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Welcome to the Scorebook for Brendan Vercammen as of 3/6/09
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School State Last Name First Name Grade Gender Wt Class Record
South Brunswick Hs NJ Vercammen Brendan 11 M 171 31 - 7
2009 Season Stats 2009 Season Results
Category Value Scored Value Allowed
Wins 31
Losses 7
Pins 17 1
Forfeits 2
Disqualifications 0 0
Defaults 0 0
Tech Falls 0 0
Major Decisions 2 1
Decisions 10 5
Total Team Pts 152 25
Date Opponent Name Opponent School Wt Class Result WinType Score Tourney Place
12/20/2008 Haines, Mike Cinnaminson High School 189 L DEC 2 - 3
12/20/2008 Pascarella, Nick Vernon Township High School 189 W FALL 4:29
12/20/2008 Bozzomo, Frank Middlesex High School 189 W DEC 3 - 0
12/23/2008 Condito, Nico John P. Stevens High School 215 W FALL 1:32
12/27/2008 Chiappetta, Mike Southern Regional High School 171 W FALL 0:48 6th
12/27/2008 Gentile, Jimmy Paulsboro H.S. 171 L MD 5 - 15 6th
12/27/2008 Ruiz, Devin St Peters Preparatory School 171 W FALL 3:04 6th
12/27/2008 scott, daymein Eastern High School 171 L DEC 2 - 3 6th
1/3/2009 Maglione, Frank JFK-Iselin 189 W FALL 1:41
1/3/2009 Silencieux, Josh Franklin High School 189 W FALL 1:33
1/3/2009 Ramos, Chris Piscataway High School 189 W FALL 2:38
1/7/2009 Morales, Sammy Perth Amboy High School 171 W FALL 5:33
1/8/2009 Malaga, Antonio Woodbridge High School 189 W FALL 3:06
1/14/2009 Frost, Nathan West Windor- Plainsboro North 189 W FALL 3:45
1/17/2009 Calello, Anthony Edison High School 171 W FALL 3:01
1/17/2009 Seymour, Keith Sayreville War Memorial High S 189 W FALL 3:28
1/17/2009 Bach, Eric Kittatinny Regional Jr/Sr High 189 W DEC 1 - 0
1/20/2009 Wagner, Mike South Plainfield 171 L DEC 1 - 3
1/22/2009 Colts Neck 215 W For
1/27/2009 Haughney, Trevor Old Bridge High School 171 L DEC 1 - 5
1/30/2009 Hom, Anthony John P. Stevens High School 171 W FALL 3:04 2nd
1/30/2009 Randall-Goodwin, Will Highland Park 171 W DEC 1 - 0 2nd
1/30/2009 Perez, Eric Perth Amboy High School 171 W MD 15 - 3 2nd
1/30/2009 Wagner, Mike South Plainfield 171 L DEC 0 - 3 2nd
2/7/2009 Caturano, Ben North Brunswick Township High 171 W DEC 5 - 4
2/7/2009 Kacy Epps Rutgers Prep 171 L FALL 1:16
2/7/2009 Arthur Johnson High School 189 W For
2/11/2009 Cushley, Dan Manalapan High School 215 W FALL 0:55
2/12/2009 D'Amico, Justin Spotswood High School 171 W FALL 1:47
2/14/2009 Segreto, John East Brunswick H.S. 171 W MD 14 - 1
2/14/2009 Randall-Goodwin, Will Highland Park 171 W DEC 4 - 3
2/14/2009 Ayeni, Olukayode Willingboro High School 189 W DEC 4 - 3
2/21/2009 Willis, Jake North Brunswick Township High 171 W FALL 2:00 1st
2/21/2009 Pipala, Hunter Monroe Township High School 171 W DEC 9 - 7 1st
2/21/2009 Haughney, Trevor Old Bridge High School 171 W DEC 9 - 8 1st
2/24/2009 Hart, CJ Bishop Ahr 171 W FALL 3:53 1st
2/24/2009 Lewis, Cody Hunterdon Central Reg High Sch 171 W DEC 3 - 2 1st
2/24/2009 Goddiess, George Hillsborough High School 171 W DEC 2 - 1 1st
Sunday, March 8, 2009
SBHS Wrestling Team details from www.leaguelineup.com/sbwrestling
News Articles
SOUTH BRUNSWICK: Vercammen surpasses goal
SBHS junior reached states in style by winning region title
By Rich Fisher, Sports Editor
Posted: Thursday, March 5, 2009 3:02
FLEMINGTON — Brendan Vercammen had one goal at the end of last season, and it got upgraded during this season.
As it turned out, that second goal still turned out to be too low.
”At the end of last season my goal for this year was to make it to regions,” Vercammen said. “Toward the beginning of this season I switched my goal to making it to states, however I had to do it.”
That meant he had to finish in the top three at last weekend’s Region 5 Tournament at Hunterdon Central. But the South Brunswick High junior upgraded his reservations in Atlantic City by winning the 171-pound weight class.
The top-seeded Vercammen defeated Hillsborough’s third-seeded George Goddiess, 2-1 in overtime in the finals.
”I didn’t even come out of districts last year, so this is good,” said Vercammen, who has a district and region title to his credit this year, along with a 31-7 record. “The pressure was off after I won the semifinals, because I knew I was going to states. That was my goal.
”I knew winning regions would be tougher than districts, but I thought I could hang. I came into practice and found out I had the one seed and I was real surprised. I thought ‘OK, that makes it a little easier.’”
Indeed it did. First off, by winning districts, Vercammen did not have to wrestle in Tuesday’s first-round matches. Not to mention his opponents set up nicely.
”He beat (Old Bridge’s Trevor) Haughney in the district finals, and that kid went to states last year so it was a good quality win,” Vikings coach Joe Dougherty said. “It helped us get a good top seed, which kind of helps you along a little bit. You’re not wrestling three hammers. You’re wrestling a couple, but he got a good spot because of what he did in district finals.”
Vercammen opened regions by pinning Bishop Ahr’s eighth-seeded CJ Hart in 4:53, then eked out a 3-2 win over Hunterdon Central’s fourth-seeded Cody Lewis in the semifinals. There would be no district finals rematch, however, as Goddiess pinned second-seeded Haughney in the semis.
That set up in finals with not much action, through little fault of Vercammen.
”He did what he had to do,” Dougherty said. “Their kid was real defensive. I thought we were doing all the offensive maneuvering in neutral, and most of the match was in neutral.
”I started getting a little worried because we were taking all the shots and each of them had a warning for stalling. Brendan was taking shots like he was supposed to be and the kid was kind of hanging back. It was kind of hard to wrestle that way when the kid is sitting back waiting for you.”
Vercammen got a point on a second-period escape and Goddiess tied it with a third-period escape.
After a scoreless sudden-death neutral OT period, Vercammen started the second overtime on top and hung on, then got an escape when starting on the bottom in the third OT.
”I just wanted to hold him down, then get out as fast as I could,” Vercammen said. “After that, there was like 15 seconds left. I didn’t back up, I stayed in my spot and waited for him to attack and kept a good stance.”
The Viking survived an anxious moment when Goddiess nearly took him down before going out of bounds without getting control in the final three seconds.
”When they called it out of bounds I knew he didn’t have any control,” Vercammen said. “But he almost had it, it was close.”
When asked if his heart jumped at that moment, Dougherty broke into a big grin.
”My heart always is jumping,” he said. “But, I’ve been coaching a long time. If it’s meant to be . . .
”Once I saw the second leg I knew we were OK. Brendan was intelligent, he stuck his second leg back, he already knew he was out of bounds, all he had to do was keep that second leg out of reach because that kid had to keep his feet inbounds. That was the first serious shot the kid took all match.”
The win gave South Brunswick a region champion for the third time in four years, and provided the Vikes with a state qualifier for the 10th consecutive year and the 18th time in 21 years.
Vercammen realizes that Convention Hall is a whole new world when it comes to a wrestling arena, but he welcomes the experience.
”I’ll just go out there and do my thing,” he said. “At states, everyone is strong, everyone has good technique and everyone is aggressive, so it’s gonna be tougher. It would be nice to place, but this is my first year there. I’m just going to do as much as I can.”
Dougherty insists there is even more the junior can do. The coach feels Vercammen has gotten this far and still hasn’t shown all that he’s capable of.
”I still think he’s too cautious,” Dougherty said. “He’s never experienced this before. He needs a mindset of ‘I need to be aggressive.’ Kids for the most part are thinking of it at in different perspective. They’re thinking ‘I want to get to states, I want to win a region title.’
”I’m looking at the overall picture, at how I can get this kid to place in the state tournament. You have to have a mindset where you’re looking for improvement every time they step out on the mat. Not that I didn’t see improvement, I definitely saw a little, but I’m looking down the road to get him to place in states, not win regions.”
But in the big picture that has been painted so far this season, Vercammen has certainly been a work of art.
”Brendan’s an athlete,” Dougherty said. “He’s a pretty good soccer player, he’s got a really supportive family, they’ve taken him to a strength and conditioning coach that has helped him. You can see the transformation in his body from last year to this year. He’s got a solid body. For his weight class, his body is solid through and through; his hips and legs.
”With age comes, hopefully, maturity. I think Brendan did mature this year. We’re still hoping he can mature a little bit more. He was a good wrestler last year and the year before that. He was just in a tough weight class.”
And now, he’s making his weight class tough for the other guys in it.
