Ridgewood Junior Wrestling

RJW hopes that everyone is enjoying the holiday season. As we head towards the end of 2013, we want to provide an update on recent team results and communicate important information for the coming weeks.

Tournament Highlights 

The season has already kicked off for our more experienced wrestlers and they are off to an excellent start. At the Montville Dual tournament on December 14/15, the dual team went 6-0 and took home the first ever championship trophy for Ridgewood. In the final match against Montville, the team was down 30-3 before storming back in dramatic fashion with six straight pins to regain momentum and win 52-39. This was a great team effort from our boys that resulted in a championship for Ridgewood!

That same weekend, several other Ridgewood Wrestlers competed in the Chatham Novice (N) and Open (O) tournaments. Gold medals were earned by Colin Feeney (N), Charlie Hannafy (N), Will Sofka (N) and Jack Sharma (O). Colin Roche (N) earned a silver medal while bronze medals went to Thomas Duetsch (N), Rob Tylenda (N), Jack Police (N), Hayden Rodgers (N), Yunte Trattner (O) and Coleman Clauss (O). Congratulations on a great effort to all the boys who participated in the tournament.

Last weekend our dual team competed in the Cutter Classic in Fair Lawn, NJ, a competitive tournament that featured 37 state medalists from last season. Ridgewood had its best finish in program history finishing 4th out of 20 teams. Nico Nardone won by technical fall or pin in each match on way to earning a gold medal and Travis Tavoso showed his outstanding wrestling ability by earning a sliver medal. Kieran Calvetti took third place and Patrick Collier finished fourth, while Reed Darienzo, Jimmy Probert and Tim Fyock also wrestled very well to finish in the top 6 of the tournament. Our boys did a great job in taking on some of the top talent in the state.

Upcoming Events 

A few reminders and announcements as we head towards year end:

Our next practice is on Thursday 2 January and it is a split session format (Grade 2-5: 6:30 – 7:45 and Grade 6-8: 7:45 – 9:15).

Our first league match is on Saturday 4 January at Saddle Brook. This event is for all wrestlers in the program and we are excited that our first year wrestlers will experience their first career wrestling match.

RJW Social 

We are pleased to announce the 1st annual RJW Social & Fundraising event will be held on Friday 17 January. This will be a nice opportunity to contribute to the program and learn more about the sport while also enjoying an informal evening out in Ridgewood. Please look for an invitation with additional information in the coming days.

We will have additional information regarding uniforms, our ‘healthy food’ initiative, volunteer needs, finalized tournament schedules and other information just after year-end. Until then have a Happy New Year and thank you for your effort and continued support!!!

-RJW

This week's practices

Monday: Young kids - 6:30pm to 8:00pm

Tuesday: Older kids - 7:15pm to 9:00pm

Thursday: Wade Schalles Clinic

• Young kids - 6:15 to 7:45
• Older kids - 7:45 to 9:15

Montville Tournament

This weekend our dual team will be competing in the Montville Tournament, which is held on Saturday and Sunday.  Coach Tavoso will discuss this with our eligible wrestlers at Tuesday's practice, and we may have wrestle-offs that night, as well.  Please speak to Coach Tavoso directly if you have questions.

 Chatham Tournament

 RJW will be entering both the Chatham Novice & Chatham Open tournaments which is scheduled for:

• Sunday 15 December
• Chatham High School * 255 Lafayette Avenue, Chatham, NJ 07928.

RJW will pay the entry fee for the following eligible wrestlers in each tournament:  

Novice Tournament

• Wrestlers with 1 or 2 years experience only that are ages 9-14 (age as of Dec 15, 2013).
• Please arrive at 11:15 am for a 12:00 start.
• Click Here for Novice Registration Form
• To enter the Novice tournament print and sign the registrion form and bring it to practice no later than Thursday, December 12

Open Tournament

• 8 Year old wrestlers with more than 1 year experience and all wrestlers aged 9-12 (ages as of Dec 15, 2013) with 3 or more years of wrestling experience.
• Please arrive at 1.15 pm for a 2 pm start.
• Click Here for Open Registration Form

Weigh-in & Singlets

•  We will conduct weigh-ins at our Thursday practice this week
• We will distribute singlets at the tournament

NOTES 

•  While RJW recommends participation for only the above eligible age groups and experience levels, any other wrestlers interested in participating should talk to Coach Sharma before or after practice or via email (rahuldsharma@yahoo.com).  
• Links to the registration forms are directly below and completed forms are due no later than at practice on Thursday 12 Dec. Please indicate ASAP if your child will be attending.
  
  
• This is an excellent opportunity for eligible (ie. based on above age & experience parameters) wrestlers and we would like to see all eligible wrestlers participate.

Please contact Coach Sharma with any questions you may have.

As you know, this season we will not be supplementing our wrestling schedule with Wednesday night workouts at Olympic Wrestling Club.  For those of you who would like to add an extra night or two of wrestling to your schedule, here is a list of some pretty good opportunities, with links to more information.

NOTE:  None of these clubs has any affiliation with Ridgewood Junior Wrestling, and we do not officially endorse any of them.   Also, most of these clubs will let you attend once at no charge to see how you like it.

Falcon Wrestling Club 
This club is run by the Westwood Junior Wrestling coach, in a room at Strive Fitness in Saddle Brook.  The sessions are Tuesday and Friday night, and they cater to kids who do not have a great deal of wrestling experience, for parents who do not want to spend a tremendous amount of money, and for those who only want to add one or two nights to their schedule.

Mat-Time Wrestling
This club is in Lodi, run by long-time local coach Frank Torres.  Similar to Falcon, Mat-Time usually has a pretty small group of kids, has a low-key atmosphere, and is good for the budget conscious.  Their sessions are Monday, Thursday, and Sunday.  A handy option is the $150 for ten sessions package, where you can attend whenever it's convenient for you. 

Olympic Wrestling Club
An intense club with lots of tough kids and sessions six days a week.  Florian runs a tough practice and emphasises athleticism and conditioning.  

Apex Wrestling - Mahwah
Another intense club with a lot of tough kids.  This club is popular with some of the top Ridgewood High School wrestlers.

Next Week's Practice Schedule

As mentioned earlier, we have conflicts with Gym 2 next week as the RHS football team prepares for their state sectional championship game.  Please review our schedule carefully:

Monday:

• 6:30pm to 7:45pm = Grades 2 through 5
• 7:45pm to 9:15pm = Grades 6 through 8

Tuesday:

• 5:15pm to 6:30pm = Gades 2 through 5

Thursday:

• 5:00pm to 6:30pm = Grades 6 through 8