Pope John, Sparta wrestlers going to state tournament

Pope John XXIII Regional High School boasted two individual champions in Dalton Webber (113 pounds) and Carson Walsh (126) and six additional place-winners and Sparta High School had one place-winner in 144-pound Logan Hrenenko to highlight action at the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) Region 1 championships Saturday, Feb. 25 in West Milford.

Webber, a freshman, won the 113-pound title with a 5-1 victory over Devin Ryan of New Milford and Walsh, a sophomore, scored a pin in 4:51 over Don Bosco Prep’s Marco Alarcon in the 126-pound final.

Junior Justin Holly of Pope John also reached the finals, bowing to Mateo Sgambellone of St. Joseph of Montvale, 8-0, in the 138-pound final. Other place-winners for the Lions were Jake Holly (third at 106), Jason Athey (fifth at 120), Jack Nauta (third at 132), David Thomson (fifth at 190) and Cardin Madry (sixth at 215).

Sparta’s Logan Hrenenko, a sophomore, reached the 144-pound quarterfinal, where he lost, 2-1, to Kittatinny’s Reece Smith, in a tie-breaker. He then won twice in the wrestleback round to reach the third-place bout where he was pinned by Smith in 3:40.

Ryan Hrenenko, a freshman, was seeded 11th at 132 pounds and upset sixth-seeded Chris Casale, 5-2, before bowing to third-seeded Ryan Hartung in the quarterfinals. Ryan Hrenenko then lost by pin in 1:07 to Nauta in a wrestleback quarterfinal.

Other Sparta competitors included Anthony Petrock (150 pounds), Sebastan Gomez (165), Blake Winberry (175), Connor White (190) and Bradley Maines (285).

The top four place-winners in each weight class at each of eight regions across the state advanced to the state tournament March 2-4 at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City.

Sparta boys basketball

The ninth-seeded Spartans saw their season come to an end with a 69-49 loss to eighth-seeded Old Tappan in the first round of the NJSIAA North Jersey, Section 1, Group 3 tournament on Feb. 20 in Old Tappan.

Sparta (15-10), which won the Hunterdon/Warren/Sussex Tournament title on Feb. 17, was led this winter by Nick Ryan (11.3 points per game), Matt Maresca (8.3 ppg), Finn Mell (8 ppg) and Dan Lyden (6.1 ppg).

Pope John girls basketball

Second-seeded Pope John defeated sixth-seeded St. Dominic, 71-32, in the NJSIAA North Jersey, Non-Public A semifinal round Monday, Feb. 27.

The Lions were set to play Immaculate Heart in the finals Wednesday, March 1.

They opened play with a 61-44 decision over seventh-seeded Hudson Catholic in the quarterfinal round Feb. 24.

Addison Platt totaled 23 points, 15 rebounds, three assists, three blocks and two steals; Madison Miller had 14 points, 10 rebounds, six assists and two blocks; and Mia Washington added 11 points, three assists, three steals and two blocks.

Pope John boys basketball

Pope John, seeded 13th, suffered a 54-45 loss to fourth-seeded and No. 14 ranked Seton Hall Prep in a NJSIAA North Jersey, Non-Public A first round game in West Orange.

Senior guard Nate Pluviose, who scored a game-high 24 points to lead the Lions (4-21), finished this season with a team-leading 61 3-pointers and a 17.1 scoring average and 1,099 points for his career.