BACKPOINTS: Vercammen has his work cut out for him in the first round. He is seeded sixth in the top bracket and will wrestle third-seeded Omar Akel of Long Branch, who brings a 37-0 record into the states. Akel has nine pins, nine major decisions and three technical falls . . . prelims and pre-quarterfinal bouts will be held Friday, the quarterfinals and semifinals are Saturday, and the finals are Sunday at Atlantic City’s Boardwalk Convention Hall.
SOUTH BRUNSWICK: Solid showing for rest of Vikes
By Rich Fisher, Sports Editor
Posted: Thursday, March 5, 2009 3:02 PM EST
FLEMINGTON — Although Brendan Vercammen was the lone South Brunswick High wrestler to make it through the regions, head coach Joe Dougherty was pleased with how the majority of the Vikings’ qualifiers handled themselves at Hunterdon Central last week.
After a District 20 tournament at which Dougherty felt his team was not hungry enough — four of five finalists lost in the title bout — the Vikings rebounded on the first night of Region 5. James Pagano, Tyler Jaramillo, Kevin Wadiak, Colin Preacher and Cody Shelcusky all won last Tuesday night to advance to last weekend’s action.
None won on Friday or Saturday, but the fact they made it was encouraging.
”There was definitely a level of satisfaction,” Dougherty said. “For us to bring six kids to a region tournament on a Saturday was quite an accomplishment. I was real pleased with that.
”It was their first experience here. The way the seeding works, you get criteria from being here previous years. So, all our kids got seventh or eighth seeds. We’re wrestling the best kid or second best kid in the weight classes. But the fact they all won that first round is a true testament. They did a really good job.”
Once the Vikings arrived into the seeded rounds, the expectations were just for them to wrestle hard.
”They got as much out of what they had as they probably could have,” Dougherty said. “I couldn’t expect much more. Just them getting here was a milestone.
”We ended up being ranked in the top four in terms of number of kids brought here on Friday. So, it’s coming.”
Congratulations Brendan and best of luck at the States!
Ode to Seniors
Although I didn't write this and I don't know who did as I found it on a blog, it pretty much sums things up.
This weekend, many a senior removed his wrestling shoes and headgear never to put them back on again. While some may have only wrestled during their high school years, more than likely many began at a much younger age, but no matter how many matches they wrestled, how many thousands of hours they logged practicing, how many times they didn't join their family during meal time because they needed to make weight the next day, how many bouts of ringworm they had to contend with, the countless number of miles their parents racked up on the family car driving them to/from, sleepness nights worrying about their next opponent, prayers recited that they would do well.... at the end of their last match, as they exited the lockerroom and left the gym, they became members of an elite and highly regarded alumni comprised of true warriors. No sport demands more, and deserves more respect than high school wrestling, and for all of your sacrifces and accomplishments I salute you, and would be honored to raise your hand into the air because you are all Champions in my mind! All the very best of luck as you move on with your lives, and you surely take with you the mental strength and personal determination to exceed in the future!
REGION V PRE-QUARTER FINALS: SOUTH BRUNSWICK ADVANCES 5 WRESTLERS
The South Brunswick Wrestling team advanced five of six wrestlers competing at the Region 5 pre-quarterfinals at Hunterdon Central High School on Tuesday, February 24, 2009.
Setting the pace for the team was sophomore James Pagano at 119 pounds. Pagano md Matt Breadon from Ewing with a score of 14 – 6. Pagano was in control the entire match and there was never a doubt as to who would be the victor.
Freshman Tyler Jaramillo at 125 pounds defeated Zach Sanders from Somerville with a score of 5 – 4. Although a close match, Jaramillo performed with the confidence and skill of a seasoned wrestler.
Senior Kevin Wadiak at 140 pounds kept fans on the edge of their seats as his match went into overtime with a score of 10 – 10. Wadiak persevered and came through with a takedown winning 12 – 10 against Henry Shapiro from Bound Brook.
Colin Preacher a senior at 145 pounds had a solid performance against Mike Hart from JFK winning with a score of 5 – 1. Preacher also exhibited confidence and skill.
Senior Cody Shelcusky at 160 pounds had a tight match against Alex Sottile from Montgomery. Shelcusky exerted his strength and determination scoring 2 points in the final few seconds of the match winning with a score of 6 – 4.
Junior Jeff Goldhagen at 189 pounds had a heartbreaking loss against Memphis DeLaRosa from Perth Amboy. Goldhagen had a solid start and was winning his match before being caught by DeLaRosa at 3:59.
Pagano, Jaramillo, Wadiak, Preacher, and Shelcusky will join Junior Brendan Vercammen (171) on Friday, February 27th for the quarterfinals. As District Champ, Vercammen had a bye on Tuesday.
Pagano at 8th seed will face 1st seed Mike FrancoBandiero from Edison.
Jaramillo at 8th seed will face 1st seed Jeff Peterson from Edison.
Wadiak at 7th seed will face 2nd seed David Powell from Piscataway.
Preacher at 7th seed will face 2nd seed Colin Hewitt from Franklin.
Shelcusky at 7th seed will face 2nd seed Mike Hafke from Voorhess.
Vercammen at 1st seed will face 8th seed CJ Hart from Bishop Ahr.
Good luck South Brunswick wrestlers!
A Special Thank You To Everyone Who Supported the Brett Griffin Memorial Scholarship Fund
1st Prize Winner: Mr. and Mrs. Fodor from South River received a gas grill.
2nd Prize Winner: Roman Santiago of Sayreville received a basket of Gordie Gear
3rd Prize Winner: Amy Leack of Old Bridge received a gift certificate to Hollywood Cuts
DISTRICT 20 TOURNAMENT NEWS
Team Places Third; Joe Dougherty Awarded Coach of the Year; Vercammen Crowned Champ
by Maryann Wadiak
The South Brunswick Wrestling Team took third place out of a field of 11. South Brunswick had a total of 137.5 points falling behind Sayreville with 202 points and Old Bridge with 213 points.
South Brunswick entered the tournament with 13 wrestlers: Fran White at 103, Justin Lopez at 112, James Pagano at 119, Tyler Jaramillo at 125, Drew Seroka at 130, Manny Ortiz at 135, Kevin Wadiak at 140, Colin Preacher at 145, Edmiond Jasabe at 152, Cody Shelcusky at 160, Brendan Vercammen at 171, Jeff Goldhagen at 189, and Michael Blaine at 215.
After the preliminary round and quarterfinals on Friday night, South Brunswick advanced 10 wrestlers. White had a technical fall over Jason Saley of Monroe 17 – 0, at 6:00. Jaramillo had a major decision over Matt Rabin of WW-P North with a score of 13 –2. Seroka pinned Chris Mealy of WW-P N in 2:12 and Wadiak pinned Alfonso Gonzalez of WW-P S in 2:10. Preacher pinned Iquan Williams from WW-P N in 1:59. Shelcusky won by decision over Chris Bossio from South River with a score of 7 – 3. Vercammen pinned Jake Willis from North Brunswick in 2:00 while Goldhagen pinned Ryan Rizco from South River in 3:23.
After the semifinals on Saturday morning, 5 of South Brunswick wrestlers advanced to the finals, tied with Sayreville for second-most. Pagano won by decision with a score of 2 – 0 over Matthew Paribello of East Brunswick. Wadiak pinned Nick McIntosh from Old Bridge in 3:26. Preacher won by decision with a score of 4 –3 over Gino Schifano from Sayreville. Shelcusky won by decision with a score of 7 – 4 over Brett Kamin from East Brunswick. Vercammen won by decision with a score of 9 – 7 over Hunter Pipala from Monroe.
Jaramillo and Goldhagen both defeated their opponents for a third place finish. Jarmillo won by decision with a score of 11 – 4 over Chris Ronan from Sayreville. Goldhagen pinned Rimoun Hanna from East Brunswick in 2:25.
Fran White and Drew Seroka placed 4th.
Vercammen was South Brunswick’s only champion after the final round, defeating 1st seed Trevor Haughney from Old Bridge with a score of 9 –8. Vercammen had a slow start but an exciting finish as he scored 2 points in the last 20 seconds of the match to capture the gold. Haughney defeated Vercammen 5 – 0 at a dual meet in mid season.
Pagano, Wadiak, Preacher, and Shelcusky each brought home silver medals. Pagano had a close bout against Dan Bergfeldt from Sayreville with a score of 2 – 1. Wadiak lost to Pat Ronan from Sayreville with a score of 7 – 4 while Preacher was pinned by David Saley from Monroe. Shelcusky also had a close match with a score of 3 –2 against Steve Zafrani from Old Bridge.
Coach Joe Dougherty was named District 20 Coach of the Year and led his team to a third place finish with 1 champion, 4 silver medal winners, and 2 bronze medal winners advancing 7 wrestlers to the Region V Tournament at Hunterdon Central. Jaramillo, Goldhagen, Pagano, Wadiak, Preacher, Shelcusky, and Vercammen advanced.
South Brunswick Wrestlers Fair Well at GMCT
Overall the South Brunswick Varsity Wrestling team had a decent performance at the Greater Middlesex County Tournament this past weekend. The team placed 9th out of a field of 22 with several wrestlers bringing home medals while placing above their seeds.
Fran White at 103 pounds defeated three of his opponents for a 5th place finish. White’s final bout included a win against Paff from Middlesex who pinned White early in the season.
