Mid-February is here, and so is the NJSIAA/IBEW Local 102 State Wrestling Team Tournament.
Postseason action begins on Monday with all 20 public sections. They will wrestle through the semifinals on Monday with the sectional finals being held on Wednesday.
Non-Public A and B wrestle on Tuesday through the quarterfinals. The non-public semifinals are held Thursday, Feb. 19 and the championship in all seven groups will be held on Sunday, Feb. 22 at Jersey Mikes Arena on the campus of Rutgers.
Below, find our preview for South Group 2.
NJSIAA South Group 2 Tournament |Bracket
Favorite: Lower Cape May
We’ve been saying it since November. It’s the Year of the Caper Tigers. No. 17 Lower Cape May looked like a juggernaut coming into the season and for the most part has lived up to the billing. It has posted a record of 18-3 with all of the losses coming to ranked teams. It has wins over the likes of Brick Memorial, Wall, High Point, Middle Township, Red Bank Catholic, Caldwell and Washington Township. Three-time state placewinner Chase Hansen leads the way, but this is a balanced roster. Williamstown transfer Tristan Rosemeyer and freshmen Ryan Morgan and Eli Glover have elevated the team and upperweight David Douglass has been among several wrestlers who have taken the next step. The road to Rutgers goes through Lower Cape May as it is the No. 1 seed, and that’s a long road for almost any team that has to make it duing the postseason. The Caper Tigers appear to be the favorite not just in South Jersey Group 2 but the entire state as well.
Contenders: Collingswood, Gloucester
While we had an idea Lower Cape May was ready to bust out this year, we have seen somewhat surprising seasons for second-seeded Collingswood and third-seeded Gloucester. In any other year, Collingswood would be the prohibitive favorite in the group after posting a 24-2 season that included running the table in the rough-and-tumble Colonial Conference. Freshmen Robbie Penman, Jake Eife and Chase Wright have all won over 20 matches in the lightweights. Seniors Mason Musciano and Lino Bataloni are standouts in the middle weights along with sophomore Avonte Santos, and senior Tim Rambo leads the way up top. Gloucester shared the Liberty Division title. Harry Ulmer and Ashton Wall are two of the better upper weights in South Jersey and lightweights Luis Velasquez and Alexander Ekimoglou and middleweight Derek Scruggs have offered support.
Outlook: The bottom half of this bracket will be a Colonial Conference street fight. Collingswood hosts league mates Gloucester, West Deptford and Sterling. While Gloucester is the third seed and the favorite to advance, its first-round matchup against sixth-seeded West Deptford is no gimme. The Lions won the regular-season matchup, 39-31. On the other side of the bracket, a first-round matchup between Haddonfield and Middle Township is intriguing but can either team keep pace with Lower Cape May? Middle Township likely can not based on its 58-12 loss in the regular season. While this is a deep and intriguing group, the likely scenario is an outstanding matchup between Lower Cape May and Collingswood in the final.
Prediction: NJ.com‘s wrestling writers will predict finals and winners in all 22 sections on Friday.