Putting a wrap on the 2011-2012 Express-Times area wrestling season

FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES

The final cleaning of a very cluttered notebook after a monster wrestling year, with a (not always serious) look back at the peaks and valleys of a very eventful season ...

Best dual meet

Franklin 30, Phillipsburg 28, Dec. 22. This one had it all: the best atmosphere of the season, almost every bout competitive, more than several compelling and thrilling. In 26 years in the business this was an all-timer. If every dual match was like this one, wrestling would be the national sport. Runner-up: Bethlehem Catholic 29, Easton 26, Jan. 28; Phillipsburg 29, Brick Memorial 27, Feb. 12; Pen Argyl 31, Saucon Valley 28, Feb. 4.

Best dual meet atmosphere

See above, though Easton 39, Phillipsburg 15, Jan. 26 runs close. And Phillipsburg 50, Warren Hills 7, Jan. 20 is up there. No coincidence there's a lot of P'burg meets on this list.

Worst best fans

Iowa. St. Louis was swamped with Hawkeye boosters for the NCAA Division I wrestling championship. They are passionate fans who care deeply and follow their team anywhere. At the same time, they seem to think they are possessed with an unique visual aid that allows them to see takedowns no one else in the arena sees (ask Stroudsburg resident and D-1 referee Gary Kessel about this) and their booing of Cornell's three-time national champ Kyle Dake was a disgrace. Good for everybody else at Scottrade Center for cheering loudly to drown out the boos.

Best merger of art and sport

Belvidere's Dylan Thorsen, whose whip-kick to a double while holding North Warren's Mason Ryzoff's leg in a 12-5 decision in a 39-30 dual win Jan. 27 looked like a move worthy of New York City Ballet at its precision finest.

Best sense of humor from pummeled fan base

Delaware Valley's student section, enduring a 41-12 beating at the Pit on Jan. 18, had nothing left to chant at the Phillipsburg students after an inspiring night of back-and-forth cheers than "East-on Foot-ball."

Best dressed coach

Liberty's Jody Karam by a hair over his brother Jeff at Bethlehem Catholic. Looking sharp, guys.

Worst idea

The four-mat medal round at the PIAA individual championship. Good way to deny the champions proper recognition and burying the podium in an unviewable corner. ONE MAT! ONE MAT!

Best response to cliched fan chant

Bethlehem Catholic's Ryan Todora was in the process of turning his Pen Argyl opponent to his back in the D-11 Class AA team district final when some leather-lunged guy bellowed, "What's he doing on top!!" Two seconds later Todora provided a terrific answer when the official signaled a fall.

Best teams to keep an eye on next season

Everybody in Bethlehem. Can Becahi sustain its remarkable success? Can Liberty's young bunch take the next step? Can Freedom turn brutal close losses into program-changing success? We'll find out.

Best wrestler who will win a national championship one day

Tatamy resident Mike McMullan, 285-pounder at Northwestern. Third in the nation as a redshirt freshman. He will ascend the podium soon.

Most energetic coach

Voorhees' Eric Hall probably expends more calories coaching than his kids do wrestling. To a man, the Vikings say they like Hall's tub-thumping, hyper-enthusiastic approach. Honorable mention: Bangor's Rick Thompson.

Best motivating fan comment

At Jan. 28's Voorhees-North Warren match, somebody yelled out "I'm bored! Make something happen!" and not five seconds later the Vikings' Max Lamport hit a four-point move from his feet. Like to see that guy come to more matches to force the action along.

Best concessions

Overall quality, Liberty. Special kudos to the GRILLED hot dogs at North Warren and Freedom's candy selection.

Best individual bout

For sheer excitement and scoring, hard to do better than Pen Argyl's Mike Racciato's 11-8 Class AA state final win over Reynolds' Austin Matthews. A spladle in a state final! Runner-up: almost any big match wrestled by Phillipsburg's Jim Schuitema or Easton's Francis Slover.

Worst trend

Temper tantrums getting team points deducted in big matches. Just stupid.

Best idea for a tournament in need of one

Move the PIAA team tournament around the state and pack gyms instead of drawing 1,500 a session in Hershey. Better atmospheres would result and money would be saved all around.

Best numbers you didn't know

504 and 73 -- NCAA All-Americans and champions from Pennsylvania from 1961 to 2001 (courtesy of Easton coach Steve Powell) -- both the top numbers in the land.

Best coaching, one-night award

Easton's Powell vs. Bethlehem Catholic. Shouldn't have been that close. But it was.

Best picture that told the story

We didn't have a camera, but watching Lehigh coach Pat Santoro stand with his hands in his pockets enviously watching Cornell's team leave the floor at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis following the NCAA finals with a fourth-place team finish, three national champions and five All-Americans told just where Santoro wants to be soon. He'll get there, too, we think.

Best rivalry that shouldn't be resumed next season

Delaware Valley's Mike Pongracz vs. Hunterdon Central's Gary Dinmore. For the sake of everybody's nerves, please go to different weight classes next season, guys, after three massively controversial meetings this season.

Worst 'random' draws

The NJSIAA finals. Last year -- funny! -- Andrew Campolattano's bid for a fourth title was last. This year -- funny! -- South Plainfield's four-in-a-row finalists ended the meet. Next year South Plainfield's Anthony Ashnault goes for his fourth straight title. Wanna bet who'll wrestle the final bout Sunday afternoon in Atlantic City next March?

Upset of the year

Easton's Jose Roche's run to the D-11 Class AAA 126-pound final after winning the JV title the week before. Would have been one heck of a double.

Fan favorite of the year.

Easton's Slover. What a great story -- from struggling to state qualifier in four years. Few Rover wrestlers have been more beloved by the fan base, and Slover surely deserves the accolades and attention. "It's never over until it's Sl-over" was Easton's war cry all season.

Worst schedule

Bangor's. Far too few matches. A shame for the less experienced kids.

Odd moment of the year

There were several, but Pen Argyl's Matt Williams getting a team point deducted while receiving a forfeit at the state team duals wins the prize. Of the 10 sportswriters there with a combined 200-years-plus experience, none had ever seen that happen before.

Best reason to root for December to come quickly

So we can do it all over again! See you matside.

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