James Pagano at 119 pounds placed 6th earning 2 wins along the way. Pagano had the opportunity to wrestle opponents he has not seen so far this season including some he will face in the Districts.
Drew Seroka at 130 pounds also faced some new opponents and faired well earning a 6th place finish. Seroka won one match by decision and the other with a 3rd period fall.
Manny Ortiz at 135 pounds took a 6th place finish winning two matches. Ortiz pinned one of his opponents with a 0:30 fall.
Kevin Wadiak at 140 pounds also had a 6th place finish with two wins. One of Wadiak’s wins included a pin against the 4th seed that defeated Kevin 5 – 3 in a dual meet a few days prior to the tournament.
Colin Preacher at 145 pounds won two matches by decision and placed 7th. Preacher won one match with a score of 11 – 4 and the other with a score of 4 – 3.
Cody Shelcusky at 160 pounds had a great tournament, as he was seeded 9th and came home with a 4th place medal. Shelcusky added three wins to his record.
Brendan Vercammen at 171 pounds was the only SBHS wrestler to advance to the finals to face Wagner of South Plainfield. Vercammen had an impressive performance with 4 wins including a 2nd period fall and brought home the silver.
Jeff Goldhagen wrestling up at 189 pounds also had an impressive performance. Goldhagen was seeded 10th and earned his way to a 4th place finish with 3 wins including a second period fall.
White, Pagano Seroka, Wadiak, Shelcusky, Vercammen, and Goldhagen, all finished higher than their seeds proving that the South Brunswick wrestling team should not be underestimated.
Congratulations to all wrestlers!
SOUTH BRUNSWICK: Vercammen goes from sixth to second
By Rich Fisher, Sports Editor
Posted: Thursday, February 5, 2009 4:06 PM EST
PISCATAWAY — There is not too much separating Brendan Vercammen and Mike Wagner.
South Brunswick High wrestling coach Joe Dougherty just feels his 171-pounder needs a little more aggression to close the gap.
The top-seeded Wagner (25-2) defeated third-seeded Vercammen, 3-0, in Saturday night’s Greater Middlesex Conference finals at Piscataway High School. Earlier this season, the South Plainfield grappler beat Vercammen, 3-1.
Wagner used a tilt to score two back points in the second period, than capped off the match’s scoring with a third-period escape.
”I tried to go at him about the same way as the first time,” Vercammen said. “In neutral I tried to do more stuff up top. On bottom I was really stuck, so that was kind of bad.
”I think we’re pretty even. I’ve just got to work on some things. I’ll take the next couple weeks to work on that and get ready for districts and regions.”
Dougherty feels the one obstacle holding his talented junior back is that he’s too tentative against Wagner.
”He wrestled about the same this time against him, and I need him to open up,” the coach said. “They’re not necessarily that far off in talent, but Brendan needs to do things to win. I’d rather it have been 5-0 with him trying something that didn’t work, than 3-0. They went out of bounds with 28 seconds to go and we didn’t do something there.
”He’s a good quality wrestler, he knows what he had to do. He was blocking well. We told him he had to score first, but he didn’t do enough to win.”
Nonetheless, Vercammen was the highlight of the tournament for South Brunswick, as he was the team’s lone finalist. His second-place finish was a marked improvement from finishing sixth last year.
”I’m pretty happy,” said Vercammen, who has a 17-6 record. “I would have liked to won, but second place is good.”
Vercammen reached the finals by knocking off the tournament’s potential Cinderella. Perth Amboy’s Eric Perez was unseeded and proceeded to pin second-seed Trevor Haughney of Old Bridge and seventh-seeded Matt Recine of Piscataway.
Vercammen finally turned Perez into a pumpkin with a 15-3 major decision in the semifinals. He figured the best way to go about business was to not take chances and get caught.
”I had wrestled him before over the summer,” the Vikings said. “He was OK. I thought I could handle him pretty easy. He pinned kids tonight so I had to watch out for headlocks or tosses. I tried to play it a little safe.”
Playing it safe did not work in the finals, however, but with districts and another full season still remaining, Vercammen has time to work on things.
”The fact that he came here and placed second in this tournament attests to him having a good tournament,” Dougherty said. “He lost to a good quality kid, but I think Brendan needs to wrestle with a little more confidence.”
Which in turn will bring out a little more aggression.
SOUTH BRUNSWICK: South Brunswick is B-lightful at counties
By Rich Fisher, Sports Editor
Posted: Thursday, February 5, 2009 4:06 PM EST
PISCATAWAY — Joe Dougherty does not grade on results, he grades on effort.
And the effort shown by his South Brunswick High wrestling team at last weekend’s Greater Middlesex Conference was enough to earn an honor mark.
”Overall, I’d say it’s a B,” Dougherty said Saturday night, after the Vikings finished ninth with 92 points. “I saw improvement throughout the team.
They wrestled hard on Friday night, they upset a couple kids. We brought nine kids to day two; we haven’t done that in a long time. We advanced as many kids as the better teams in the counties. Which means we have a fair amount of good kids ourselves.”
Good, and still trying to climb toward great.
The Vikes had one finalist in 171-pounder Brendan Vercammen. Cody Shelcusky was seeded ninth and finished fourth at 160, while Jeff Goldhagen took fourth at 189 despite being a natural 171-pounder.
”Cody coming back to place fourth was nice,” Dougherty said. “We have to see if we can get more competitive with the Old Bridge boy (Steven Zafrani) who beat him in the consolation finals. That’s twice we’ve lost to him.
”We would have liked to see Goldhagen take third. He wrestled a close bout. But he had a nice day.”
Seventh-seeded Fran White finished sixth at 103 pounds, while 10th-seeded James Pagano was also sixth at 119.
”Frannie White had a really good tournament; I saw improvement there,” Dougherty said. “I also saw improvement with Pagano. I liked the way that he came along.”
The Vikes had three other sixth-place winners from 130 to 140 pounds in Drew Seroka, Manny Ortiz and Kevin Wadiak.
”We had a lot of guys place four, five and six, that shows balance,” Dougherty said. “We don’t have superstars, but we had balance.”
The one factor that prevented the Vikings from earning an A from their coach (or at least a B-plus) was their inconsistencies on Saturday.
”I did see improvement but when it came to today, they were hot and cold,” he said “They had to wrestle four matches in a day. Is that hard to do? Yes, that’s hard to do. Plus the competition continually gets harder and harder.
”They didn’t wrestle well all through the day. They had a couple matches here they wrestled well, and a couple of matches there they wrestled well. You can’t just say ‘I’m gonna take this match off’ or ‘I’m gonna take it a little easier this match,’ which is what I kind of felt some of them did. We have to work on that.”
Sometimes, that attitude can be attributed to a letdown. Wrestlers who lose a match often cannot rally themselves to come back in their first consolation match. But Dougherty said that was not the case.
”After they lost, they wrestled good and won, then they wrestled bad,” he said. “It wasn’t wrestle bad lose-wrestle bad lose.
”The thought process we’re trying to instill is ‘Let’s call it what it is right off the bat, we’re not all winning this tournament. So understand that there’s a possibility you’re going to lose today.’” Don’t get excited. The thought process does not end there.
”It’s important that once you lose, to say ‘Now the best I can do is place third,’ and you wrestle hard your next match with that as a goal. If you lose that you say ‘The next thing I can get is fifth,’ and that becomes the goal.
”I think they did that. You wrestle faceless opponents, and wrestle for goals. We did a little of that today and I thought we were successful. But you get banged up, you’re a little sick, a little tired, you still have to wrestle hard. That’s what wrestlers do.”
January 23, 2009
HNT Wrestling Notebook: South Brunswick can attain "ultimate goal"
By GREG TUFARO
Staff Writer
South Brunswick High School wrestling coach Joe Dougherty, a former state champion, said he believes the Vikings can contend for a district title, which is the team's ultimate goal.
"I think they need to be a little bit more focused on what the goal is," he said. "Basically that the key element for us is, if you are in practice every day, working on a goal, then it will show itself in the match, and they are not necessarily working as hard in practice as they are supposed to work.
"I don't think we are in the shape that we should be right now. They are not working as hard against one another, and it all comes down to the goals. We as a staff need to impress upon them more what the goals are."
Dougherty said South Brunswick's long-term goal is to win a district title.
"The season is still young and they can still come around. We want to win District 20. It's a good goal because it culminates the season and no matter what happens during the year, you can still achieve that goal.
"I think we can be competitive in that tournament, although there are at least four really good teams there. We have to strive to achieve that goal, and I don't know if they are on that same page.
"They've got to start beating each other up in practice a little bit more and pushing one another."
January 23, 2009
HNT Wrestling In the Spotlight: South Brunswick's Brendan Vercammen
By GREG TUFARO
Staff Writer
In what may have been a preview of the 171-pound Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament final, South Brunswick's Brendan Vercammen dropped a 3-1 decision in overtime to South Plainfield's Mike Wagner.
The defeat snapped a nine-match winning streak for Vercammen, whose only other losses this season have come outside the league. The junior is ranked No. 2 by the Home News Tribune in his weight class, ahead of Middlesex's Frank Bozzomo, who he beat 3-0 in the season-opening Brunswick Brawl.
Vercammen showed signs of great promise a year ago. He worked tirelessly in the off-season.
"Brendan does an extensive amount of work on his wrestling during the off season and he's doing a lot of strength training," South Brunswick coach Joe Dougherty said. "When he came to us as a freshman, he had quite a resume from his middle school. He did a nice job for us. Last year he wrestled up in weight. We were like, Wow! This kid is the real deal.
