan. 19.
"Our team chemistry this year is probably one of the best out of any team I've wrestled on for four years," said Carroll, who is considering Rutgers, Drexel and Northeastern. Carroll wrestled at 135 as a freshman, 145 as a sophomore and 152 as a junior and has been accepted at Drexel according to Roselle Park head coach John Ranieri.
Roselle Park last wrestled Paulsboro on Feb. 19, 2004 in a Group 1 semifinal at the Sovereign Bank Arena in Trenton. Paulsboro won the match 47-18.
"Last year left a bad taste in our mouth," Carroll said, referring to the one-point loss to Newton. "I'm glad to wrestle Paulsboro first. We'll get the hardest match done with. I don't even know how excited we're going to be tomorrow, we're just going to be going crazy."
Winning by pin in under a minute for Roselle Park were senior Russell Benner over Ryan Colwell in 49 seconds at 152, John Devito over John Costa in 46 seconds at 103 and junior Dan Pisauro over Max Gotsch in 36 seconds at 125.
Benner, who captured his 100th win in a regular season triumph at home over Scotch Plains on Feb. 3, also favors facing Paulsboro right off the bat.
"I would rather wrestle them first instead of coming off a tough match and seeing them in the finals and getting everybody worked up," Benner said. "Everyone is going to get hyped up. They're the No. 6 team in the state.
"Last year we had Newton on the ropes, they were No. 10, we went out there unranked and lost to them in a close one. We're bringing Paulsboro everything we've got tomorrow."
Benner attributed Roselle Park's prolific off-season program and challenging regular season schedule as keys to Roselle Park's continued success.
"When we wrestled Brearley nobody gave us a shot and said we were going to get blown out again like last year when we lost 61-9," Benner said. "One close one with (Nick) Longo could have turned the whole match around.
"Everyone says if we bring our "A" game like we did against Brearley, Paulsboro is in for a rude awakening."
Benner, who wrestled at 130 as a freshman and sophomore and at 140 last year, has been accepted to Penn State, but still has not decided yet whether he wants to wrestle in college.
"A lot will depend on how I do in Atlantic City (in next month's NJSIAA Tournament)," Benner said. "A couple of colleges are looking at me now - Lock Haven, Elizabethtown and Rider.
"I'm not sure if I'm wrestling in college yet. What I do in Atlantic City is really going to be my basis of whether or not I'm wrestling in college.
"With Penn State, if I go there I might try to walk on and try do something. If I don't end up wrestling I will probably go to Penn State or Rutgers for the academics. I have a sister who is a cheerleader at Rutgers and a captain and she is trying to get me to go there. I may want to go away to get a little different look."
Roselle Park easily defeated fifth-seeded Boonton 49-15 Thursday night at home in the sectional semifinals, dominating two Morris County foes to capture another sectional crown.
"This team has been together for awhile now," Ranieri said. "Some of them have wrestled as freshmen and the bulk of them as sophomores.
"They've been around awhile, so there's some strong leadership - as there has been in the past."
This will be the third straight year that Roselle Park will be wrestling in the Group 1 semifinals and the third time the Panthers will be doing so at the Ritacco Center. The Panthers lost to Collingswood 39-25 in the 2008 Group 1 semifinals.
Roselle Park last reached the Group 1 final in 2003 when it was defeated by Paulsboro 47-17 after beating North 1 champion Emerson 54-25 in a semifinal.
"Anytime you get down there, there's nowhere to go," Ranieri said. "We're looking forward to going down there and seeing what we're made of."


SATURDAY'S GROUP 1 SECTIONAL CHAMPIONS:

North 1 - Newton 36, Kittatinny 28 - at Newton

North 2 - Roselle Park 51, Madison 19 - at Roselle Park

Central Jersey - Robbinsville 32, New Egypt 22 - at Robbinsville

South Jersey - Paulsboro 51, Haddonfield 12 - at Paulsboro

THE STATE CHAMPIONS WILL BE DETERMINED SUNDAY AT THE RITACCO CENTER.


NORTH 2, GROUP 1 CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH AT ROSELLE PARK:

145: Christian Mazzocchi, Madison, dec. Rich Weslock, Roselle Park, 10-9.
Madison leads 3-0.

152: Russell Benner, Roselle Park, pinned Ryan Colwell, Madison, :49.
Roselle Park leads 6-3.

160: Dennis Carroll, Roselle Park, dec. Anthony Costa, Madison, 6-3.
Roselle Park leads 9-3.

171: Jack Anzel, Madison, pinned Vic Pozsonyi, Roselle Park, 5:10.
Only time match is tied at 9-9.

189: Conor Gabriel, Roselle Park, pinned Ed Carr, Madison, 3:26.
Roselle Park takes the lead for good at 15-9.

215: Frank Yuro, Roselle Park, pinned Tom Tracy, Madison, 1:42.
Roselle Park leads 21-9.

HWT: Mike Boardman, Madison, pinned Louis Medina, Roselle Park, 2:25.
Roselle Park leads 21-15.

103: John Devito, Roselle Park, pinned John Costa, Madison, :46.
Roselle Park leads 27-15.

112: Patsy Davis, Madison, dec. Giovanni Ramirez, Roselle Park, 13-3.
Roselle Park leads 27-19.

119: Brendan Leary, Roselle Park, dec. Colin Gooby, Madison, 11-1.
Roselle Park leads 31-19.

125: Dan Pisauro, Roselle Park, pinned Max Gotsch, Madison, :36.
Roselle Park leads 37-19.

130: Nick Longo, Roselle Park, dec. Peter Willis, Madison, 15-0 (TF 6:00).
Roselle Park leads 42-19 and has clinched the victory.

135: Jon Acosta, Roselle Park, dec. Eamon Epstein, Madison, 6-3.
Roselle Park leads 45-19.

