HIGH SCHOOL

Wrestling: Bound Brook's Ugalde denied in 170 final

Harry Frezza
@thefrez56

ATLANTIC CITY - The stage was set Sunday afternoon for Bound Brook senior 170-pounder Joshua Ugalde to claim the Crusaders' 21 state championship.

He was top seed at the NJSIAA State Tournament, a two-time state medalist, including a state runner-up at 160 last season. He was matched with Bergen Catholic junior Joe Grello, who he had beaten 1-0 in a Feb. 1 dual meet.

Ugalde came in having straightened out an offensive funk he'd battled for several weeks, pinning Passaic Valley's Jala Darwish in the state semifinal, and beating Holy Cross' Kenny Long 6-0 in the quarterfinals.

Ugalde then scored first on Grello with a second-period switch, but Grello scored six unanswered points to claim a 6-2 state championship.

"I wanted to wrestle my pace instead of his pace,'' said Grello, seventh last year at 152. "He's so good on the mat. I had to get a takedown, had to get a takedown.''

The first period was scoreless not something out of Ugalde's comfort zone. Ugalde won the toss on where the two would start the second period, and he chose defense. He then hit the switch and reversed Grello with 30 seconds left in the period. But the referee signaled a locked hands as Ugalde returned Grello to the mat, not allowing Grello free. So Grello now trailed 2-1, and as time expired it, Ugalde nearly gave up a defensive pin.

Grello then chose defense to start the third, escaped to tie at 2-2, then took the momentum and lead at 4-2 with that takedown he'd wanted. Ugalde then looked like he might hit another switch to tie, but he slipped and put to his back with Grello getting a two count for a 6-2 lead.

"Joshua wasn't offensive on his feet, he wasn't offensive, you can't score points if you don't carry an offense,'' said Bound Brook coach Shaun Cleary.

"It's unfortunate because I think we could have done more to win that match and we didn't do that,'' said Cleary. "It really is.''

Ugalde, sixth as a sophomore at 152 and a four-time state qualifier, ends the season 37-2 and his career at 140-22.