"His mental approach last year wasn't where we would have wanted it, but the transformation to this year is very enlightening and encouraging to us. Brendan wants to be the best wrestler he can be and he's moving everything in the right direction. Everything that he does, we are just really pleased.
"It's great to see what's happening with his wrestling skills for us as a coaching staff."
SOUTH BRUNSWICK: Vikes' 171-pounders will do what it takes
Thursday, January 22, 2009 By Rich Fisher, Sports Editor
Does the South Brunswick High wrestling team have flexibility in its upper weights?
Gumby himself would kill to be so flexible.
Between Brendan Vercammen, Randy Christie and Jeff Goldhagen, the Vikings have three wrestlers who weigh in at 171, with two of them usually wrestling at a higher weight.
Of the three, Vercammen has been especially outstanding this year.
”I’ve bumped Vercammen between 171 and 215, I usually tend to put him where the better kid is,” South Brunswick coach Joe Dougherty said. “Against Kittatinny (last Saturday) he was wrestling against a kid cutting down to 189 and I’m weighing him in at 171 and moving him up.
”Brendan is just learning how to wrestle. He’s learning how to wrestle well, what to do, what not to do, when to take a chance, when not to take a chance. I’m so pleased with Brendan. He asks me what I want and he goes out and does it.”
He’s not the only one.
”Christie is the same way,” Dougherty continued. “He’s a Godsend, he’s the reason we’re close in matches, a lot of times. Actually all three of those kids, they’re doing what they’re supposed to be doing. It’s not only those three, but they’re a special case in that they’re all basically the same weight.”
Christie usually draws the heavier opponent, by virtue of his experience.
”More often than not Randy is wrestling at 215 because he knows how to wrestle kids bigger than him,” Dougherty said. “He uses his speed and athleticism to get ahead by a couple points, then he wrestles smart. He doesn’t let a kid just squash him to the mat.
”He picks his spots, and is learning how to wrestle these big kids. He shows no fear, he’s a bulldog, I can’t say enough about him. He couldn’t break into the lineup at his weight so he said ‘All right, where do you need me?’”
Goldhagen has yet to go up to 215, but has rotated with Vercammen at 171 and 189 depending on the situation.
The trio has helped South Brunswick to an 8-6 record. The Vikings were beaten handily by South Plainfield Tuesday night, though that was not a big deal to the coach.
”South Plainfield is in a class of its own, they’ve proven that time and time again,” Dougherty said. “I don’t expect to be competitive with them, but we should be competitive with everyone else in our conference.”
He feels the problem is, too many wrestlers have not obtained that Eye of the Tiger that is necessary to succeed on the mat.
”I love my team, I love my kids and as a staff we look at the potential of our team and we’re in awe of it,” Dougherty said. “I tell them ‘You’re on the top teams in Middlesex County, but until you work like that’s what your goal is, it’s not going to happen.
”I’m a goal-driven kind of dude, and they have to have those goals as well, something to go after. They just don’t despise losing enough. They forget the work they did to get there.
”They have to despise losing enough so when they do lose I can see a discernable difference like ‘Ugh! What do I have to do to turn that around? I need to get my butt in gear, I lost match in third period because I’m not in condition.’”
Dougherty feels that is the one area where a coaching staff is pretty much helpless.
”Winning and losing is a by-product of what you do in practice,” he said. “I can’t make them wrestle hard in practice, it has to be internalized by them. They have to have that urgency.”
On Monday, the Vikings fared well in a JV tournament at West Windsor-Plainsboro North. David Domingos (119 pounds), Luke Rimmer (125), Mike McMurray (130), Fabian Jackson (160) and Gin Kim (130) all won titles, while Chad Capraro, Jake Petrefessa and Justin DeAndrea each took second.
”They wrestled really well,” Dougherty said. “We definitely stood out.”
Vikes join chain gang in quest for team unity
Thursday, January 8, 2009
By Rich Fisher, Sports Editor
In over 20 years of coaching, Joe Dougherty has had all kinds of wacky ideas to get his point across.
And still, he never seems to run out.
This year, in order to illustrate to his South Brunswick High School wrestling team the importance of being a team, Dougherty has handed out Carabiner key chains to his varsity performers. Prior to dual meets, they use those chains to link themselves together in a large circle.
”Every one of them is a link to a chain,” Dougherty said. “We clamp them together to form what we call the ‘circle of trust.’ If you’re in the circle, for it to work everyone has to do his job. If one person doesn’t do their job, then the link is broken and the entire circle breaks apart.
”The whole goal is to have them understand the purpose of unity and team chemistry. You can’t be 14 individuals competing in a team sport. That’s hard to get across in our sport because it’s an individual sport. It’s not like set plays where one guy has to stay at home, like on a football field.”
It is that team chemistry that will be necessary for the Vikings to reach their goal of being District 20 champions this year.
”There are still a lot of kids on the team that are not on the same page in terms of what they need to do to help us achieve our single goal of the season,” Dougherty said. “The only way to do that is by counting on one another. Fourteen of them have to win that title. But there are not enough right now working the way you’re supposed to work.”
Fortunately, there is still some time for that to come around. And judging by early reviews, the talent is certainly there as the Vikes took a 5-2 record into Wednesday’s match with Perth Amboy. South won three of four matches in the season-opening Brunswick Brawl and took two of three wins in last weekend’s quad meet.
”We’ve looked both ways — sometimes we look good and sometimes we’re not looking as good as I would like to hope,” Dougherty said. “I don’t put much stock in the opening season brawl. They’re just getting their feet wet; they’re not in the greatest shape.
”It’s the first time they get weighed, they’re wrestling three matches right out of the chute. It’s good for preparing for the season. It is what it is, I’m not looking for much right there.”
After competing in the Brick Holiday Tournament, South returned to dual meet action Saturday, but even that wasn’t considered a true indicator by the coach.
”We’ve been on break, the kids have obligations with families, which is understandable,” Dougherty said. “It’s hard, even just getting to practice, parents are working. So really, now is when the season starts. We’re back at school, we’re full fledged. We’re starting to go hard.”
One guy who has come out of the gate hard is junior Brendan Vercammen, who is the Vikes 171-pounder but has wrestled as high as 215. He is used to it, having wrestled up at 189 pounds last year. After a three-pin day on Saturday, Vercammen is 8-3 with seven pins this season.
”Now that he’s a junior in high school, he’s taking his work ethic in the practice room seriously,” Dougherty said. “His evolution, so to speak, has impressed us all.
”We’re always looking for role models for kids to look up to, and Brendan would be one of those kids. He does the work part and shows it when he’s out on the mat, how he approaches the match. He executes what we drill in practice and what we’re learning. That’s why he’s been successful.”
Vercammen is one facet away from what Dougherty looks for in a team captain; a title the coach does not take lightly. He does not award captainships just on the basis of wrestlers being seniors, or quality performers. It comes with true leadership.
”The hardest thing for me to do is get a leader in the room, in both word and deed,” he said. “Captain, by definition, is what it is. I’m hoping Brendan can get that vocal part of it down soon. You have to have a little rah-rah in there.”
Also performing well for the Vikes have been 140-pounder Kevin Wadiak (7-3, five pins) and 160-pounder Cody Shelcusky (6-2, four pins).
”They’re doing a nice job of approaching their business in the practice room every day, and then translating it onto the mat during matches,” Dougherty said.
Another strong performer has been 145-pounder Colin Preacher (5-3, two pins), who still has plenty of untapped potential.
”He needs to have a little more belief in himself,” Dougherty said. “He works hard in the practice room, he’s just still a little too cautious when he gets on the mat. He’s afraid to make mistakes.
”As a senior, we’re hoping to have instilled the attitude that we’re not overly concerned with them making mistakes, providing the mistakes they made are from doing what we worked on in the practice room. He’s getting closer but he’s not there yet.”
Another positive for the Vikings has been the performance of their freshmen and first-year wrestlers.
During last weekend’s quad meet, the JV did not compete as teams, but were paired against each other by weight classes. The Vikings went 34-4 in their match-ups. They also took second in a holiday JV tournament, beating Delaware Valley and Raritan before losing by three to Old Bridge.
Dougherty said that is a direct result of the work being done by assistants Bobby Januska, Dan Gavin and newcomer Brian Voliva.
”They’re doing a phenomenal job,” he said. “I work with the varsity kids, and their chore is to work strictly with the new kids when we’re doing technical drills and new skill development. It’s already paying dividends and it will continue to multiply.”
BACK POINTS: The Vikes have a tri-meet at Old Bridge with the hosts and Montgomery on Saturday. After the SBHS-Old Bridge meet, all of Old Bridge’s five state champions will be honored, including Dougherty and his brother Mike, who won titles when the school was Madison Central.
Sentinel
December 31, 2008 -- SB wrestling looking for more success on the mats
Vikings have a mixed bag of athletes heading into season
BY RICHARD JEROME Correspondent
The South Brunswick High School wrestling team is looking to improve on last year's 15-11 mark, but that's not the extent of coach Joe Dougherty's ambitions.
Top: South Brunswick's Kevin Wadiak (l) applies pressure on Cinnaminson's Mike Toryk during a Dec. 20 match. Below: SB's Colin Preacher (white headgear) competes in a match against Cinnaminson's Marcus Murden.
