By DAVE O’SULLIVAN
Staff Writer
On X @GDsullysays
PISCATAWAY — Camden Catholic’s Chase Martino doesn’t even have a driver’s license yet, but you can bet the sophomore has been dreaming about a moment like the one he lived through Sunday afternoon for, well, a decade and a half.
It all came down to Martino and whether he could register a technical fall or a pin — that was the only way he and his Irish teammates could win the state championship outright. If he won by decision, it would only be worth three points with Pope John holding a 30-26 lead heading into the final bout at Rutgers’ Jersey Mike’s Arena. A major decision would create a tie that would send the final result to criteria. A loss by Martino and the Irish’s perfect season would come to an end.
No pressure.
“I just had to do it for the team,” a breathless Martino said after the trophy was hoisted. “I was just trying to stay calm.”
Near the end of the first period, the Camden Catholic 120-pounder tilted Matt Reilly and got the pin, giving the Irish a dramatic, come-from-behind 32-30 victory — and the first undefeated, state-championship-winning season in program history. The Irish (17-0, 6-0 Olympic National), who have won 18 state titles, have two undefeated seasons in school history. They were unbeaten in 1974, then unbeaten with a tie in 1975.
Following the victory, Irish coach Bill Heverly told a story of how the plaque from that 1974 season still hangs in the Camden Catholic wrestling room, albeit a little worse for wear after 51 years.
“There were two other undefeated teams — one that was undefeated, and one undefeated with a tie. We have a little plaque in the room that says about the undefeated team — it’s only part of the plaque because it’s broken, but it’s in there and they see it,” he explained. “That’s one of the bigger reasons why they cared about this so much, because they were like, ‘what’s that thing in the corner?’ And I’d say, ‘that’s from the only undefeated team,’ and they’d say, ‘well, we have a shot to do that this year.’ It’s nice. It’s something they care about.”
Pope John made a run at the end, winning three of the final four bouts leading up to 120, the final bout of the night. The Lions erased a 20-18 lead and led by as much as 27-20 before Camden Catholic’s Zach Reali picked up a forfeit at 106 to cut the Irish’s deficit to one. But Pope John’s Jake Holly outlasted Camden Catholic 113-pounder Dom Digiacomo, 5-3, to put the Lions up, 30-26.
That set the stage for Martino’s heroics.
“Heverly got me pumped before the match. I had to get it done for the team, and I got it done. (Coach) just said I had to go out and get a tech or a pin, do my thing, attack. I had no idea it was going to come down to the last bout, but you just have to get pumped. You gotta be a winner,” Martino said. “This feels amazing. I love my teammates. My teammates support me every day, in the room, working hard. We deserve this. All these years we’ve worked, we deserve this.”
“My stomach was turning inside out, I couldn’t take it. But I had confidence he was going to go out there and perform. It’s amazing. We worked really hard all postseason, it’s hard to put into words,” said junior Kage Jones, who scored a technical fall at 157 pounds to give Camden Catholic an early 17-9 lead. “It’s a lot of emotions. I’m just super excited for our team. We’re the first undefeated state champions in Camden Catholic history and that means a lot for our legacy.”
The teams split the first four bouts, with Lazarus Joyce and Sammy Spaulding winning at 126 and 132, respectively, for the Irish. A Michael Kraft decision at 150 pounds staked Camden Catholic to a 12-9 lead, but wins at 165 and 175 put Pope John back on top, 18-17. It was nip-and-tuck the rest of the way, as Heverly said he expected it would be.
“We’ve had these guys before. I feel like we weren’t really favored (against them) years ago, then the next year we were favored. Losing last year (in the state final, to St. John Vianney) was pretty horrible, but getting back here this year was good,” he said. “We wrestled these guys earlier in the year, too. They beat Paramas Catholic that day and we beat them both, but they were tough and I knew they were going to make moves this time. I knew it wasn’t going to be the same (lineup). We weren’t sure if they were going to roll straight up or try to make some moves, so we tried to be as prepared as we could for that, and I think we were. I think that’s why it came down to what it did. Hats off to (assistant) T.J. Miller for looking at lineups with me, as well as the rest of my staff.”
