Toms River Wrestlers to Storm Atlantic City

A number of standout wrestlers in Toms River over the years have won NJSIAA district and region championships, but those who win as sophomores tend to be more than your run-of-the-mill grapplers.

Three Toms River sophomores – Toms River South’s Kevin Corrigan and B.J. Clagon and Toms River East’s Rich Lewis – joined that elite company Saturday as Region VI champions in their second year and will look to build on their wins at this weekend’s NJSIAA State Championships at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, which begin Friday.

Corrigan and Lewis have been two of the top lightweight wrestlers in the area all seasons and both continued their stellar seasons Saturday, with Corrigan winning the Region VI title at 112 pounds and Lewis taking the crown at 119. Unlike Clagon, neither Corrigan nor Lewis was the top seed in his bracket, with Corrigan winning as a No. 2 and Lewis as a No. 1

Toms River North’s Danny Rodriguez opposed Corrigan and was no match for the Indians sophomore in a 9-2 major decision. Corrigan was dominant in his three bouts at the Region VI Championships, winning all three by major decision.

Lewis had to sweat out his three wins more than Corrigan did, but remained in control throughout his tournament. He defeated Manchester’s Matt Theobold 3-1 in the final after knocking off top-seeded senior Michael Shupin of Jackson Memorial, 4-2, in the semifinals.

The Raiders sophomore is the second 119-pounder in school history to win a regional title, joining current Rutgers University wrestler Vinnie DelleFave, who won at 112 in 2007.

Lewis, who is the son of Cardinal McCarrick head boys basketball coach Joe Lewis, has embraced the challenge of following some rather large footsteps in the Toms River East history books, footsteps that include those of DelleFave, Brett Taylor, Pat McGrath and UFC Lightweight Champion Frank Edgar.

“In our locker room, there’s a big picture of (Former undefeated NCAA National Champion and Olympic Gold Medalist) Cael Sanderson and Frankie Edgar and the motto our coaches use is ‘no excuses.’” Lewis said. “I went out there and when I took that one shot at Theobold, that’s all I was thinking.”

Raiders coach Warren Reid has had an obvious impact on Lewis, but as a coach’s son, Lewis draws inspiration from his father. Even if Joe Lewis coaches much bigger athletes that his 119-pound son, Rich has learned plenty by watching his father coach one of the top basketball programs in Middlesex County.

“I’ve been fortunate to have great coaches helping me every year,” Lewis said. “Even my dad, who’s the head coach of Cardinal McCarrick basketball, is an inspiration for me. Even though it’s basketball, I see the way his players work for him, it motivates me to go out there and be great.”

While the exploits of Lewis and Corrigan are worthy of praise, neither has been as dominant as Clagon. After losing five bouts as a freshman, the Indians sophomore is unbeaten in his sophomore year, running up a 33-0 record after beating Marlboro’s Vinnie Leone 10-3 to win the Region VI title at 130 pounds.

Clagon did survive a scare in the Region VI semifinal, edging Southern Regional senior Bob Lanno 3-2 on a late takedown that kept his record unblemished.

“He gave me a rough match,” Clagon said of Lanno. “I just knew I needed to go for that take down and I kept looking for it until I got it.

“I knowing I’m trying to be perfect, and as much as I’d like to dominate a match, I’m happy with a one-point win,” Clagon said. “A one-point win is still a win and I still have the undefeated record.”

Clagon and Corrigan are the first Region VI champions at Toms River South since 2004 and are not the only Indians to punch a ticket to Atlantic City. Senior Evan Tarver finished second at 215, losing to Marlboro’s Mitch Seigel 6-5 in the final after topping Neptune’s Phil Seidle, 9-5, in the semifinal.

Indians Kyle Kenny was pinned by Brick Memorial’s Tyler Richardson in the 152 pounds quarterfinal, but Kenny navigated his way through the wrestleback bracket and exacted his revenge by beating Richardson 6-4 in the third-place bout on a late takedown. Kenny survived a 4-3 decision in the second round of wrestlebacks to beat Howell’s Zach Brennan, who lost in the semifinals to champion Conor Brennan of Brick.

The top three place-winners at each weight divisions qualify for the state championship, making Kenny’s arduous run all-the-more thrilling.

“I’ve got faith in all of our guys. We all want to go down to AC and win, so it’s not about just one of us doing it,” Clagon said. “We all want to do it, and I think we all have a good shot.”