"Aside from getting better and better every day," says Dougherty, in his 21st year as Viking boss, "our ultimate goal is the same every year: to win the districts."
The Vikings are 2-1 in dual meets so far, after opening with an elimination tourney last weekend. Standouts for SBHS included 140-pound senior Kevin Wadiak as well as another senior, Cody Shelcusky, who wrestles at 160 to 171 pounds, and 189-pounder Brendan Vercammen, who is coming off a fine 21-8 season.
Overall, South Brunswick has 57 grapplers in its program, about 25 of whom are freshmen.
"We have a mix of experienced and inexperienced wrestlers," says Dougherty. "I wouldn't call it a rebuilding year, because we have pretty much the same proportion as last year's team. It's very similar. It's not as if I'd lost 12 starters."
Running down the rest of the roster, SBHS has sophomore James Pagano at 112, coming off an 18-14 campaign, with junior Frank Capraro (11-22) at 119 and senior Manny Ortiz (10-11) in the 135-pound division. Joining Wadiak (who was 9-18 last year) at 140 is junior Mike McMurray, who was an even 12-12 in 2007-08.
Senior Colin Preacher (4-7) is at 145 along with soph Craig Cleffi (7-7). The 152-pound returnee, senior Edmond Jasabe was 7-13, while Shelcusky was 16- 17. Among the top newcomers are several freshmen, including Fran White, at 103, Luke Rimmer (119), Tyler Jaramillo (125) and 135-pound Drew Seroka. Seniors Jordan Boulware and Trey Rasmussen and sophomore Lucas DelPiano are at 152; junior Jeff Goldhagen grapples in the 171- pound class along with senior Josh Weinstein. Another 12th-grader, Randy Christie, comes on to wrestle 189.
So far, the coach seems relatively pleased with his team's work ethic, although there remains some work to be done.
"A large number of them are working hard, trying to achieve their goals," says Dougherty. "But not everyone is on the same page yet. The upperclassmen have to develop leadership skills. I can tell the kids what they have to do, but to see their peers do it, that makes a large impact."
The Vikings wrestled J.P. Stevens on Dec. 23 and this weekend enter the highly competitive Mustang Classic at Brick Memorial.
News Articles
SOUTH BRUNSWICK: Vercammen surpasses goal
SBHS junior reached states in style by winning region title
By Rich Fisher, Sports Editor
Posted: Thursday, March 5, 2009 3:02
FLEMINGTON — Brendan Vercammen had one goal at the end of last season, and it got upgraded during this season.
As it turned out, that second goal still turned out to be too low.
”At the end of last season my goal for this year was to make it to regions,” Vercammen said. “Toward the beginning of this season I switched my goal to making it to states, however I had to do it.”
That meant he had to finish in the top three at last weekend’s Region 5 Tournament at Hunterdon Central. But the South Brunswick High junior upgraded his reservations in Atlantic City by winning the 171-pound weight class.
The top-seeded Vercammen defeated Hillsborough’s third-seeded George Goddiess, 2-1 in overtime in the finals.
”I didn’t even come out of districts last year, so this is good,” said Vercammen, who has a district and region title to his credit this year, along with a 31-7 record. “The pressure was off after I won the semifinals, because I knew I was going to states. That was my goal.
”I knew winning regions would be tougher than districts, but I thought I could hang. I came into practice and found out I had the one seed and I was real surprised. I thought ‘OK, that makes it a little easier.’”
Indeed it did. First off, by winning districts, Vercammen did not have to wrestle in Tuesday’s first-round matches. Not to mention his opponents set up nicely.
”He beat (Old Bridge’s Trevor) Haughney in the district finals, and that kid went to states last year so it was a good quality win,” Vikings coach Joe Dougherty said. “It helped us get a good top seed, which kind of helps you along a little bit. You’re not wrestling three hammers. You’re wrestling a couple, but he got a good spot because of what he did in district finals.”
Vercammen opened regions by pinning Bishop Ahr’s eighth-seeded CJ Hart in 4:53, then eked out a 3-2 win over Hunterdon Central’s fourth-seeded Cody Lewis in the semifinals. There would be no district finals rematch, however, as Goddiess pinned second-seeded Haughney in the semis.
That set up in finals with not much action, through little fault of Vercammen.
”He did what he had to do,” Dougherty said. “Their kid was real defensive. I thought we were doing all the offensive maneuvering in neutral, and most of the match was in neutral.
”I started getting a little worried because we were taking all the shots and each of them had a warning for stalling. Brendan was taking shots like he was supposed to be and the kid was kind of hanging back. It was kind of hard to wrestle that way when the kid is sitting back waiting for you.”
Vercammen got a point on a second-period escape and Goddiess tied it with a third-period escape.
After a scoreless sudden-death neutral OT period, Vercammen started the second overtime on top and hung on, then got an escape when starting on the bottom in the third OT.
”I just wanted to hold him down, then get out as fast as I could,” Vercammen said. “After that, there was like 15 seconds left. I didn’t back up, I stayed in my spot and waited for him to attack and kept a good stance.”
The Viking survived an anxious moment when Goddiess nearly took him down before going out of bounds without getting control in the final three seconds.
”When they called it out of bounds I knew he didn’t have any control,” Vercammen said. “But he almost had it, it was close.”
When asked if his heart jumped at that moment, Dougherty broke into a big grin.
”My heart always is jumping,” he said. “But, I’ve been coaching a long time. If it’s meant to be . . .
”Once I saw the second leg I knew we were OK. Brendan was intelligent, he stuck his second leg back, he already knew he was out of bounds, all he had to do was keep that second leg out of reach because that kid had to keep his feet inbounds. That was the first serious shot the kid took all match.”
The win gave South Brunswick a region champion for the third time in four years, and provided the Vikes with a state qualifier for the 10th consecutive year and the 18th time in 21 years.
Vercammen realizes that Convention Hall is a whole new world when it comes to a wrestling arena, but he welcomes the experience.
”I’ll just go out there and do my thing,” he said. “At states, everyone is strong, everyone has good technique and everyone is aggressive, so it’s gonna be tougher. It would be nice to place, but this is my first year there. I’m just going to do as much as I can.”
Dougherty insists there is even more the junior can do. The coach feels Vercammen has gotten this far and still hasn’t shown all that he’s capable of.
”I still think he’s too cautious,” Dougherty said. “He’s never experienced this before. He needs a mindset of ‘I need to be aggressive.’ Kids for the most part are thinking of it at in different perspective. They’re thinking ‘I want to get to states, I want to win a region title.’
”I’m looking at the overall picture, at how I can get this kid to place in the state tournament. You have to have a mindset where you’re looking for improvement every time they step out on the mat. Not that I didn’t see improvement, I definitely saw a little, but I’m looking down the road to get him to place in states, not win regions.”
But in the big picture that has been painted so far this season, Vercammen has certainly been a work of art.
”Brendan’s an athlete,” Dougherty said. “He’s a pretty good soccer player, he’s got a really supportive family, they’ve taken him to a strength and conditioning coach that has helped him. You can see the transformation in his body from last year to this year. He’s got a solid body. For his weight class, his body is solid through and through; his hips and legs.
”With age comes, hopefully, maturity. I think Brendan did mature this year. We’re still hoping he can mature a little bit more. He was a good wrestler last year and the year before that. He was just in a tough weight class.”
And now, he’s making his weight class tough for the other guys in it.
BACKPOINTS: Vercammen has his work cut out for him in the first round. He is seeded sixth in the top bracket and will wrestle third-seeded Omar Akel of Long Branch, who brings a 37-0 record into the states. Akel has nine pins, nine major decisions and three technical falls . . . prelims and pre-quarterfinal bouts will be held Friday, the quarterfinals and semifinals are Saturday, and the finals are Sunday at Atlantic City’s Boardwalk Convention Hall.
SOUTH BRUNSWICK: Solid showing for rest of Vikes
By Rich Fisher, Sports Editor
Posted: Thursday, March 5, 2009 3:02 PM EST
FLEMINGTON — Although Brendan Vercammen was the lone South Brunswick High wrestler to make it through the regions, head coach Joe Dougherty was pleased with how the majority of the Vikings’ qualifiers handled themselves at Hunterdon Central last week.
After a District 20 tournament at which Dougherty felt his team was not hungry enough — four of five finalists lost in the title bout — the Vikings rebounded on the first night of Region 5. James Pagano, Tyler Jaramillo, Kevin Wadiak, Colin Preacher and Cody Shelcusky all won last Tuesday night to advance to last weekend’s action.
None won on Friday or Saturday, but the fact they made it was encouraging.
”There was definitely a level of satisfaction,” Dougherty said. “For us to bring six kids to a region tournament on a Saturday was quite an accomplishment. I was real pleased with that.
”It was their first experience here. The way the seeding works, you get criteria from being here previous years. So, all our kids got seventh or eighth seeds. We’re wrestling the best kid or second best kid in the weight classes. But the fact they all won that first round is a true testament. They did a really good job.”
Once the Vikings arrived into the seeded rounds, the expectations were just for them to wrestle hard.
”They got as much out of what they had as they probably could have,” Dougherty said. “I couldn’t expect much more. Just them getting here was a milestone.
”We ended up being ranked in the top four in terms of number of kids brought here on Friday. So, it’s coming.”
Congratulations Brendan and best of luck at the States!
Ode to Seniors
Although I didn't write this and I don't know who did as I found it on a blog, it pretty much sums things up.
