Columbia High’s Devin Rocha goes for a pin during a match at the Essex County Tournament last season. Rocha placed fourth at the ECT and finished with 25 victories for the season. Photo by Steve Ellmore.
MAPLEWOOD, NJ – The Columbia High School wrestling team had a losing record last season, but that is a bit deceiving.
With a few less forfeits, which were caused by lack of wrestlers, the Cougars would have been above .500 since they won or were even in the actual matches wrestled.
This was particularly evident in the tournaments that the Cougars participated. CHS had four to seven of their nine wrestlers emerge as place-winners in those tournaments, cited head coach Hal Garwin. The highlight was at the Essex County Tournament in which the Cougars placed 11th out of 22 teams while entering only 10 of the 14 weight classes, with one champion (since-graduated Kevhan Bent at the 285-pound heavyweight class) and three other place-winners.
This year’s team features seven returning wrestlers and 13 new wrestlers on the roster.
The returnees are senior captain Ralph Ravix at the 195-pound weight class; senior captain Sam Wren-Hardin at 138; sophomore Joaquin Tianga at 120; sophomore Devin Rocha at 126; sophomore Blake McGowan at 152; junior Hunter Dallison at 170 or 182; and junior Galileo Hetherington at 285.
Rocha posted 25 wins last year while placing fourth at the ECT. McGowan notched 18 wins and placed fourth at the District 10 tournament and seventh at the ECT. Rocha and McGowan both made All-Super Essex Conference-Colonial Division First team. Both of these second-year wrestlers are poised for big wins this year, said Garwin. Tianga also made All-SEC-Colonial First Team.
Revix had 16 wins and placed second in the Rahway Holiday Tournament while being an All-SEC-Colonial First Team selection. Wren-Hardin, a three-year starter with 11 wins last year, also was an All-SEC-Colonial Second Team selection. Revix and Wren-Hardin will lead the team this season.
The Cougars are hopeful for a winning season if the other returnees and newcomers move into the open weight classes.
This team is hard-working and hungry, which gives Garwin and his assistant coach, Joel Rosario, much reason to feel optimistic.
This season, the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association changed the district and region tournaments, which lead to the NJSIAA individual tournament at Atlantic City. Columbia remains in District 10, but the teams are different and the site is now at Nutley instead of Millburn. The other teams in that district are the host school, Delbarton, West Orange, Becton, Verona, Union City, Orange, East Side and Wood-Ridge. Nutley and Becton will rotate as the host schools each year. CHS remains in Region 3, but the site is now at West Orange, instead of Union. Region 3 consists of Districts 9-12.
The Cougars will open the season Dec. 17 at the Irvington Christmas Tournament at 8 a.m.
Obina Nwanonyiri, a former Columbia wrestler, is assisting , and Otis Wright, a former Montclair wrestler, and Terence Newby, a former Columbia wrestler, are volunteer coaches this year.
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