Hopewell Valley hosts Cranford in Group III semifinals; here’s what to watch for
For Delaware and Hunterdon Central, it’s very familiar territory. For Hopewell Valley and Northern Burlington, it’s like a whole new world.
Either way, the one thing all four have in common is they are the only area teams remaining in the NJSIAA dual-match wrestling championships and they will all be in action Friday night in the group semifinals.
Friday’s winners will advance to the group state championships on Sunday at Rutgers University’s Jersey Mike’s Arena.
CRANFORD (18-2) AT HOPEWELL VALLEY (21-2) IN GROUP III SEMIFINAL >>
Fresh off its first sectional championship in which it won a 33-32 thriller over Ocean on Wednesday night, perennial Colonial Valley Conference kingpin Hopewell Valley is just the third Mercer County team to reach a group semifinal. And should it beat Cranford, it will be the first Mercer team to advance to a group final.
Hopewell goes into this match as an underdog, although it should also be pointed out it was not favored to beat Ocean in the Central Jersey final either.
The North Jersey 2 champion, Cranford won its first sectional title on Wednesday since 2017 when it beat West Essex, 27-24, on a pin by Rutgers-bound junior 175-pounder Jordan Chapman in the last bout. Cranford has been a force of late on the statewide scene, although in the last two years it was unable to win sectional titles because it was blocked by strong Warren Hills teams. Its losses this year are to Southern and Phillipsburg, which are the top two public school rated teams in the state.
The perennial Union County Tournament champion, Cranford has a balanced lineup. Other strong wrestlers include 106-pounder Michael Daly (48-14 career record), 126-pounder Ryder Collins (40-19), 132-pounder Luke Scholz (54-14), 144-pounder Eoghan O’Hara (22-6), 157-pounder Dylan Jones (50-31) and 175-pounder Joey Acinapura (22-5). Heavyweight Louis Kruk is 11-11.
Hopewell will counter will the likes of Mercer County Tournament champions Dean Meissner (106), Jett Branagh (150), Konrad Haugeto (157) and Ethan Barker (165). The Bulldogs are anchored in the upperweights by Jon Trainor and have some tough lightweights as well with Sam Lowe and Dylan Hersh.
In the other Group III semifinal, two-time defending state champion Delsea (17-4) hosts Wayne Valley (14-7).
Hopewell Valley’s losses this year are to Delaware Valley and Warren Hills. With just three seniors in its line-up, Mario Harpel’s team may be a year away, but it certainly has a fighting chance here. NORTHERN BURLINGTON (142) AT RIDGE (19-2) IN GROUP IV SEMIFINAL >> Northern Burlington is also coming off its first sectional title and has been one of the real pleasant surprises in area wrestling this year. It also has a legitimate chance to reach the group finals.
Ridge is a strong team with a capable set of upperweights, but is not considered to be a real powerhouse.
Its losses were to Delaware Valley and Pennsylvania’s Nazareth at the Virginia Duals. When it beat North Hunterdon Wednesday, it marked Ridge’s first sectional title in 38 years.
The other Group IV semifinal pits Brick Memorial (12-4) at heavily favored Mt. Olive (15-4).
SOUTHERN (16-2) AT HUNTERDON CENTRAL (21-2) IN GROUP V SEMIFINAL >> A winner of its 23rd sectional title, Hunterdon Central has had a tremendous season and has lost only to Delaware Valley and Phillipsburg.
While Central does have some excellent wrestlers, it’s also a huge underdog here. Led by defending state champion Matt Henrich, Southern has won three of the last four Group V state titles and is loaded from top to bottom. Both of its losses were to parochial schools.
The other semifinal has Clifton (20-4) traveling to Phillipsburg, which just won a remarkable 41st sectional championship.
HANOVER PARK (14-9) AT DELAWARE VALLEY (19-1) IN GROUP I SEMIFINAL >> This shouldn’t be much of a problem for Delaware Valley, which won its 21st sectional title on Wednesday when it blasted Pt. Pleasant Beach, 81-0, and is shooting for a third straight group crown. The hotter action is in the other semifinal in which Paulsboro (20-2) is making the long trek to Kittatinny (19-3).
Should they meet, it will mark the third straight year Delaware Valley has collided with Paulsboro. DelVal would be favored in that match as well, but not by much.