This weekend, many a senior removed his wrestling shoes and headgear never to put them back on again. While some may have only wrestled during their high school years, more than likely many began at a much younger age, but no matter how many matches they wrestled, how many thousands of hours they logged practicing, how many times they didn't join their family during meal time because they needed to make weight the next day, how many bouts of ringworm they had to contend with, the countless number of miles their parents racked up on the family car driving them to/from, sleepness nights worrying about their next opponent, prayers recited that they would do well.... at the end of their last match, as they exited the lockerroom and left the gym, they became members of an elite and highly regarded alumni comprised of true warriors. No sport demands more, and deserves more respect than high school wrestling, and for all of your sacrifces and accomplishments I salute you, and would be honored to raise your hand into the air because you are all Champions in my mind! All the very best of luck as you move on with your lives, and you surely take with you the mental strength and personal determination to exceed in the future!
REGION V PRE-QUARTER FINALS: SOUTH BRUNSWICK ADVANCES 5 WRESTLERS
The South Brunswick Wrestling team advanced five of six wrestlers competing at the Region 5 pre-quarterfinals at Hunterdon Central High School on Tuesday, February 24, 2009.
Setting the pace for the team was sophomore James Pagano at 119 pounds. Pagano md Matt Breadon from Ewing with a score of 14 – 6. Pagano was in control the entire match and there was never a doubt as to who would be the victor.
Freshman Tyler Jaramillo at 125 pounds defeated Zach Sanders from Somerville with a score of 5 – 4. Although a close match, Jaramillo performed with the confidence and skill of a seasoned wrestler.
Senior Kevin Wadiak at 140 pounds kept fans on the edge of their seats as his match went into overtime with a score of 10 – 10. Wadiak persevered and came through with a takedown winning 12 – 10 against Henry Shapiro from Bound Brook.
Colin Preacher a senior at 145 pounds had a solid performance against Mike Hart from JFK winning with a score of 5 – 1. Preacher also exhibited confidence and skill.
Senior Cody Shelcusky at 160 pounds had a tight match against Alex Sottile from Montgomery. Shelcusky exerted his strength and determination scoring 2 points in the final few seconds of the match winning with a score of 6 – 4.
Junior Jeff Goldhagen at 189 pounds had a heartbreaking loss against Memphis DeLaRosa from Perth Amboy. Goldhagen had a solid start and was winning his match before being caught by DeLaRosa at 3:59.
Pagano, Jaramillo, Wadiak, Preacher, and Shelcusky will join Junior Brendan Vercammen (171) on Friday, February 27th for the quarterfinals. As District Champ, Vercammen had a bye on Tuesday.
Pagano at 8th seed will face 1st seed Mike FrancoBandiero from Edison.
Jaramillo at 8th seed will face 1st seed Jeff Peterson from Edison.
Wadiak at 7th seed will face 2nd seed David Powell from Piscataway.
Preacher at 7th seed will face 2nd seed Colin Hewitt from Franklin.
Shelcusky at 7th seed will face 2nd seed Mike Hafke from Voorhess.
Vercammen at 1st seed will face 8th seed CJ Hart from Bishop Ahr.
Good luck South Brunswick wrestlers!
A Special Thank You To Everyone Who Supported the Brett Griffin Memorial Scholarship Fund
1st Prize Winner: Mr. and Mrs. Fodor from South River received a gas grill.
2nd Prize Winner: Roman Santiago of Sayreville received a basket of Gordie Gear
3rd Prize Winner: Amy Leack of Old Bridge received a gift certificate to Hollywood Cuts
DISTRICT 20 TOURNAMENT NEWS
Team Places Third; Joe Dougherty Awarded Coach of the Year; Vercammen Crowned Champ
by Maryann Wadiak
The South Brunswick Wrestling Team took third place out of a field of 11. South Brunswick had a total of 137.5 points falling behind Sayreville with 202 points and Old Bridge with 213 points.
South Brunswick entered the tournament with 13 wrestlers: Fran White at 103, Justin Lopez at 112, James Pagano at 119, Tyler Jaramillo at 125, Drew Seroka at 130, Manny Ortiz at 135, Kevin Wadiak at 140, Colin Preacher at 145, Edmiond Jasabe at 152, Cody Shelcusky at 160, Brendan Vercammen at 171, Jeff Goldhagen at 189, and Michael Blaine at 215.
After the preliminary round and quarterfinals on Friday night, South Brunswick advanced 10 wrestlers. White had a technical fall over Jason Saley of Monroe 17 – 0, at 6:00. Jaramillo had a major decision over Matt Rabin of WW-P North with a score of 13 –2. Seroka pinned Chris Mealy of WW-P N in 2:12 and Wadiak pinned Alfonso Gonzalez of WW-P S in 2:10. Preacher pinned Iquan Williams from WW-P N in 1:59. Shelcusky won by decision over Chris Bossio from South River with a score of 7 – 3. Vercammen pinned Jake Willis from North Brunswick in 2:00 while Goldhagen pinned Ryan Rizco from South River in 3:23.
After the semifinals on Saturday morning, 5 of South Brunswick wrestlers advanced to the finals, tied with Sayreville for second-most. Pagano won by decision with a score of 2 – 0 over Matthew Paribello of East Brunswick. Wadiak pinned Nick McIntosh from Old Bridge in 3:26. Preacher won by decision with a score of 4 –3 over Gino Schifano from Sayreville. Shelcusky won by decision with a score of 7 – 4 over Brett Kamin from East Brunswick. Vercammen won by decision with a score of 9 – 7 over Hunter Pipala from Monroe.
Jaramillo and Goldhagen both defeated their opponents for a third place finish. Jarmillo won by decision with a score of 11 – 4 over Chris Ronan from Sayreville. Goldhagen pinned Rimoun Hanna from East Brunswick in 2:25.
Fran White and Drew Seroka placed 4th.
Vercammen was South Brunswick’s only champion after the final round, defeating 1st seed Trevor Haughney from Old Bridge with a score of 9 –8. Vercammen had a slow start but an exciting finish as he scored 2 points in the last 20 seconds of the match to capture the gold. Haughney defeated Vercammen 5 – 0 at a dual meet in mid season.
Pagano, Wadiak, Preacher, and Shelcusky each brought home silver medals. Pagano had a close bout against Dan Bergfeldt from Sayreville with a score of 2 – 1. Wadiak lost to Pat Ronan from Sayreville with a score of 7 – 4 while Preacher was pinned by David Saley from Monroe. Shelcusky also had a close match with a score of 3 –2 against Steve Zafrani from Old Bridge.
Coach Joe Dougherty was named District 20 Coach of the Year and led his team to a third place finish with 1 champion, 4 silver medal winners, and 2 bronze medal winners advancing 7 wrestlers to the Region V Tournament at Hunterdon Central. Jaramillo, Goldhagen, Pagano, Wadiak, Preacher, Shelcusky, and Vercammen advanced.
South Brunswick Wrestlers Fair Well at GMCT
Overall the South Brunswick Varsity Wrestling team had a decent performance at the Greater Middlesex County Tournament this past weekend. The team placed 9th out of a field of 22 with several wrestlers bringing home medals while placing above their seeds.
Fran White at 103 pounds defeated three of his opponents for a 5th place finish. White’s final bout included a win against Paff from Middlesex who pinned White early in the season.
James Pagano at 119 pounds placed 6th earning 2 wins along the way. Pagano had the opportunity to wrestle opponents he has not seen so far this season including some he will face in the Districts.
Drew Seroka at 130 pounds also faced some new opponents and faired well earning a 6th place finish. Seroka won one match by decision and the other with a 3rd period fall.
Manny Ortiz at 135 pounds took a 6th place finish winning two matches. Ortiz pinned one of his opponents with a 0:30 fall.
Kevin Wadiak at 140 pounds also had a 6th place finish with two wins. One of Wadiak’s wins included a pin against the 4th seed that defeated Kevin 5 – 3 in a dual meet a few days prior to the tournament.
Colin Preacher at 145 pounds won two matches by decision and placed 7th. Preacher won one match with a score of 11 – 4 and the other with a score of 4 – 3.
Cody Shelcusky at 160 pounds had a great tournament, as he was seeded 9th and came home with a 4th place medal. Shelcusky added three wins to his record.
Brendan Vercammen at 171 pounds was the only SBHS wrestler to advance to the finals to face Wagner of South Plainfield. Vercammen had an impressive performance with 4 wins including a 2nd period fall and brought home the silver.
Jeff Goldhagen wrestling up at 189 pounds also had an impressive performance. Goldhagen was seeded 10th and earned his way to a 4th place finish with 3 wins including a second period fall.
White, Pagano Seroka, Wadiak, Shelcusky, Vercammen, and Goldhagen, all finished higher than their seeds proving that the South Brunswick wrestling team should not be underestimated.
Congratulations to all wrestlers!
SOUTH BRUNSWICK: Vercammen goes from sixth to second
By Rich Fisher, Sports Editor
Posted: Thursday, February 5, 2009 4:06 PM EST
PISCATAWAY — There is not too much separating Brendan Vercammen and Mike Wagner.
South Brunswick High wrestling coach Joe Dougherty just feels his 171-pounder needs a little more aggression to close the gap.
The top-seeded Wagner (25-2) defeated third-seeded Vercammen, 3-0, in Saturday night’s Greater Middlesex Conference finals at Piscataway High School. Earlier this season, the South Plainfield grappler beat Vercammen, 3-1.
