Columbia HS wrestlers excel at district tourney and advance to the region

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MAPLEWOOD/SOUTH ORANGE, NJ — The Columbia High School wrestling team had a good showing at the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association’s District 10 state tournament at Phillipsburg High School on Saturday, Feb. 18.

The Cougars finished in fifth place out of nine schools.

Sophomore Jared Van Allen, at 113 pounds, and freshman August Katz, at 126 pounds, each took second place; and sophomore Reid Ordower, at 106 pounds, and senior Derek Mingmongkol, at 144 pounds, each took third place to lead the Cougars.

The four Columbia wrestlers each advanced to the NJSIAA’s Region 3 state tournament at West Orange High School on Friday and Saturday, Feb. 24-25. The top-three finishers in each weight class from district 9, 10, 11 and 12 tournaments advanced to the Region 3 tournament. The top-four finishers in each weight class from the eight region tournaments will advance to the NJSIAA’s state individual championships at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, Thursday to Saturday, March 2-4.

Here are CHS head coach Mike Freedman’s notes on his wrestlers at the districts:

• “Reid Ordower is now 36-5 on the season. He took third in the district in a loaded weight.  He will face Mark Montoure of West Morris Central in the first round of regions on Friday. Reid won 19 matches last year and lost in the first round of districts last year and I feel (he) has improved as much as anyone in the entire state.” 
• Jared Van Allen is now 35-6 on the season finishing second place at the district tournament. Jared was fourth place last year, also winning 19 matches the previous season. Making the finals shows how much he has improved from the previous season, just like Reid. Jared will face Bloomfield s Anthony Lizama in the first round of regions on Friday. Jared pinned Lizama when they wrestled previously this season.”
• August Katz is now 33-5 after taking second in his first-ever district tournament. He continues to set records at CHS. I’m not positive what the most wins ever by a freshman in CHS history is, but it’s safe to say August already has that record . August will face Nutley senior Franco Graffeo on Friday. August pinned Graffeo in their previous meeting.”
• Derek Mingmongkol is now 36-5 after taking third at 144 in the district. This was his second time taking third in the district. Derek has been a pinning machine all season, (he) now has 32 pins this season. Derek can end a match at any time and is always dangerous. I can’t wait to see what is in site for regions. Derek will face Bloomfield’s Mike Marzano, who Derek pinned earlier in the season.” 

Here are the CHS results in the district finals and third-place bouts:

Finals

• 113-pound weight class: Dawson McWilliams, Phillipsburg, pinned Van Allen 27 seconds.
• 126: Anthony Tardibuono, Rutherford, technical fall over Katz 16-1, 5 minutes, 46 seconds.

Third-place bouts

• 144: Mingmongkol pinned Mac Davidson, Glen Ridge, 3:02.
• 106: Ordower decisioned Sebastian Kristal, Glen Ridge, 6-2.

Photos Courtesy of Mike Freedman

  Columbia High School wrestling