Region 7 Wrestling: SJV’s Knox and Dellagatta win fourth championships; SJV’s O’Keefe and Southern’s Stout claim third titles

Complete Region 7 results

 

LACEY TOWNSHIP — Winning four NJSIAA region championships is a rare feat that just nine Shore Conference wrestlers had accomplished entering Saturday’s 2025 region semifinals. Hours later at Region 7, two more had joined the exclusive group.

St. John Vianney seniors Anthony Knox and Rocco Dellagatta each won their fourth region titles on Saturday afternoon at Lacey High School with dominant performances in their respective brackets, adding to their illustrious resumes ahead of entering the state tournaments as decided favorites.

Knox, a three-time state champion who is ranked No. 1 in the nation at 126 pounds, won by 18-3 technical fall over Lacey’s Aidan Flynn to become the 10th wrestler in Shore Conference history and first from St. John Vianney to win four region titles.

Knox performed as expected from start to finish at Region 7, winning all three of his bouts by technical fall with just one lasting past the first period. It capped a whirlwind week for the Cornell-bound star, who on Tuesday was disqualified from the remainder of the NJSIAA Tournament for his alleged role in a brawl in the stands the District 25 Tournament only to have a judge overturn the NJSIAA’s decision, allowing him to compete at the Region 7 Tournament and resume his quest to become a four-time state champion.

Knox joins Shore Conference legends Vinnie Santaniello (Brick Memorial), Lou Durant (Jackson Memorial), Luke Skove (Long Branch), Glenn Pritzlaff (Middletown South), Mark Worthy (Central), Frank Molinaro (Middletown North/Southern), Vinnie DelleFave (Toms River East), Tyler Klinsky (Middletown North), and Anthony Santaniello (Brick Memorial) as wrestlers who won four region titles wrestling for Shore Conference schools.

Later in the day, Brick Memorial senior Harvey Ludington won his fourth region title at Region 6 to become the 11th four-timer.

Knox was again unavailable for comment following his match. He participated in an on-mat photo with the top-four finishers but left the school immediately thereafter.

In the final bout of the tournament, Dellagatta continued what looks to be unstoppable march toward his second straight heavyweight state title. Facing Toms River East senior James Lynch, who finished seventh in the state at heavyweight last season, Dellagatta had four total takedowns and secured six nearfall points in the third period to polish off an 18-2 technical fall.

Dellagatta spent his first three seasons at St. Joseph Regional in Montvale where he won three district titles, three region titles, finished fourth in the state (175) as a sophomore, and won the heavyweight state championship last season. He transferred to St. John Vianney during the offseason and completed his incredible region run with the Lancers.

“It’s nice. I put in a lot of work over the four years, and it’s been a fun four years,” Dellagatta said. “I love coming to this tournament.”

A consensus top-5 high school heavyweight in the nation, Dellagatta moves like a wrestler much lighter. He competed in the 157-pound weight class as a freshman and was at 175 as a sophomore before beefing up to heavyweight the last two seasons. He said his ideal weight is 250 pounds. Over the past two years, his combination of technique, size, strength, and athleticism, have been simply too much to handle for his opponents.

“I think being an upperweight coming from a lower weight makes you 10 times better,” said Dellagatta, who along with Knox will continue his career at Cornell. “The heavier you get, the easier the weights are, they’re easier to wrestle in. It’s not depth or talent, it’s speed. The lighter weights are faster, they’re more flexible, their agility is better. As an upperweight you can go methodically, you can move where you want to, you can slow the pace down and focus on getting to your moves.”

Knox and Dellagatta’s region titles headlined a great day for St. John Vianney, which had six total champions and advanced 12 wrestlers to the state tournament. Senior Matt Gould (120), Knox, senior Patrick O’Keefe (132), senior Cole Stangle (165), junior John Saraiva (175), and Dellagatta won region titles while senior Jake Zaltsman (144), senior Dezmond Lenaghan (150), sophomore Ryan Gavrish (157), and junior Thomas Foley (190) each finished second. Junior Abraham Adu-Amoako placed third at 138 pounds and sophomore Julian Zargo finished fourth at 106.

