Home News Tribune 2023-24 All-GMC wrestling selections

With another fun wrestling season completed, here are the Home News Tribune's All-Greater Middlesex Conference 2023-24 selections.

Wrestlers are slotted based on weights at which they competed in the postseason, meaning the start of the district tournament.

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The first criteria are earning a medal (Top 8) and reaching the fourth consolation round (Top 12) in the state tournament. Then, other factors are weighed such as postseason advancement, quality wins and head-to-head matches with each weight decided on a case-by-case basis after evaluating the whole body of work.

FIRST TEAM

106 – Gavin Young, Old Bridge, Fr.

20-9, 1st GMCT, 3rd District 20

Young cracked the Knights lineup in his rookie season, gaining experience at 113 early on. He dropped to 106 and captured the Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament title with a pin and three impressive decisions. Young finished third in the district but missed the Region 5 tournamentwith a concussion.

113 – Logan Roman, Old Bridge, Sr.

20-0, 1st District 20, 1st Region 5

How’s this for a mark of achievement – Roman’s image adorned the front of a T-shirt the team gave out on alumni and youth night. He certainly leaves his mark on the Old Bridge program as one of the best wrestlers to wear the purple and black. He captured the Knights’ first state championship when he won at 113 in a memorable run last season. The Kutztown University-commit had a tough year on the mat after battling early injuries, then returned to win district and region titles. However, he missed the state tournament with a medical issue.

120 – Jake Gujski, East Brunswick, So.

31-8, 1st GMCT, 3rd District 20, 5th Region 5

Gujski topped the GMCT podium with a 4-0 run that included a major decision win in the final. He now has cranked out 60 wins in his first two seasons for the Bears and reached two region tournaments. Gujski also advanced to the EB Bear Invitational final.

126 – Zachary Beadling, St. Joseph, Jr.

25-6, 1st District 15, 1st Region 4, SWB2

Beadling started the season strong by winning the Marinelli-Egg Harbor Tournament championship in late December. A foot injury slowed him down and he missed the GMCT. However, Beadling took a week off and came back healthy and dangerous for the postseason. He captured his second district title and then earned a region gold medal a week later.

132 – Jahir Aguilar, St. Thomas Aquinas, Jr.

24-5, 1st GMCT, 1st District 8, 2nd Region 2, SWB2

Aguilar missed matches with an injury but returned in time to capture the GMCT title after reaching the final for the second-straight season. He also won a district gold medal and took second in the region, falling to state champion Adrian DeJesus.

138 – Morgan Schwarz, St. Joseph, So.

21-6, 2nd GMCT, 1st District 15, 2nd Region 4, State Top 12

Schwarz didn’t start the season until Jan. 13 off injury but heated up for the postseason. He earned his second district title and took three-time state placewinner Dylan Ross to UTB in a region final loss. Schwarz went 3-2 in the state tournament and reached the blood round to finish in the state’s top 12.

144 – Brian Butler Jr., Piscataway, Sr.

38-4, 1st GMCT, 1st District 18, 5th Region 5

Butler’s a high jump star, but he’s also a pretty good wrestler, too. Butler captured the GMCT title with a stirring 10-7 win to please the home fans. He then earned his second district championship and placed fifth in the region. Butler, headed to Rutgers to compete in track and field, has back-to-back 30-win seasons.

150 – Sean Love, Piscataway, So.

33-7, 1st GMCT, 1st District 18, 4th Region 5

Love produced one of those all-time highlight film clips in the GMCT final. Down in the final 10 seconds, he came up with a stunning lateral drop to pull out the 6-2 win. Coaches voted Love as the GMCT Upper Weights Outstanding Wrestler. He also won a district title and qualified for the state tournament after going 13-9 as a freshman.

157 – Tyler Whitford, St. Joseph, So.

40-5, 1st GMCT, 1st District 15, 3rd Region 4, SWB2

Whitford cranked out 40 wins in his sophomore season while claiming his first GMCT title and picking up his second district title. He also earned a Marinelli-Egg Harbor Tournament gold medal while being a steady force in the middle for the state-ranked Falcons.

165 – Andrew Bouchard, St. Joseph, Jr.

23-7, 1st GMCT, 1st District 15, 6th Region 4

Bouchard scored an exciting pin to win the GMCT championship and also claimed gold at the district and Marinelli-Egg Harbor tournaments. He placed sixth in a difficult weight at Region 4 and helped the Falcons repeat as Red Division champions.

175 – Michael Feliciano, Colonia, Sr

41-3, 1st GMCT, 1st District 15, 3rd Region 4, State Top 12

Feliciano put together a fantastic season and entered the region tournament undefeated. Along the way, he won GMCT, district, Ricky I Memorial and Rahway Holiday Tournament gold medals. He placed third in the region and finished in the top 12 in the state. Feliciano’s only losses were against three wrestlers who placed in the state’s Top 5. He finished with a 111-16 career record.

