W. Deptford grapplers flatten Collingswood

The NJSIAA team wrestling championships are scheduled to begin on Monday, and every squad in South Jersey last night wanted two things: to beat an impending snowstorm in order to have one last match, and to wrestle a top opponent to get ready for the postseason.

Collingswood traveled to West Deptford's gym yesterday for just such a competition that had been moved up two hours. It also determined second place in the Colonial Conference Liberty Division; Haddonfield had already clinched the division crown.

However, the top-notch competition never materialized.

The Eagles rolled to an easy 49-8 victory over Collingswood that left Ron Hamrick, the Panthers' coach, speechless.

The veteran coach declined to comment on a lopsided loss in which his wrestlers won three bouts, none of them with bonus points.

Furthermore, a team point was deducted from Collingswood (17-5 overall, 3-2 division) for unsportsmanlike conduct after the 135-pound bout. At that weight, Eric Hamrick, the coach's son, was favored to win but lost a 2-1 decision to Drew Spector.

In addition to Spector's tight victory, the winning Eagles (14-2, 4-1) took close bouts at 285 pounds, 103 and 145. They also captured all of the bonus points in the match, registering four pins, a technical fall, and a pair of major decisions.

"This win does so much for us going into the tournament," said West Deptford 145-pounder Nick Iraldi, who edged Brian Hairston, 4-3. "We won every one of the toss-up matches.

"It felt great to beat Hairston. He's a state-quality wrestler. He beat me, 17-7, in a dual meet last year. This is a great win for my confidence going into the postseason."

The senior also feels good about his undefeated record, 18-0.

Collingswood's Taylor Venanzi edged Dan Eckley, 3-2, in the first bout of the evening to give Collingswood a 3-2 team lead. Venanzi, who upped his record to 24-2, never trailed; however, he appeared to be in trouble at the end of the third period, when the buzzer sounded to preserve the victory.

West Deptford's Max Fitzgerald evened the score at 3-3 in the next bout, and teammates Rory Bonner and Jimmy Owens delivered a pair of pins at 189 and 215 to propel West Deptford to a 15-3 lead.

Collingswood's Kevin King made the score 15-6 when he decisioned Mike Pacitti, 3-2, in overtime. However, the Eagles won the next four bouts, including a technical fall at 112, a pin at 119, and a major decision at 125 to surge to a 33-6 lead.

Nick Cozzalio registered Collingswood's final points with a 6-5 decision over Josh Gilliano at 130.

It was all West Deptford from there.

"I never thought that it would be that type of score [49-8], but I was confident in our guys," said West Deptford coach John Craig, who beat the Panthers for the first time since he took over the team five years ago.

"We raised our level today. "I can't complain about anything."

Collingswood is scheduled to host sixth-seeded Woodstown in a South Group 1 quarterfinal round Monday. Meanwhile, West Deptford will host Burlington Township, the sixth seed in South Group 2, in a quarterfinal. Both Collingswood and West Deptford are No. 3 seeds.

West Deptford 49, Collingswood 8

160: Taylor Venanzi, C, dec.Daniel Eckley, 3-2; 171: Max Fitzgerald, WD, dec. Irvin Rey, 7-2; 189: Rory Bonner, WD, pinned Ben Swan, 3:06; 215: Jimmy Owens, WD, pinned Tyler Strickland, 1:31; 185: Kevin King, C, dec. Mike Pacitti, 3-2 3d OT; 103: Tyler Kaminski, WD, dec. Tony Giancola, 6-5; 112: Evan Zuzulock, WD, tech fall Donnie Daley, 2:43; 119: David Parker, WD, pinned Donte Lewis, 2:12; 125: Donald Dennis, WD, major dec. Dan Pennisi, 13-1; 130: Nick Cozzalio, C, dec.Josh Gilliano, 6-5; 135: Drew Spector, WD, dec. Eric Hamrick, 2-1; 140: Sean Bonner, WD, major dec Alex Irwin, 16-1; 145: Nick Iraldi, WD, dec. Brian Hairston, 4-3; 152: Jim Plianthos, C, pinned James Shields, 0:39.