Schools
Spirit of Vengeance
Out to prove their Group II Tournament snub was a mistake, this weekend the Panthers will look to capture their first District II title since 1996.
After another stellar season somehow ended without a state championship berth, Collingswood High School wrestlers are going into this weekend’s District 28 Championships with one thing on their minds: revenge.
“I see it as a chance to redeem ourselves,” said head coach Dechlin Moody. “I want to put [that frustration] in everybody’s face.”
After graduating a bumper crop of senior talent, the Panthers went 25-9 on the year behind some new faces, exceeding Moody's initial expectations. Yet despite wins over some South Jersey Group II Tournament entrants, the team's invitation was once again lost in the mail.
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“We beat Haddon Heights by 10 points and they got in,” Moody said. “It didn’t make sense.”
Moody is plainly hoping that snub will fuel a Panthers victory this weekend; the room was all business as the team made its tournament preparations Tuesday. The Panthers are seeking their first District 28 Title since 1996—Moody's senior year of high school.
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“It’s been a drought,” he said.
Nonetheless, Collingswood has enough talent to make it rain in the desert.
Senior Tony Giancola (30-5) won the 2011 title at 103 pounds, and after some growing pains at 113 this season, is finally comfortable in his weight class.
“You can’t really wrestle the same in different weight classes,” Giancola said. “Last year when I moved down, I was bigger than most kids. If I got into a jam, I could kind of muscle my way out of it. This year at 113, I had to wrestle my way out. I had to adjust my mindset.
“But I want to win the whole thing again. That’s the goal,” he said.
The Panthers also have battlers in the 132- and 138-pound weight classes in Dan Pennisi (21-13) and Alex Irwin (29-6). Both have been the rocks their records show, and each must turn in one more solid performance if the Panthers are to win.
This weekend is also an opportunity for 160-pound sophomore Mike Campbell (28-5) to serve notice that he's got the makings of an alpha dog. An individual title “would just top off the season,” he said.
“I think I’m having a good year so far, and that would really just be the cherry on top," Campbell said. "It would really put my name out there for next year. Other people would know who they’re wrestling.”
Still, the Panthers’ collective goal is to bring home a team title.
“Winning districts as a team would be huge to us,” Giancola said. “To do it senior year and go out with that kind of bang would be awesome, especially with us not getting the chance to prove [in the state tournament] that we're better than some of those teams."
“It’s big,” Moody said. “It’s individual wrestling and it’s team wrestling, plus it’s at home. It would be us getting the last laugh.
“I’m excited to see what we've got,” he said.
Collingswood's roster for the weekend tournament:
Class Name (W-L)
106 Kyle Polumbo (14-17)
113 Tony Giancola (30-5)
120 Donnie Daly (21-12)
126 Zane Chunko (19-15)
132 Dan Penissi (21-13)
138 Alex Irwin (29-6)
145 Pat Miles (16-15)
152 John Deaner (16-5)
160 Mike Campbell (28-5)
170 Peter Hall (12-15)
182 Luis Ochoa (19-13)
195 Anthony Valianti (22-10)
220 Paul Lunney (7-17)
285 Bryan Pham (13-15)
