Chauncey's pin denies Hackensack a section title
Thursday, February 8, 2007
By Rich Barton
NJS.com Staff Writer
HACKENSACK – The home crowd was rocking, the wrestlers themselves were standing and cheering, and the long wait finally seemed to be over for Hackensack. Despite the consistent success of the program, the Comets have not won a sectional wrestling title since 1980, and, with just one match left and the Comets up by six points over Bloomfield, only one wrestler stood in the way: Bloomfield's 125-pounder James Chauncey.

Chauncey came into the match not even knowing if a pin would be good enough to win, all he knew was that it was the only way that Bloomfield could tie the score. It was a moment the senior has prepared for his entire life and he came through in the biggest possible way for himself and his teammates.

His pin with four seconds left in the second period tied the score at 33 in the last of 14 grueling bouts. Based on the second tie-breaking criteria, fourth-seeded Bloomfield won more bouts, 8-6, and as a result denied Hackensack, the No. 2 seed, in its bid to notch a section a title.

While the team score remained tied on the scoreboard, it was the Bengals that walked out with the hardware in North 1, Group 4 and earned the right to go on to this weekend’s Group 4 semifinals in Toms River.

“All I thought about before the match was the phrase ‘pinning is winning’,” said Chauncey. “I worked extremely hard, our whole team did to be in this position. Before the match even started, I saw that my match was going to be the last one and it might come down to me either needing a pin, or trying to stay off of my back. I wanted to be in this position and it feels incredible to come through.”

It was a seesaw battle the whole way, starting with the very first match at 130 pounds. Bloomfield’s Jimmy Krepe struck first with an early takedown. He maintained the two-point lead until Hackensack’s Mike Tiernan scored on a reversal midway through the second period. The score stayed knotted at 2 through regulation and into overtime. Krepe scored a takedown 22 seconds into the extra-session to end the match as Bloomfield drew first blood with a 3-0 lead.

Hackensack answered back with a gutty performance from Nick Allegreta at 135. He trailed Liam Penberthy, 7-6, after allowing an escape to start the third period, but quickly made up for it. He turned a double-leg takedown into a pin seconds later, which put the Comets on top 6-3.

Bloomfield grabbed the lead back with three consecutive wins, the last of which was a major decision. Anthony DellaPaoli (160-pounds) was up six points on Brett Ressler, and knew he needed to get a takedown and not allow an escape to record the major. He did just that, scoring a takedown with 35 seconds left and holding on for a 9-1 win. It did not seem like a huge victory at the time, but would prove much larger later on in the evening.

“In a match like this, every bonus point counts,” said DellaPaoli. “We train as hard as anyone so that we have the endurance to get a late takedown in the third period when we need one. I knew I needed to get one and I didn’t have a lot of time left. With about 30 seconds to go, I saw an opening. I took my shot and I finished it. With as close as our teams are, I knew that one bonus point could be the difference.”

Kunle Basimile’s 29-second pin at 171 gave the lead back to Hackensack, but the Bengals won the next two bouts, capped by Ryan Ackerman’s pin, giving the Bloomfield a seven-point lead.

Hackensack’s Sean Porter bumped up from 215 to heavyweight and dominated the final two periods against Sadmel Feratovic before scoring the pin with 17 seconds left.

After a technical fall by Johnny DelVecchio pushed the lead up to six for Bloomfield, Comets’ 112-pounder Anthony Raccioppi made the deficit up on his own. Locked in a scoreless duel with Connor Chauncey, James’ brother, he used a crossface that eventually led to a pin with 24 seconds left in the second period, tying the score at 27.

Bloomfield was forced to forfeit at 119 pounds, which set the stage for Chauncey. In order for the Bengals to win, he needed to score a pin against Eddie Shellman. This looked to be a tall order for Chauncey. Shellman was the hero in the Tuesday’s North 1, Group 4 semifinal win over West Orange by pinning Dave Joisil, who was this year’s 125-pound Essex County champ.

Chauncey came out with a fire in his eyes and a belief that he could do it. It became apparent right from the opening whistle that Chauncey was going to win the bout. The question became, would he be able to get Shellman’s shoulders to the mat before he earned a technical fall or before time ran out.

“I knew I had to be mentally stronger than he was and I had to be patient,” said Chauncey, who has worked throughout his career with Joey Dubuque, a Bloomfield native and a two-time state champion at Glen Ridge and a two-time NCAA champion at Indiana University. “(Joey) Dubuque has worked with me to prepare for a match like this one. He helped me in so many ways to prepare for a match just like this one. Being a senior, this was my last shot. I probably won’t wrestle in college, so this was my chance and I had to make it count.”

Chauncey was dominant right from the get-go. He scored a takedown early and nearly had Shellman on his back towards the end of the first period before the buzzer sounded with Chauncey holding a 4-0 lead.

He picked up right where he left off to start the second period by coming within an inch of putting Shellman’s shoulder on the mat. Shellman somehow was able to survive several close calls, but eventually Chauncey’s relentless pressure caught up with him. Holding a 10-point lead, that was soon to be 13 if Shellman was able to make it through the period, Chauncey knew this was at best his next-to-last shot to get the pin. With four seconds left, he finally put both of his shoulders to the mat simultaneously for the pin, tying the score at 33.

“I knew I was running out of time and chances, but I had to stick with what I was doing well,” added Chauncey. “I had to speed up the pace, but still be careful. I felt towards the end of the second period that I was starting to wear him out, so I just went for it. I love this, this is what you wrestle for.”

After a minute of conferring at the scorers’ table, the referees determined that after tying in the first criteria, because the Bengals won more bouts than Hackensack, that they were declared the North 1, Group 4 section champs.

The reaction from the Bloomfield side was equally as jubilant as the devastation of the Comets, who had wrestled their hearts out.

“I wish the outcome was different, but we left it all out on the mat,” said Hackensack head coach John Stallone. “You want to be in a match like this and we were right there with a very good team. It was a great, great high school wrestling match. Bloomfield deserves a lot of respect and I think our kids earned a lot of respect tonight as well. Even though we came up just a bit short tonight, I think our kids our champions no matter what. I just wish we had the trophy to go along with it.”