190 – Nazareth Pina, St. Thomas Aquinas, Sr.

28-8, 1st GMCT, 2nd District 8, 4th Region 2, SWB3

Pina got back on the top of the podium by capturing his second GMCT title in his third-straight finals appearance. He was a key member for Trojans, which won two-straight White Division titles. He reached the state tournament and won a match in Atlantic City.

215 – Brian Christie, St. Joseph, Sr.

37-5, 1st GMCT, 1st District 15, 4th Region 4

While Christie’s season ended after suffering serious knee injuries in the region semifinal, he made his mark with an incredible 104 career pins and a 119-27 record. The Appalachian State-commit placed third in the prestigious Beast of the East in December and won the Marinelli-Egg Harbor Tournament. Additionally, he beat three state placewinners during the season, two by major decision. Both his losses pre-injury were by two points apiece to state runners-up.

285 – Connor Walsh, Sayreville, Sr.

33-7, 1st GMCT, 1st District 18, 3rd Region 5, SWB2

Walsh is an All-Area football player headed to East Stroudsburg as a lineman. On the mat, he also made a name for himself as a pretty decent wrestler. He earned the GMCT gold medal with two pins and a pair of gutsy overtime wins after missing last year’s tournament with a knee injury. Walsh captured a district title and advanced to Atlantic City.

SECOND TEAM

106 – Julian Arango, St. Joseph, So.

113 – Beniamino DiCocco, St. Thomas Aquinas, Sr.

120 – Nick Cavallo, Monroe, So.

126 – Aedan Samson-Huggins, East Brunswick, Sr.

132 – John Whitacre, St. Joseph, Sr.

138 – Fernando Avellan, Edison, So.

144 – Liam Zeh, St. Thomas Aquinas, Jr.

150 – Sebastian Blumberg, St. Joseph, Jr.

157 – Jake Tenebruso, Old Bridge, Jr.

165 – Tyler Boelhower, Woodbridge, Jr.

175 – Omar Cholula, Monroe, Sr.

190 – Dominick Paulino, Old Bridge, Jr.

215 – Steven Coghan, St. Thomas Aquinas, Sr.

285 – Caden Sternlieb, St. Thomas Aquinas, So.

THIRD TEAM

106 – Dominick Lezark, East Brunswick, So.

113 – Nico DeRado, St. Joseph, Fr.

120 – Joshua Parks, Colonia, So.

126 – Joseph Stanzione, South Plainfield, So.

132 – Noah Bone, Colonia, Sr.

138 – Matt Shumsky, Monroe, Jr.

144 – Mason Atkins, St. Joseph, So.

150 – Jose Rodriguez, South Plainfield, Jr.

157 – Michael Zaunczkowski, Sayreville, Jr.

165 – Youseph Abdeljawad, Monroe, Sr.

175 – Giovanni Spallino, St. Joseph, Jr.

190 – Danny Internoscia, St. Joseph, Jr.

215 – Noah Berlin-Langston, Highland Park, Jr.

285 – Eloi Latouche, Old Bridge, Sr.

HONORABLE MENTION

Criteria: Any region qualifier (Top 3 each district) or Top 4 GMCT finisher not on the first three teams

Carteret: Elijah Rodrigues (157)

Colonia: Hudson Platt (113), Ayaan Aziz (150), Brandon Crespo (157), Logan Goncalves (165)

East Brunswick: George Crostewitz (144), Devan Monahan (157), Yisreal Thomas (165),

Edison: Sean Eagle (106), Tyler Northern (113), Jeremy Negron (126), Christopher Eagle (215)

J.F. Kennedy: Armani Maglione (113), Jonathan Barreto (120), Sheraj Salman (165), Emmauel Perez Quijano (215)

J.P. Stevens: Isaiah Dennis (285)

Middlesex/Dunellen: Sam Kleiber (132)

Monroe: Josh Shumsky (132), Anthony Ramirez (150), Josiah Gibson (285)

North Brunswick: Jomar Mena (138)

North Plainfield: Yexon Mercado (285)

Old Bridge: Zachary Florio (215)

Piscataway: Aiden Wallace-Rodriguez (120), Garrett Pech (175), Troy Hutchinson (285)

Sayreville: Robert Fritz (120), CJ McCrea (132), Bryce Bouchard (190), Sean Sylvester (215)

South Plainfield: Logan Stoeckel (106), Anthony Mateo (132), Nolan Hook (138), Ryan Balent (144)

St. Joseph: Damian Pipitone (120), Giovanni Spallino (175), Jason Gross (285)

St. Thomas Aquinas: Nikolas Rivas (106), Vincent Gioffre (126), Liam Zeh (144), Anthony Pasquale (175)

Woodbridge: Andrew Roy (120), Leonidas Morales (126), Lukas Valentin (150), Felix Medina-Rodriguez (157), Mario Carbonaro (190), Anthony Marcos (215)

This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: NJ Wrestling: Home News Tribune All-Area teams