Wagner used a tilt to score two back points in the second period, than capped off the match’s scoring with a third-period escape.
”I tried to go at him about the same way as the first time,” Vercammen said. “In neutral I tried to do more stuff up top. On bottom I was really stuck, so that was kind of bad.
”I think we’re pretty even. I’ve just got to work on some things. I’ll take the next couple weeks to work on that and get ready for districts and regions.”
Dougherty feels the one obstacle holding his talented junior back is that he’s too tentative against Wagner.
”He wrestled about the same this time against him, and I need him to open up,” the coach said. “They’re not necessarily that far off in talent, but Brendan needs to do things to win. I’d rather it have been 5-0 with him trying something that didn’t work, than 3-0. They went out of bounds with 28 seconds to go and we didn’t do something there.
”He’s a good quality wrestler, he knows what he had to do. He was blocking well. We told him he had to score first, but he didn’t do enough to win.”
Nonetheless, Vercammen was the highlight of the tournament for South Brunswick, as he was the team’s lone finalist. His second-place finish was a marked improvement from finishing sixth last year.
”I’m pretty happy,” said Vercammen, who has a 17-6 record. “I would have liked to won, but second place is good.”
Vercammen reached the finals by knocking off the tournament’s potential Cinderella. Perth Amboy’s Eric Perez was unseeded and proceeded to pin second-seed Trevor Haughney of Old Bridge and seventh-seeded Matt Recine of Piscataway.
Vercammen finally turned Perez into a pumpkin with a 15-3 major decision in the semifinals. He figured the best way to go about business was to not take chances and get caught.
”I had wrestled him before over the summer,” the Vikings said. “He was OK. I thought I could handle him pretty easy. He pinned kids tonight so I had to watch out for headlocks or tosses. I tried to play it a little safe.”
Playing it safe did not work in the finals, however, but with districts and another full season still remaining, Vercammen has time to work on things.
”The fact that he came here and placed second in this tournament attests to him having a good tournament,” Dougherty said. “He lost to a good quality kid, but I think Brendan needs to wrestle with a little more confidence.”
Which in turn will bring out a little more aggression.
SOUTH BRUNSWICK: South Brunswick is B-lightful at counties
By Rich Fisher, Sports Editor
Posted: Thursday, February 5, 2009 4:06 PM EST
PISCATAWAY — Joe Dougherty does not grade on results, he grades on effort.
And the effort shown by his South Brunswick High wrestling team at last weekend’s Greater Middlesex Conference was enough to earn an honor mark.
”Overall, I’d say it’s a B,” Dougherty said Saturday night, after the Vikings finished ninth with 92 points. “I saw improvement throughout the team.
They wrestled hard on Friday night, they upset a couple kids. We brought nine kids to day two; we haven’t done that in a long time. We advanced as many kids as the better teams in the counties. Which means we have a fair amount of good kids ourselves.”
Good, and still trying to climb toward great.
The Vikes had one finalist in 171-pounder Brendan Vercammen. Cody Shelcusky was seeded ninth and finished fourth at 160, while Jeff Goldhagen took fourth at 189 despite being a natural 171-pounder.
”Cody coming back to place fourth was nice,” Dougherty said. “We have to see if we can get more competitive with the Old Bridge boy (Steven Zafrani) who beat him in the consolation finals. That’s twice we’ve lost to him.
”We would have liked to see Goldhagen take third. He wrestled a close bout. But he had a nice day.”
Seventh-seeded Fran White finished sixth at 103 pounds, while 10th-seeded James Pagano was also sixth at 119.
”Frannie White had a really good tournament; I saw improvement there,” Dougherty said. “I also saw improvement with Pagano. I liked the way that he came along.”
The Vikes had three other sixth-place winners from 130 to 140 pounds in Drew Seroka, Manny Ortiz and Kevin Wadiak.
”We had a lot of guys place four, five and six, that shows balance,” Dougherty said. “We don’t have superstars, but we had balance.”
The one factor that prevented the Vikings from earning an A from their coach (or at least a B-plus) was their inconsistencies on Saturday.
”I did see improvement but when it came to today, they were hot and cold,” he said “They had to wrestle four matches in a day. Is that hard to do? Yes, that’s hard to do. Plus the competition continually gets harder and harder.
”They didn’t wrestle well all through the day. They had a couple matches here they wrestled well, and a couple of matches there they wrestled well. You can’t just say ‘I’m gonna take this match off’ or ‘I’m gonna take it a little easier this match,’ which is what I kind of felt some of them did. We have to work on that.”
Sometimes, that attitude can be attributed to a letdown. Wrestlers who lose a match often cannot rally themselves to come back in their first consolation match. But Dougherty said that was not the case.
”After they lost, they wrestled good and won, then they wrestled bad,” he said. “It wasn’t wrestle bad lose-wrestle bad lose.
”The thought process we’re trying to instill is ‘Let’s call it what it is right off the bat, we’re not all winning this tournament. So understand that there’s a possibility you’re going to lose today.’” Don’t get excited. The thought process does not end there.
”It’s important that once you lose, to say ‘Now the best I can do is place third,’ and you wrestle hard your next match with that as a goal. If you lose that you say ‘The next thing I can get is fifth,’ and that becomes the goal.
”I think they did that. You wrestle faceless opponents, and wrestle for goals. We did a little of that today and I thought we were successful. But you get banged up, you’re a little sick, a little tired, you still have to wrestle hard. That’s what wrestlers do.”
January 23, 2009
HNT Wrestling Notebook: South Brunswick can attain "ultimate goal"
By GREG TUFARO
Staff Writer
South Brunswick High School wrestling coach Joe Dougherty, a former state champion, said he believes the Vikings can contend for a district title, which is the team's ultimate goal.
"I think they need to be a little bit more focused on what the goal is," he said. "Basically that the key element for us is, if you are in practice every day, working on a goal, then it will show itself in the match, and they are not necessarily working as hard in practice as they are supposed to work.
"I don't think we are in the shape that we should be right now. They are not working as hard against one another, and it all comes down to the goals. We as a staff need to impress upon them more what the goals are."
Dougherty said South Brunswick's long-term goal is to win a district title.
"The season is still young and they can still come around. We want to win District 20. It's a good goal because it culminates the season and no matter what happens during the year, you can still achieve that goal.
"I think we can be competitive in that tournament, although there are at least four really good teams there. We have to strive to achieve that goal, and I don't know if they are on that same page.
"They've got to start beating each other up in practice a little bit more and pushing one another."
January 23, 2009
HNT Wrestling In the Spotlight: South Brunswick's Brendan Vercammen
By GREG TUFARO
Staff Writer
In what may have been a preview of the 171-pound Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament final, South Brunswick's Brendan Vercammen dropped a 3-1 decision in overtime to South Plainfield's Mike Wagner.
The defeat snapped a nine-match winning streak for Vercammen, whose only other losses this season have come outside the league. The junior is ranked No. 2 by the Home News Tribune in his weight class, ahead of Middlesex's Frank Bozzomo, who he beat 3-0 in the season-opening Brunswick Brawl.
Vercammen showed signs of great promise a year ago. He worked tirelessly in the off-season.
"Brendan does an extensive amount of work on his wrestling during the off season and he's doing a lot of strength training," South Brunswick coach Joe Dougherty said. "When he came to us as a freshman, he had quite a resume from his middle school. He did a nice job for us. Last year he wrestled up in weight. We were like, Wow! This kid is the real deal.
"His mental approach last year wasn't where we would have wanted it, but the transformation to this year is very enlightening and encouraging to us. Brendan wants to be the best wrestler he can be and he's moving everything in the right direction. Everything that he does, we are just really pleased.
"It's great to see what's happening with his wrestling skills for us as a coaching staff."
SOUTH BRUNSWICK: Vikes' 171-pounders will do what it takes
Thursday, January 22, 2009 By Rich Fisher, Sports Editor
Does the South Brunswick High wrestling team have flexibility in its upper weights?
Gumby himself would kill to be so flexible.
Between Brendan Vercammen, Randy Christie and Jeff Goldhagen, the Vikings have three wrestlers who weigh in at 171, with two of them usually wrestling at a higher weight.
Of the three, Vercammen has been especially outstanding this year.
”I’ve bumped Vercammen between 171 and 215, I usually tend to put him where the better kid is,” South Brunswick coach Joe Dougherty said. “Against Kittatinny (last Saturday) he was wrestling against a kid cutting down to 189 and I’m weighing him in at 171 and moving him up.
”Brendan is just learning how to wrestle. He’s learning how to wrestle well, what to do, what not to do, when to take a chance, when not to take a chance. I’m so pleased with Brendan. He asks me what I want and he goes out and does it.”
He’s not the only one.
”Christie is the same way,” Dougherty continued. “He’s a Godsend, he’s the reason we’re close in matches, a lot of times. Actually all three of those kids, they’re doing what they’re supposed to be doing. It’s not only those three, but they’re a special case in that they’re all basically the same weight.”
Christie usually draws the heavier opponent, by virtue of his experience.
”More often than not Randy is wrestling at 215 because he knows how to wrestle kids bigger than him,” Dougherty said. “He uses his speed and athleticism to get ahead by a couple points, then he wrestles smart. He doesn’t let a kid just squash him to the mat.
”He picks his spots, and is learning how to wrestle these big kids. He shows no fear, he’s a bulldog, I can’t say enough about him. He couldn’t break into the lineup at his weight so he said ‘All right, where do you need me?’”
