Super Dual Preview: #1 Blair Academy vs. #9 Bergen Catholic

Jan 31, 2014 by Willie Saylor

Super Dual Preview: #1 Blair Academy vs. #9 Bergen Catholic
Corey Haddad, High School Insider

When: Saturday, February 1, 2014 at 6:00 PM EST
Where: Blairstown, New Jersey
Watch: Live on Flo Pro

Line-Ups and Records

#1 Blair Academy, NJ (13-0)
Head Coach: Solomon Fleckman, 1st Season
Weight: Wrestler, Grade, and Current Season Record
106: Zach Sherman, Freshman, 21-14
113: Requir van der Merwe, Sophomore, 23-7
120: Chaz Tucker, Junior, 23-5
126: Matthew Kolodzik, Junior, 22-3
132: Alex Rinaldi, Senior, 12-5
138: Joey McKenna, Senior, 27-0
145: Walker Dempsey, Senior, 15-8/Michael Monica, Junior, 21-2
152: Mason Manville, Sophomore, 27-1
160: Dylan Milonas, Senior, 13-0/Jimmy Stillerman, Sophomore, 14-10
170: Brandon Dallavia, Sophomore, 27-5
182: Nick DiNapoli, Senior, 15-9
195: David Showunmi, Junior, 21-8
220: Neil Putnam, Sophomore, 21-12
285: Will Cooley, Senior, 21-11

Quote From The Corner: “This dual will pit familiar foes against one another. Our kids and many of their kids train together often, particularly during the freestyle and greco seasons. It will be exciting to see how they measure up with one another at this point in the season. In order to have the best outcome we can have, we are going to need for every guy in the line-up to have a great week of practice this week, get plenty of rest and take care of himself off the mats. Then, on match day, we simply need for each wrestler to push himself as close as possible to his limit for the entire six minutes. That is always the goal for every competition.” - Solomon Fleckman

#9 Bergen Catholic, NJ (18-3)
Head Coach: Dave Bell, 16th Season
Weight: Wrestler, Grade, and Current Season Record
106: Evan Quinn, Sophomore, 15-11
113: #2 Nick Suriano, Sophomore, 26-0
120: Tyler Casamenti, Senior, 17-9
126: Pete Lipari, Junior, 23-4
132: JP Ascolese, Senior, 21-6
138: Laurien Anghelina, Junior, 5-1
145: Zach Spira, Senior, 14-11
152: David Brennan, Junior, 11-1/Joe Grello, Sophomore, 19-5
160: Jordan Pagano, Senior, 21-6
170: Kevin Mulligan, Sophomore, 20-7
182: #1 Johnny Sebastian, Senior, 18-1/Danny DeLorenzi, Sophomore, 19-7
195: Connor O’Brien, Junior, 14-5
220: Christian Jenco, Senior, 21-5
285: Joe Cagginao, Junior, 8-9

Quote From The Corner: "It is always an honor to step on the mat with Blair Academy. The team is excited to compete against one of the most storied programs in the country. It is a simple formula for us to be competitive, we have to (wrestle) hard and be in every match." - Dave Bell

Bout Breakdowns

106: Evan Quinn (Bergen Catholic) vs. Zach Sherman (Blair Academy)
- Sherman has been wrestling better as the season has progressed. He stays in matches with quality competition, but has not earned the signature victory most Blair freshman get while in the lineup full-time. He finished 8th at Escape The Rock and Beast of the East. Quinn’s record is indicative of how he has wrestled this season - about average. Sherman has the advantage in this one, though Quinn likely won’t give up any bonus points.
Corey’s Prediction: Zach Sherman (Blair Academy) winner by decision

113: #2 Nick Suriano (Bergen Catholic) vs. Requir van der Merwe (Blair Academy)
- Suriano has dominated his in-season competition winning the Beast majoring #13 Luke Karam of Bethlehem Catholic, PA and doing the same to NJ’s #2 ranked, per The Star-Ledger, Pat D’Arcy in the semifinal. Van der Merwe started off sluggish at Ironman and has shown great improvement featured by wins over #19 Eli Stickley (Graham, OH) and Trent Olson (Wyoming Seminary, PA). Van der Merwe has only been pinned one time this season by #1 Spencer Lee at Ironman. Suriano will earn bonus here for the visiting Crusaders.
Corey’s Prediction: #1 Nick Suriano (Bergen Catholic) winner by major decision

120: Tyler Casamenti (Bergen Catholic) vs. #16 Chaz Tucker (Blair Academy)
- Tucker is peaking at the right time with his title at Escape The Rock beating #5-Scott Parker and #10-Brent Fleetwood. Casamenti is a three-time state qualifier who just hasn’t put all the pieces to the puzzle together since being a Fargo finalist in freestyle the Summer entering his freshman year. Tucker majored Casamenti at the Beast and expect the same result in their second go of the season.
Corey’s Prediction: #16-Chaz Tucker (Blair Academy) winner by major decision

126: Pete Lipari (Bergen Catholic) vs. #6 Matthew Kolodzik (Blair Academy)
- This one should be much closer than some think. Lipari is ranked #6 in the state and split matches with David Bavery (Massillon Perry, OH) at the Beast. The same Bavery who upset Kolodzik during a dual meet in the beginning of the month. Kolodzik looked lights out at Ironman but had been stymied by Bethlehem Catholic’s Zeke Moisey twice this season. Kolodzik will use his exceptional head inside single leg from neutral and solid wrist-ride to have the advantage.
Corey’s Prediction: #6 Matthew Kolodzik (Blair Academy) winner by decision