O’Keefe joined a select group with his third region title after he worked an impressive 12-2 major decision over Shawnee senior Luke Sherlock, a four-time region finalist, one-time champ, and the state’s 7th-place finisher at 126 pounds last season. Just 58 Shore Conference wrestlers have won three region titles. O’Keefe is a three-time state medalist and a state title contender at 132 pounds.

Gould, Stangle, and Saraiva all won their first region titles. Gould, a two-time state 8th-place finisher who was a region runner-up the last two seasons, scored a 7-2 win over Haddonfield’s Michael Lamb to lock up the 120-pound title. Stangle was excellent en route to the 165-pound title with two technical falls and a 12-2 major decision over West Deptford’s Caleb Jackson in the final. Saraiva delivered a workmanlike 7-1 decision over top-seeded Jake Bartletta of Rancocas Valley in the 175-pound final, scoring a takedown in the first to set the tone and putting the match away on a takedown with 21 seconds remaining.

 

Stout wins third title as Southern goes 5-for-5 in the finals

Wyatt Stout knew what kind of match he would be in for against St. John Vianney sophomore Ryan Gavrish in the Region 7 157-pound final. Opportunities to score would be limited and he had to be ready to strike when the moment was right.

“Patience is the key to winning close matches like that,” Stout said. “If you make bad decisions and try to force something, something bad can happen. You have to hold your position and wait until you have an opportunity.”

The Southern Regional standout senior executed his game plan to perfection, snapping a 1-1 deadlock on a takedown with 1:13 left in regulation and holding on for a 4-3 victory to secure his third region title. Stout is the seventh wrestler in program history to win three region titles and joins a list that includes just 58 wrestlers in Shore Conference history.

It is also the 10 region title for the Stout Family. Wyatt’s older brother John won two region titles, his father John won two region titles wrestling for Lacey, and his uncle Bryan won three region titles, one at Lacey and two at Southern.

“My dad was the first one to win a region title at Lacey and I won my senior year at Lacey, so that’s pretty cool,” It’s fun winning, obviously, and I appreciate the good competition I get at this tournament every year.”

Stout and Gavrish wrestled during the Southern vs. St. John Vianney Shore Conference Class A Division dual with Stout grinding out a 1-0 victory. With data in hand from their first meeting, Stout went to work on adjusting his game plan. A four-time region finalist and two-time state medalist, his experience in big matches was a major edge, as well.

“He’s strong, long, holds good positions, and he’s also a goer,” Stout said of Gavrish. “He’s definitely a stingy wrestler, and he obviously made big jumps in the offseason and he has a lot of good wins this year. All the best guys make mid-match adjustments and changes – and that’s in every sport – especially wrestling, so I try to do that and wrestle my opponents the best way I can.”

After finishing fourth in the state at 144 pounds last season for his second state medal, Stout’s goal on his fourth and final trip is singular. He entered the region tournament ranked No. 1 in the state at 157 by NJ.com, followed by Phillipsburg’s Gavin Hawk, Camden Catholic’s Kage Jones, and Bergen Catholic’s Joey Canova. Gavrish was ranked sixth.

“(State championship), that’s the goal,” Stout said. “I don’t want to settle for anything less because I know I have the ability to beat everyone there. All of my opponents are going to be really good wrestlers, I’m just going to have to wrestle smart.”

Stout was one of five region champions for the Rams, who went undefeated in the finals to cap a tournament that saw them advance seven wrestlers to the state tournament.

At 144, junior Attila Vigilante made up for lost time by taking out a returning state medalist to win his first region title. Vigilante scored a takedown just before the buzzer sounded to end the first period, setting the tone for the rest of the bout against St. John Vianney senior Jake Zaltsman. He added a second takedown with 30 seconds left in the third before Zaltsman was hurt and had to injury default at 5:28.