Goldhagen has yet to go up to 215, but has rotated with Vercammen at 171 and 189 depending on the situation.
The trio has helped South Brunswick to an 8-6 record. The Vikings were beaten handily by South Plainfield Tuesday night, though that was not a big deal to the coach.
”South Plainfield is in a class of its own, they’ve proven that time and time again,” Dougherty said. “I don’t expect to be competitive with them, but we should be competitive with everyone else in our conference.”
He feels the problem is, too many wrestlers have not obtained that Eye of the Tiger that is necessary to succeed on the mat.
”I love my team, I love my kids and as a staff we look at the potential of our team and we’re in awe of it,” Dougherty said. “I tell them ‘You’re on the top teams in Middlesex County, but until you work like that’s what your goal is, it’s not going to happen.
”I’m a goal-driven kind of dude, and they have to have those goals as well, something to go after. They just don’t despise losing enough. They forget the work they did to get there.
”They have to despise losing enough so when they do lose I can see a discernable difference like ‘Ugh! What do I have to do to turn that around? I need to get my butt in gear, I lost match in third period because I’m not in condition.’”
Dougherty feels that is the one area where a coaching staff is pretty much helpless.
”Winning and losing is a by-product of what you do in practice,” he said. “I can’t make them wrestle hard in practice, it has to be internalized by them. They have to have that urgency.”
On Monday, the Vikings fared well in a JV tournament at West Windsor-Plainsboro North. David Domingos (119 pounds), Luke Rimmer (125), Mike McMurray (130), Fabian Jackson (160) and Gin Kim (130) all won titles, while Chad Capraro, Jake Petrefessa and Justin DeAndrea each took second.
”They wrestled really well,” Dougherty said. “We definitely stood out.”
Vikes join chain gang in quest for team unity
Thursday, January 8, 2009
By Rich Fisher, Sports Editor
In over 20 years of coaching, Joe Dougherty has had all kinds of wacky ideas to get his point across.
And still, he never seems to run out.
This year, in order to illustrate to his South Brunswick High School wrestling team the importance of being a team, Dougherty has handed out Carabiner key chains to his varsity performers. Prior to dual meets, they use those chains to link themselves together in a large circle.
”Every one of them is a link to a chain,” Dougherty said. “We clamp them together to form what we call the ‘circle of trust.’ If you’re in the circle, for it to work everyone has to do his job. If one person doesn’t do their job, then the link is broken and the entire circle breaks apart.
”The whole goal is to have them understand the purpose of unity and team chemistry. You can’t be 14 individuals competing in a team sport. That’s hard to get across in our sport because it’s an individual sport. It’s not like set plays where one guy has to stay at home, like on a football field.”
It is that team chemistry that will be necessary for the Vikings to reach their goal of being District 20 champions this year.
”There are still a lot of kids on the team that are not on the same page in terms of what they need to do to help us achieve our single goal of the season,” Dougherty said. “The only way to do that is by counting on one another. Fourteen of them have to win that title. But there are not enough right now working the way you’re supposed to work.”
Fortunately, there is still some time for that to come around. And judging by early reviews, the talent is certainly there as the Vikes took a 5-2 record into Wednesday’s match with Perth Amboy. South won three of four matches in the season-opening Brunswick Brawl and took two of three wins in last weekend’s quad meet.
”We’ve looked both ways — sometimes we look good and sometimes we’re not looking as good as I would like to hope,” Dougherty said. “I don’t put much stock in the opening season brawl. They’re just getting their feet wet; they’re not in the greatest shape.
”It’s the first time they get weighed, they’re wrestling three matches right out of the chute. It’s good for preparing for the season. It is what it is, I’m not looking for much right there.”
After competing in the Brick Holiday Tournament, South returned to dual meet action Saturday, but even that wasn’t considered a true indicator by the coach.
”We’ve been on break, the kids have obligations with families, which is understandable,” Dougherty said. “It’s hard, even just getting to practice, parents are working. So really, now is when the season starts. We’re back at school, we’re full fledged. We’re starting to go hard.”
One guy who has come out of the gate hard is junior Brendan Vercammen, who is the Vikes 171-pounder but has wrestled as high as 215. He is used to it, having wrestled up at 189 pounds last year. After a three-pin day on Saturday, Vercammen is 8-3 with seven pins this season.
”Now that he’s a junior in high school, he’s taking his work ethic in the practice room seriously,” Dougherty said. “His evolution, so to speak, has impressed us all.
”We’re always looking for role models for kids to look up to, and Brendan would be one of those kids. He does the work part and shows it when he’s out on the mat, how he approaches the match. He executes what we drill in practice and what we’re learning. That’s why he’s been successful.”
Vercammen is one facet away from what Dougherty looks for in a team captain; a title the coach does not take lightly. He does not award captainships just on the basis of wrestlers being seniors, or quality performers. It comes with true leadership.
”The hardest thing for me to do is get a leader in the room, in both word and deed,” he said. “Captain, by definition, is what it is. I’m hoping Brendan can get that vocal part of it down soon. You have to have a little rah-rah in there.”
Also performing well for the Vikes have been 140-pounder Kevin Wadiak (7-3, five pins) and 160-pounder Cody Shelcusky (6-2, four pins).
”They’re doing a nice job of approaching their business in the practice room every day, and then translating it onto the mat during matches,” Dougherty said.
Another strong performer has been 145-pounder Colin Preacher (5-3, two pins), who still has plenty of untapped potential.
”He needs to have a little more belief in himself,” Dougherty said. “He works hard in the practice room, he’s just still a little too cautious when he gets on the mat. He’s afraid to make mistakes.
”As a senior, we’re hoping to have instilled the attitude that we’re not overly concerned with them making mistakes, providing the mistakes they made are from doing what we worked on in the practice room. He’s getting closer but he’s not there yet.”
Another positive for the Vikings has been the performance of their freshmen and first-year wrestlers.
During last weekend’s quad meet, the JV did not compete as teams, but were paired against each other by weight classes. The Vikings went 34-4 in their match-ups. They also took second in a holiday JV tournament, beating Delaware Valley and Raritan before losing by three to Old Bridge.
Dougherty said that is a direct result of the work being done by assistants Bobby Januska, Dan Gavin and newcomer Brian Voliva.
”They’re doing a phenomenal job,” he said. “I work with the varsity kids, and their chore is to work strictly with the new kids when we’re doing technical drills and new skill development. It’s already paying dividends and it will continue to multiply.”
BACK POINTS: The Vikes have a tri-meet at Old Bridge with the hosts and Montgomery on Saturday. After the SBHS-Old Bridge meet, all of Old Bridge’s five state champions will be honored, including Dougherty and his brother Mike, who won titles when the school was Madison Central.
Sentinel
December 31, 2008 -- SB wrestling looking for more success on the mats
Vikings have a mixed bag of athletes heading into season
BY RICHARD JEROME Correspondent
The South Brunswick High School wrestling team is looking to improve on last year's 15-11 mark, but that's not the extent of coach Joe Dougherty's ambitions.
Top: South Brunswick's Kevin Wadiak (l) applies pressure on Cinnaminson's Mike Toryk during a Dec. 20 match. Below: SB's Colin Preacher (white headgear) competes in a match against Cinnaminson's Marcus Murden.
"Aside from getting better and better every day," says Dougherty, in his 21st year as Viking boss, "our ultimate goal is the same every year: to win the districts."
The Vikings are 2-1 in dual meets so far, after opening with an elimination tourney last weekend. Standouts for SBHS included 140-pound senior Kevin Wadiak as well as another senior, Cody Shelcusky, who wrestles at 160 to 171 pounds, and 189-pounder Brendan Vercammen, who is coming off a fine 21-8 season.
Overall, South Brunswick has 57 grapplers in its program, about 25 of whom are freshmen.
"We have a mix of experienced and inexperienced wrestlers," says Dougherty. "I wouldn't call it a rebuilding year, because we have pretty much the same proportion as last year's team. It's very similar. It's not as if I'd lost 12 starters."
Running down the rest of the roster, SBHS has sophomore James Pagano at 112, coming off an 18-14 campaign, with junior Frank Capraro (11-22) at 119 and senior Manny Ortiz (10-11) in the 135-pound division. Joining Wadiak (who was 9-18 last year) at 140 is junior Mike McMurray, who was an even 12-12 in 2007-08.
Senior Colin Preacher (4-7) is at 145 along with soph Craig Cleffi (7-7). The 152-pound returnee, senior Edmond Jasabe was 7-13, while Shelcusky was 16- 17. Among the top newcomers are several freshmen, including Fran White, at 103, Luke Rimmer (119), Tyler Jaramillo (125) and 135-pound Drew Seroka. Seniors Jordan Boulware and Trey Rasmussen and sophomore Lucas DelPiano are at 152; junior Jeff Goldhagen grapples in the 171- pound class along with senior Josh Weinstein. Another 12th-grader, Randy Christie, comes on to wrestle 189.
So far, the coach seems relatively pleased with his team's work ethic, although there remains some work to be done.
"A large number of them are working hard, trying to achieve their goals," says Dougherty. "But not everyone is on the same page yet. The upperclassmen have to develop leadership skills. I can tell the kids what they have to do, but to see their peers do it, that makes a large impact."
The Vikings wrestled J.P. Stevens on Dec. 23 and this weekend enter the highly competitive Mustang Classic at Brick Memorial.
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