VIDEO: SOUTH JERSEY CHAMPS - Wild finish as Middle breaks through for first sectional title after nipping LCM on sixth criteria

Posted: February 14th 2025

By BRIAN CUNNIFF

CapeAtlanticLive.com

ERMA – Like many high school wrestlers, R.J. Attenborough listens to music through AirPods as part of his mental preparation for his matches.

On Thursday, the noise inside a packed Lower Cape May Regional High School wrestling gym was so deafening, Attenborough said he could barely hear his playlist.

Attenborough didn’t need the music to perform, however, as the Middle Township sophomore secured one of the key victories to help lead the Panthers to the first sectional title in program history.

Middle, facing its biggest and longest-standing rival, won the South Jersey Group II championship by beating the defending champion Caper Tigers on Criteria F – the sixth tiebreaker – after the teams finished in a 33-33 tie in front of a sold-out raucous crowd of more than 700 people crammed into the small gym.

The win sends Middle to Friday evening’s state semifinal match at Rumson-Fair Haven. 

With Middle trailing 33-29 heading into the final bout, the Panthers’ Max Adelizzi executed a takedown with 22 seconds to go to bump his advantage high enough that it led to an eventual 14-6 major decision, giving Middle the four points needed to draw level.

“My assistant, Ryan Freyer, does a great job with that stuff and he came to me right before Max went out and said that all we needed was a major (decision) because he had the criteria figured out,” Middle Township coach Matt Wolf said.

Still, Middle had to wait more than five minutes for official word as the match officials sifted through the tie-breaking criteria procedures at the scorer’s table as everyone in the gym anxiously awaited the result. A winner was finally produced through Criteria F, which awards the team with the least amount of forfeits. Lower Cape May forfeited the 106-pound bout, while Middle Township sent out a wrestler in every weight class.

“We were confident waiting it out, because of what Freyer had figured out,” Wolf said. “But it was still very hard and very nerve-wracking to have to wait through that.”

Middle Township’s wrestlers, coaches and fans erupted in celebration when the public address announcer – who happened to be Wolf’s brother, Erich, an administrator at Lower Cape May – spoke the words declaring Middle the winner.

It’s the pinnacle of an arduous journey for Wolf and the program, which had never won a state playoff match until just last season and entered this season’s sectional tournament as a fifth seed. The Panthers defeated three higher-seeded teams en route to the championship. 

“I don’t know how much we were thinking about that because we said in the middle of the season we didn’t want to hear any more talk about rankings or seedings,” Wolf said. “It was all about focusing on the fundamentals and being the best wrestling team we could be and the kids bought into that. No one at the time complained about the seed we got. No matter where we were seeded, no matter where the matches were going to be held, we felt we had just had to show up and wrestle our best and we would be fine.”

Winning the South Jersey championship is a far cry from when Wolf’s first Middle team went just 5-20 during his first season as head coach 17 years ago.

“Our slogan is, those who remain will be champions, and that’s been since I took over as coach 17 years ago,” Wolf said. “Middle Township kids are great kids, tough kids, and I knew if we could just get them to stick it out and work hard and remain with us in the offseason and do all the right things that we could have a great team.”

Middle’s victory avenged a 37-32 defeat to the Caper Tigers earlier this season, as well as last season’s South Jersey playoff loss to Lower Cape May. In fact, Middle had not beaten its biggest rival since the 2018 season.

“This is all poetic to make it happen here with everything that’s gone on,” Wolf said. “They beat us earlier this year, they beat us in states last year and they’ve beaten us the last few years. This means everything to do it with this group of kids, because they’re such a great group of kids.”

The match was not without controversy. Attenborough’s 9-7 win over Lower’s Shane Morrell at 165 pounds included a long delay after the first period as the match officials dealt with inquiries from both coaching staffs. The issue at hand was that Attenborough was most definitely awarded three points – and perhaps as many as six points – after he executed a takedown just at or after the buzzer of the period, then was awarded three near-fall points well after the buzzer had sounded. The gymnasium was so loud that the match officials could not hear the buzzer. After much discussion, the points awarded stood, much to the chagrin of Lower Cape May’s coaches, wrestlers and fans .

In the next bout, Lower Cape May felt that its 175-pounder, Dave Douglass, had executed a pin after a takedown in overtime but Middle’s Noah Nagle was eventually able to wiggle out of trouble. Douglass and the Tigers had to settle for a 5-1, three-point sudden victory rather than a six-point pin. However, earlier in the match, Middle felt aggrieved after Nagle wasn’t awarded a takedown in the second period because the officials instead called for a restart after judging that the wrestlers were out of bounds.

Dontae Kelly won a crucial match for Middle. The 126-pounder eked out a 12-11 decision after losing to the same opponent in the dual match between the two teams earlier this season. A late reversal by Kelly led to his victory.

Other winners for Middle included Calvin Parke (106), Connor Rowlands (144), Shaun Watkins (215) and Maurice Matthews (Hwt.).

For Lower, Bryce Paley (113), Cade Heacoack (120), Billy Whitney (132), Chase Hansen (138), Danny Byrne (150) and Gabe Tosto (157) each won bouts.

The capacity crowd made for one of the most intense, spirited atmospheres in the history of Cape May County high school sports. Fans from each side came up with different chants to help motivate their respective school’s wrestlers during each bout. Those same fans also reacted wildly throughout to every takedown, escape, mat return, near-fall scenario, pin and referee’s decision. 

“Before the match, people started coming in at 6 o’clock (for a 7 p.m. start),” Wolf said. “It was sold out and there was a lot of electricity in the gym. I’m so happy for the kids on both sides to get to experience that and I’m very happy for our kids to get to experience a win in that kind of atmosphere. 

“It’s hard to put into words. It was just electric. Even when the teams were coming out of the locker room, everyone was either booing or cheering. This was like nothing I’ve ever felt and I’m sure it was the same way for the kids. And then it takes it to another level when it’s two local teams like this.”