WEST ORANGE, NJ — Jaiden Mendez, a junior, and sophomore Arthur Rosu each finished in second place, while junior Justin Barr and senior Ari Rosu each took third place in their respective weight classes to lead the West Orange High School wrestling team at the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association’s District 11, tournament at Morristown High School on Saturday, Feb. 19.
In the finals, Mendez was pinned by Brandon John Dean, of West Morris Central, in 1:23 in the 132-pound weight class, and Arthur Rosu dropped an 11-8 decision to Vincent Militello, of Livingston, in the 190-pound weight class.
In the third-place consolations, Barr won by a 5-2 decision over JuanDavid Argueta, of Morristown, in the 144-pound weight class, while Ari Rosu pinned Daniel Martinez, of Lyndhurst/North Arlington, in 3:04, in the 175-pound weight class.
The four WOHS wrestlers qualified for the Region 3 tournament hosted by WOHS on Friday and Saturday, Feb. 25-26. The top three finishers in each weight class qualified for the region tournament.
Senior Matthew Regateiro took fourth place in the 157-pound weight class for WOHS. In the third-place consolation, Regateiro dropped a 10-7 decision to Rory Subarsky, of Livingston.
WOHS finished in sixth place out of nine teams.