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5 North Jersey wrestlers who stood out Day 1 of the NJ state wrestling tournament

sean farrell, northjersey.com
·4 min read

The state wrestling championships returned on Thursday with the first of three days in Atlantic City.

Here are five North Jersey wrestlers who stood out.

Seach Hibler, Leonia/Palisades Park

Some wrestlers could be intimidated to face the top seed in their first trip to Boardwalk Hall.

Not Hibler.

The Lions' sophomore and 16th seed took a business-as-usual approach to beat Camden Catholic favorite Sammy Spaulding, 13-7, in their second round match at 126 pounds.

Seach Hibler, of Leonia / Palisades Park celebrates after beating Sammy Spaulding (not shown), of Camden Catholic, Thursday, February 29, 2024, in Atlantic City. The 126 pound match was part of the first day of the NJSIAA Wrestling State Championships.
Seach Hibler, of Leonia / Palisades Park celebrates after beating Sammy Spaulding (not shown), of Camden Catholic, Thursday, February 29, 2024, in Atlantic City. The 126 pound match was part of the first day of the NJSIAA Wrestling State Championships.

Hibler was one of two male wrestlers to knock off a No. 1 seed, although the other one came by injury default. A takedown and two back points in the opening minute put some wind in Hibler's sails.

"I was probably the most calm I've ever been before a match," said Hibler, who advances to face St. Peter's Prep's Laudan Henry. "It's a new place, but it's just like every other tournament. Nothing to get nervous about. Just do what you do."

This is Hibler's first year as a full-time starter after going 9-3 last year while at Bergen Catholic. Hibler moved to Edgewater over the summer with his senior brother August (144), who will join him in the quarterfinals.

"We're practice partners and we've been practice partners since we were very young," Seach said. "But I'm trying to make a name for myself and not only be August Hibler's younger brother."

Check out the photo gallery, then continue reading.

Noah Kochman, Bergen Catholic

The Duke-bound senior moved one step closer to his first state medal after turning the tables on an old friend.

Kochman punched his ticket to the quarterfinal round at 138 by defeating Lakeland's Ryan Langenmayr, 9-0, and avenging a one-point loss from the Beast of the East.

This time, Kochman took control in the second period when he reversed Langenmayr and scored three near-fall points.

"Coming up short earlier this season was tough," said Kochman, of Ridgewood. "I'm friends with Ryan. I train with him all the time at Scorpions for our club. It's tough wrestling him because he's really good at defense. So I knew coming in it would not be easy. I just tried to keep my composure and know that I have trained so hard."

Kochman complements his training in the Bergen Catholic room with 5 a.m. lifts at Rich Robinson's gym in Ho-Ho-Kus. The routine started at the beginning of his junior year.

"It's what you do when no one is looking," Kochman said. "Now it's showing."

FULL COVERAGE: Complete coverage, results from NJ state wrestling tournament

Connor Scuilla, Hasbrouck Heights

After waiting four years to wrestle on the biggest stage, Scuilla made the most of his debut in Atlantic City.

The 175-pounder scored a technical fall in the opening round, then pinned Emerson/Park Ridge's Jacob Shannon in 59 seconds.

Scuilla, the No. 5 seed, is a Buffalo commit and the son of Hasbrouck Heights AD and former wrestling coach Mike Scuilla.

"I was a bit star-struck with all the people here," Scuilla said. "The atmosphere is crazy. But that's what I worked to do – to wrestle on the biggest stage possible."

This year, Scuilla has been on a meteoric rise. He is 41-3 as a senior after losing both his region matches last winter.

"I just let my losses fuel me," Scuilla said. "My failures last year made me work harder this year and get to where I want to be."

Ethan Mendel, Northern Highlands

Mendel advanced to the quarterfinals and clinched his 100th career win all in one shot.

The 215-pound senior pinned Delsea's Alex Grippo in 3:42, then unfurled a new banner with his coaches by his side.

For Mendel, the milestone watch started back in September.

"We were looking at it and saw I needed 37 more wins," Mendel said. "We knew we had to get it in AC. There was no way we would get it before then. It's the greatest city on earth. No other place I would rather get it, baby."

The 12th-seeded Mendel draws No. 4 Nathan Faxon (Governor Livingston) on Friday.

Paige Kirk, Ramsey

Paige Kirk, of Ramsey, celebrates her 114 pound match victory, Thursday, February 29, 2024, in Atlantic City.
Paige Kirk, of Ramsey, celebrates her 114 pound match victory, Thursday, February 29, 2024, in Atlantic City.

The Rams' senior came to Atlantic City with a little extra motivation after dropping down to the eight seed in the bracket. She used it to pull off a major upset in the girls quarterfinals at 114.

Kirk landed the biggest win of her career by pinning returning state champion Paige Weiss (Sparta) in 5:34. It was her first win over Weiss after losing the previous three meetings, including an 8-2 decision in last week's region finals.

The match was tied at three late in the third period when Kirk turned Weiss to her back for the fall.

"I was upset about (the seeding) definitely," said Kirk, who placed eighth at the state championships last year. "I thought I would see her later on, but seeing her this early I knew I had to beat her to get where I wanted to be. So I just put my energy towards that and worked on things this week that I knew I needed to do against her. She shot low. We worked on defense from that."

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: NJ wrestling: 5 wrestlers who stood out Day 1 of state tournament