Marc Narducci: Delsea takes South Jersey Group 2 championship

At times it's easy to get lost in the South Jersey wrestling publicity shuffle, with schools such as Camden Catholic and Paulsboro producing sectional champions on an almost yearly basis.

Other programs have been up for a while and then dropped back, which makes what Delsea has accomplished that much more impressive.

The Crusaders have won consistently for more than two decades.

Top-seeded Delsea added another bit of hardware to the trophy mantel with last night's 43-21 win over second-seeded West Deptford for the South Jersey Group 2 championship.

It was the second consecutive Group 2 title for Delsea and its eighth South Jersey crown since the advent of sectional championships in 1980.

The Crusaders (18-3) won the Tri-County Royal Division, the 12th time since 1983 that they have earned a conference championship. Since 1983, Delsea's record is 389-120-5.

The Crusaders don't win championships every year, but they always seem to be knocking at that proverbial door.

The program has achieved its success with heart as much as talent.

"At Delsea, wrestling is more than a sport, it's a big part of people's lives," said sixth-year coach Greg Sawyer. "There is such a great focus on wrestling in the entire community."

Sawyer is a symbol of the team's past and current success.

He wrestled for Delsea, placed second in the state at 215 pounds as a senior in 1998, coming back from a broken leg that year. As coach, he is continuing the winning tradition.

This year's title was especially gratifying because there aren't many teams that can lose the best wrestler in South Jersey and still keep mowing teams down.

When Anthony Baldosaro, a state champion last season at 140 pounds, transferred to Eastern, a huge void was created.

The Crusaders did what they always have done and just went with the wrestlers they had, which as it turns out has been a successful group.

"Year in and year out, Delsea fields a great program," said West Deptford coach John Craig, whose team finished 17-5. "It's tough to always stay at that level, and I have nothing but the greatest respect for Delsea."

Last night Delsea won the bouts it was supposed to, and came out on top in two of the more anticipated matchups.

In one of the featured bouts, Delsea's Luke Fedechko was a 2-0 winner at 135 over Drew Spector, who had been 11-0. Fedechko is the all-time leader in wins for Delsea with 132.

Delsea clinched the match when senior Will Anderson used a third-period reversal and earned three back points to beat Jimmy Owens, 7-4, at 189 pounds. It was only the third loss in 20 bouts for Owens; Anderson is 21-7.

Anderson is another Delsea wrestling lifer. He began in the Delsea midget program when he was 4.

"There is nothing fancy here; it's just in-your-face wrestling at Delsea," Anderson said. "We have a great coaching staff, and this is a team that is always made up of workers, and the tradition has a lot to do with our success."

Winning a state title won't be easy in a loaded Group 2 field, but regardless of how far Delsea advances, the Crusaders have maintained their status as one of South Jersey's elite programs.

In the hotbed of wrestling that is South Jersey, that's no small undertaking.