Gerald Van Baelen, Juan Millan lead Bloomfield HS wrestling team at ECT

BLOOMFIELD, NJ – Gerald Van Baelen took second place, and Juan Millan took fourth place in their respective weight classes to lead the Bloomfield High School wrestling team at the Essex County Tournament held at Richard J. Codey Arena in West Orange on Wednesday, Jan. 26.

Van Baelen, a senior, reached the final of the 126-pound weight class, losing to Livingston’s Shawn Quirk in 4:27.

In the 120-pound weight class, Millan, a junior, fell to Belleville’s Leopoldo Hanz Tiankee by a 3-1 decision in the third- and fourth-place consolation bout.

The Bengals had other good showings.

Ernesto McRae, a senior, took fifth place in the 138-pound weight class. In the consolation, McRae won by a 7-6 decision over Caldwell’s Kayleb Egoavil.

Trevor Frantantoni, a sophomore, took sixth place in the 175-pound weight class, losing to Caldwell’s Marc DeJesus in the consolation by a 16-0 technical fall.

Gabriel McCullough, a freshman, took sixth place in the 285-pound heavyweight class with an 8-1 loss to Seton Hall Prep’s Jack Tierney in the consolation.

Damian Torres, a sophomore, took seventh place in the 157-pound weight class with a forfeit win over Noel Lott of Newark Collegiate in the consolation.

Elias Escobar, a senior, and Alexavier Hansen, a junior, took eighth place in the 132-pound weight class and 190-pound weight class, respectively.

The Bengals finished in eighth place in the team standings among the 22 schools. West Essex won the team title. Last year’s ECT was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Team scores:

West Essex, 274 points; Livingston, 265 points; Seton Hall Prep, 197 points; Irvington, 132 points; Caldwell, 111.5 points; Verona, 106 points; Millburn, 104 points; Bloomfield, 96 points; St. Benedict’s Prep, 72.5 points; Belleville, 68 points; West Orange, 51 points; Columbia, 48 points; East Side, 43 points; Glen Ridge, 42 points; Montclair, 42 points; Cedar Grove, 37.5 points; Orange, 20 points; Nutley, 17 points; Barringer, 11 points; Newark Academy, 10 points; Newark Collegiate, 5 points; East Orange Campus, 0 points.

BHS girls wrestlers win at Elizabeth tournament

Bloomfield High School sophomore Ahlexa Montalvo, junior Kira Pipkins and senior Gianna Faura won their weight-class titles at the recent girls wrestling tournament in Elizabeth.