No. 6 Bergen Catholic Pins Its Way Past St. Joseph (Met.) in 50-21 Rout

ORADELL, N.J. — Bergen Catholic, ranked sixth in the latest NJ.com Top 20, closed its regular-season slate with a statement, rolling to a 50-21 victory over St. Joseph of Metuchen on the strength of six falls and eight bonus-point wins.

The Crusaders seized control early, rattling off five pins and a forfeit through the 144-pound weight class. Chase Young needed just the opening period to deck his 106-pound opponent, and Anthony Riotto followed suit with a second-period pin at 113. After Julian Arango’s 13-1 major at 120, Bergen Catholic benefitted from a forfeit at 126 and then a three-bout pin streak: Lucas Reeves (132) turned Evan Closterman in the first period, while Gideon Gonzalez (138) and Sowzrawca Tsay (144) each secured second-period falls.

Joey Canova kept the momentum alive with a first-period pin of Jon Castano at 157, one of six victories by fall for the home team. The only bout Bergen Catholic did not win by bonus points came at 215, where Peter Stathis edged Chris Lawlor by decision.

St. Joseph’s best stretch arrived in the upper weights. Mason Atkins posted a 17-1 technical fall at 150, and Morgan Schwarz (165) and Tyler Whitford (175) followed with decisions of 8-5 and 9-3, respectively, trimming the deficit briefly before Chad Sadaka answered with a 19-2 tech fall for the Crusaders. Jason Gross closed the dual with a pin in the heavyweight bout for the Falcons.

The win lifts Bergen Catholic to 9-2 overall and marks its seventh victory in the last eight meets. St. Joseph, now 12-7, faces a quick turnaround, traveling Saturday for a tri-meet against Toms River East and Seton Hall Prep.