Nothing threw St. Joseph wrestling on the way to history in Atlantic City | Cooper

ATLANTIC CITY - It’s the new thing in Atlantic City: Win a state title, then throw your coach (or two) with an emphatic thump to the mat.

No one won bigger this weekend than St. Joseph, but no one tossed Green Knights coach Tom Farinaro.

“I’m too old,” Farinaro said Saturday night at Boardwalk Hall.

The Green Knights tied some old records this weekend, finishing with four state champions. That’s only been done by a North Jersey team three times before in the long, long history of New Jersey state wrestling. Teaneck did it back in 1939, and Bergen Catholic did it in its heyday in 2015 and 2016.

And the thing is, the Green Knights were this close to having five. They went 4-1 in Saturday’s state finals, with Rocco Dellagatta (285), Ryan Burton (175), Zach Ballante (150) and Adrian DeJesus (132) all taking the top of the podium. Green Knights 113-pounder Johnathon McGinty fell just short in his final.

“It’s unbelievable what we are doing at St. Joe’s,” Ballante said. “That’s not something being done by many schools in the country. It’s a brotherhood. We all love each other. It’s great.”

“It means so much to me,” DeJesus said. “We were all hoping to get five. Unfortunately, McGinty didn’t pull it off in the end, but I know that loss will light a fire in his butt next year and even during the offseason.”

Farinaro said he thought coming in his team could get three in the finals, but as the tournament played out, his hopes expanded.

“Our stretch goal could have been six,” Farinaro said. “I never thought we would get four champs coming in here. The way the boys were wrestling, we had a great semifinal round and coming into this morning I thought we could do five. It was within reach.”

For all their success this weekend, the Green Knights were not the No. 1 team in New Jersey. They did not win Non-Public A, losing to Delbarton in the team state final. The Green Wave and Green Knights have become the hottest rivalry in wrestling since, well, Bergen Catholic and Delbarton.

The Green Wave continue to set the standard. They also finished with four state champions this weekend, but in two head-to-head meetings Saturday, St. Joe’s won 2-0.

MORE: Complete coverage, results from NJ state wrestling tournament

Farinaro smiled when asked if he could have a dual match with the Green Wave again, would he take it?

“With everyone healthy and in the line-up… yeah,” he said.

Burton was the showstopper for the Green Knights, scoring a takedown with about two seconds left to down Delbarton’s Louis Cerchio, 6-4.

“We got that last restart with 17 seconds left and said to Ryan, ‘let’s win it right here,’” Farinaro said. “And he kept wrestling in regulation. We know as the match goes longer, Ryan gets stronger and we got into that third period and got two takedowns.”

Dellagatta kept the state heavyweight title at Exit 172 with a pin of Delbarton’s Connor Martin in the second period, despite getting his hair pulled early in the match (Martin was penalized a point). He did throw someone in his corner after the match, but it was his older brother Michael.

“We planned it out,” Rocco said about his brotherly takedown. “He likes planning out that stuff. I said to Mike, 'I am coming right to you'.”

“Rocco had a great tournament,” Farinaro said. “This was the best I have ever seen him wrestle this weekend.”

Ballante and DeJesus both won by similar scores, just staying patient and waiting for their chance to score.

“When you see your guys go out there and do it, with every win, you want to win more,” Dellagatta said. “Not just for yourself, but for your teammates. They’re your brothers and they’re your family. They excite you when they come off the match and say ‘it’s not that hard.’”

One thing that’s definitely hard is staying on top of the wrestling mountain in New Jersey. Delbarton isn’t going anywhere. Bergen Catholic definitely wants to get back in the hunt. Paramus Catholic just keeps getting better.

It’s also a transient world in high school wrestling. Who knows who will transfer where and when? It’s now if, not when. That changes things.

Farinaro pledged that he wasn’t going anywhere.

“I will be here next year,” he said. “I will be back next year.”

Another year of success like this and maybe one of the Green Knights will finally throw Farinaro too. Coaches may age, but winning big never gets old.

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: St. Joseph Montvale NJ wrestling makes history in Atlantic City