140: Matt Krynicki, Roselle Park, pinned John McAuliffe, Madison, 1:16.
Roselle Park wins 51-19, capturing 10 of the 14 matches and six by fall,
with three of them under a minute.

TEAM RECORDS: Madison (16-4). Roselle Park (21-2).


ROSELLE PARK HAS REACHED 15 CONSECUTIVE SECTIONAL FINALS

THE EXCELLENCE CONTINUES

HERE'S A LOOK:

Feb. 13, 2010: North 2, Group 1 - Roselle Park 51, Madison 19 - at Roselle Park
Panthers are 21-2 and have set the school record for wins in a season.
They will wrestle South Jersey champion Paulsboro in Sunday's Group 1 semifinals
at the Ritacco Center at Toms River North High School in Toms River.

Feb. 13, 2009: Central Jersey, Group 1 - Roselle Park 50, Robbinsville 18 - at Roselle Park
Panthers finished 19-4 after falling to North 1 champion Newton 30-29 in Group 1 semifinals.

Feb. 15, 2008: Central Jersey, Group 1 - Roselle Park 36, Delran 27 - at Roselle Park
Panthers finished 20-2 after falling to South Jersey champion Collingswood 39-25 in Group 1 semifinals.

Feb. 8, 2007: Central Jersey, Group 1 - Brearley 46, Roselle Park 10 - at Brearley
Panthers finished 16-5.

Feb. 16, 2006: Central Jersey, Group 1 - Brearley 39, Roselle Park 20 - at Brearley
Panthers finished 15-3.

Feb. 17, 2005: Central Jersey, Group 1 - New Providence 37, Roselle Park 28 - at New Providence
Panthers finished 12-2.

Feb. 19, 2004: Central Jersey, Group 1 - Roselle Park 33, Bound Brook 30 - at Manville
Panthers finished 13-4 after falling to South Jersey champion Paulsboro 47-18 in Group 1 semifinals
at the Sovereign Bank Arena in Trenton.

Feb. 21, 2003: North 2, Group 1 - Roselle Park 42, Boonton 22 - at Roselle Park
Panthers finished 17-1 after beating North 1 champion Emerson 54-25 in Group 1 semifinals
and then falling to South Jersey champion Paulsboro 47-17 in Group 1 final.

Feb. 14, 2002: North 2, Group 1 - Roselle Park 40, Boonton 21 - at Roselle Park
Panthers finished 17-2 after beating North 1 champion Westwood 58-16 in Group 1 semifinals
and then falling to South Jersey champion Paulsboro 48-13 in Group 1 final
at the Sovereign Bank Arena in Trenton. The other loss was at Scotch Plains 39-28 on Dec. 19.

Feb. 15, 2001: North 2, Group 1 - Belvidere 29, Roselle Park 27 - at Roselle Park
Panthers finished 16-1-1, with the tie at Cranford 33-33 on Jan. 26.

Feb. 17, 2000: North 2, Group 1 - Belvidere 34, Roselle Park 27 - at Belvidere
Panthers finished 16-2, with their other loss at home to Bound Brook 34-31 on Feb. 2.

Feb. 18, 1999: North 2, Group 1 - Belvidere 36, Roselle Park 21 - at Roselle Park
Panthers finished 14-2, with their other loss at Bound Brook 36-29 on Feb. 3.

Feb. 19, 1998: North 2, Group 1 - Roselle Park 35, Belvidere 30 - at Belvidere
Panthers finished 19-1 after beating Central Jersey champion Bound Brook 38-34 at home in Group 1 semifinals
and then falling to South Jersey champion Paulsboro 42-16 at home in the Group 1 final.

Feb. 20, 1997: North 2, Group 1 - Roselle Park 31, Belvidere 31 - at Belvidere
Roselle Park won on criteria of winning eight of the 14 matches.
Panthers finished 18-0-1 after beating Central Jersey champion South River 37-34 at Cresskill in Group 1 semifinals
and then tying Paulsboro 33-33 - each team won seven bouts - at Cresskill in Group 1 final, with Roselle Park
and Paulsboro sharing the Group 1 state championship.
Roselle Park won the first Group 1 state title - under the present format - in 1982, with Paulsboro winning outright from 1983-1996, tying Roselle Park for 1997 honors, winning outright again from 1998-2007 and winning again in 2009. Kittatinny won in 2008.

Feb. 15, 1996: North 2, Group 2 - Jefferson 34, Roselle Park 30 - at Jefferson
Panthers finished 17-1 and Jefferson won its sixth straight title.

THIS IS THE LAST YEAR ROSELLE PARK DID NOT REACH A SECTIONAL FINAL:

Feb. 16, 1995: North 2, Group 1 semifinals - Belvidere 51, Roselle Park 21 - at Belvidere
Roselle Park finished 11-5. Pequannock won at Belvidere 39-27 in the final.

ROSELLE PARK'S BEST 4-YEAR STRETCH - RECORD-WISE (68-4-1):
1995-1996: (17-1), reached North 2, Group 2 final.
1996-1997: (18-0-1), won N2, G1 and shared Group 1 state title with Paulsboro 33-33 at Cresskill.
1997-1998: (19-1), won N2, G1 and reached Group 1 final, setting school record for wins in a season.
1998-1999: (14-2), reached North 2, Group 2 final.
Accomplishments:
2 sectional titles: 1997, 1998.
3 conference (MVC-Valley Division) titles: 1996, 1997, 1998.
3 Union County Tournament titles: 1997, 1998, 1999.
4 District 10 titles: 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999.
4 Westfield Tournament titles: 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999.
Only one regular season loss: at Bound Brook 36-29 on Feb. 3, 1999.
These were the four years that present Roselle Park assistant coach Craig Frost wrestled at RP.