After losing by a single point in the NJSIAA Non-Public B North sectional finale to DePaul Catholic last week, Queen of Peace head coach Scot Weaver said that his team was looking for some redemption.
The Golden Griffins got that redemption Saturday, when they took home the District 11 team championship by four points over state-ranked and once nationally-ranked Hanover Park.
It’s the same Hanover Park team that defeated the Golden Griffins in a dual match earlier this season.
“It was rewarding for the coaches, the parents and the kids,” Weaver said. “We felt like we had a long dark cloud over us. It was very gratifying to beat a Hanover Park team that beat us. We told our kids to control the controlables and don’t look at the rankings or the records or anything.”
The Golden Griffins had six wrestlers earn District 11 gold medals. They are: Enrique Sanchez (113 pounds), Matt Armamento (120 pounds), Ray Wetzel (132 pounds), Garrett Beam (145 pounds), Dominic Mainiero (182 pounds) and 220-pounds Keyon Means-Bowman, whose win came as a bit of a surprise.
Freshman Will Grater (106 pounds) and sophomore Jacob Cardenas (170 pounds) were runners-up, meaning they also move on to the Region 3 tournament this weekend.
And Michael Pillot (160 pounds) defeated Justin Baeza of Kearny, 3-1, to earn a berth in the Region tourney. Jean Carlo San Juan (138 pounds) and Jason Kopich (heavyweight) also won their consolation bouts to move on to the regions.
The display of strength enabled the Golden Griffins to defeat Hanover Park, 228 to 224.
“Sanchez won in dominating fashion,” Weaver said of the North Arlington native. “He’s looking real good.”
Sanchez won by an 11-5 decision over Domenic DiFrancescantonio, the third time Sanchez has defeated the talented Hanover Park lightweight this season.
Armamento won his second straight district crown with a pin over Michael Rubin of Hanover Park in 1:52.
At a 132 pounds, QP’s Ray Wetzel won a thrilling 4-3 decision over Lou Raimo of Hanover Park with a last second takedown.
At 145, Garrett Beam, one of the QP stalwarts for the last three seasons, won the district crown by defeating Justin LeMay of West Morris by a 5-0 score.
At 182, Dominic Mainiero, the Nutley native, continued his quest to become a state champion with a dominant technical fall win over Lukasz Glazewski of Kearny, 17-1 in 2:51.
“It was a bit of a disappointment when we lost to DePaul,” Mainiero said. “But we made up for it at the districts. They (Hanover Park) beat us in the season and we beat them now. We beat a nationally ranked team and that’s always a positive.”
Mainiero was asked to describe his performance.
“My coach told me to go out and wrestle and that’s what I did,” Mainiero said. “He wanted me to be successful.”
“He looked real good to me,” Weaver said of Mainiero. “He beat a very tough wrestler from Kearny.”
At 220, Means-Bowman pulled off the surprise, winning 3-2 over Daniel Jimenez of Hanover Park, essentially clinching the team title for the Golden Griffins.
“He was unbelievable,” Weaver said of Means-Bowman. “Keyon put together a tournament to remember. He looked like a wrestler instead of a football player. It was crazy.”
All in all, it was an incredible team effort by the Golden Griffins.
“After we lost to DePaul, we all got together for a steak dinner and put it behind us,” Weaver said. “And now we beat Hanover Park. It was a big-time performance for our kids. It was a great way to finish the season with style.”
Others moving on from District 11 include Brad Murillo of Belleville, who finished third at 145 pounds with a win over Marco Zecca of Hanover Park.
At District 9 held at historic Phillipsburg, Matt Daub of Lyndhurst/North Arlington secured a gold medal at 120 pounds, defeated Tyris Mantley of Phillpsburg, 8-4, in the title bout.
Teammates Derin Stitzer (145) and Victor Jorge (160) punched their ticket to the Region tourney with wins in their respective consolation bouts.
At District 10 held at Nutley, the Maroon Raiders finished third behind Delbarton and West Orange, but coach Mike DiPiano was still voted Coach of the Year by his peers.
Aaron Dunn won District 10 gold at 145 pounds with a 2-1 decision over A.J. Lonski of Delbarton. Nutley teammate Joseph DiPasquale was second at 152 pounds.
CAPTION
The Queen of Peace Golden Griffins dominated the District11 with Enrique Sanchez (left) and Garrett Beam (right) capturing district gold medals last weekend. Photos by Jim Hague
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Jim Hague | Observer Sports Writer
Sports Writer Jim Hague was with The Observer for 20+ years — and his name is one of the most recognizable in all of sports journalism. The St. Peter’s Prep and Marquette alum kicked off his journalism career post Marquette at the Daily Record, where he remained until 1985. Following shorts stints at two other newspapers, in September 1986, he joined the now-closed Hudson Dispatch, where he remained until 1991, when its doors were finally shut.
It was during his tenure at The Dispatch that Hague’s name and reputation as one of country’s hardest-working sports reporters grew. He won several New Jersey Press Association and North Jersey Press Club Awards in that timeframe.
In 1991, he became a columnist for The Hudson Reporter chain of newspapers — and he remains with them to this day.
In addition to his work at The Observer and The Hudson Reporter, Hague is also an Associated Press stringer, where he covers Seton Hall University men’s basketball, New York Red Bulls soccer and occasionally, New Jersey Devils hockey.
He’s also doing work at The Morristown Daily Record, the very newspaper where his journalism career began.
During his career, he also worked for Dorf Feature Services, which provided material for the Star-Ledger. While there, he covered the New York Knicks and the New Jersey Nets.
Hague is also known for his announcing work — and he’s done PA work for Rutgers Newark and NJIT.
Hague is the author of the book “Braddock: The Rise of the Cinderella Man.”