132: JP Ascolese (Bergen Catholic) vs. Alex Rinaldi (Blair Academy)
- Rinaldi is a University of North Carolina signee who features solid leg attacks that will be the difference in this one. Rianldi rides well with a inside wrist ride and keeps pressuring his opponents forward. Ascolese was a 2013 state qualifier while Rinaldi has a knack for winning close matches and stepping up his performance in crucial matches.
Corey’s Prediction: Alex Rinaldi (Blair Academy) winner by decision

138: Laurien Anghelina (Bergen Catholic) vs. #1 Joey McKenna (Blair Academy)
- McKenna’s opponents have been beaten like rented mules and Joey seems to be in his comfort zone heading into the final weeks of his senior year. Anghelina was a state qualifier last year and has only competed in a handful of matches. McKenna will get the crowd rocking by ending the match before regulation expires.
Corey’s Prediction: #1 Joey McKenna (Blair Academy) winner by fall

145: Zach Spira (Bergen Catholic) vs. Walker Dempsey or Michael Monica (Blair Academy)
- Blair head coach Solomon Fleckman gave his projected lineup with both Dempsey and Monica as options here. It is hard to believe Dempsey, a national prep finalist, would sit out one of his final home meets if healthy. Spira is not a threat to either of the two Blair possibilities. It depends what weight the dual starts and how close the team score is before Blair might need to make a decision. For the fun of it, let’s say Dempsey will be out there and in that case he wins by bonus points.
Corey’s Predicition: Walker Dempsey (Blair Academy) winner by major decision

152: David Brennan or Joe Grello (Bergen Catholic) vs. #8 Mason Manville (Blair Academy)
- Brennan has been subbing for Joe Grello, a super sophomore like Manville, due to an injury. Grello is ranked #4 by The Star-Ledger and if he is out, this dual could really open the floodgates for Blair. Manville is going to stay on the attack for all six minutes and is relentless in all three positions. Bonus is expected by Manville if he faces Brennan, which is the expectation.
Corey’s Prediction: #8 Mason Manville (Blair Academy) winner by technical fall

160: Jordan Pagano (Bergen Catholic) vs. #2 Dylan Milonas or Jimmy Stillerman (Blair Academy)
- Milonas has been sidelined with an upper body injury since the beginning of the 2014 calendar year and there are conflicting reports if he will compete Saturday. Pagano is a high-quality competitor. He was a state qualifier in 2013 and is ranked #6 in the state. Keep in mind, Milonas did pin him at the Beast in December. Blair could play it safe and rest Milonas for National Preps, but that wouldn’t delight the Jersey faithful! Milonas comes back and grinds out a bonus point win.
Corey’s Prediction: #2 Dylan Milonas (Blair Academy) winner by major decision

170: Kevin Mulligan (Bergen Catholic) vs. #19 Brandon Dallavia (Blair Academy)
- Dallavia has been the feel-good story for the Buccaneers this season with terrific Ironman and Beast tournaments. In a battle of sophomores, Dallavia has the slight edge in this one. Mulligan was a state qualifier last year and is currently #5 in the state rankings. Dallavia delivers another Blair win in this bout heading into the weights where Bergen Catholic can make up some ground.
Corey’s Prediction: #19 Brandon Dallavia (Blair Academy) winner by decision

182: #1 Johnny Sebastian or Danny DeLorenzi (Bergen Catholic) vs. Nick DiNapoli (Blair Academy)
- If Bergen Catholic wants to maximize it’s team-points, then they should send out DeLorenzi versus one of the weaker spots in the Blair lineup. DiNapoli is not a fish, but he is not close to the level of Sebastian either. DeLorenzi can get by with a one point victory here and give Bergen Catholic the ability to pit Sebastian on one of Blair’s better upper weight, Showunmi.
Corey’s Prediction: Danny DeLorenzi (Bergen Catholic) winner by decision

195: #1 Johnny Sebastian (Bergen Catholic) vs. David Showunmi (Blair Academy)
- Bergen Catholic head coach Dave Bell listed Connor O’Brien here, but O’Brien is ranked #2 in the state at 285 after he beat Bound Brook’s returning state placer Mike Johnson last weekend at that weight. Having Sebastian at 195 against Showunmi gives the Crusaders potential to earn a bonus point win in this bout. Showunmi has shown flashes of superiority but is still raw and has not developed as well as some had expected.
Corey’s Prediction: #1 Johnny Sebastian (Bergen Catholic) winner by major decision

220: Christian Jenco (Bergen Catholic) vs. Neil Putnam (Blair Academy)
- Jenco is a three-time Fargo All-American, a state qualifier, and ranked #5 in New Jersey. Putnam is only a sophomore and has shown his potential to be very special as he matures, though he hasn’t put it all together yet. He will keep matches close and Jenco has been underwhelming at certain times in his career. Jenco will get a win over Putnam in a hard fought and low-scoring affair.
Corey Predicition: Christian Jenco (Bergen Catholic) winner by decision

285: Connor O’Brien (Bergen Catholic) vs. Will Cooley (Blair Academy)
- As mentioned previously, O’Brien had a terrific win over Mike Johnson from Bound Brook at 285 last weekend. Johnson was a state placer at this weight in 2013. If Bergen Catholic wants to have any chance at keeping this dual score close, they need to get the best matchup’s and sticking O’Brien on Cooley would be advantageous. Cooley has been consistently average in his first year as a full-time starter after sitting behind Brooks Black. O’Brien is quick on his feet and will be undersized so the key will be to stay away from getting underneath Cooley and creating angles on his shots to get behind him. O’Brien wins this one by at least two takedowns.
Corey’s Prediction: Connor O’Brien (Bergen Catholic) winner by decision

Corey’s Final Team Score Prediction:
#1 Blair Academy 35
#9 Bergen Catholic 17
Nine bouts to five in favor of Blair Academy

Make sure to watch this “Super Dual” live on Flo Pro. This is will be a showcase of New Jersey wrestling at it’s finest!