Jackson Liberty wrestling records dramatic win over Point Pleasant Borough in 10th tiebreaker
By Steven Falk, Asbury Park Press,
2024-02-01POINT PLEASANT - What had been a raucous Point Pleasant Borough High School gymnasium for well over an hour during the Point Pleasant Borough-Jackson Liberty wrestling match under the spotlight fell silent Wednesday night as the buzzer sounded on the final bout of the match at 106 pounds.
The match had ended tied, and no one was sure who had won because the teams were still tied deep into criteria.
About 10 minutes later, after referee Ed Braunsdorf had gone over the scorebooks with Jackson Liberty head coach Gianni Ghione and Point Borough head coach Pat Brady in the Point Borough locker room, the Jackson Liberty wrestlers let out screams of excitement that could probably be heard back in Jackson.
Jackson Liberty had won the Shore Conference Class B South championship outright with a 31-30 win on Criteria J -or the 10th criteria, most near-fall points - 9-3.
"To stand here and wait was very nerve-wracking,'' Jackson Liberty sophomore 126-pounder and returning state qualifier Tucker Pazinko, who recorded a key 4-3 win over two-time state qualifier Frankie Burgio in the third bout of the match, said. "I was shaking the whole time, but we got it done. That's all that matters.''
The bouts were split 7-7. The pins were 3-3. Neither team had any unsportsmanlike point deductions assessed or had a technical fall or major decision.
First points scored, which is how many tied matches end up being decided on, was also tied 13-13. A takedown by sophomore 106-pounder William Huchko with a second left in the first period of his 5-0 win over Michael DeAngelo in the final bout enabled Jackson Liberty to tie that statistic.
"I had no idea,'' Ghione, who is in his first season at Jackson Liberty and second season overall as a head coach, said. "I did the math quickly in my head. I was like, it's going to get deep. I'm not going to figure this out on the sideline. I had like five guys try and figure it out.''
Brady said he and his coaching staff were keeping track of how things were looking with criteria near the end of the match, but he was also not sure.
"We did the math. We had it all, but near falls was a little too tough to do,'' Brady said.
Armani McCann the unsung hero
The near fall points sophmore and returning region fifth-place finisher Armani McCann scored before he pinned West Matta in the second bout of the match at 120 pounds were the difference.
McCann accumulated six back points and built a 16-0 lead before he turned what was looking like a technical fall into a pin.
"I was trying to dig deep and do it for the team,'' McCann said.
McCann also admitted the wait was unbearable
"It was nerve-wracking and I was scared, but I was faithful that we did our jobs,'' McCann said.
Point Borough only had three back points in its three consecutive pins from 144-157 that gave it a 21-18 lead halfway through the match.
"We gave it everything we had,'' Brady said. "We have nothing to be ashamed of.''
What it means
Jackson Liberty (14-4, 7-0) wins its first divisional championship since 2016 and its fourth overall.
Had Point Borough (11-3, 5-2) won, it would have forced a three-way tie among Jackson Liberty, Point Borough and Lacey (14-5, 5-1).
"That was awesome. Our kids wrestled smart,'' Ghione said. "This (Point Borough) is one of the tougher places in the Shore to wrestle at. It's small. It's compact. People are on top of you screaming. To see our guys dig deep and find ways, especially kids who have never been in situations like this before, and come away with wins was awesome.''
But, in reality, neither team lost. Dual-meet wrestling was the big winner.
"Overall, that's a great high school dual,'' Brady said. "It was a great atmosphere. Congratulations to Jackson Liberty and Coach Ghione.''
There were a lot of twists and turns
Point Borough won two of the three marquee bouts.
Two-time state qualifier Joseph DeAngelo (113) opened the match with a 4-1 win over returning state qualifier Anthony Urso in a rematch of DeAngelo's win over Urso in the Shore Conference Tournament final.
The Panthers' Ryan Acquisto (165) defeated Jordan Ayyash 4-3 on a takedown with 13.7 seconds left in a matchup of returning region fifth-place finishers. Jackson Liberty had bumped Ayyash up to 165 and away from Point Borough's talented freshman and SCT champion Jake Clayton at 157.
Pazinko's win over Burgio came on a reversal with 1:16 remaining. He then rode Burgio out the rest of the way.
Point Borough led 27-18 with four bouts left before a pin by senior Ksawery Niewladomy and Poland native in the 190-pound bout began the Lions' final surge. That pin enabled wins by heavyweight Brett Benecke and Hucko to tie the match and set up the criteria drama
"He's (Niewladomy) been everything you can ask for in a kid,'' Ghione said. "He's a phenomenal kid. He's a leader, works hard in the room. He's been awesome.''
Ghione admitted he had no idea how important the first takedown by Huchko, which came off a scramble, was until reporters told him after the match.
"Oh my god,'' Ghione said several times in disbelief about how important that takedown was.
It was that type of night. It was an incredible match.
Jackson Liberty 31, Point Pleasant Borough 30
Jackson Liberty wins on Criteria J - most near fall points 9-3
113: Joseph DeAngelo (PBo) d. Anthony Urso 4-1.
120: Armani McCann (JL) p. West Matta 2:27.
126: Tucker Pazinko (JL) d. Frankie Burgio 4-3.
132: Peter LaBianca (JL) d Jared Drewes 2-0
138: Matt LaBianca (JL) p. Luke Renna 1:15.
144: Brayden Clark (PBo) p. Irshod Nazurdinov 3:10.
150: Braden Pratt (PBo) p. Galsan Bukhaev 1:22.
157 : Jake Clayton (PBo) p. Zachary Gregory :35.
165: Ryan Acquisto (PBo) d. Jordan Ayyash 4-3.
175: James Bradley (PBo) d. Erdne Garyaev 9-4.
190: Ksawery Niewladomy (JL) p. Aiden Wilson 2:48.
215: Tanner Hynes (PBo) d. Mark Agban 4-1.
HWT: Brett Benecke (JL) d. George Walsh 5-2.
106: William Huchko (JL) d. Michael DeAngelo 5-0.
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Jackson Liberty wrestling records dramatic win over Point Pleasant Borough in 10th tiebreaker
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