Paulsboro's Wurtenberger at 100
His was one of the victories as the Red Raiders won a lopsided match against usually stronger Absegami.
Eddie Wurtenberger recorded his 100th career victory yesterday at Absegami to become the third Paulsboro wrestler to join the century club this season.
Wurtenberger, in the 119-pound bout, pinned Shane Robinson in 5 minutes, 9 seconds for the win. The senior led by 7-0 before recording the fall.
"It feels great just to be a part of everybody else from Paulsboro who made it," Wurtenberger said after Paulsboro axed nonleague rival Absegami, 59-13. "I'm only one piece of the puzzle.
"We already got two this year in [Demetrius] Hester and [Alex] Silvestro. . . . And [Niko] Lopez is maybe seven or eight behind me, so it looks like we'll be practice partners on the way to 100."
The one-sided victory by Paulsboro (16-2 overall, 7-0 Colonial Conference) wasn't a surprise. One of the top teams in the state, the Red Raiders are on top of their game this season, while Absegami (6-8, 6-1 Cape Atlantic League American Division I), known for its premier wrestling program, is in a rebuilding mode. This season is only the second in Absegami coach Gene Barber's memory that his team will not qualify for the team sectional tournament.
In a match that began at 152 pounds, Wurtenberger's bout was the ninth, and his win gave the Red Raiders a 45-4 lead. Paulsboro won the first six bouts, including a forfeit at 189, to surge to a 33-0 advantage before freshman Troy Willette recorded a major decision over Pat Zold, 15-2, at 103 pounds to make the score 33-4.
The Braves didn't win again until Brett Sterr pinned Curt Reed in 3:19 of the 135-pound bout to make the score 54-10.
Dave Foulke, a junior captain, ended the match on a happy note for Absegami by decisioning Jim Gentile, 9-5, at 145.
"It felt good," Foulke said about his personal victory as well as ending the match on a high note for his team. "Some kids were not that confident going into the match. But overall, we were confident."
Foulke's only regret was that his victory came in the last competition of the afternoon. The Braves suffered a blow in the preceding bout at 140 when Paulsboro's Ryan Hoehn, who trailed Dilon Hammond at the beginning, pulled a reverse in the final second for a 7-6 decision.
Hammond, who said he was disappointed but not devastated by the loss, said that he was in control for most of the match, made a mistake in the final second, and paid for it.
Absegami forfeited the bout at 189, Barber said, because Steve Hevalow was banged up, and the all-state football player wants to be in good condition for next week.
The Results
152: Jeff Hamilton (P) pinned Ian Capella, 1:55. 160: Mike Cucinotta (P) technical fall over Randy Gong, 14-1. 171: Zach Greenwold (P) pinned Dave Bittle, 3:04. 189: Forfeit by Absegami. 215: Alex Silvestro (P) dec. Craig Capella, 8-2. 285: Demetrius Hester (P) pinned Jonathan Flegel, 1:00. 103: Troy Willette (A) dec. Pat Zold, 15-2. 112: Joe Duca (P) pinned Nick Librizzi, 37 seconds. 119: Eddie Wurtenberger (P) pinned Shane Robinson, 5:09. 125: Niko Lopez (P) pinned John Harvey, 2:49. 130: Brandon Samuels (P) dec. Matt Dempsey, 12-10. 135: Brett Sterr (A) pinned Curt Reed, 3:19. 140: Ryan Hoehn (P) dec. Dilon Hammond, 7-6. 145: Dave Foulke (A) dec. Jim Gentile, 9-5.
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