Last season, Vigilante won his first district title but a strong case of the flu knocked him out of the Region 7 Tournament. After a long year of waiting, he earned redemption with a great performance as the No. 3 seed. In the semifinals, he pinned the No. 2 seed, Rancocas Valley’s Thiago Maldonado.

“I definitely wanted to get back on the mat and show what I can actually do,” Vigilante said. “It was unfortunate I couldn’t wrestle last year so I wanted to show I’m here and I’m better than these guys think. It made me even more hungry.”

Zaltsman finished seventh in the state at 138 pounds last season and was the No. 1 seed. Vigilante wanted to come out fast and put him on the defensive.

“I knew it was important for me to get the first points,” Vigilante said. “I wanted to establish myself at the beginning of the match. People expect the No. 1 seed to outwork and do all that, but as an underdog you have to let it fly.”

Several weights earlier, junior Anthony Mason returned to the top of the medal stand with a 3-2 victory over Red Bank Catholic senior Michael DiBiase in the 113-pound final. Mason, who was the 106-pound state runner-up last season, used a reversal in the second period and an escape with 19 seconds left in regulation to win his second region title. He was first as a freshman before finishing third last season.

“Last year was a bit of a setback and I really wanted to get this one,” Mason said. “Being a region champ is a really big goal of mind and just to get it done feels really good.”

After a scoreless first period, Mason chose defense and eventually scored a reversal with 36 seconds on the clock to take a 2-0 lead. DiBiase returned the favor on a reversal with 47 seconds left in the third, but Mason got out and held on for the one-point win.

After finishing second in the state last season and being on the cusp of high school wrestling greatness, Mason is gunning for the top spot next weekend. The favorite at 113 is Delbarton’s Cameron Sontz, who defeated Mason in the state final last year.

“I wouldn’t say my goal is to be a state finalist because I already checked that box,” Mason said. “I have to get to the higher step and that’s state champ this year. Now I’m used to that atmosphere. I’ve wrestled in the state finals. It’s one mat, there’s so many people, and everyone’s watching you. I’m used to the environment so I’m going to feel confident.”

Joining Stout, Mason, and Vigilante as region champions were senior Scottie Sari and sophomore Levi Foote. A two-time state qualifier, Sari won his first region title with a 12-2 major decision over Lacey senior Riley Gutierrez in the 138-pound final. Sari was the top seed and won all three of his tournament bouts with bonus points. Foote was the No. 1 seed at 190 pounds and was outstanding with a pin, a major decision, and a 15-0 technical fall over St. John Vianney’s Thomas Foley in the final.

Also heading to Atlantic City for Southern are senior Noah Fontana at 150 and freshman Cade Collins at 106, both of whom wrestled back to take third in their respective weight classes.

 

Coluccio rolls to title, leads six state qualifiers for host Lacey

It was a big two days for the Region 7 hosts.

Lacey sophomore 106-pounder Killian Coluccio won his second region title with a first-period pin of Seneca senior Travis Bauer. He won by fall in the quarterfinals and by technical fall over Collins in the semifinals.

Coluccio was a region champ and third in the state at 106 pounds last season when he competed for Christian Brothers Academy.

Joining Coluccio in Atlantic City are region runners-up Aidan Flynn (126) and Riley Gutierrez (138), third-place medalist Mike Seeley (Hwt), and fourth-place finishers Brendan Schuler (113) and Michael Colon (175).

 

Tournament notes

-Toms River South junior Brett Rankin finished third at 215 to become the Indians’ first state qualifier since 2020.

-Toms River East’s four state qualifiers – Ricky DeLorenzo II (120), Jayce Cappello (126), Terrence Thomas (190), and James Lynch (Hwt) – are the program’s most since 2009.

-Central Regional’s Joseph Dunne (4th at 165) is the Golden Eagles’ first state qualifier since 2023