Wrestling: GMC earns three medals in NJSIAA Tournament

Of the three Greater Middlesex Conference wrestlers who earned a spot on the podium at Boardwalk Hall on Sunday, only one can return.

Sayreville High School junior heavyweight Anthony Porcaro, who placed fifth in the NJSIAA Individual Wrestling Championships, joined senior 132-pounder Sal Profaci of Monroe and senior 145-pounder Billy Povalac of Edison, who finished fourth in their respective weight classes, as the league’s lone medal winners.

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Not being able to wrestle his way back to third place was disappointing for Profaci, who entered the three-day event with an undefeated record and as a favorite to reach the state tournament final.

“He’s upset right now,” Monroe head coach Billy Jacoutot said of Profaci, who dropped a heartbreaking 3-2 decision (TB2) to Don Bosco Prep’s Sam Cali in the third-place bout. “He had goals that are different than fourth place.”

Profaci’s state title dreams were dashed with a 7-4 semifinal loss to two-time state champion Craig De La Cruz of Summit, who defeated Profaci in last year’s state semifinals and in the 2013 Region V final.

“It’s unbelievably difficult to lose (Saturday) then to have to wrestle again on Sunday,” Jacoutot said, noting Profaci did rebound from the semifinal loss with a 5-1 decision over Michael VanBrill of Clearview in the consolation semifinals. “A lot of the guys who lost in the semis lost this morning.”

Jacoutot said Profaci, who will head to the University of Michigan on a partial athletic scholarship as Monroe’s winningest wrestler and a two-time NJSIAA fourth-place finisher, will use the events of this past weekend as a springboard to greater success.

“He needs some time to collect his thoughts,” Jacoutot said. “When he sits back and looks at his career, I think he’s got a lot to look forward to.”

Povalac’s remarkable run through the wrestleback rounds, which included five consecutive victories after losing a preliminary-round bout on Friday night, concluded with a 5-4 loss to Pinelands’ Tom Poklikuha in the third-place bout.

“I had a good run,” said Povalac, who improved upon his fifth-place finish of a year ago. “I picked up a lot of good wins.”

“The ultimate goal is to do better than we did last year,” Edison head coach Tom White said. “I think he wrestled a great match against (Poklikuha). Some of those scrambles could have went either way. I thought (Povalac) was the aggressor. That could have been anyone’s match.”

Porcaro rebounded from a 3-1 consolation semifinal loss to St. Peter’s Prep’s Jose Palomino with a 3-1 overtime victory over Paulsboro’s Davontae Randall in the fifth-place bout.

“I planned to place Top 8,” Porcaro said. “I already beat that and now I’m fifth, so it feels good to get up here (on the podium) as a junior and place fifth.

“I’m going to do a little more wrestling, weight training and come back next year bigger and better.”