Saturday,
February 15, 2014
By Rich Barton
NJS.com Staff Writer
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Maurice Marsilla's pin at 138 pounds gave Clifton three key bonus points in its 32-29 win over Hackensack that gave the Mustangs their first state sectional championship since 1986. |
CLIFTON – If there was ever an opportunity for the Clifton wrestling program to end its long wait for a state sectional title, then Saturday was it. With a senior dominated lineup and the stands packed with supporters, and defending champion Hackensack in town, the Mustangs had all the pieces in place to to snap a long streak of disappointing finishes in the state tournament. But with their best wrestler, Jean DuBois, who placed 3rd in the state tournament last year), out of the lineup they would have to find find bonus points elsewhere.
Through the better part of two periods, 138-pounder Maurice Marsilla seemed like an unlikely source for those points as he was down three points to Hackensack's Thomas Yannetti near the end of the second period in an important swing match. A reversal just before the buzzer cut the lead to one and gave Marsilla an extra boost of energy that spilled over into the third period.
Marsilla needed just 12 seconds of the final period to turn Yannetti for the pin that proved to be extra three points third-seeded Clifton needed to win its first section title since 1986 with a 32-29 triumph over No. 5 seed Hackensack, 32-29, at Clifton High School.
“I'm a lot stronger when I'm wrestling on top and I knew I might only have that one opportunity to turn him,” said Marsilla. “I had to take advantage of it.”
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Goran Krasic's major decision at 220 pounds gave Hackensack its last lead of the match at 19-18. |
Clifton got off to a quick start at 132 pounds as Mo Farhan needed just one period to score a technical fall before Marsilla took the mat. For the better part of two periods it was Yannetti who was the aggressor and his takedown midway through the second stanza gave him a 4-1 lead. Marsilla was reeling and needed to make something happen to give him some momentum heading into the final period. The senior was able to gain hand control and slip out of Yannetti's grasp to earn a reversal and slice the lead to 4-3. Starting on top to start the third period, he caught Yannetti spinning to try to escape and turned him to his back for the pin that put the Mustangs ahead 11-0.
“Once I got the reversal and he started on the bottom, I knew I had a chance to get some back points,” added Marsilla. “Those two points helped a lot for me mentally. Once I started on top, I knew he was going to try and escape. When I got him to his back for the pin, it was the best feeling ever. We haven't won a section title in long time and with so many seniors, this is a huge accomplishment.”
Clifton was firmly in control at 18-6 after James Sonzogni scored a hard-fought 4-2 victory over James Lane at 170 pounds. The Comets, who upset top-seeded North Bergen in the section semis, had some fight left in them and won three straight bouts. Danny Lane started it off with a pin at 182, followed by a decision from Elijah Covington at 195 and a major decision from Goran Krasic at 220 as Hackensack took a 19-18 lead.
The Mustangs pulled back ahead for good when Tarek Awad scored a pin in 3:29 over Nick Darragh at heavyweight before 120-pounder Kareem Askew put the icing on the cake and clinched the section crown with a technical fall in the third period to send Clifton to the Group 4 semifinals for the first time since 1986.
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James Sonzogni got Clifton three points with a hard-fought victory at 170. |
“Without (DuBois) in the lineup, we really rose to the challenge to win this match,” said Sonzogni. “I was nervous the entire match because the momentum could change from one match to the next. Every point counts and I didn't want to cost my team any points. All the long days in in the weight room, upstairs in the wrestling room; it's all paid off.”
Clifton (19-2) remarkably won by the exact same 32-29 score in the section semifinals in beating No. 2 seed Morris Knolls. The Mustangs also got victories from Patrick DePasque at 152 and James Murdoch at 106. Hackensack (15-5) earned decisions from Kareem Dixon at 145, Michael Rodriguez at 160, and Connor McVey at 113.
Clifton will head to Toms River on Sunday where they will face perennial state power Phillipsburg. In an odd twist, the last time the Mustangs reached a state final was in that 1986 season where they lost to? Phillipsburg. Once again it will be a very tall task to get past the Stateliners, but with a section title already in hand, the Mustangs will go down to Pine Belt Arena loose and ready to make a statement.
“This was a great win and this is what we've been working towards all season,” said Clifton head coach Dan Geleta. “We got the matchups we wanted and got bonus points where we needed them. The win at 138 was huge and our kids just stepped up today against a really tough team. It's going to be a difficult challenge down in Toms River. But this team will wrestle hard no matter what. When you wrestle hard every match and you believe in yourself, anything can happen.”
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